Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 18th April 2024 Issue no. 1110

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Katrin Academy - stepping stones to success

Metsa Tissue tells us it is very pleased to be celebrating a significant milestone next month. No - it's not Katrin's birthday...... (although next year, Katrin will be 40 years young...). It is the first anniversary of the introduction of the Katrin Academy training programme by the Finnish manufacturer.

The Katrin Academy was established in the UK in March 2012, in conjunction with Metsa Tissue's move to its new offices at Walton-on-Thames. Aimed at those selling washroom products and those involved in Facilities Management and/or contract cleaning, the objective of the new programme was to provide an intensive day of immersive Katrin training for small groups of people.

The proposed programme included the chance to understand the industry history, to look at today's product sets and to look forward to the innovation of the future. The content was designed to be very practical, memorable and fun - and along the way, attendees absorb lots of facts, figures and product detail as well as having the chance to practice using this information in a live, but non-customer environment.

"Within our company, there is an enormous amount of knowledge which evolves with each working day that we are immersed in the world of tissue," says Jo Long, Account Manager and Katrin Academy Manager at Metsa Tissue. "It is important to ensure that our customers are always immersed in the same level of information - this is what initiated the Katrin Academy and this is what drives it to continually evolve."

Through 2012, there were more than 20 Katrin Academy sessions, with more than 100 attendees. The programme can be used either for initial training for those new to the industry, a Katrin education for those who have never worked with the product set before or a general update for those who already have Katrin experience. The sessions are continually updated, in line with new products, market circumstances and upcoming product sets.

"Feedback from customers has been extremely positive" says Mark Dewick, Sales Director, UK & Ireland. "We have been able to educate and motivate both existing and new distributors and even the most experienced distributors have said how valuable they feel taking the time out of the general day-to-day activities in order to revisit, learn and look forward".

The Academy features a series of challenges, which are scored with prizes for each Academy and a 'best in class for the year' prize. This year, two members of staff from Bowak, Reading, (a distributor of Katrin paper products, as well as a comprehensive range of cleaning, hygiene and catering supplies), jointly won the annual prize and each won £250 in retail vouchers.

The lucky winners from Bowak felt that the day was enormous fun, but both commented on the fact that the information was packaged up in little modules, so it was easy to navigate and follow. Most importantly, they both came away motivated to lead with Katrin and felt much more confident as industry experts.

The Katrin Academy runs at least monthly, and 2013 will see the addition of new product modules which can be taken individually, as well as the introduction of an approved certification process. If you feel like you or your customers might benefit from the Katrin Academy, contact the company at:

Picture shows: Abbotts of Cornwall & Mayflower Washroom Solutions attending a recent Katrin Academy

T: 0845 601 8266
E: [email protected]

28th February 2013