Rio Tinto Services contracted ABEX Training Group to provide Certificate III (IT Software Applications) training to a number of corporate staff in Melbourne.

The training is progressing well and employees are working extremely well with the training staff from ABEX. I am particularly pleased with the promptness and enthusiasm of the trainers and the regular feedback provided to me on the progress of our trainees through the course." Human Resource Manager Rio Tinto  

Certificate III Wholesale (Merchandising) "Thought I would give you some feedback on the session we did with Serge and Julie yesterday. I found it to be very interesting and helpful. Two specific things that I used today were: - increased the amount of detail in my notes and other information entered my PDA, so that anyone could follow on from me if required. We did some work on the importance of databases. - Researching and only talking about what it is that our customer needs. I had a great day today with some successful negotiations for lent off locations.  As they said from the start, a lot of the course content we already know and use, but I think they were quite in tune to the areas that were specific to our daily tasks. Thank-you for the opportunity to complete this Certificate.

I have just completed a Certificate III in Wholesale Operations with ABEX which was undertaken with ABEX on a monthly basis. I would like to commend the trainer on his professionalism and his ability to teach us by taking our everyday situations and making us understand the importance of customer service, setting and maintaining company standards which in turn creates sales. The whole experience has been both enjoyable and informative and if companies or individuals are considering doing a course with ABEX. I would highly recommend ABEX Training Group.

Interview with Eachan Fraser, Warehouse & Customer Service Supervisor from McCormick Foods Australia (April 2009). What made you decide to look at providing training for your employees? ""to broaden their skills and make the employees better assets to McCormick's by increasing their cross functionality, and also for their professional development and to increase their self-worth"". What improvements in your business did you want to see? ""a broader skills range, higher moral and a greater knowledge of the business"". "" better products and an environmental focus on production using tools such as LEAN manufacturing concepts"". What new staff abilities / qualities did you want to see? ""Indirectly from the course - the self-worth, showing that you (as a company) care and instilling a care factor in staff, pride in their work and themselves, broadens the business knowledge and business sense"". Why did you choose ABEX to provide training? ""Initially our Human Resources department chose ABEX to deliver Warehousing certificate. We chose to continue to use ABEX to deliver training after this, as felt they offered a great service. Another key factor was the feedback. Students gave excellent feedback and feedback that the students had on company policies was relayed back to management"". How was your experience of ABEX's training? ""The training was engaging, structured. There were good time frames. The trainers were both totally focussed and committed"". What sort of improvements did you see during and after training? ""Increased knowledge, better attitude, business respect, we've been able to restructure processes to improve efficiencies, better feedback from staff when changes occur in the workplace - has opened up communication lines"".

I wish to congratulate the training team at ABEX Training Group for the well run and interesting, Certificate III course you ran for my Sales Team last year. (Wholesale Operations) The training was provided by Ross Miller who kept my team engaged throughout the course, provided them with some useful tools and ensured that they met and passed all of the requirements. Next year I will also be approaching Abex to provide my new staff with some similar based training. Well done.

I wanted to convey to you some points relative to ABEX Training Group’s course. Whilst I did not attend the training conducted in every state, I attended the NSW training session and your trainer, Rex Buckingham was excellent. Rex, being of the more mature person, certainly had a way with putting the merchandisers at ease. In this way, Rex was able to have the team open up and interact when feedback and/or comments were requested. This prompted an environment whereby, the individual merchandisers then felt comfortable in contributing to the session with constructive interaction.  The merchandisers also did not hold back in conveying the problems they encountered in dealing with various younger grocery managers, and eventually received some feedback from Rex on how to deal with these sticky situations. The team found the session “light-hearted” in that there were no “heavy” methods and techniques taught, rather simple, easy to formulate and use when in stores.  The session gave the team the confidence to go and gain “over and above” display opportunities, and the numbers on our reports indicate this. This can only mean that that a certain level of confidence was gained from it. From an organisation / logistic perspective, Julianne Miller, was great in keeping in touch and arranging the training sessions with your trainers, my state managers and of course myself. She took of as much of the work I had to do and basically handled everything. Then of course, all this eventuated from the initial meeting you and I had where you detailed the whole program to me. At the end of the day, the merchandisers are casual employees who are usually there to perform a “police-type” role for the business, so the program, overall, gave them the added confidence to go “and ask”, and interact, and negotiate on better terms. All the best to you and your team at Abex.

I have spoken to our staff about the course structure, sessions outline, content and facilitator delivery. They have enjoyed and learnt from the Wholesale Operations Cert III content and remarked on your obvious ability to get the message across. The course was relaxed, well delivered and interactive in feedback and the staff were high in praise of the ABEX Training Group Cert III Wholesale Operations learning content. From a Company perspective and in my capacity as General Manager/Sales I feel the knowledge and skills you have facilitated to our staff will enable them to build on efficiencies and allow them to draw on the Certificate III content to enhance their roles in the organization and build on valuable national qualifications for future positions. As you know I am about to complete my Certificate IV in Training and Assessment and from a personal point of view I would like to congratulate you on your grasp of the Principals of Adult Learning.  Well done and many thanks.

Yarra Trams has enjoyed a successful relationship with ABEX Training Group for well over a year. During this time Yarra Trams has found ABEX to be an extremely reputable and professional organisation. In particular, ABEX has been helpful with paperwork, quick to respond to queries and has ensured that all training has been carried out in a smooth manner using quality resources. All ABEX Trainers have been extremely reliable and professional, and in particular, Yarra Trams has appreciated their flexibility in fitting in with staff workloads and leave requirements. Yarra Trams highly commends ABEX on its performance.

I would like to say a special thanks to ABEX Training Group and your trainer Ross Miller, for the course content and dedication from Ross in helping me complete this course at home. We had a few changes within our company, however Ross's wealth of knowledge, encouragement and guidance enabled me to complete the courses successfully. Hopefully making a difference to myself, the company and those around me I work with.

"We have been dealing with Serge and his wonderful team at Abex training for a little over a year. They have made the entire training process straightforward and streamlined it without any interruptions of complications. Abex are always punctual, responsive and committed. I have no hesitation in recommending Abex as a training organisation."

Just over a year ago we commenced a Certificate III Wholesale Operations course run by ABEX Training. It was our first real venture into long term certificate training for the office staff. We couldn’t be more pleased with the results and knowledge gained from the course. Those we trained were long time employees with a wealth of knowledge; however they all felt they learnt new skills during the sessions which can easily translate to their work practices. Ross Miller must be congratulated on his training style which is professional while still being relaxed, informative and interactive. He was very flexible in working in with our deadlines and schedules. I would definitely recommend ABEX Training and Ross Miller to any prospective companies looking for quality training.

Training for 30+ staff at Nilsen (Vic) in Certificate III in Process Manufacturing, Certificate IV Competitive Manufacturing, and Certificate IV Business Administration. Nilsen engaged ABEX to provide Certificate 3 and Certificate 4 training in Process Manufacturing, Competitive Manufacturing and Business Administration. We investigated a number of RTO's and found ABEX offered best package for our business. It was important for us to have trainers who could understand our business and work with our people to develop their skills and knowledge. Both your trainers, Roger and Brian exceeded our expectations.

To whom it may concern, NOV Mono Pumps is the larget progressive cavity pump manufacture in the world with turnover of $150m USD. We are owned by the interantional company; NOV with a turnover of $15b USD. We pride ourselves on quality solutions to the pumping and filtration markets. ABEX Training offered Mono Pumps the opportunity to conduct a Diploma of Frontline Management and a workplace Certificate 3 in Wholesale Operations with 4 of the Victorian Sales staff. Our acceptance of these causes was due to the reputation of ABEX structured training modules, the testing and monitoring of the course and reputation of ABEX training staff. Over the past 12 months, Mono has worked with Mr. Ross Miller whose professionalism coupled with his vast experience and business acumen, has helped guide our sales team to a better understanding of the best practices for successful selling and area management. It is without hesitation that I would recommend Ross Miller and ABEX Training Group.

Training for 8 employees in Certificate IV Business Administration between 2010 and 2011.

Dear Serge, I just wanted to take the time to sincerely thank you for your approach to the training course that, with your assistance, we have just completed. I point out that whilst courses are designed within guidelines, and to appeal to a majority, our particular workplace varies quite signficantly from the 'standard'. I trust that this is not uncommon and is something that you deal with on a regular basis. I just wanted to acknowledge that it was solely your expertise, and also your personal approach, that allowed the material to be made relevant to us and the core lessons to be conveyed in a useable way. I also acknowledge that this was probably made further challenging by the fact that our group was not at a consistent level of knowledge prior to the commencement of the course, nor even from a consistent role. The success of the course can be attributed purely to the personable approach that you exude and your ability to relate to all of the people in the classroom, their diverse interpretations and varying questions. In short, the learning experience was clearly enhanced by your expertise. You made the course, not only a success, but also enjoyable. Thank you again.

"Rex Buckingham carried out a series of training sessions with the John Sands NSW Sales Team covering Certificate 3 in Wholesale Operations. It was a pleasure to attend and participate in these sessions while Rex presented with a relaxed but informative approach. Rex was able to bring everyday situations into the training, thus making it clear to understand and grasp. On many occasions we were reminded about the basics of selling and how times have changed from the manual paper trails to computer and phone technologies. Rex has a way of presenting which brings the whole group into one, making all attendees participate no matter at which level of selling they maybe; his approach motivates all and leaves them feeling that they can achieve change by being proactive rather than waiting on someone else. For anyone considering Rex Buckingham as a trainer or consultant within their business I would highly recommend him."

Training for 90 Customer Service and Account Management staff in Warehouse, Frontline Management and Wholesale.

On the competition of training the management staff were asked to report on their training experience.

Course Highlights

“Opportunity to spend time together and explore differing techniques”

“Interactive – everyone had the chance to offer their opinion and experience”

“We were all grateful for the opportunity to participate”

“I found this course to be of benefit to me in my operations as a territory manager for Boomaroo Nurseries”

The Internet and E-Commerce

“We were shown the potential of websites for e-business into the future”

 “We see the potential for our customers to place feedback/complaints etc via our website”

 “We were shown the possibilities of using the internet and email to reduce administration costs”

“Further into the future we will research how our customers can place orders directly onto our system online”

Supply Chain Management

“I learnt of the importance of stock takes as a tool to control stock levels and avoid waste and shortages”

“It is vitally important for the efficient operation of a business to maintain strong supplier relationships”

“Establishing a dedicated call cycle, weekly contact with our customers via phone, email etc, joining industry bodies and forums”

“It is important because if not done correctly it can lead to financial losses..”

“This dealt with developing and maintaining good administration practices..”

Marketing

“We were shown the importance of developing marketing plans and strategies”

“We learnt how to develop sales budgets to help us plan for an manage future sales/production peaks and troughs”

“We now use SWOT analysis to assist in our marketing plans and evaluations, along with expanding our use of Outlook, to help manage our call cycles, store our data base information, and as a permanent record our customer visits”

“Improving the advertising of specials.. placing vacant employment positions on the website”

Customer Service

“Peoples tendency to buy will be affected by how we view them”

“Having a good rapport with customers gives the business a good name”

 

Customer Relationship Management

“Importance of building up friendships with existing and potential customers”

“We learnt it is imperative that businesses need to maintain a constant and effective line of communication with our customers”

”The importance of relationships in sales – it is much easier to sell to customers you know than it is to cold sell”

Sales

 “A benefit to our sales effort”

“It highlighted several different types of sales approaches to be taken according to what our potential customer is wanting”

“The need to correctly read where our potential customer is at as far as closing or securing a new sale”

“The importance of knowing where the market is at and the need to read direction in the market so as to be confident in what is being presented to our customer”

“The absolute importance of understanding the product we are selling as thoroughly as possible”

“The absolute need to set goals and be able to measure progress in those directions”

“The importance of feedback and the follow through on this”

“The networking advantages gained through contacts made during the course of performing our task”

“The importance of clear, concise and accurate communication in all areas of sales”

“The importance of maintaining the trust and confidence of our customers as well as team mates”

“The importance of maintaining integrity respect and empathy in our sales relationships”

“Above all for myself, I found the lean management section to be of the greatest value in so far as being organized personally; the need to best use time in the areas of greatest priority. The need to best use my time during the day to its best advantage to reduce the amount of time spent at night. The need to reduce clutter and be organized in all areas”

“In sales, time is both our best friend and worst enemy”

“A major benefit to come from this course would be to implement a ‘Mentor and Accountability’ program amongst the sales team”

“Greater understanding of the requirements to be a successful salesman”

“Prepare for each call – have a message and a reason for the call”

“Opportunity for the sales members to get to know each other on a personal level and a greater understanding of each others roles and experience..”

“Probably the greatest reinforcement I received from doing this course was the need for structure within my sales role”

“This has changed my approach making me more aware of the need to have what people require”

“Preparation was mentioned a number of times.  It is essential.. This was important in all areas in accomplishing the requirements of a salesman”

Feedback on the trainer’s delivery

“Bought his extensive experience at Safeway to the training”

“Very enthusiastic approach”

“Had the ability to make the topics relevant to our business”

Management and Staff Boomaroo Nurseries

Training for 88 staff at Assa Abloy over 2 shifts, in Certificate III in Process Manufacturing I am writing to congratulate ABEX Training Group on conducting a very professional course for our company. The Certificate III Process Manufacturing (LEAN) course has been of great benefit to Assa Abloy as it has improved morale and work attitude around the site. The time taken to participate in the monthly training has been agreeable with our production schedules and has improved efficiency by promoting lean manufacturing principles amongst our staff and encouraging PRIDE to be taken in employees roles. The 5S housekeeping has been a great help in keeping our assembly lines in a neat and tidy manner. The trainer allocated to training our staff was friendly, likeable and professional and always worked around tight schedules within production. I would have no hesitation in using ABEX Training Group in the future or recommending them to others.

"I have just completed Certificate III in Wholesale Operations through ABEX with Ross Miller.  I would just like to take this opportunity in thanking Ross Miller and the ABEX Institute for the wonderful coaching and very informative course. In particular Ross Miller's very professional manner.  Ross ensured that the group sessions were very relaxed and informal and therefore it was very easy to become interested.  We enjoyed the course more than we initially thought and learned a great deal. Once again thanks!"

I just found your business card and I wanted to send you a note to express how much I enjoyed the Certificate III Wholesale training we had with you in February. I really enjoyed the way you ran the course and your passtion and professionalism was infectious. I certainly learnt a lot and I have been trying to apply some of the techniques to my current role everyday. I think your job would be very exciting and rewarding and it clearly shows how much you enjoy it.