Russell Associates has 30 plus years of experience helping companies prepare for the unexpected. Competitive pressures, government regulations, technology shifts, market changes, raw material shortages and tight margins are all pressures that companies deal with on a daily basis. At Russell Associates, we believe the success or failure of a company is not determined as much by what happens….but by how the corporation responds. We can all think of companies that responded well to a crisis and ones that did not. What differentiates companies that deal successfully with the pressures of business and an unexpected crisis from those that do not? http://wabobablog.com/wp-content/themes/waboba3charlie/professional-essay-writers.html At Russell Associates, we believe a company that has the organizational depth and talent to respond….with speed….is much more likely to succeed in today’s challenging economic environment. Much of what happens to a company is out of their control. What is in their control is that they have made strategic investments in their most important resource….their employees…..so they are ready and able to deal with any situation that arises. Successful Employees result in… Regulatory Compliance + Increased Productivity + Increased Safety + Improved Efficiencies + Increased Profitability = Successful Businesses. It all adds up!

Last April’s tragic explosion of a West, Texas fertilizer plant brought safe handling and storage of chemicals into the National media spotlight. After hearing of the devastating incident, many companies were motivated to review and discuss their safe handling and chemical storage practices. How is your company preparing to comply with and document newly developed regulatory standards? “It is apparent that there will be ever increasing scrutiny by agencies regulating safe production and storage of chemicals. Documentation of compliance to company  SOP’s related to the Process Safety Management Standard using internal inspections, observations, and audits will be essential if not critical to compliance.” – Jerry Van Oort Russell Associates is a training, testing, inspections and related management software systems company that works side by side with our clients to develop tools that effectively and efficiently help you do business better. Visit us at intRAtrain.com or call 507-665-6266. nn1

Retaining and growing the best employees has always been a goal of successful companies.  In 2011, Forbes developed a list of 10 ways to motivate and retain the best people.  http://www.forbes.com/sites/aileron/2011/09/20/motivating-and-retaining-the-best-employees/ These are still valid in 2012.  Employees are looking for opportunities to be challenged and build a career that they enjoy.   One way to retain employees is by helping them grow and expand skills through personal and professional development.  Russell Associates‘ new product, TotalTrain™ Blended Learning Solutions (TTBLS) can help employees reach higher and achieve more. RSVP for a TTBLS Product Showcase at any of the 4 locations listed below.  See, learn and experience this six-phase approach to learning.    La Crosse, WI- November 15 Mankato, MN- November 16 Bloomington, MN- November 19 Rochester, MN- November 20   For more information and to RSVP for a free workshop, visit www.intratrain.com/ttbls or call 1-800-593-6266.  

Did you know it is estimated that by 2020, approximately 50% of the workforce will be Generation Y (1976-1991) workers?  Soon this generation will be managing companies now led by baby boomers.  The Generation Y employees work and learn differently.  How are you preparing to train these upcoming leaders?     Russell Associates will be showcasing our new product TotalTrain™ Blended Learning Solutions (TTBLS).  This product is designed to help bring learners to performance mastery faster and more effectively than traditional training systems.  Pre-Register today for a TTBLS Product Showcase at any of the 4 locations listed below La Crosse, WI- November 15 Mankato, MN- November 16 Bloomington, MN- November 19 Rochester, MN- November 20   For more information and to RSVP for the free workshop, visit www.intratrain.com/ttbls or call 1-800-593-6266.  

Did you know that about 78 million “Baby Boomers” were born between 1946 and 1964?  Every day 10,000 of these boomers turn 50.  The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that over 23% of the workforce in 2018 will be baby boomers.  Is your company prepared for their retirement? Do the next generation of workers still need to be trained? Russell Associates has introduced TotalTrain™ Blended Learning Solutions.  It can help you train both today’s and tomorrow’s leaders.  Experience this 6-phase performance system that brings learners to performance mastery faster and with greater retention than traditional training methods.    We will be offering a free product showcase demonstrating this new and exciting product.  Pre-Register today for a TTBLS Product Showcase at any of the 4 locations listed below La Crosse, WI- November 15 Mankato, MN- November 16 Bloomington, MN- November 19 Rochester, MN- November 20   For more information and to RSVP for the free workshop, visit www.intratrain.com/ttbls or call 1-800-593-6266.  

Your employees have completed all the necessary steps to complete training, including the pre- and post-assessment, eCourses, live workshops, and have been coaching along the way for additional reinforcement; but what should you do to insist the training is transferred to employee performance? ASTD’s T+D Magazine provided 3 helpful tips for training professionals to ensure their employee’s performance is reached!  http://www.astd.org/Publications/Magazines/TD/TD-Archive/2012/08/Intelligence-3-Ways-to-Help-Employees-Practice-What-Theyve-Learned Russell Associates’ newest service, TotalTrain™ Blended Learning Solutions (TTBLS) is a proven six-phase system that enhances your employee’s performance. TTBLS is distinct in how it applies blended learning to enhance your training Return on Investment (ROI). It maximizes individual learning preferences so participants learn more, faster, and have the greatest likelihood of embracing desired and successful behaviors. So, you might ask, ‘How does it do that?’ Click here to learn more about the Performance Breakthrough Model which is a unique approach utilized within TTBLS! Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4  

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE To meet the growing need to conduct efficient & effective employee training, while providing producers the means to properly document and easily retrieve compliance records, Russell Associates unveils its newest service: iMPACT:  intRAtrain™ Management Platform for Animal Caretaker Training Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE This year, at the World Pork Expo 212, Russell Associates is giving a presentation, “The Urgency of Training, Testing and Documentation in Today’s Environment.” We’ll cover the importance of not just training but also documenting competencies — including innovative, easy-to-use platforms to make it happen. Given the environment surrounding pork production these days, we’ve found that training employees and documenting competency is more essential than ever! Meeting and Additional Info: • Date: Thursday, June 7th • Time: 2:30 PM • Place: Upper West Room, Varied Industries Building • Topic: The Urgency of Training, Testing, and Documentation in the Pork Industry – Including How to Get it Done. Please respond by filling out the RSVP Form with the provided link so we can hold a seat for you.

Russell Associates will be hosting a series of informational showcases about TotalTrain™ Blended Learning Solutions (TTBLS).  For companies concerned how they will effect continued positive behavior change while retaining their best employees, training the next generation of leaders and preparing for the retirement of today’s leaders, TTBLS is the performance breakthrough model to follow! TTBLS uses a blended approach to learning that incorporates pre- and post-assessment to ensure participants learned the critical and need-to-know information; performance contracting that sets desired behavior change; eLearning that maximizes knowledge transfer; live learning that optimizes skill development; and reinforcement/virtual coaching that ensures ongoing focus and extends the behavior and performance change process . “I am excited to demonstrate to businesses how TTBLS can help them develop their employees and leaders using a new and unique approach.  TTBLS allows employees to achieve more and faster while focusing on key business principles that make companies stronger,” states Jerry Van Oort, CEO of Russell Associates.   This series of showcase demonstrations will be held in La Crosse, WI; Mankato, MN; Bloomington, MN and Rochester MN from November 15 through November 20.  Pre-register today for a TTBLS Product Showcase at www.intratrain.com/ttbls or by calling 1-800-593-6266.  Come – learn how TTBLS can help increase the ROI on a company’s training investment.  Russell Associates is an industry leader in developing and delivering products and services to train today’s employees to be tomorrow’s leaders.   Using technology, Russell Associates develops solutions that improve effectiveness and efficiencies, reduce cost, and improve ROI from training and testing.

Have you read the article below? The findings of this article and research are getting the attention of the media and consumers.  What do you think?  http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-11/food-sickens-millions-as-industry-paid-inspectors-find-it-safe.html Not sure where to begin?  Give Russell Associates a call.  Together we will review your current approach to food safety and then we will work to reduce your food safety regulation exposure.  

Most of us can count on two hands how many exciting and engaging workshop sessions we have participated in. In the training and development profession, we want to help you with the challenges of leading dull workshop sessions. This is a great article which provides a four-pronged approach to follow when leading a session! http://www.trainingmag.com/content/last-word-less-teaching%E2%80%A6more-learning Our newest addition to the TotalTrain™ family is TotalTrain™ Blended Learning Solutions, or TTBLS is what we like to refer it to. This unique system combines: pre and post test assessments, performance contracting, eLearning courses, live workshops, and coaching to ensure ongoing focus and extends the performance change process.