Air Products: Learning Outcomes for First-Time Managers

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Air Products has worked behind the scenes to power companies in the manufacturing, healthcare, energy and technology industries. While Air Products' corporate headquarters is located in Allentown, PA, its 18,500 employees are located all over the world.

The Challenge
“Air Products’ fragmented learning groups had been in three silos that focused on their regional or country responsibilities, clients and their challenges,” says Rebecca Bechtel, manager of People’s College. “We had a one-size fits all program for managers regardless of their daily activities or area of expertise. We know that people who become first time managers have a high potential for failure because they don’t transition from the skills that made them a great individual contributor–usually technical–to the skills that make great managers–usually more interpersonal.

We needed to create a successful training program that would bring management skills directly into the working environment. Cornell University’s reputation as an educational leader prompted me to examine eCornell’s professional and executive development courses in action. I was impressed.”

The Solution
“Our partners at eCornell helped us define course selections that would enhance and reinforce the learning from a five-day orientation program and craft custom curricula to specifically address a diverse audience.”

“eCornell translated those competencies into learning outcomes and mapped the outcomes to courses within the eCornell catalog,” remembers Betchel. “They developed course sequence, time frame to complete the series, and enhanced the online component with targeted opportunities for face-to-face collaboration. eCornell tailored curriculum to supply employees with skills to fit the professional goals of Air Products managers.”