NETA Corporate Alliance Partners (CAPs) are industry-leading companies that have joined forces with NETA to work together toward a common aim: improving quality, safety, and electrical system reliability.
In this ongoing NETA World series, we focus on the thought leadership behind these successful companies. This issue’s CAP Spotlight features an interview with Greg Richmond, Director of Training Operations at AVO Training Institute. As a NETA Corporate Alliance Partner, AVO is approved to offer NETA Continuing Technical Development (CTD) credits.
Since 1963 (60-plus years), AVO Training has remained a global leader in safety and maintenance training for the electrical industry by delivering engaging, hands-on experience in a professional, real-world environment. They now offer 13 electrical certification programs from locations throughout the United States as well as internationally.
AVO’s mission is to provide industry-relevant courses in a practical and flexible learning environment through an ongoing commitment to quality service, integrity, instruction, and client satisfaction.
Greg Richmond manages all of AVO’s operations from instructor arrangements and curriculum development to logistics within the operations and learning management teams. He also manages P&L statements, GPM improvement plans, and material and overhead costs. Most importantly, he says, “I maintain and develop existing and new customer relationships to increase revenue and improve the overall customer experience.”
Here, Richmond shares his thoughts about what’s coming in 2025.
NW: What is the biggest challenge facing AVO as we enter 2025?
Richmond: Currently, our operations team’s greatest challenge is hiring competent instructors. The proverbial bar is set extremely high for the depth of field knowledge balanced with the ability to be resilient to changes in training. It is extremely important for our instructors to understand that they are the face of AVO — and in most cases, the instructor is the only AVO face students see. From the sales perspective, we are challenged to ensure that our customers understand the requirements behind equipment maintenance and safety training. The industry standards are always transforming and changing, and our clients must be kept up to date on this information.
NW: What are the biggest challenges facing your customers?
Richmond: Without polling our customers to see what their real challenges are, from this point of view, there is always a struggle with deciding between in-person virtual training and classroom/hands-on experience. If you were to ask any of our students which they prefer, hands-on training wins all the time. However, a company’s leadership must balance outages, shift changes, seasons, and training budgets to determine the best route. Our in-person virtual courses are the best in the market, and we pride ourselves on finding instructors who have a passion for their field.
NW: Which industry trends are you keeping an eye on?
Richmond: Renewables training is a trend that AVO is capitalizing on right now. As a training company, it’s important to identify customer needs and find ways to provide a training service to meet those needs. Our current core courses can be used to train technicians from any facet of the industry, and we use feedback from our current students and custom courses to see what gains interest when a needs assessment for newer courses comes online. Within the world of training, it is critical to understand that maintenance and safety training is more than just reading the manual or relying on old methodologies to train and re-train new and existing employees. Diving deep into the fundamentals of what happens inside equipment and understanding the dynamics of what, why, and how we test must be understood, along with knowing how to interpret results.
NW: What new technologies are changing the way you work?
Richmond: Automation has been a key tool in our internal processes at AVO. This allows our teams to become more efficient with employee communication and customer relationships. AVO uses artificial intelligence (AI) for its CORE and custom course development as a tool to assist the instructional design team, keeping in mind that our SMEs play a critical role in ensuring that the material is properly vetted for clarity and accuracy. In 2025, our teams will also adopt a new digital media training technique to enhance the customer experience. This program, along with 3D and 4D animations, will enhance the customer’s experience and bring a new element of learning to the classroom.
NW: Is this a good time to be in the electrical power testing business?
Richmond: Absolutely! With population growth, infrastructure must grow as well, and when infrastructure grows, maintenance programs need to be planned. Electrical power testing and maintenance is a key element for longevity within electrical components. I cannot stress the need for training enough, and understanding correct testing methods and why they are important is critical to staying in line with industry leaders like NETA.
NW: If you could change one thing about how your business operates, what would it be?
Richmond: Good question! If there were one element I would change, it would be that all of our brothers and sisters who perform this type of work in any form understand the importance of arc flash and electrical shock safety training. We have all heard the statement, “ALL safety standards are written in blood.” Unfortunately, this is true.
NW: What advice do you have for young people entering the field?
Richmond: The work we do isn’t easy at all. Late nights and weekend/holiday work will always be there, and unfortunately, the power doesn’t go out on bluebird days. However, the work we do is important, and sometimes thankless.
Guidance for up-and-comers in this field is simple:
- Don’t take shortcuts.
- Electrically test, inspect, store, and care for all your PPE.
- Learn as much as you can in this field.
- Stay mentally and physically sober.
- Understand that electricity doesn’t care who you are, how long you have been in the field, or how much you think you know. Its design is to return to its source with the least path of resistance. Don’t be part of that path!
- Finally – Complacency KILLS.
NW: How important is mentoring in the electrical testing field?
Richmond: Mentoring is a critical element of the work we do. However, the correct type of mentoring is even more important. Training new technicians in the correct methods of working around electricity — whether testing, installing, troubleshooting, or performing maintenance — can create a paradigm shift for the future of workers in our field. It is imperative to accept that industry leaders have established acceptance, commissioning, and maintenance standards for our workers to follow. Using crusty old methodologies of “this is the way we have always done it” isn’t always the correct way. Throughout our work-life in our career field, we must always be on the hunt for ways to make our jobs safer and create more qualified/competent workers. Mentoring our employees is important, but empowering the correct mentor is equally important.