Irina Azimova: «Our main task is to create a self-learning company»

At the end of 2021, the CEO of «Bavaria», Zelimkhan Bitarov, announced that a corporate university had been created in the company, which would raise training at the enterprise to a new level. Its director Irina Azimova told about what a corporate university is and what exactly it will do:

How did the idea of creating a Corporate University come about and what is its difference from a training center?

The idea of creating a Corporate University belongs to Vyacheslav Bitarov. He set the task of building a corporate training system a few years ago, and at the end of last year he suggested that I think about its implementation. And since I am from the education system, I was interested in the offer to participate in the creation of such a structure. The practice of organizing corporate universities came to us in the 2000s from the West. The main difference between a corporate university and a training center is that the management center trains and improves the qualifications of an employee, and a corporate university should ensure the proactive nature of training and work for the future - to give knowledge and competencies to employees taking into account the company's development strategy. We are convinced that specialists who are able to move digging forward do not come from outside, they need to be created inside the company. Our main task is to create a self-learning organization. At the same time, the corporate training system should correspond to the company's mission: "We are called to work, learn and develop in order to create and provide our customers with the best product. We are continuously improving.

What is a self-learning company?

A self-learning company provides continuous development, training, continuity of employee development, focus on development, training in the process of work, on-the-job constant transfer of knowledge between carriers of experience, innovation in the process, increasing product quality and service quality, as well as proactive attitude of employees. The more employees are self-motivated for training and development, the greater the effect of training.

Are there any educational programs that will be used for training?

The training center organized employee training both within the company and under contracts with consulting and other educational organizations. But the training materials themselves were neither systematized nor built into a complete program. Now we are actively engaged in this work. Elena Dzhelieva has already prepared a draft program for operators, and Anna Popova - for waiters. Moreover, these are not just training modules, but a full-fledged program that assumes a trajectory of development from an intern to a professional.

Who will study at a corporate university?

Our task is to ensure that all employees of the company are covered by internal training, regardless of the industry in which they work. Each direction has its own training – somewhere a full-fledged educational program, somewhere training modules. The most important thing is that the training should be targeted, so that the employee is not taught what he can do anyway, but given the really necessary knowledge. Here we assign a huge role to the diagnosis of occupational deficiencies. It is important to understand that diagnostics will be carried out not in order to convict employees of incompetence, but in order to understand what they lack and how we can help colleagues. And secondly, in order for training to be effective, it must be continuous and consistent, so that each subsequent training continues the previous one.

How will the training take place?

The forms of work will be completely different, but we consider on-the-job training to be the most effective. This will be our thing. After all, why do we have problems with vocational education in the republic? Students do not get the opportunity to practice. Of course, we will not do without theory either, but we will focus more on practice.

University teachers – who are they?

Internal training will be conducted by the company's employees.We really hope that our colleagues – managers and line specialists who are aces in their field - will treat this activity with understanding and will not perceive it as an additional burden. I believe that the process of knowledge transfer fills a person's life with a special meaning. The main pool of internal teachers are mentors, whom we will involve in the learning process at the workplace, as we are convinced that a lot depends on them. In the person of our colleagues, we hope to find like-minded people who will help not only newcomers, but also all those who want to grow, acquire new knowledge, move in positions vertically or horizontally, acquire new knowledge. Mentoring is not new for Bayern, there have always been employees who were trusted to train trainees. Now we will develop and build systematic work in this important direction. During the adaptation period, newcomers not only gain an understanding of specific technologies and specifics of work, but also an understanding of the mission and goals of the company, absorb the features of corporate culture, become part of the team. It is important not to miss this time.

I would like to emphasize that internal training is not aimed at obtaining certificates, but is part of the training and development strategy, focused on the development of new technologies and high-quality performance of work tasks.

Is learning a duty or a privilege that can be waived?

In some volumes, training is mandatory. If an employee does not have sufficient competencies, then he cannot be allowed to work. But if, for example, he has been working for several years, he has no marriage, and in general everything is fine, then it is still desirable to expand the circle of interests. It is important that a person wants to develop and does not think that he does not need anything else. While undergoing training, an employee must understand that knowledge is a value that will belong only to him and that no one can take away from him. And the more he works on his own development, the more opportunities he has for life maneuver, and we are ready to help him in this. The employees of our company are mostly young people. While we are young, we must absorb knowledge, and then use the accumulated baggage for our own good, to be the builder of our destiny.I hope our employees will think that way. I worked at Bayern 7 years ago, and since then the factory has changed a lot. Observing this development, we also need to develop and grow together with the company in order to match each other.

If the employee is not interested in his own development, no matter what we do, it will not make sense. Even a child cannot be forced to learn something that he is not interested in, and it is difficult for adults to motivate themselves to learn at all. I hope for frank feedback from our listeners, we want to understand how important, valuable and useful it is for them that we are doing to adjust our work.

By training employees, we train them not only for ourselves, but also for competitors, how to deal with this?

There's nothing you can do, everyone makes a choice for themselves, but if people leave us, it means we haven't finished with them. They were not involved, they were not allowed to feel like part of the team. The better we work at the internship stage, the fewer people will decide to leave the company. Relationships should be built only on mutual respect.Bayern gives its employees excellent working conditions, and we, its employees, must contribute to the development of the company with our work.

Won't training during working hours cost the company too much?

Frankly speaking, I am in favor of training events taking place on weekends, but since some employees work with overwork, we should give them the opportunity to rest. Training in restaurants can take place in the morning, while there are no guests. And production can be engaged on Thursdays on a sanitary day.When making a schedule, we coordinate it with managers by date, time and place so that it does not negatively affect the workflow.

Why is learning important for the employee himself?

Training helps an employee to reveal his hidden professional capabilities, strengthens his self-confidence. In addition, the constant training of colleagues brings up internal responsibility for the processes in the company and motivation to increase productivity. In the course of professional development, a search for new ideas takes place, a creative approach is cultivated, attempts appear to look at situations differently. Such an employee is interested in working. It's so important to get satisfaction from your work.

Bayern really values its employees. The management is ready to invest in them and give them access to training. Only one thing is required from employees – the desire to learn, grow and develop. We are lucky to work in a company that gives its employees so many opportunities. Let's not miss them!