Newark, DE. – Center for Growing Talent by PMA has announced the newest addition to a suite of development opportunities for produce and floral industry young professionals. The new offering is a 12-month online certificate program focused on Management Fundamentals for Young Professionals developed in partnership with The University of Arizona’s Eller Executive Education program. The certificate, sponsored by Oppy, is the first step for young professionals in the industry to build essential management knowledge and skills to advance their careers in the produce and floral industries.
The new online certificate program, Management Fundamentals for Young Professionals, joins a suite of career development offerings for industry professionals at the onset of their careers in produce and floral. The other programs include the monthly Listen, Learn Connect virtual networking series and the Emerging Leaders Program (ELP), a year-long program designed for high-potential talent from all segments of the supply chain. The new certificate program is designed in partnership with the University of Arizona, Eller Executive Education program–the same partners that designed the Emerging Leaders Program—and applies years of fresh produce and floral industry-specific knowledge, resources and leadership to enhance the member experience.
“Center for Growing Talent is committed to being the talent solution for the fresh produce and floral industries,” said Doug Bohr, Center for Growing Talent executive director. “Our professional development portfolio of in-person and online programs offers member companies and industry professionals alike across the supply chain a choice of complementary training opportunities that fit their unique needs and budgets. Young Professionals are the future of our industry. This certificate program affords them the opportunity to develop fundamental management skills and business acumen that will serve them and our member companies well throughout their careers.”
Registration is open for the 12-month certificate course, with 3 individual courses (called sub-units) released each quarter. Upon completion of these sub-units, young professionals will receive electronic badges and a certificate will be issued once the entire program is completed. Registration is ongoing, and individuals can sign up at any time to take the courses at their own pace. The courses are led by highly ranked academics and subject matter experts and include a combination for on-demand content and real-time interactions.
The program is designed to serve individuals and teams of people from across the full fresh produce and floral supply chain, who are in the early stages of their fresh produce and floral careers and looking to build essential leadership, management and financial skills. It is a perfect precursor to the Emerging Leaders Program. Programs like ELP and the new certificate course are possible not only because of the investment companies make in their teams by supporting their participation but also in contributions and sponsorships from partner companies like lead sponsor Oppy.
“We’re honored to partner with CGT for this exciting new program,” said Vice President of Talent and Culture for Oppy, Satri Alpine. “Given Oppy’s involvement with the Center for Growing Talent since the very beginning and how much it’s benefited our own teammates over the years, we’re thrilled to sponsor this initiative and continue our support of talent in produce. We believe it is vital to the industry to invest in professional growth at any stage of someone’s career, but especially when folks are just starting out. That’s why this program of developing emerging professionals is so close to the heart of Oppy.”
For those interested in learning more about the certificate program or to register themselves or members of their team, the program is listed in the Fresh Ed Academy suite of courses.
Registration is also open for the Emerging Leaders Program which will be held in person in December 2021 at the University of Arizona as well as the Listen, Learn, Connect virtual series for Young Professionals.
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About Center for Growing Talent
Center for Growing Talent (CGT) was created by the produce and floral industry to grow the people across our industry. We help attract, develop and retain the talent needed to feed our industry’s growth, including educational programming and networking events. We offer a variety of industry-specific solutions across the career continuum, for university students, young professionals, women, emerging leaders, mid-level individuals and senior executives. For more information, visit CenterforGrowingTalent.org.
