The 11 Pathway Program participants from Intake 17 who reached assessment level have successfully graduated.

Final assessments for the cohort – which included optometrists, optical dispensers and store managers – were held last month across Victoria, South Australia and New South Wales.

As part of the assessment, each Pathway participant was required to demonstrate their learnings and leadership skills by delivering a presentation on a project they had undertaken in-store over the course of the seven-month development and leadership program.

The in-store project is designed to give Pathway candidates an opportunity to consolidate and practically apply their learnings from the program to drive performance in a Specsavers business. As part of the project requisite, each participant is required to consider the key elements of the program – the culture of the store, the leadership that they will exercise, and key financial indicators that will measure success.

Further to the project presentation, the final assessment involved submission of a project report, an exercise testing financial awareness, a SWOT analysis on a business case study, and a demonstration of how the candidate would handle a difficult conversation.

The project presentations and accompanying assessment material were evaluated by the Pathway Program faculty in conjunction with members of the Specsavers Retail Support, Partner Recruitment, and Learning and Development teams to gauge each candidate’s suitability for joint venture partnership.

In addition to attaining new leadership and business skills that they can utilise in their respective stores, the Pathway graduates are now prepared to own their own practice, and will be considered for future Specsavers joint venture partnership opportunities.

The Pathway Program is a structured leadership and development program that is open to all experienced Specsavers and non-Specsavers optometrists, optical dispensers and retail managers interested in realising their ambition of practice ownership.

For a confidential discussion about the program, contact Kimberley Hannan on 0429 566 846 or at kimberley.hannan@specsavers.com or visit pathwayanz.com