Specsavers Australia & New Zealand’s (ANZ) CREATE development program has won its second award this year, claiming the AITD Excellence Award for Best Talent Development Program.
The Australian Institute of Training and Development’s (AITD) Excellence Awards recognise outstanding achievement in learning and development and organisational development. Specsavers’ CREATE was named the winner of the Best Talent Development Program Award category on Friday, 17 November 2017 at the AITD National Training Excellence Awards Gala Dinner held in Sydney. Other category finalists included the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, Cbus, and Finsure Finance and Insurance.
CREATE, which began rolling out across Specsavers ANZ stores from March 2017, was fully developed and designed by the Specsavers ANZ Retail Training & Development (T&D) team to equip store leaders and teams with the capability and tools to consistently create exceptional customer experiences.
“Customers already loved our service and value but our research showed there was some untapped potential in the kinds of experiences we were delivering in-store,” explained Danny Ginsberg, Specsavers’ Head of Training – Retail Asia Pacific. “We were meeting customer expectations but what we wanted was to exceed them.”
CREATE revolves around six key capabilities – Coach, Relate, Enquire, Adapt, Teach and Engage – that are designed to help all Specsavers team members fully engage and better serve each person that visits their store. This is achieved by gaining a clear understanding of the customer or patient’s wants and needs, then explaining and thoroughly educating them on the products and options available to meet those needs – all while adapting the communication approach to the individual.
“CREATE has delivered customer, team and organisational benefits beyond what was initially expected,” Danny said. “More than a development program, CREATE represents a cultural shift across the Specsavers network, transforming each store and clinic interaction into an opportunity to create an exceptional, personalised experience for our customers.”
The AITD award win comes only months after the Specsavers ANZ Retail Training & Development (T&D) team accepted another award for CREATE – the 2017 Platinum LearnX Impact Award for the Best Training and Capability Development Program category – and joins a growing list of accolades that Specsavers has been awarded since launching in the local market in 2007.
