Lex Vehicle Leasing celebrates NVQ success

Lex Vehicle Leasing is celebrating the success of its ongoing National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) programme. Now in its fourth year, the NVQ programme has awarded more than 40 Lex team members with nationally recognized qualifications in customer service and management.

The programme provides a stepping stone for ambitious employees looking to make swift progress up the career ladder. With new students nominated through the company’s appraisal system, the latest NVQ group consists of two students working towards management level 4 and a further seven soon to be awarded certificates in customer service.

Delivered by Training Alternatives, a national provider of NVQ training, the tailor-made programme provides on-the-job training that has long-term benefits for the company and participating staff. Employees benefit from the increased confidence and self-motivation gained through a programme centred on individual needs and training requirements. Employers benefit from a workforce skilled in managing customer relationships, working autonomously and making a positive contribution to the company’s ongoing success and development.

Benchmarked against national standards, the latest nine NVQ participants have all received regular coaching and assessment by Training Alternatives mentors,identifying weaknesses and building on strengths. NVQs are not about training or learning what you should do, but about doing things for real. For that reason,learning centers on the workplace, with participants taking an active role in the pace and direction of their own vocational training.

Students on the nine-month management course will be expected to demonstrate and provide evidence of their ability to implement a high level of performance management for their teams. For students taking the six-month customer-service route, evidence will need to show a measurable improvement in their area of work, as well as their ability to coach and mentor another member of the team.

Lex’s commitment to training was bolstered in 2003, when the company unveiled the Lex Academy. Acting as a performance-management and reward system,the academy enables employees to demonstrate and improve their capabilities against the key competencies for their role. With evidence from the NVQ now linked directly to the Lex Academy, anyone undergoing the NVQ programme has a significant start when evidence of skill development is needed.

Sarah Hill, of Training Alternatives, commented: “People are more motivated in their jobs if they have a sense of responsibility and feel good about themselves. Lex has worked very hard to put in place a programme that does just that. We are proud to be a part of it.”

Ana Gomez, Lex customer-service leader for corporate sales, is one of the participants studying management. She said: “The NVQ has been a big help to me and certainly came at a great time. It gave me the opportunity to aim higher and push for goals that I thought were out my reach. I am now much more focused and confident in dealing with the issues I would previously have shied away from. The NVQ has given my career the boost it needed.”