Roskam Foods applied for financial support through the Going Pro Talent Fund to create new training initiatives. They were assisted by West Michigan Works! Business Solutions Representative Carol Distel throughout the application process and together established how to best use of training funds to support Roskam Foods’ training and professional development goals.
Founded in 1923 and headquartered in Grand Rapids, Roskam Foods is a world-class food production company with eight facilities throughout the U.S. and Canada. They employ 1,882 workers in Michigan alone, partnering with multinational corporations like Kellogg’s, General Mills and Frito-Lay to produce frozen and ready-to-eat products.
The company was informed in July of 2023 that they were awarded $126,460 to support these efforts. Roskam Foods knew this money would allow them to establish a new industrial maintenance apprenticeship program, a significant step towards improving production and employee satisfaction.
“Through a fact-finding meeting with Roskam Foods, we decided to focus on training new hires, incorporating a management course with emphasis on collaboration, building trust and empowerment through technical college level courses tailored for their maintenance apprentice employees,” Carol said.
Satisfaction was certainly the case for Mike, the first employee to take advantage of the new apprenticeship program. This training allowed Mike to become a journeyman in industrial maintenance, earn an immediate pay increase of $5.50 per hour and have a more successful career in Roskam’s maintenance department. This training also allowed him the opportunity to work on a cracker line in Spain on behalf of a Roskam customer.
“The success for employers like Roskam lies not only in applying for training opportunities but the follow-through and ensuring that they make the time for employees to attend,” Carol stated. “Roskam exemplifies this commitment by actively facilitating employee participation in training to upskill their staff.”
Roskam Foods’ Going Pro Talent Fund award also allowed frontline supervisors to earn college credits in a management certificate. Ten of these supervisors are now prepared to advance into a manager role and will have a lasting impact on their employees through more effective management.
“Roskam truly appreciates the Going Pro Talent fund as it helps support training initiatives that would otherwise not be possible,” said Roskam Foods’ Director of People Operations Julie Ohlendorf. “Without grant funding for training, we would not be able to have a Department of Labor apprenticeship program or send our leaders for training that is for the betterment of all.”
Thanks to the Going Pro Talent Fund and assistance from West Michigan Works!, Roskam Foods was able to simultaneously uplift its employees while improving their operations, honing their business efforts to cut downtime and increase output.
