Building Workplace Supervisor Skills at Hexo Corp

In today’s manufacturing landscape, effective supervision, collaboration, and cooperation skills are essential for success in any industry or department. After COVID-19 regulations prevented workers from congregating in person, though, the leaders and employees of Hexo Corp., an Ottawa-based cannabis manufacturer, found developing these capabilities to be a significant challenge. To improve their labour base’s collaborative aptitudes and develop a strong, mutually-beneficial workplace culture, Hexo Corp. took part in Manufacturing Essentials Certification training — EMC’s range of instructional courses aimed at building the skills of manufacturing leaders. During their time in the MEC program, a diverse variety of Hexo Corp.’s employees were able to gain vital knowledge on modern leadership practices, reinforce bonds with co-workers, and solve a range of common workplace problems.

Workplace cooperation is one of the central elements of MEC training, and was a major aspect of Hexo Corp.’s experience in the program. Over a period of eight weeks, course participants formed several distinct groups to determine solutions for various manufacturing challenges and implemented their solutions in their workplaces. Throughout these problem-solving processes, participants completed a number of collaborative tasks, providing ample opportunity to strengthen their collective coordination, organization, and project management abilities. Frequent visual presentations and regular online exercises kept each member of these groups involved, engaged, and accountable, and by the program’s end, many workers reported an increased sense of comfort and confidence in their day-to-day activities. Participants also were given the time, knowledge, and resources needed to ideate, develop, and implement their solutions, which wouldn’t have been possible without MEC’s specialized training curriculum.

“MEC training offered a fantastic opportunity for our workers to develop their leadership and collaboration skills. The fundamental workplace knowledge that our employees gained during the program will be invaluable throughout their manufacturing careers. I was delighted to see how many of the program’s participants gained a sense of confidence and eagerness throughout their training.” — James McDonnell, Operations Manager at Hexo Corp.

At the end of their training, each participant team delivered a presentation on their efforts throughout the course to an audience of their peers and leaders. In addition to showcasing the teams’ collective abilities to benefit their organizations, these presentations served as a final challenge for participants to overcome using their individual communication and public speaking strengths. Once these presentations concluded, many participants were surprised and elated at how far their correspondence skills had come throughout their MEC training, and understood the impact that their words and actions could have on co-workers and their organization’s culture. Each of the presentations received rave reviews from Hexo Corp.’s upper management and course facilitators, and, once the final team had displayed their solution, it was clear to all participants that the course had been a resounding success.

The skills, knowledge, and experience gained by Hexo Corp.’s employees during their MEC training will serve as critical assets to their organization and themselves as manufacturing professionals. Through these workers’ efforts, the company is now well-equipped to overcome several workplace challenges of varying complexity and impact, and can develop their own training and mentorship initiatives. Moving forward, Hexo Corp. has the operational awareness needed to expand effectively and compete in a national manufacturing marketplace. The company’s success in the program represents only some of the value offered by Manufacturing Essentials Certification — how will your organization benefit from it?

“I walked away today feeling a little more confident with public speaking. I was glad to be part of my team!” — MEC Participant

“At first, I was nervous to present, but I feel amazing now. We should have presentations every month!” — MEC Participant

“I’m so happy that people are talking about my project. It’s been so important to me and my department. This was an amazing experience!” — MEC Participant

To learn more about EMC’s Manufacturing Essential Certification training in New Brunswick, contact Joan Richard or Sherri Deveau.