Case Study | Panasonic UK

Panasonic UK is one of the leading suppliers of consumer and business related electronics products in the country. With a head office in Bracknell, Berkshire and dealerships and stores throughout the UK and Ireland, Panasonic employs more than 500 staff and has an annual turnover in excess of £700m.

The company's elite retail channel - shop@Panasonic - consists of individually and privately owned dealerships that specialise in the exclusive retailing of Panasonic products. People working in these showrooms must have extensive knowledge of the company's latest product range, as well as excellent sales and customer service skills.

With further plans to increase the number of shop@Panasonic outlets, the company has invested heavily in ensuring that their independent retailers have the skills needed to meet the demands of the job.

Last year they launched a pilot NVQ programme for 16 candidates and contracted national training provider TTC Training to oversee the project. TTC staff assessed the candidates' work and sat on a steering group responsible for drawing up a new Apprentice framework in Sales. Once approved, the qualification will be offered to Panasonic dealers.

TTC training has also accessed funding from the National Contracting Service to cover the costs for delivering the NVQ framework and have contacted Panasonic's dealers directly to gauge the level of interest in the NVQ and to promote the benefits of gaining a nationally recognised qualification.

Panasonic's General Manager for Sales Support, John Dixon, said: "By offering NVQs exclusively to the shop@Panasonic dealers' we are giving them the opportunity to address their training needs and help them to improve performance," he said.

"The assistance offered to us by training advisers and assessors from TTC has been invaluable. Their expertise in managing complete training packages ensured that candidates taking part in the pilot NVQ programme completed it successfully. TTC Regional Manager, Julie Smith, had a direct input in preparing the new NVQ framework, incorporating Panasonic's existing training into the qualification and their input has given added value to the training systems we already have in place."

For further details of NVQs in Sales contact Julie Smith on 07812 209 565.