LEAD Awards 2018: Interview with La June Davis-Wiley, Academy of General Dentistry

“When an Academy Creates an Academy”

  Category: Best Customer Service Leadership Training Program
  LEAD AWARD RANK: 10
 
  Organization: Academy of General Dentistry
  Program: The Academy@theAcademy
  Program Director: La June Davis-Wiley 
  Visit: www.agd.org
 

“When an Academy Creates an Academy”

 
Our editorial team interviewed La June Davis-Wiley from Academy of General Dentistry at the LEAD2018 Awards this past February. Here are some excerpts from the exclusive interview.
 
What is the overall objective of your program?
The Academy@theAcademy is a dual-track in-house professional development certificate program. The Academy of General Dentistry (AGD) places a high priority on professional development. To that end, the Academy@theAcademy provides a convenient on-site opportunity for staff to participate in personal and professional growth activities.
 

Track one focuses on the development of staff and addresses best practices in customer service. Over the course of the year, staff attend three targeted sessions to earn a certificate at the end.
 
Track two focuses on leadership development. This three-session track provides training and coaching for all AGD management team members.  Over the course of the year, managers and directors learn best practices for leadership development and methods for developing their personal leadership skill.
 
Who do you impact with your program?
All employees of the Academy of General Dentistry are impacted by the program. This is another employee benefit and it is convenient for staff to attend.  Our customers; Board members, association members, vendors and internal customers all benefit from the skills and training that are gained through the certificate program.
 
What are the lessons you’ve learned this year from facilitating your program?
Since the program began a year ago, there have been many observations. I’ve noticed greater participation in certain sessions. There has been a positive response to individualized coaching sessions and tremendous growth and interest in being involved in the program.
 
How do you measure the return on investment and success of the program?
The success of the program is measured in how the culture changes and in how jobs are performed more effectively. Success is measured on a day-to-day basis in how customers respond to interactions and the positive feedback that accompanies their experiences. We offer evaluations of each session that are reviewed and considered for upcoming sessions.
 
What lies ahead for the program and how will it continue to succeed?
An exciting year of training and coaching is being developed that will provide interactive, thought provoking and engaging sessions that everyone will want to be a part of. This year we will address a few of the “hot button” issues.
 
I would love to see a “graduation” at the end of the program to recognize all of our participants for their dedication.
 
The program will continue to succeed by creating and maintaining a level of excitement, staying relevant and offering content that answers the needs of staff and our customers.
 

 

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