Depot manager training launched for bus & coach industry
The TAS Partnership is again breaking new ground by introducing a qualification, to foster the talent of depot and middle managers in the bus and coach industry, to CILT’s training portfolio.
This is the second of three courses which TAS is devising. The first, Level 3 Certificate in Road Passenger First Line Management, is aimed at developing drivers and technicians to become supervisors and junior leaders, and was launched in 2015.
The new, follow-on Level 5 Certificate in Road Passenger Transport Management provides the opportunity for depot managers or supervisor/junior leaders aspiring to be depot managers to illustrate and take their knowledge and abilities to the next level. Modules will cover managing services and customer standards, people, finance, and managing a depot’s resources - culminating in exams and assignments.
The manager course will form a stepping stone to the third-tier certificate for senior managers and directors, which is currently in the pipeline and to be launched next year.
“Depot and middle managers are a vital part of the bus and coach industry and there has been precious little recognition of their talents up to now,” said Andrew Guest of TAS, who is developing and leading the courses.
“This new certificate fills that void and will provide clear acknowledgement of their abilities and reward their hard work. It builds on the success so far of the Level 3 supervisor course which has attracted glowing endorsements from UK Bus MDs of two of the big PLCs,” added Andrew, who draws on almost 50 years of experience in the industry.
“At the heart of the suite of industry-specific qualifications lie staff development, fostering a new generation of managers and future-proofing skills and knowledge for the bus and coach sector - a step-change which TAS is proud to take forward with the CILT.”
Austin Birks, chair of the CILT Bus & Coach Forum, commented: “The Bus and Coach Forum is delighted at the excellent progress that the TAS Partnership has made with creating and delivering these long overdue qualifications. We look forward to working with them to help develop the next generation of bus and coach industry leaders.”
TAS will provide a four-day residential course to prepare students for the certificate, the first one expected to run in November.