The document outlines the training program for Celebration! Cinema. It aims to develop employees from the start through standards for hiring, training, promotions and development. The goal is to train employees to provide excellent customer service, solve problems independently, and develop leadership skills to become trainers, managers and leaders within the company. The training program is run by a Director of Training and uses methods like manuals, role-playing, games, quizzes and discussions to train employees. It also emphasizes employee empowerment and gives trainers tasks ("monkeys") to complete to help develop their skills. Promotions have timelines and requirements to ensure proper training before advancing roles.

1. Celebration! Training 1
Celebration! Cinema
Training Program
Kalee Stegehuis and Kelly Meyer

2. Celebration! Training 2
Training Program Purpose
In 2013, Celebration! Cinema put forth efforts to improve its existing
training goals. In the process, exciting new ideas were tested and
approved based on successful performances.
With the original intention of developing standards for first shift training
guidelines, the training program developed standards for company hiring,
scheduling, training, promotions, and overall employee development. The
program’s primary focus is a bottom and up development. The belief is
that starting with new employees, training them to adapt the high
standards of customer service, the ability to recognize and solve problems
on their own, and to identify personal leadership abilities will ultimately
lead to successful trainers, directors, managers, and even corporate
decision-makers. The purpose is to benefit the company by producing
more skilled leaders, but also, more importantly, to encourage the
individual to achieve higher goals and become successful in their
continued personal and professional careers.
Training Program Objective
A trainer is an empowered and knowledgeable Celebration! employee.
He or she is to be one of the first coworker interactions with new hires as
well as provide friendly and engaging introductions to employees of new
work areas. They introduce all employees to Celebration! standards and
style, all with a flair of their own. The goal of the trainer is to provide a solid
understanding for self-sufficiency of all cast members during their shifts. To
do so, trainers are expected to become capable of proper form in each
work area and be well balanced in service and maintaining clean and
efficient systems. They give Celebrated! treatment to new hires as well as
encourage leadership among the cast members. They have integrity to
follow the examples they set for others, and they continuously mentor and
work on the personal development of fellow staff members as well as
each other.

3. Celebration! Training 3
Methods
Supervision (pg. 4)
Training Manuals and Passports (pg. 4)
Employee Empowerment (pg. 5)
Role-Plays (pg. 5)
Games (pg. 6)
Quizzes (pg. 6)
Self-Evaluation (pg. 6)
Discussion (pg. 7)
Monkeys (pg. 7)
Incentives (pg. 8)
Timeline (pg. 8)

4. Celebration! Training 4
Supervision
The Training Program is run and coordinated by the Director of Training
and Development. This position is a preferred management position. This
position belongs to a self-directed individual with excellent organization
skills. He or she is responsible for providing positive feedback as well as
constructive criticism to all employees. The responsibilities of the Director
of Training and Development include updating and writing new materials
for the training program as new knowledge and procedures arise. He or
she assists with scheduling for fair training practices as well as participates
in hiring processes to select self-motivated and enthusiastic individuals. He
or she directs the trainers and directors in their personal progress as well as
oversees that all training of new employees follows standards. As
employees are promoted through the ranks, they are given more freedom
to initiate their own learning. However, the trainer position, which is the
first offered promotion, is under constant supervision of the Director of
Training and Development.
Training Manuals and Passports
The manual is a detailed guide of all Celebration! Cinema practices,
policies, and procedures. They are listed in detail to ensure each new hire
is given accurate and complete information. The passports are
condensed versions of the manuals in which the trainee is responsible for
and must check off the areas in which he or she is already
knowledgeable. The manuals and passports provide tangible evidence of
Celebration! Cinema standards as well as a guide to gauge training
effectiveness and progress. Each trainer is provided his or her own manual
and is expected to use it for the first through fourth training shifts.

5. Celebration! Training 5
Employee Empowerment
Employee empowerment is stressed from a new hire’s first day and
throughout his or her career with Celebration! Cinema. Empowering
employees to make decisions to new problems is intended to boost
employee moral as well as encourage staff to come up with creative
solutions. In the busy atmosphere of the cinema, management does not
always have the ability to address problems quickly. Empowering
employees to address problems with a solution improves the guest
experience since they are not made to feel like a burden to the
employee while they wait for the manager to arrive. While it is guaranteed
not all employee decisions will be the best, most profitable, or most
logistically sound, they are encouraged to try and to trust their instincts.
They are allowed, and even encouraged to make mistakes, in order to
better themselves as leaders and decision-makers in new settings.
Management can always fix a mistake, but young professionals may not
always get the opportunity to make them. Celebration! Cinema ensures
they feel comfortable in their environment and do not fear risking a small
loss for a new learning experience.
Role-Plays
Using role-plays to stimulate some of the various encounters staff may,
and most likely will encounter, has proved a great learning tool. Whether
it is a new hire or a current employee learning a new area, role-plays
allow the trainee to assess situations without the pressure of a normal
business day. They are given the opportunity to act out the transaction
and get critical feedback on their reaction to a problem or new concept.
Acting out role-plays gives trainees an idea of what to expect in their new
role. It also eases them to understand that they have experience with the
common positive and negative interactions that occur on a day-to-day
basis. Role-plays are used for each aspect of training – guest concerns,
employee empowerment, emergency situations, frequently asked
questions, and demonstrations.

6. Celebration! Training 6
Games
Celebration! Cinema uses games such as concession Bingo and energy
checks. Each game employs a different concept that is important to the
particular work environment. In concessions, upselling and suggestive
selling is expected in each transaction. Therefore, playing Bingo
introduces the new concept in a fun way and helps remind trainees to
pay attention to the subject. Games help trainees understand their own
progress with an idea they may have initially struggled with. They also give
trainers the opportunity to reward trainees for doing good work and
making progress in their training.
Quizzes
While giving a trainee a quiz when they learn a new area may seem
daunting, it is an excellent source for the trainer and the director of
training and development to understand how well the trainee
understands the concept. It is important that trainees are never chastised
for not knowing an answer or able to perform a demonstration. The quiz
gives trainers an idea of where to continue their training and what the
trainee fully grasps on his or her own.
Self-Evaluation
Self-evaluation forms consist of a ranking system in which employees of
each area – cast member, trainer, and director, give honest feedback on
their own performance for the day. They are asked to rate their
enthusiasm, their completion of tasks, and the number of extra miles they
were able to perform for guests. They give sincere thought to their
performance and share with the immediate supervisor. Self-evaluation
forms are given out to staff at various intervals to assess employee overall
health with the company and his or her progress when given
improvements.

7. Celebration! Training 7
Discussion
Communication is key when it comes to overseeing the development of
an entire staff. Trainers are expected to write detailed emails on training
sessions, while directors and managers are expected to write shift details
each day. In addition to writing emails, Facebook has proved an effective
communication tool for the training team as a way to streamline
discussions without the hassle of email. All employees attend weekly Time
Out meetings to discuss company changes, promotions, and goal checks.
In addition to this, trainers attend bi-weekly meetings to discuss successes
and failures with their own training techniques, the progress of new hires,
and to discuss new ideas. All positive remarks are shared and praised,
while improvements are discussed with honesty and action plans set in
place. Trainers are taught communication etiquette and are encouraged
to share consistent updates in order to improve their own success within
the company as well as provide that all needs are addressed in a timely
manner.
Monkeys
Using the ‘monkey on your back’ idea, trainers are given tasks, otherwise
referred to as ‘monkeys’ in which they need to complete in a certain time
frame. They are assigned the first task by the Director of Training and
Development and volunteer for tasks from then on. Trainers generally
have one monkey at any given time, although complexity of the monkeys
varies. Trainers have used monkeys to explore their talents, whether
creative, organizational, or logistical. Trainers have proven they are
capable of greatly improving areas of work, employee morale, and
changing procedures for the better. In the past they have created
materials that have benefited the company circuit-wide such as
emergency situation guides and health and nutrition information for
concessions. The monkeys are designed to help trainers recognize that
they have valuable input in the workplace as well as train them on the
necessity of establishing their skills within the work place. In some cases,
trainers have led projects that put them in favorable positions for
promotion.

8. Celebration! Training 8
Incentives
In addition to monkeys, incentives will take place at random. The
incentives are designed to engage the trainers and directors in new tasks,
skills, or projects. Incentives are put in place when a new concept needs
to be taught, when one or more of the team is struggling with a concept,
or simply to re-energize the program. Incentives are often fun and
competitive. Past incentives include racing to complete monkeys,
rewards for posting positive encouragements, or bonuses for attending
additional meetings.
Timeline
In order to keep consistent with training practices, timelines for training
and promotions were established. The timeline for trainers ensures that
new hires and trainees get four shifts scheduled with a trainer and these
shifts must include one opening shift and two closing shifts. Through the
eighth shift, trainees are under careful watch of the director, and by the
twelfth shift the trainee should have passed the quiz and is ready to go on
his or her own.
A timeline for promotions was also established. While promotions are given
based on performance, some standards were set in place to prevent
premature promotions. Trainers must have had a minimum of four training
shifts in each area before being considered for promotion, eight shifts in
two of the areas and four in the third is preferred. Monkeys are also noted
in the tracker and are considered for promotions. Monkeys cannot be
done in place of the minimum four shifts in each area, but can be
substituted for training shifts beyond the initial ones needed, depending
on the complexity of the monkey.