S&C Electric Company

“S&C's training programs help us be more competitive. Our employees have greater knowledge and better skills, resulting in higher quality work and increased productivity. Employees who are in the “continuous improvement” mode are more receptive to change and can be agents of change. And, through training and education, they can expect new career paths, promotions and increased compensation. All of this means employees feel better about themselves, their jobs, their company and its customers. Everybody wins.”
- John W. Estey, President & CEO

S&C Electric Company is a well established, privately held, mid-sized manufacturing and services company, specializing in electric power switching and protection products for large power consumers and electric utilities located across the US and worldwide.

With a diverse staff of 1,700 people employed at S&C’s Chicago headquarters, including employees from 70 different nations, S&C’s commitment to education and training began over 40 years ago in response to a shortage of skilled machinists and other workers. Created as part of a larger vision to ensure the company would retain its highly skilled and specialized workforce, today S&C sponsors a rich mix of in-house customized technical training programs, external degree and certificate programs, basic skills remediation courses and career development workshops.

S&C’s technical training programs for production employees are a good example of the company’s approach to career development. All the programs lead to certification exams, administered by the company. Certification leads to promotions and pay increases. Key to the success of S&C’s technical training is the use of employees as trainers rather than external providers. By using select employees as instructors, the company is more able to customize the curriculum, focus on real business needs and engage the employees. Employees, as students, respond better to their internal peers and view them as role models.

The company tracks productivity, quality and other data such as safety and retention rates, which have been shown to be positively influenced by S&C’s leadership, vision and commitment to training.

Click here to view full case study. The information presented here was assembled in 2002. This does not necessarily represent the current status of S&C Electric Company.