Online Course Testimonials

"The way it works is an administrator loads the elements of a workplace or food safety program into the system," says Brian Nodwell, creator of the program and CEO of SafetySync. "The administrator then assigns these elements to the various positions in the company. The employee is then prompted to take training lessons, challenge quizzes, read policies, view video procedures, submit completed records, and so on. Meanwhile, the system tracks their progress all the way to full compliance."

Nodwell says the system, sponsored by the Alberta Government and Growing Forward 2, can help reduce costs of workplace accidents and injuries and thereby improve profitability and competitiveness. With so much positive feedback there is no doubt that the new Online Food Safety and Workplace Health and Safety Management System is already helping food processors across Alberta bring in a new era of workplace safety.

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Joan Fiddler, human resources manager at Lassonde Industries - a company that develops, manufactures and markets a wide range of fruit and vegetable juices and drinks, and specialty food products, has only just started to implement the system but is already seeing huge potential.

  • "I love it. Its ease of use and versatility has made my job a lot easier to manage, track and ensure that health and safety is being understood by and communicated to our employees," she says. "It has been very beneficial to our company in that we can track individual employee health and safety knowledge and give extra training and care when needed."

Fiddler also loves the fact that she can personalize the system by position in the plant or by department and focus on the individual needs of an employee. They can also have contractors sign in at their site before coming to the processing plant, to read their company policies and health and safety procedures and let them know before hand what is expected of them.

  • "We can also easily go into the system and see who has had training, who needs what training and who needs a refresher," Fiddler says. "In short, we can prove our health and safety due diligence to the various auditors that frequent our plant."

Fiddler says this new system is not comparable to any other program she has used in the past. Since it is all-inclusive and versatile, the system has replaced their very cumbersome and expensive, continuously out-dated videos, PowerPoint presentations and a whole lot of paper.

  • "The system has everything I need as an HR manager/safety coordinator to manage and track our company health and safety records and it's at my fingertips," says Fiddler. "It is stored online and in one place so there is little or no need for a paper trail. It is cost-effective and you can sign on and do your training and refreshers anytime, anywhere."

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These sentiments are echoed by Joy Wico who is the quality assurance manager at Bassano Growers Ltd. in Calgary, a company that provides fresh, wholesome prepared fruits to customers in Alberta and Calgary. The Online Food Safety and Workplace Health and Safety Management System has been a tremendous help to her.

  • "I used to spend hours preparing slideshows and handouts but since this system has been launched, it has given me the opportunity to conduct training more efficiently. I just need to choose the best lesson to use for specific training, plug the computer into a projector and let the virtual instructor do the talking," Wico says.

Wico has observed an increased awareness and compliance of Bassano's employees in both food safety and workplace health and safety.

  • "I can't forget the experience with our forklift drivers when we had training and a quiz. I told them we needed to continue later on that day but they didn't want it to end. Seeing our employees enjoy training sessions is a great breakthrough," says Wico. "More interaction and improved communication also stem from having these training sessions."

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Diana Genchev is the quality assurance supervisor at the Lucerne Bread Plant (a division of Safeway) in Calgary. They have only been using the system for about a month but they have already gotten very positive feedback from both employees and staff.

  • "Everyone likes it," says Genchev. "It provides training for everyone, from front line workers to people in administration and management. It's very versatile and allows you to organize your time."

Genchev says the program is particularly helpful for people with hearing or language issues. The videos are very interactive and have a lot of images which are perfect for people with hearing loss or English as their second language.