Every month, CEO/General Manager Tony Mallory has a message for our members in Your Co-op Connection in Rural Missouri.

August 2024

Successful co-ops invest in employees

     When I went to school, personal computers were not a thing. The internet hadn’t been invented yet. The only mobile phones anyone had were heavy things with huge antennas. Landlines, telephone phone books and card catalogs at the public library were all still widely in use.
     To some, this may make me sound like a dinosaur. But I suspect many of you can relate. 
How often have you looked around and said to yourself, “Wow! Things have really changed!”?
     I know I have. It makes me grateful for the education I received at the University of Missouri that enables me to adapt and grow. Also, I’m thankful for the co-op’s management and board that invested in my development in the electric co-op industry more than a decade ago. I’m convinced that the specialized programs I attended equipped me with the knowledge and networking connections that have honed my leadership skills and benefited the membership.
     My experience proves the adage that success in management requires learning as fast as the world is changing. Today, that change is happening faster than ever.
     That’s why I believe in offering our employees opportunities to learn and grow in their careers of service to our membership. I think of this not as a cost but as an investment in the future of our cooperative.
     Of course, we focus first on job training. We want our employees to feel confident in their tasks and duties. We want them to be able to safely and efficiently use all the technology and tools that are made available for them. All this is so that we all can provide the best possible service for our members. 
     However, professional development is more than just task training. We must also support efforts to develop leadership and other so-called soft skills. Continuing professional education is designed to foster greater understanding of rapidly changing industry issues. This will help future leaders anticipate opportunities and threats. It also will enable employees to design and deliver programs and services that lead to continuous improvement for the co-op.
     What does professional development actually look like?
     At Crawford Electric, it takes many forms. We encourage “knowledge share” from seasoned employees and seek to promote from within whenever possible. We enable mentor relationships with content-area experts from across the U.S. We send employees to conferences and specialized courses, many of which are offered through our statewide or national trade organizations. We encourage professional certifications. We support participation in professional organizations. We cost share with employees who seek post-secondary degrees.
     These efforts have brought value to the co-op and our membership. A few examples: 

• Our right-of-way manager is a professional forester and certified utility specialist. He recently has accepted a leadership role in a statewide forestry association. Relationships forged there have helped smooth the way on several of our local ROW projects. 
• Recent award-winning efforts from our communications team demonstrate industry-leading abilities to engage with members and successfully tell the co-op story. That team is led by an MU journalism school graduate who also holds a specialized certification as a cooperative communicator.
• Our new executive assistant completed her bachelor’s degree while working at the co-op in the payroll department.
• Our newest graduate of our industry’s Management Internship Program was originally hired while he was still completing his bachelor’s degree in engineering. 

     A wise man once said that an investment in knowledge pays the best interest. Our members benefit from that investment.