From 4 to 6 June, Specsavers welcomed its 25th intake of participants to Pathway, Specsavers’ joint venture partner development program.
Over the three days, they were inducted into the program, learning more about Specsavers’ culture and brand while also completing the first of four modules. This initial module focussed on self-leadership, helping participants to identify and understand their own leadership styles and preferences.
As part of Pathway, participants lead a project in-store, which allows them to apply and practise the skills they have learned on the program. To prepare them for this, the first module included a robust session on leading change that provided them with ways to effectively plan their change efforts.
The induction also included a welcome dinner, where the cohort had a chance to mingle and socialise with fellow participants, as well as with the Pathway faculty.
Over the coming months, participants from the 25th intake will complete three further modules – Leading Others and their Teams, Leading Commercially, and Leading Great Customer Experiences. The four modules will conclude with a presentation skills workshop and a final assessment, where the participants will demonstrate the knowledge they have gained by presenting their in-store project and its results to key Specsavers Support team members.
Pathway is an intensive six-month program that prepares experienced Specsavers optometrists, optical dispensers and retail managers for practice ownership. The structured program adds critical business management and development skills to the candidates’ existing clinical, dispensing or retail skills, setting up the future store-owners for success.
While the Pathway program was developed by Specsavers UK and introduced to Specsavers Australia & New Zealand in December 2012, it has continued to grow and evolve to adapt to the local market and meet the needs of aspiring Specsavers practice owners.
To date, more than 200 optical professionals have graduated from Pathway, with over 140 becoming Specsavers joint venture partners. Some of the Pathway graduates have joined the Pathway Plus program, which offers them additional advanced leadership and business management workshops.
Interest in Pathway and the Specsavers Joint Venture Partnership model has seen such an increase in recent years that in 2018, Specsavers added a fourth intake to its annual schedule to accommodate demand, and the Pathway faculty are continually accepting expressions of interest.
To find out more about Pathway, visit pathwayanz.com, check out the Specsavers Partnership Blog, or contact Kimberley via +61 (0)429 566 846 or kimberley.hannan@specsavers.com for a confidential discussion.
