If there is one good thing that has come out of this forced “down time” due to the coronavirus, it has been the opportunity to spend some time learning new skills. While personal growth has been a popular go-to, security dealers and integrators also looked to the internet for more job-specific enhancement. When it comes to security locks and door hardware, there is no shortage of training videos, both on YouTube and through individual manufacturer’s and distributor’s sites.
While such training is not new, what has changed is the numbers and types of people seeking it, says Glen Davies, learning leader, dormakaba USA Inc., Indianapolis. “We have seen a change in demographics. Since it is all done online now and we can track through the platform, we are seeing a lot more sales reps from companies, including a lot of installers we don’t typically have attend classes.” These include commercial installers, institutional locksmiths and even some integrators, he says. “We have seen that ever since the mandatory lockdowns, a lot of folks were not able to go out to customer sites, so without that travel time there was more time to spend learning. We have absolutely seen a huge increase in that.”