The late Raymond Ackerman will always be remembered for his unwavering commitment to skills development and training.
Pick ‘n Pay’s adult education and training (AET) programmes have had a profound positive impact on high illiteracy in the country. These have empowered the company’s many employees with the skills that they need to grow and prosper in their jobs.
Triple E Training’s Expert and Training Advisor, Marinda Clack, recalls Ackerman’s great passion for skills development and training and the immense pride that he displayed in the achievements of his employees.
“The Triple E Training team and I had the privilege to have met both Mr. Ackerman and his wife, Wendy, at the many annual events that Pick ‘n Pay hosted to celebrate the graduation of employees from our AET programmes. He honoured every certificate and revelled in his staffs’ achievements, posing for professional photos with staff and in ‘selfies’ taken by excited graduates who respected him as their employer and, importantly, mentor. You could see and feel the immense pride that he had in his employees at these events. Here, Mr. Ackerman would always encourage his staff to believe in themselves because they could achieve so much more. He was dedicated to AET because he knew that this could lead to a graduate programme in the future. He was a staunch proponent of lifelong learning and demonstrated this through the many thousands of Pick ‘n Pay employees who have already completed AET and those at various levels of their learning journey,” Clack says.
Under Ackerman’s leadership, more than 1 600 Pick ‘n Pay members of staff progressed through Triple E Training’s AET since 2007 to obtain a National Qualifications Framework Level 1 qualification.
Triple E Training has already provided services at 141 Pick ‘n Pay sites across the country – whether to assess the literacy and numeracy skills of employees for placement at the correct AET level or to conduct adult literacy and numeracy training. In doing so, the company has worked closely with more than 140 store managers who also reaffirmed their unwavering support to AET.
Meanwhile, the leading AET specialist is currently providing such services at 116 Pick ‘n Pay stores throughout the country. More than 2 800 employees have already graduated the various AET levels.
“Mr. Ackerman left behind a lasting legacy of the importance of investing in your staff. This is in line with his core values that we must treat others as we would wish to be treated and that ‘doing good is good business’. We are proud of the fact that he involved us in his vision and that we had an opportunity to walk a great part of this journey with him. We will miss him dearly,” Clack concludes.