Davey Tree Flipbooks

12 THE DAVEY BULLETIN | July/August 2023 CLS HOLDS INAUGURAL D.I.G.M. EN ESPAÑOL The inaugural Davey Institute of Grounds Management (D.I.G.M.) en Español was held in Leesburg, Virginia, where a client of the Dulles territory, The Village at Leesburg, hosted the training session at its shopping center complex. Fourteen employees from Commercial Landscape Services' (CLS) Alexandria, Arlington National Cemetery, Dulles, and Montgomery County territories attended the three-day training. When Luis Cátala Gonzalez, project manager, Whiteman AFB territory, was asked to be part of the training as a trainer, he said 'Yes' immediately. "I was born and raised in Puerto Rico. When I started with Davey in 2011, my limitations with English meant it was hard for me to excel. Now, I can be someone to help others who are in the same position, so they don't have to go through the same struggles I experienced. Davey is taking the right steps to help an important employee population within the company," Cátala Gonzalez said. He said the trainees were engaged, asked a lot of questions, and learned about important financial benefits Davey offers, including the 401K and Employee Stock Purchase Plan. These benefits were previously difficult for many in the group to understand when they were explained in English only, prior to this session. Trainees who weren't fully bilingual expressed interest in taking a Davey-sponsored English course to better their language skills. Training sessions also included teambuilding; a review of technical skills such as soil samples, shrubs, insects, and diseases; and leadership. Salvador Marquez, Mid- and South Atlantic regional trainer, CLS, started with Davey in 1989. Offering a training created for native Spanish speakers is a dream come true for Marquez. "At the end of the week, everyone was really happy they were able to attend the class and learn different ways of doing the work. I'm looking forward to being part of these trainings in the future," Marquez added. "It's important for employees to learn how to follow the safety protocol, and how to do things the Davey way. It is number one for me to create a safe work environment for employees," Marquez said. Raul Villagomez, production manager, Dulles territory, attended as a trainee, and recognizes the importance of this training because of the opportunities Davey offers employees for advancement. "We can grow in this company if we put in the effort," Villagomez said. Villagomez went on to explain that because English isn't his first language, this first-ever D.I.G.M. en Español provided a unique opportunity for him and fellow bilingual employees to learn in their native language. The inaugural Davey Institute of Grounds Management Commercial Landscape Services' (CLS) trainees were Johana Aparicio Lazo, Jose Aparicio, Joaquin Aparicio, Kensy Bu Rodriguez, Luis Castro, Juan Chávez, Rolando Chávez, Jose Alfaro Hernández, René Pérez Lopez, Jose Ramírez, Roque Segovia, Carlos Sorto, Jorge Valdivia and Raul Villagomez. The trainers were Luis Cátala Gonzalez, project manager, Whiteman AFB territory; Salvador Marquez, Mid- and South Atlantic regional trainer; Edward Nieves, account manager, Tampa North territory; JJ Perez, branch manager, Indianapolis territory; and Josh Piquette, branch manager, Montgomery County territory. Additional attendees providing support included Robert Bunch, Midwest operations manager; Blane Pshigoda, operations vice president; Mike Watson, branch manager, Dulles territory; and John Wright, Midwest Operations vice president; along with the Davey Institute's Manny Nassar, technical advisor (not all pictured). LEADERSHIP

• Cover