Thermal-Vac Special Process Manager Christian Gallardo recently completed the Metal Treating Institute’s (MTI) YES Management Training Program. Several managers at Thermal-Vac have completed the program and the company is thrilled to have another graduate in its ranks.
The MTI YES program is billed as an executive training program for professionals in the heat treating industry, but it is much more than that. As one of the top executive training programs in all of manufacturing, the program teaches practical leadership strategies with transformative potential. At its core, the program teaches participants self-awareness, how to build high performing teams, enhance their own leadership style and develop better working relationships with their teams. As Christian said, “They teach you how to be a Navy SEAL of management.”
MTI CEO Tom Morrison stated, “It was awesome to see Christian develop throughout the program. MTI seeks to challenge every aspect of an individual’s thinking process both personally and professionally to maximize their leadership development. Christian rose to the challenge. MTI is proud to have had him in the 2019 class of graduates.”
Christian started at Thermal-Vac about nine years ago. Straight out of high school, he started as an assembly operator for defense industry components. Over time he’s taken on whatever has come at him, from assembly to induction and even an occasional gig as a delivery driver. Most of his career has focused on coatings. “I work on a lot of cool special projects, working with engineering and the rest of the team.”
For Christian, the MTI program was eye-opening. “It’s a very positive process,” he said. After the first session of the program he began implementing its ideas, delegating more and taking in more ideas from the people he managed. As a result of the YES program, Christian trusts his team more and asks them for input all the time. “I’ve been doing this for a long time. A fresh set of eyes can see things differently. It’s powerful.”
The results were clear from the start, and they had an unexpected benefit.
“I’m better at work than at home,” Christian said with a laugh. “Talking to other people in the program, it was comforting to know that I’m not the only one who puts work ahead of family life.” By learning how to better delegate, Christian found he had time to focus on other things, including getting home earlier to be with his family.
“By the third session, I had delegated everything I knew to my crew. They didn’t have to call me once while I was away at the seminar, because they knew what to do. It felt really good.”
The program also had a technical dimension, with course work on heat treating processes, safety, and other topics. Christian had a chance to tour facilities in other parts of the country, and brought home ideas for improving Thermal-Vac’s practices.
Please join Thermal-Vac in congratulating Christian on this important career milestone!
