Twelve Walker Environmental employees are the newest graduates of a leadership program run by the Centre for Innovation, Management and Enterprise Education (CIMEE).

Run by Brock’s Goodman School of Business, CIMEE offers customized business seminars and leadership programs to the local business community.

April 3 marked the end of the most recent group, the third cohort to participate in the program in three years.

Developed through a partnership between Walker and Goodman to build leadership skills in Walker employees, the program spans 11 weeks and covers a variety of topics such as finance and human resource management, each taught by a field expert.

“We wanted to create a program for our emerging leaders to prepare them for their next leadership position,” said Laura Bratley, Project Manager at Walker Environmental, who took on an administrative role for the most recent cohort after participating in last year’s course.

“This program really helps you develop as a leader and gives you the long-term focus you need,” she said.

Born out of a need for a leadership program that integrates Walker processes and principles, the program started in 2015 and has since seen 41 employees graduate.

“We turned to Brock University because we need to learn the theory behind these concepts, but we also want to tie it into our business,” Bratley said.

“Part of the value that Brock brought to the table was that the University inserted itself into our process to better understand our business. We gave CIMEE staff a tour of our facility and shared with them our sustainability model that guides decision making at Walker.”

The program has paid off for Walker employees, many of whom have since moved on to leadership positions within the organization.

A large part of this program’s success is due to its customization to Walker’s business operations, Bratley said.

“It’s relevant to how we make decisions and how we do business at Walker.”

This year, participants applied their commitment to EARTH 1st, a Walker initiative that empowers employees to take environmental responsibility, to their classroom at Brock by switching to reusable plates, cutlery and water bottles.

“We were able to create a bit of an environmental impact which is a nice testament to the relationship between Brock and Walker that shows we embrace each other’s principles and how we do business,” Bratley said.