All new employees must enter the Center of Excellence before starting work at Specialty Bakery. In this training room, groups of 15 to 20 new hires spend three days learning about food safety, various facets of production and information on the company as well as mandated human resources protocol.

Using software from Alchemy Human Resources Consultancy, computers quiz the classmates every 15 to 35 minutes to make sure the lessons being taught are lessons learned. There’s no daydreaming with this program.

Additionally, Specialty Bakery hammers home the opportunities for growth at the company, including sponsored correspondence courses from AIB International that can lead to job advancement, noted David D’Onofrio, senior vice-president of sales and marketing. The company also plans to partner with Purdue University to recruit personnel and educate its bakers on food science and more.

“This is a passionate industry, a passionate business,” he explained. “We have an opportunity to show our new bakers that this industry can be a career for many who come through these doors. We want them to see the opportunities we offer here.”