Staff at AMP Air, the expanding Toshiba air conditioning distributor, have successfully completed advanced NVQs in Management and Customer Services as part of a training initiative.

Six senior staff completed the NVQ Level 3 course in Management following a nine month course of external study and on-the-job training, and a further six employees gained an NVQ Level 2 in Customer Services.

AMP director Polly McConachie said: “We are delighted and very proud of their success in these national qualifications. Attendance on the courses was entirely voluntary, as they required a significant amount of study outside work. It says a lot about those who took part – and the spirit of AMP staff in general, that they embraced the opportunity and made such a success of it.'

The management training came about as a result of Personal Development reviews, which highlighted that a number of staff who had grown up with the company now found themselves in senior management positions with no formal training. AMP worked with an external training provider to offer NVQ courses to meet this need, and equip people to expand in their current roles. Managers studied core modules on the principles of people management and effective business administration, with additional options available to suit individual needs.

It was the first time that the company had run the NVQs and it is following up with a series of in-house courses in sales skills over the coming year.

Those completing the NVQ Customer Services qualification celebrated receiving their certificates with a visit to London’s Ice Bar. In sub-zero temperatures, and dressed in thermal capes, AMP directors toasted the success of employees with cocktails served in solid ice goblets.