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Stephanie A. Barbee
DETT 621-9040
October 14, 2014
Assignment 2: Case Study
Case Study Report: Sherwin Williams Training & Development
Introduction
With the perpetual burden business leaders face trying to understand and improve upon learning
initiatives, organizations struggle to see the intrinsic value learning has on the organization as a whole.
Rosenberg (2006) states that online training can markedly improve the efficiency of the training program,
as many companies have not been able to train their sales force, customer service representatives,
product developers and others quickly enough to meet ever changing competitive threats or customer
needs. Online training allows organizations to do just that. An organizations level of learning and
development is representative of their success, and many rely on the Stages of Learning and Development
Capability/Maturity model to determine areas which may require improvement. Capabilities exist within
various departments and sectors of an organization and that organization must have resources and a plan
in place to ensure adequate learning and development occurs throughout the organization as a whole. In a
model that determines the stage of the organizational learning and development capability, an
organization can determine if they have the resources available to properly implement training and
development procedures. Using this model in particular, show in Figure 1, an organization can determine
their level of capability regarding training and development.

Figure 1, Stages of Organizational Learning and Development Capability Model

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Organization
Sherwin Williams, an international company that is part of a $90 billion coatings industry, has
grown to be one of the largest producers of paints and coatings in the United States and they emphasize
their professional work environment and dedication to ongoing training (Sherwin Williams, 2014). Their
mission is to sell quality paint and provide customers with beneficial information regarding paints, stains
and decorative ideas in homes, apartments and businesses (Bowman, 2014). While customer service is
in the forefront of their priorities, ensuring they have a prideful workforce that embraces training and
development is just as important. They provide numerous opportunities for employees through
continuing education benefits, as it ultimately helps employees to gain competencies and knowledge that
is essential for the companys development and success. Sherwin Williams is a retail organization that is
divided into four segments: Paint Stores Group, Latin America Coatings Group, Consumers Group and
Global Finishes Group. For the purpose of this paper the Paint Stores Group and their training and
development program will be the focus. Within the Paint Stores Group is a hierarchy of management to
ensure a successful organization, which can be seen in Figure 2.

CEO
Company President
Divisional President
Divisional Vice President
District Manager
City/Sales Manager
Store Manager/Sales Reps
Assistant Store Managers
Full-Time Staf
Part-Time Staf
Figure 2, Sherwin Williams Management Hierarchy
Sherwin Williams focuses on seven key areas: Integrity, people, service, quality, performance,
innovation and growth. In addition, they claim to be built on three foundational elements: performance,
capabilities and learning development (Bowman, 2014). The organization has around 3,796 stores and

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over 38,000 employees worldwide (Bowman, 2014). With a commitment to diversity, Sherwin Williams
is constantly finding ways to leverage the company to meet the challenges of a fluid market and diverse
customer base by attracting top talent from a variety of backgrounds who can use their unique
perspectives and experience to improve business results (Sherwin Williams, 2014). With a diverse team
of professionals driving the organization, their goals and objectives include:

Distribute paint and paint materials in an environmentally friendly and safe way
Provide customers with quality customer service
Provide employees with the proper training tools to safely perform their roles (Bowman,
2014).
Tools and Technology

According to Bowman (2014), Sherwin Williams has an online portal all employees sign into
called MySherwin. Within this portal is Sherwin University, which is central to the organizations
training and development program. All courses can be found under a list of main topics, shown in Figure
3. New employees, specifically, go through a series of 36 classes that include PowerPoint presentations
and videos, which are followed by quizzes and a final exam (Bowman, 2014). Employees have three
months from their hiring date to complete all training and are expected to take continuing education
classes annually to increase their knowledge and competency. According to Bowman (2014), there are
future plans for technology to include working with a marketing firm to provide YouTube instructional
videos on products and application of products for employees. Appealing more towards customers than
employees, Sherwin Williams can be found on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Continuous
Improvement
Customer Service
Environment, Health
and Safety
Finance
Human Resources
Information Technology
Marketing
Operations
Product Knowledge
Professional
Development
R & D
Sales

Figure 3, Main Topics for Sherwin University educational courses (Bowman, 2014).

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Analytics
Evaluation is necessary to demonstrate the capability of employees and the training and
development program. Kumar, Chengappa and Pandya (2013) explain that evaluation is highly significant
as it is able to measure the employee strength on the job. According to Bowman (2014), Sherwin
Williams measures and evaluates training by requiring employees to score at least 75% or higher on all
classes within the Sherwin University, including all competency quizzes and final exams. There is no
specific model used to determine various levels of evaluation within the learning and development
program. Therefore, Sherwin Williams is unable to make decisions based on particular levels.
Nonetheless, Sherwin Williams is able to tie learning and development activities to their financial goals
by offering the classes needed to those employed in the finance and sales departments. The goal is to have
those employees expand their knowledge and competency so they may use what they have learned in a
practical and efficient manner. Sherwin Williams (2014) claims the following: we set high expectations
for- and take care to measure and reward- the achievement and challenging goals.
Competencies
According to Lykins (2012), aligning learning efforts to core business goals and strategies is
critical to clearly define learnings contributions to organizational growth and profitability. At Sherwin
Williams, Bowman (2014) states that each employee has their own success profile that maps out
targeted competencies and characteristics needed to climb within the organization or to target specific
behaviors under the key actions section. The elements within these areas are tailored to specific jobs
titles and responsibilities, emphasizing behaviors instead of tasks. Sherwin Williams focuses on job
performance and cares more about employee competency than a list of completed tasks. Stressing
competency within the organization, Sherwin Williams developed competency success profiles for each
job title to ensure that the needs of each employee are met (Bowman, 2014). Meeting the competencybased needs of new employees is as important as supporting the competency-based needs of seasoned
employees. Sherwin Williams understands the benefits of a knowledgeable and competent team and
implores employees reach their full potential within the organization.
Kumar, Chengappa and Pandya (2013) explain that the enhancement of individual competency
induces better knowledge, skill and aptitude and develops better business opportunities. This helps in a
global economy with fluid technological advances and attempting to meet the needs of a growing
customer base. When asked if employee competency was more important than organizational capability,
Eric Bowman, in a personal interview with Michelle Bowman, replied with the following:

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One is not more important than the other. Employees are expected to be both up to date on
Sherwin Williamss policy and check in on competency levels. Once the competency level is
addressed, employees know where they are at on the learning scale so they can use those results
to continue to grow and implement company expectations and capabilities (2014).
Jobs and Roles
As stated earlier, Sherwin Williams strives to develop a diverse and multi-faceted workforce that
combines unique perspectives with a variety of backgrounds to meet goals and objectives. The following
figure, Figure 4, shows a list of competencies necessary to be a successful Sherwin Williams employee:
Analyical
Thinking

Managing
Change

Attention to
Communicati
on

Personal
Credibility

Teamwork
Oriented

Oral
Communicati
on

Stress
Management

Customer
Oriented

Written
Communicati
on

Self
Confidence

Focus &
Motivation

Flexibility

Empowermen
t of Others

Management
of
Performance

Figure 4, Sherwin Williamss employee competencies (Bowman, 2014)

There are many roles within the Sherwin Williams organization, but for the purpose of this paper
the sales representative and sales manager will be the two emphasized in this section. The sales
representative and sales manager positions are the face of Sherwin Williams and their roles are vital to
ensuring customer satisfaction and overall product sales. As with any job, it is important that employees
know what is expected of them and what they will be accountable for in their work environment (OPM,
2014). The following is a list of duties assigned to the sales representative positions within the Sherwin
Williams organization:

Conduct cold calls and presentations to customers outside of store, ensuring customer satisfaction

and long-term professional relationships

Promote awareness of call activity, customer service issues and sales/service opportunities to
servicing store managers and support store team by assisting employees with customer issues and
training sessions

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Construct and implement an annual sales plan and establish ongoing rapport with customers and

prospects through consistent calling effort

Compile and deliver formal presentations that address audience needs, negotiate pricing and

resolve complaints
Analyze market conditions- competition, trends, issues and opportunities

The sales manager is responsible for the following duties:

Generate satisfaction of both commercial and do-it-yourself customers and build positive

long-term relationships
Train, coach, mentor and schedule employees
Supervise store merchandising, inventory, stock rotation and replenishment and housekeeping

functions
Maintain accounts payable, receivable functions, safety, security and loss prevention
(Bowman, 2014).

Sherwin Williams ensures a complete and competent workforce is always in place to guarantee
the customers needs are met and employees are provided the opportunity to grow and excel. Like most
other organizations, Sherwin Williams must tackle the challenges that come with a multigenerational
workforce. According to Fallon (2014), baby boomers are now working past retirement age and techsavvy millennials are now graduating and entering the workforce, and with the stark differences in the
values, communication styles and work habits, it is natural to have friction among colleagues and bosses.
The organization is proudly multigenerational, and according to Bowman (2014) there are employees in
the internship management program working on the floor at stores with managers who have been in the
business for 30 years. This can cause tension at times, as the younger generations are more tech-savvy
with less work ethic than older generations. However, the older generations are slow to accept new
technologies but have a wealth of wisdom that could never match up to an employee just starting in the
organization (Bowman, 2014). Bowman believes training geared towards specific generations is key to
improving the deficiencies that may exist between generations.
Future
Rosenberg (2006) makes the following statement: nothing succeeds like success, and success is
very appealing to people who are trying something new (p. 259). In order to achieve a level of success,
Sherwin Williams is adapting well to a technologically-driven market and this is evident in their online
training program. However, there are still areas where improvements could take the organization to the
next level of learning and development maturity. Sherwin Williams (2014) exclaims that growth

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tempered by discipline is a hallmark of our organization. The future is bright and there are many plans
to improve in the future, but right now the focus is to add more languages to the training and development
program. Bowman (2014) states that there will be challenges, including deficiencies in some areas, but
would like to see some of the following changes implemented to training:

Instructors to turn to for guidance and assistance with online training, instead of going through

the classes and quizzes independently

Flash presentation videos that are updated with the Prezi program, instead of PowerPoint
Training classes that deal specifically with all generations working together harmoniously.
Conclusion
The training and development program is essential to the Sherwin Williams organization, and

even more so that it aligns with the strategic business plan. This is seen in the value placed on employee
growth and the emphasis placed on competencies and job responsibilities. According to the Stages of
Organizational Learning and Development Competency Model, seen in Figure 1, Sherwin Williams is
considered a level 4. The organization promotes opportunities to grow with the Sherwin Williams
University, where employees know what skills they have and which to build upon. The inclusion of
technological tools, clear roles and responsibilities, primary analytics and drivers, a learning process,
clear business structure and overall decision support is representative of a level 4 organization.
Rosenberg (2006) adds the following: when the workforce has more immediate access to instruction
using technology, competitive advantage, in the form of a shorter time to workforce competency, is selfevident.
In order to become a level 5 organization there are key areas that must be addressed and the
learning and development program must reflect those issues, as well as any changes that occur with a
rapidly changing global market. The creation of additional courses and improving the existing courses
are obvious changes that should be made. According to OPM (2014), improvements in this area inspire
employees to become technical experts capable of accepting management roles. The generational gap
that exists is one clear area where improvement can bring this organization to the next level, and bridging
that gap will bring another layer of learning to the overall process. There is no clear timeline for these
changes, but as Sherwin Williams has shown in the past they have no trouble keeping up with competitive
nature of the coatings industry.

References

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Bowman, M. M. (2014). Assignment #2: Case study report. Research paper, University of Maryland
University College, October 14, 2014.
Fallon, N. (2014). Tackling the challenges of the multigenerational workforce. Business News Daily.
Retrieved from http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/6609-multigenerational-workforcechallenges.html
Kumar, D. M., Chengappa, S., & Pandya, S. (2013). Capability development: Enhancing employee
potential through strategic competency building and people development. International Journal
of Management and Social Sciences Research, 2(2), 27-32. Retrieved from
http://www.irjcjournals.org/ijmssr/Feb2013/6.pdf
Lykins, L. (2012, September). Are your learning activities aligned with the business?? Chief Learning
Officer. Retrieved from http://www.cedma-europe.org/newsletter%20articles/Clomedia/Are
%20Your%20Learning%20Activities%20Aligned%20with%20the%20Business%20%28Sep
%2012%29.pdf
OPM (2014). Performance Management: The employees role in a team. Office of Personnel
Management. Retrieved from http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/performancemanagement/reference-materials/historical/the-employees-role-in-a-team/
Rosenberg, M. J. (2006). Beyond e-learning: Approaches and technologies to enhance organizational
knowledge, learning, and performance. San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer.
Sherwin-Williams (2014). Want to know what sets us apart: Ask our people. Retrieved from
http://careers.sherwin-williams.com/careers/culture/