Industry Veteran to Lead Workforce Development Efforts for Propane Industry

After holding various positions at Ferrellgas over the past 20 years, most recently as vice president of safety, as well as numerous leadership roles in the propane industry, Randy Warner has been appointed by the Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) to lead workforce development efforts in the propane industry. As an independent contractor for PERC, he will work closely with the council and the National Propane Gas Association (NPGA), in addition to many more stakeholders in the industry, to improve workforce development efforts. Warner formed his own company, Warner C3H8 Consulting LLC, in April to provide safety, training, and operations consulting.

“There are four key functions in workforce development,” Warner said. “Recruitment; onboarding; training and certification; and retention are all vital to a strong workforce.” PERC and NPGA are not going to try to dictate what every company does, he explained, but instead define best practices and provide tools that should help each company. “All of the key functions must work well together if we are to bring high-quality new employees to the propane industry and keep them,” Warner said. Prior to his appointment, PERC already had a Workforce Recruitment Committee and NPGA has a Workforce Development Task Force. A key step in ramping up workforce development efforts is a process of data collection from businesses throughout the industry that define the positions at each company and those facing the most challenges for hiring. “We want a good definition of the job descriptions we need to work the hardest to recruit and we would like to segment this data by region,” Warner said. A docket approved by PERC at its July meeting provided the needed funding, while an outsource has been contracted to gather the information.

According to Warner, Department of Labor statistics show a U.S. driver shortage of 50,000, and observes that the toughest jobs to fill are driving positions that take drivers out on the road a week at a time. Conversely, he sees the many roles in propane that allow employees to have their family time at home each day as a major advantage. “With an aging workforce, we must look at what attracts the millennials to fill the open positions in the industry.” He added, “Another key step is to evaluate our training programs. Are we teaching the various career path information in a way that future generations want to learn?” Citing the reality that many young people are accustomed to computer-based training that can be done on a tablet and training via YouTube and smartphones, he said that selling a role in any new industry is easier if potential employees can see opportunity for growth and advancement. To that end, “the new training modules PERC recently approved for development, which teach not only safety and technical training, but also sales and marketing skills and business skills, are all pieces to the workforce development puzzle.”

Warner also notes passage of new laws lowering the age for handling hazardous materials from 21 to 18 years of age would also help recruit new employees. “A lot of young people don’t want to be saddled with all of the debt that can come with a college education,” he acknowledged. “Industries with quality trade schools and training programs will gain these new employees.” However, the challenge of recruiting community colleges to provide the courses is an obstacle that goes with recruiting the workforce. “We have to prove we can recruit the students for the colleges to make the investment in providing the courses.” He pointed out that colleges offering HVAC and plumbing courses are often good candidates for adding propane courses. “And it works well for HVAC and plumbing professionals to also take the propane courses. Their knowledge of propane will help them to sell plumbing and HVAC customers on using propane versus other energy sources for home heating and water heating. If they can provide the service, they are much more likely to recommend it.” Warner believes training on tankless water heaters is a must—it provides a new benefit for HVAC and plumbing professionals.

“There is a lot we can learn from efforts already under way in our industry.” He notes the North Carolina Propane Gas Association is moving aggressively to begin an academy for marketers this fall; Vets 2 Techs programs are underway to match U.S. veterans with industry work; and other successful programs exist in various states. “We also need a strong scholarship program. The natural gas and electric industries are way ahead of us there. That may be OK as they tend to recruit in more urban areas and we recruit more in rural areas.”

Warner’s initial contract with PERC is for one year. “He’s got 11 months and a day to go,” Tucker Perkins, PERC president and CEO, told an audience at the Mid-States Propane Expo in June while introducing him. Warner is confident he and the industry are up to the task of building a strong workforce development process that attracts and keeps new employees. —Pat Thornton