BRIDGING THE KNOWLEDGE GAP FOR ADVANCED LIGHTING TECHNOLOGY
The rapid shift to commercial building LED lighting and advanced controls created opportunities to help increase energy savings and occupant comfort across the region. However, the shift happened so quickly that the market lacked the up-to-date education and experience needed to design, install and commission evolving lighting technologies.
To bridge this gap, the alliance developed a free training and designation program to motivate lighting professionals, including contractors, installers, distributors, salespeople and maintenance workers, to reach the next level of lighting knowledge and differentiate themselves as a top tier lighting expert in the Northwest.
Designed in collaboration with regional utilities, NXT Level training features a carefully crafted curriculum and tiered delivery to remove a host of barriers—including location, availability and cost—that prevent Northwest lighting professionals from keeping up with the latest techniques and technologies.
The program has sustained success since its debut in 2016. Since then, it has trained and designated more than 430 trade allies, utility staff and program administrators, and 70 companies across the Northwest, and NXT Level continues supporting the Northwest market with advanced lighting training to this day.
AN ESTABLISHED AND ACCLAIMED DESIGNATION PROGRAM
Since its inception in 2016, NXT Level has established a robust, well-received training and designation program. A third-party program assessment in 2020 demonstrated that NXT Level participants have a high degree of satisfaction with the training, with the vast majority of designees agreeing that NXT Level sharpened their lighting business practices and provided them with a marketing edge. Throughout the assessment, designees directly attribute their promotions, bonuses, increased sales and profitability to their NXT Level training. Most importantly, designees agree that NXT Level provided them with the knowledge and confidence to sell and install advanced, energy-efficient lighting projects for Northwest utility customers.
By staying sharp in our field and staying on top of the latest in lighting, we can provide more options for our customers and better predict a good solution for whatever their circumstances might be. Keeping up with trainings like NXT Level is a win-win—it actually makes our job easier, and it makes the experience better for the customer.
- Marcella Smith
NXT Level 1 designee (office manager, Dynamic Energy Solutions, Longview, WA)
A FULL TRANSITION TO THE MARKET
From the beginning, the alliance intended to develop a successful lighting training platform that could provide sustainable and lasting benefit to the Northwest without the alliance’s intervention. NXT Level successfully made this market transition in 2021 when the alliance awarded Evergreen Consulting Group a license to further evolve NXT Level, continue delivering the training at no cost on behalf of Northwest utilities through 2023, and expand the training to utility clients in the U.S. and Canada.
For more information, visit nxtleveltraining.com