This thematic aims company managers and executives responsible for the strategic orientation of their company, and for the production (conventional or organic) and marketing of products. In particular, they are responsible keeping informed about customers’ requirements and ensuring the company’s profitability, while ensuring compliance with general hygiene rules and the safety of production, harvesting and packaging processes. They must improve the sustainability of processes implemented; ensure compliance with specifications (e.g. on corporate social responsibility, CSR); and verify the conformity and traceability of batches placed on the market through documentation accompanying their products.

Target audience: Company managers and executives responsible for compliance with the requirements of CSR and sustainability, as well as the health compliance of product batches (e.g. operations manager, crop manager, production manager, quality and traceability manager).

Rationale: Company managers and executives are responsible for the company’s strategic orientation and the choice of production methods. They must ensure that the specifications required for market access are selected and respected, without neglecting regulatory requirements for food safety.

Enhanced skills :

• Manage production units to meet productivity and efficiency requirements, while taking into account the evolution of regulatory and commercial requirements (particularly sustainability and CSR)
• Ensure the continuity of operations, and production compliance with hygiene and quality standards and traceability
• Continually evolve and improve the means of production and sustainability of practices
• Collect and interpret data to manage the company; measure deviations from the sustainability objectives set by the company’s strategy and profitability
• Organise and facilitate internal training to strengthen the skills of production staff

Target audience:
- Service providers who deliver technical assistance to company managers and executives to implement CSR requirements or certification
- Service providers who act as trainers and/or trainers-of-trainers or coaches to these people in the field of CSR

Rationale: Providing training (or training-of-trainers) requires the mastery of technical CSR skills (e.g. knowledge of the ISO 26000 standard) and pedagogical skills (communication, group facilitation, coaching, skills assessment). In line with COLEACP’s cascade system, ACP experts trained in pedagogy are also needed, for example to strengthen the communication skills of middle managers in companies, or inspection service managers for the internal training of inspectors (training-of-trainers, e.g. through Field Training Workhops).

Enhanced skills :

• Know the requirements of CSR (e.g. the seven central questions of the ISO 26000 standard)
• Develop a plan to bring a company into compliance with CSR objectives (using evaluation tools such as COLEACP’s Sustainability Self-Assessment System)
• Develop and/or manage a CSR training programme
• Facilitate a training-of-trainers coach and evaluate participants