Walmart in milestone opening

Walmart hit the century mark in terms of training academies.



The retailer on Monday celebrated the grand opening of its 100th U.S. training academy, in Frontage, Edmond. The academies were first introduced in 2016 and have expanded to 40 states.



“Everything we do begins with our associates,” said Doug McMillon, president and CEO, Walmart. “That’s why we have invested in training academies for associates to further develop the skills they need to better serve customers and succeed in today’s retail environment. These investments are paying off for our customers through cleaner stores, friendlier service and faster check-out times.”



Walmart training academies are dedicated facilities where associates receive instruction on retail fundamentals and area specific skills. Since the program launched, the curriculum has expanded training to cover more than 65 positions, including customer service manager, online grocery pickup, and assistant store manager. Associates are trained through a combination of classroom and sales floor exercises, utilizing technology including tablet computers and cloud storage for training materials.



Walmart plans to have a total of 200 academies opened across all 50 states by the end of this summer. Since 2016, more than 52,000 associates have graduated, with more than 225,000 associates on track to complete training in 2017.



Associates who go through training academy programs are able to earn an income while they learn new skills, according to Walmart.