On this day, August 6th in 2019, Lektor got the letter from our local Trade Register, which said that Lektor Consulting Resources Finland Oy (Ltd.) was officially registered as a company. Lektor was officially born. (BTW - we did opt for a bit shorter name, but the registrar decided that we’d need to sound more royal and have a name that is a mile long. But for friends we will always be just Lektor.)
The first year of Lektor was busy and we accomplished quite a lot. Our regular business line, which is providing qualified freelance ATC instructors for training organisations started out very well and we had a good group of consultants delivering training from the start. At the same time we started our endeavour to get certified as an ATC Training Organisation. All of autumn 2019 we were writing up manuals, processes, tables and training plans to meet the requirements of the regulation. And then we did the iterations after getting feedback and questions from the authority regarding the content. The work was challenging as the training was hot and most of the working weeks were spent at customer locations.
In January 2020 we got the final details completed and the audit was set to the end of the month. That was an exciting day even though we were confident that all is in order. And it was! The auditors concluded that there were no findings, and that the audit was passed on the first go. It took only one week after that to get the actual certificate in hand stating Lektor as Air Traffic Controllers Training Organisation for practical instructors and assessors. See earlier post from February.
At this stage, we had all pieces in place to do serious business and we were ready to rock, but then the virus hit. The last consultants were sent home in March and everything stopped. The silence was deafening. Nothing moved. We could not even deliver our own trainings because of travel restrictions and limitations in how many persons are allowed to gather. We had to think on our feet and decided to do the logical thing - focus on online training.
This meant that we then turned our eyes to the world of learning management systems and content authoring tools and literature regarding remote/virtual pedagogy. Learning curve was, and still is, very steep on the nuts and bolts of online training. That work is still going on, so stay tuned for more news as we make more progress.
Lektor is super concerned in the quality of training and has a deep focus on instructor training. We feel that those who work as instructors are the true torch bearers of ATC, as they first of all make sure the new controllers learn the skills needed for safe operations, but also shape the attitudes of controllers everywhere. Instructor has a profound influence in next generation of ATCOs, so all habits and mindsets – in good and bad – will stick. Apprentices will follow and mimick masters. Therefore the masters carry a double responsibility. On one hand of the traffic, and on the other hand of gearing the desired mindset for the future of ATC.
It is only appropriate that these heroes of the floor are lifted to the pedestal a bit. We decided to celebrate out first anniversary by also tooting the horn for the ATC Instructors. This is where the idea of dedicating an international day for them came about and that is where the date comes from. August 6th is the birthday of Lektor and now also the International Day of the ATC Instructor.
In the coming years, on this date, we will prompt campaigns, events and activities that the ATC community can do to celebrate the work of Instructors. It is also desirable to hear the ideas and stories from units and colleges, on how they have spent the day and what sort of parades they have arranged for the Instructors.
A further dedication we arranged, is that we create an honorary plaque for the ATC Instructors. It is a tribute to the high-end work they do and for the heavy responsibility they carry. We do not want to be alone in this, so we have set up a webpage where anyone can sign up as one of the founders of this day. All the names of those who joined the first ever International Day of the ATC Instructor will be presented on the plaque, which is permanently presented on Lektor website in virtual format, and at our HQ Office as a physical object.
Warmly
Samuli
