Volvo International Service Training Award (VISTA) is an international competition open to all Service Market professionals within the Volvo Trucks and Volvo Buses’ global service network. Currently, it is the world’s largest competition for Service Market personnel.

This year, 84 teams from Australia and 22 from New Zealand signed up to enter VISTA. Teams competed in two theory rounds and a pit-stop challenge for the chance to make it to the semi-finals.

Two teams from VCV Sydney Prestons, one from CMV Derrimut and one from VCV Brisbane North made the Australian semi-finals, while teams from Truck Stop Lower Hutt and Whangarei will represent New Zealand.

“VISTA is the world’s largest Service Market Competition. For everyone who takes part, there are opportunities to learn with your colleagues and be a part of a winning team!” says Martin Merrick, President & CEO of Volvo Group Australia.

The competition aims to help employees develop and improve their knowledge, skills, and ability to work as a team. Participants partake in groups of two to four people, and the competition starts with two parts of theoretical questions, which teams complete in their workshops. After these two parts, the best performing teams qualify for the World Semi-Final, this year being a Digital Semi-final with more than 180 teams. From the Digital Semi-final, 44 teams will be eligible for the World Final in Gothenburg – the home of Volvo Trucks and Buses.

More than a competition 

However, VISTA is more than a competition – it is a mass training event. The aim is to make us better at what we do every day. During VISTA, the participants improve their skills, new friendships are formed, and it is an experience of a lifetime for many.

Better skills, better service, happier customers 

VISTA is not only crucial for Volvo’s Service Market personnel – it is of great importance for the entire Volvo Group. It shows how much we value the hard work carried out at our workshops worldwide and that we invest in what our customers appreciate most – world-class service.

For workshops, VISTA is a very effective way of motivating and inspiring employees and improving the skills and knowledge of workshop personnel. These benefits will lead to improved customer service and increased customer satisfaction.

The opportunity of a lifetime  

“VISTA is unique. As a training platform, it provides an opportunity for our hardworking and dedicated staff in our dealerships to expand their knowledge and skills whilst highlighting the importance of working as a team,” said Richard Singer, VP of Services and Retail at Volvo Group Australia.

“I think the importance Volvo places on the VISTA competition reflects the company’s attitude towards the training and development of our staff. We see training and development of our staff as a necessary investment – into the satisfaction of our staff and ultimately, our customers.”

“This year, we achieved a total of 5130 training hours across all our teams in our dealer network. That’s a fantastic result.”

Applications for the 2023 Apprentice intake are now open.

With the outlook on overseas travel still somewhat uncertain, this year, Volvo Group Australia will bring the semi-final teams to Brisbane to compete in the worldwide digital semi-final. The teams will experience the Australian home of Volvo Trucks, culminating in the winner’s announcement at a gala dinner, who will head to the world finals in Gothenburg in September.

Are you interested in joining Volvo Group Australia and having the chance to participate in VISTA? Contact our recruitment team join@volvo.com or visit www.volvogroup.jobs.

Applications for our 2023 apprentice intake are now open. To find out more, email join@volvo.com.

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