Company History
Priority Management Sudbury was started in 1994 by Chuck Jacobs and he spent 20 years training thousands of people in the north how to manage their time, work, projects and be more productive in everyday life. His son Craig took over the business in 2014 and has continued to provide people with professional development by teaching them the essential skills they need to be more efficient and effective. He has also expanded to parts of Southern Ontario in the Hamilton-Niagara regions.
With a background in education, Craig took to training and facilitating easily. He likes adding value to clients and providing a return on investment that pays off many times over in the future. The focus of many of the courses and workshops he provides is sustainable behaviour change, because if nothing changes, nothing improves. During the pandemic, he worked on a coaching certification from Robbins-Madanes Training and has been offering executive and leadership coaching, as well as to individuals and small groups to help them achieve their goals or breakthrough barriers and challenges that everyone deals with.
As part of Priority Management International, which is a Canadian company with over 40 years of professional development training experience, combined has trained over 3 million people in both public and private sectors in almost all industries. As creative problem solvers, they can find a way to help with any problem. They offer time/workload and information management courses to help people save upwards of an hour per day; Project Planning Breakthroughs to plan and manage projects on time and on budget; Leadership and Management Skills for all workers; Customer Service and Sales training; computer courses to better manage emails, tasks, calendars, Teams, Excel and other Office programs; and a variety of soft skill development workshops to help Deal with Difficult People, Conversations, Feedback and Conflict, Communicate more effectively or develop Assertiveness, or to give better Presentations.
In which Northern Ontario communities do you have a presence?
We deliver training and workshops from Sudbury up to Kenora and even Moose Factory. Workshops are regularly scheduled in Sudbury, Timmins, Sault Ste Marie, North Bay and Thunder Bay.
Is there a project that your company has been involved in of which you are especially proud?
Every chance we get to help an individual, team, or company improve their productivity and essential leadership/management skills are times that we are proud of. It is great to hear from people that took training with my dad 20+ years ago and say they still remember and use what was taught!
What do you see as the future opportunities for your company and the mining industry in northern Ontario?
The continuing trend in the workplace is that there will continue to be more work and less people or resources to get it all done. Many places are finding it hard to attract and retain skilled employees who want to work. Leadership and management “soft” skills are among those that are lacking with workers and there has been a shift to start training the people that companies want to retain, even if they don’t have the skills or experience at first. Attitude (willingness to work and learn) will trump aptitude (skills) every time.
Does your business support any particular community programs / clubs / groups?(e.g. community stewardship, charity work, volunteerism, philanthropy, etc.)
Currently, we are part of MineConnect and NOCA (Northern Ontario Construction Association). Previously, we were members of the Rotary Club of Sudbury, and the Sudbury Chamber of Commerce. I continue to support the Sudbury Food Bank with an annual donation. I also did Magical Paws pet therapy for years with my dog.
Why did you join MineConnect? What business / personal value does it bring to you?
I joined to get better informed on current events in the mining industry, news and upcoming plans and projects happening in Northern Ontario and those companies involved. I also wanted to be able to better connect with members and provide high quality services to those in need.
