Each year, Cat® and participating dealers put on the Dealer Top Apprentice Program, an international competition that tests and honors the skills of young technicians. Jared Pankratz, a technician representing Gregory Poole Equipment Company, won the 2023 Dealer Top Apprentice Program on Feb. 23, 2024.
The Dealer Top Apprentice Program has been running since 1979, with ThinkBIG graduates being included in the competition since 2017. Each year, fourth-year apprentices are tested and then selected from around the world to participate. The most recent program was held at the Melbourne Learning Centre in Australia.
Pankratz is a Technician II at Gregory Poole’s location in Mebane, North Carolina, and he traveled to Australia to take part in the program. A total of 10 apprentices from different dealers were selected to compete against one another; seven participants were from ANZI and three participants, including Pankratz, were from the ThinkBIG Americas regions.
The 2023 Dealer Top Apprentice Program took place over multiple days, and apprentices participated in presentations and guest speaker panels while being scored through knowledge assessments and a series of skills tests involving different types of machinery and customer service.
Feb. 23 marked the last day of the program, and its conclusion was celebrated with an awards ceremony. Various award winners were recognized including the program’s top prize of being named the overall winner of the ANZI and ThinkBIG categories. Pankratz was announced as the top apprentice in the ThinkBIG competition, becoming one of two overall winners of the 2023 Dealer Top Apprentice Program.