Lyndhurst, NJ, Jan. 16, 2014 – Challenge Training & Consulting, a leading learning services, staff augmentation and consulting services provider, is pleased to announce its 20th anniversary.
Frank Pinto, Challenge Training & Consulting’s CEO said that his company’s portfolio of services have been enhanced, and have evolved over the years in order to consistently provide leading edge learning, consulting and staff augmentation solutions to clients.
“Even though the company has experienced many changes over the years, what has not changed is my team’s core values and commitment to our clients, learning professionals, consultants and business partners,” he said.
He added that it is of paramount importance to him to express how much his team and him appreciate the relationships they have developed with clients, learning professionals, consultants and business partners throughout the company’s tenure and during this milestone year.
About Challenge Training & Consulting
Founded in 1994, Challenge Training & Consulting has grown to become a premier training, development and resource provider of world class human capital services for several of the nation’s leading corporations. The company is committed to consistently exceeding its client’s learning, consulting and staff augmentation requirements by providing them with quality resources and deliverables.
Challenge Training and Consulting Celebrates 20 Years
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SAVO Reaches Record Revenue Growth
Chicago, Il., Jan. 28, 2014 – SAVO Group, the market leader in sales enablement, today announced strong growth and momentum entering 2014, generated by multiple new product launches, industry accolades, key partnerships and the recent acquisition of StoryQuest, Inc., a provider of digital postcard technology.
This addition to SAVO’s sales enablement portfolio incorporates industry thought leadership and corporate content within a recorded digital message that transforms customer communications into personalized conversations, content marketing collateral, and lead generation solutions that arm sales reps with the right tools to align with prospects and customers at each stage of the buying cycle.
“We are excited to incorporate StoryQuest’s technology into SAVO’s existing solution suite. The combination of the company’s strong video storytelling capabilities with SAVO’s sales enablement pedigree will come together to add a personal and creative touch to prospect and customer conversations,” said Mark O’Connell, President and CEO of SAVO. “As buyers become increasingly more informed about both companies and their competitors, being able to help reps sell smarter and differentiate with this type of unique offering is what will separate the winners from the losers in the year ahead.”
In addition to its acquisition of StoryQuest in 2013, SAVO achieved a number of company milestones, including:
Industry Accolades – The Best in Biz Awards, Deloitte Fast 500™, Mobile Star Enterprise Awards, Tabby Awards and Top Sales World Awards all recognized SAVO for the strides it has made to expand its offerings and create a smarter selling system that fills the gap between marketing and sales.
Mobile Advancement – SAVO made its new application, CRM Opportunity Pro, available on the Salesforce1 AppExchange to transform the realm of CRM possibilities and deliver a unique sales enablement platform that helps customers stand out from the competition and sell smarter by leveraging the data available to them via their CRM and marketing automation systems.
Three Strategic Partnerships – SAVO signed an exclusive partnership with Strategic Proposals L.L.C. to transform the existing proposal market and help organizations develop more effective and compelling proposals. A second exclusive partnership with Corporate Visions, Inc. is allowing mutual customers to access crucial sales assets – such as campaign content, training, whiteboards and sales collateral – on-the-go. The company also formally aligned with Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company, to provide shared solutions that help sales reps increase their productivity and win more business.
Substantial Customer Growth – SAVO realized a 30 percent increase in new client engagements, due in large part to its release of several new products and updates to existing applications.
To continue driving success into the New Year, SAVO will host its eighth Sales Enablement Summit from April 15-17, 2014, in Chicago. This event will bring together an elite group of analysts, customers, industry thought leaders and visionaries to share their insights on leading strategies and tactics that attendees can implement across their organizations to create a more effective, productive and aligned ecosystem. Daniel Pink, author of the New York Times business bestseller, “To Sell is Human,” will keynote the conference.
“Much of our success can be credited to our development of a new, smarter approach to selling that helps organizations combine their sales process, messaging and situational content into a simple, effective solution that aligns with their customers’ buying process and supports reps on an individual level,” continued O’Connell. “As we move into 2014, we aim to continue building an even more expansive product portfolio that will help our customers jumpstart their path to smarter selling and optimize sales productivity within their organizations to win more business.”
About SAVO
Founded in 1999, SAVO is the leading provider of sales enablement solutions. SAVO’s on-demand sales enablement platform maximizes the sales team’s ability to communicate value and differentiation in clear, consistent and compelling ways. Combining proven sales and marketing best practices with award-winning technology, SAVO addresses all aspects of the sales enablement challenge — spanning people, process, insight and technology.
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TrainingIndustry.com Announces Top 20 Leadership Training Companies List
Cary, NC – Jan. 30, 2014 – TrainingIndustry.com has announced its Top 20 Leadership Training Companies List, as part of its mission to continually monitor the training marketplace for the best providers of training services and technologies.
View the 2014 Top 20 Leadership Training Companies
Selection to this year's Top 20 Leadership Training Companies List was based on the following criteria:
• Thought leadership and influence within the leadership training industry • Industry recognition and innovation • Breadth of programs and range of audiences served • Delivery methods offered
• Company size and growth potential • Strength of clients • Geographic reach • Experience serving the market
“The Leadership Training segment has seen continued high revenue growth, and continued innovation in the way companies develop and deliver leadership programs,” said Doug Harward, Chief Executive Officer, Training Industry, Inc.
“Submissions for the fifth annual Top 20 Leadership Training Companies were the most robust we have seen for any segment of the corporate training market,” said Ken Taylor, Chief Operating Officer, Training Industry, Inc.. “The response is a clear indication that corporations continue to focus on introducing new leadership strategies to support organizational performance improvement. This year’s Top 20 list is a collection of the best of the best in the support of this leadership evolution.”
View the 2014 Top 20 Leadership Training Companies
Please provide any thoughts or feedback on this list by emailing info@trainingindustry.com.
About Training Industry, Inc.
TrainingIndustry.com spotlights the latest news, articles, case studies and best practices within the training industry. Our focus is on helping dedicated business and training professionals get the information, insight and tools needed to more effectively manage the business of learning.
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Brainshark Presentations Surpass 110 Million Views
Waltham, Mass. — Jan. 30, 2014 — Brainshark, Inc., the leader in cloud-based business presentations, today announced that audiences around the world have viewed Brainshark presentations more than 110 million times. More than 2 billion minutes (3,805 years) of Brainshark content have been consumed to date, with a presentation viewed every 1.1 seconds last year. Brainshark’s 2013 fiscal year also marked strong continued growth, with the company delivering profitable operating results for the seventh consecutive year.
Viewed on every continent and in 98 percent of the world’s countries last year, Brainshark presentations help millions of users improve the results of their communications, while cutting costs by up to 95 percent. Brainshark’s technology makes it easy to turn static documents, such as PowerPoints, into trackable, interactive online video presentations that can be viewed anytime, on-demand, including from mobile devices. Brainshark also powers SlideShark, the award-winning app for showing and sharing PowerPoints from the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, and for securely distributing, tracking and managing presentations in the cloud.
Additional milestones from 2013 include:
Prolific viewing activity – In 2013, Brainshark consumption reached record levels. In addition to having a presentation viewed nearly every second, one presentation was also uploaded by users every 8.3 seconds.
High availability – Brainshark’s cloud-based platform processes millions of transactions every day, handling mobile optimization, video conversion, internal and external sharing, analytics and more – all while achieving nearly five 9s of reliability (99.998 percent uptime) in 2013.
Customer traction – Brainshark added more than 500 new enterprise customers of all sizes and across industries, with customers now spanning 26 verticals – including financial services, technology, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing and healthcare, as well as major/national sports leagues, apparel brands and more. Last year, the company had new and expanded customer engagements with leading-edge organizations such as Actifio, Bobcats Sports and Entertainment, Cambridge University Press, Delta Dental, Denver International Airport, Financial Engines, Nine Network, Pitney Bowes, Seagate, Teledyne Marine Systems, Visionix and Yelp.
Distribution partnerships – Brainshark expanded its geographic footprint, as organizations including En Pointe Technologies, ICT123, Softchoice and Tech Data inked deals to resell and support Brainshark solutions, including SlideShark Team Edition – the business version of SlideShark – and bring Brainshark’s benefits to even more users.
Explosive SlideShark use – In helping mobile professionals ramp up productivity and tap into unprecedented presentation capabilities, SlideShark hit a number of milestones last year. Brainshark’s 2-year-old app reached more than 2 million downloads, while having more than 5 million presentations and 150 million slides uploaded by users.
SlideShark Broadcasting – Widely acclaimed – with 10 industry awards in six months – this industry-first capability lets users broadcast their presentations, live and intact, over the Web from iOS devices, and invite others to follow along in real time. Launched by Brainshark last March, SlideShark Broadcasting has been used frequently across industries, with more than a thousand broadcast sessions every week.
New major features and products – To further boost audience engagement, Brainshark introduced VideoSync, letting users synchronize a video to play alongside their slide content. The company also unveiled a new design and new features for Brainshark Rapid Learning, providing even more support for mobile viewing and mLearning initiatives, and introduced a new Content Portal, to help sales reps, partners and other audiences easily find and use relevant content.
Integrations and partnerships – Brainshark announced an integration with Salesforce Identity and also partnered with Profitable Channels to offer companies a free assessment of their sales content effectiveness.
Non-profit grants – Brainshark awarded technology grants to 46 non-profits in 2013, helping to alleviate communication expenses through the free use of Brainshark’s technology.
Monthly industry accolades – Brainshark received 24 award recognitions in 2013, celebrating its content authoring platform, commitment to enterprise mobility, SlideShark app and more. In the last three months of the year alone, the company was honored in the Best in Biz Awards, Best of Elearning!, EContent 100, Forrester Groundswell Awards, Golden Bridge Business and Innovation Awards, Mobile Star Awards, Small Business Influencer Awards, Streaming Media Readers’ Choice Awards, Tabby Awards and more.
“As Brainshark expanded into new markets last year, delivered industry-first functionality, set viewing records and more, we owe a big thanks to our talented, dedicated team and world-class customers for making this possible,” said Brainshark CEO Joe Gustafson. “We look forward to continuing on a rapid pace of innovation this year, introducing more groundbreaking solutions to help companies improve their sales, marketing and training communications, and dramatically accelerate mobile worker productivity.”
About Brainshark, Inc.
Brainshark enables companies to improve productivity with cloud-based business presentation solutions for sales, marketing and training. With Brainshark’s easy-to-use solutions, customers transform static documents such as PowerPoints into dynamic, mobile-ready content that can be accessed quickly and viewed as on-demand video presentations or presented live – anytime, anywhere. They can also measure the effectiveness of their communications in ways never thought possible and use these insights to take action. Thousands of companies – including half of the Fortune 100 – and millions of individuals rely on Brainshark to increase the impact and reduce the cost of their business communications. Learn more at www.brainshark.com.
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New eLearning Solutions Educates Employees about Risks of Poor Sleep
Harrisburg, PA, Jan. 31, 2014 - A new eLearning solution created by JPL is helping organizations educate employees about the risks of insufficient sleep.
The solution, developed for IMC, a division of Highmark, Inc. includes a custom eLearning course and learning management system. IMC is offering the solution to its clients to help them solve health-related issues that can impact safety and productivity.
JPL’s ecoLearn™ Learning Management System (LMS) helps IMC analyze the results and generate customized reports for at-risk employees, explaining where and how they might seek help for potential sleep disorders. Reports are delivered directly to employees and aren’t shared with employers so the privacy of the employee is protected.
After taking the course and the survey, employees realize the risks of insufficient sleep; they can recognize the symptoms of impaired alertness; and they get a customized report they can share with their doctors to get the help they need.
The program helps create a safer, more productive work environment that benefits the employees, the company and its customers.
About JPL
Learning solutions from JPL help improve performance – on the front lines, in the back office or out in the field. For 20 years we’ve partnered with regional and global clients to deliver smart, practical solutions that help organizations reach their goals.
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Interaction Associates Announces Leadership Workshops
Boston, MA, Feb. 3, 2014 — Interaction Associates recently announced a slate of five public open-enrollment workshops designed to equip women managers, leaders and executives to move into more senior leadership roles.
These programs are open to the public and will take place throughout 2014 in Boston, San Francisco, and in Houston and Plano, Texas.
The global innovator of development methods that advance leaders, build trust, and deepen collaboration to help drive business results, Interaction Associates, has a unique and powerful perspective on developing women leaders. The open-enrollment workshops program is aimed at individual women looking to boost their career prospects, as well as corporate trainers who want to preview the program for possible inclusion in their organizations' talent management strategy.
The workshop focuses on outlines three specific actions that empower women to chart an effective course to leadership: 1) Educate women and men about second generation bias, 2) Create dependable, clear paths for women to transition to bigger roles, and 3) Anchor women's development efforts in a sense of purpose, rather than in how women are perceived.
"Many companies know that developing all their people is a competitive advantage - and we see the Women in Leadership program as an important component in a strategy to attract, involve, and retain the best people in the industry," said Linda Stewart, Interaction Associates President and CEO. "Research shows women leaders bring diverse points of view and insights into customer needs that are invaluable to an organizations' success. In fact, a higher percentage of women at the top generally results in a healthier balance sheet," Stewart added.
Five, three-day public sessions are scheduled to be held throughout 2014.
"The program is challenging, insightful, and practical," Stewart said. "Women in Leadership achieves that balance to give women leaders grounded and actionable insights and skills.”
About Interaction Associates
Interaction Associates (IA) is a 44-year innovator that equips people to work better together in order to realize superior business results. The firm helps global organizations build high-involvement, collaborative cultures by developing their leaders, teams, and change agents. IA's clients achieve a new measure of ROI - Return on Involvement - where employees go "beyond engagement" to share responsibility for business success. IA offers customized consulting, learning and development, and coaching services.
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Epic Software Group brings 3D Gaming to the Oil and Gas Industry
The Woodlands, TX, Feb. 4, 2014 - It is common knowledge that careers in the energy industry are booming and one company in The Woodlands, Texas is using gaming technology to help new workers learn safety training and environmental awareness. The epic software group, a 23 year old multimedia development company has created a 3D virtual drill rig that allows those new to the industry to move around the rig site without leaving home.
Vic Cherubini, president of epic, leads a team of artists, animators and game developers who use software created for the entertainment industry to produce serious games. A recent study by Schlumberger Business Consulting, found that by 2014-2015 the flow of younger petro-technical professionals to the industry will be approximately 17,000, compared to the estimated 22,000 who will be leaving. "We need to attract more people to the energy industry to help fill this void. Epic chose to use gaming technology because young people have grown up on video games, and know intuitively how to navigate the rig," said Cherubini.
epic's first client was HARC (Houston Advanced Research Center), who hired the company to create a 3D rig to demonstrate environmentally friendly ways of drilling for oil and gas. Dr. Richard Haut, Director of HARC's EFD Systems program said "The advances in technology such as horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing have resulted in a meteoric rise in the number of drill rigs here in Texas and around the country. It is our responsibility to find ways to drill responsibly and share best practices with the industry. With a grant from the General Land Office we funded the 3D drill rig. This year the project was expanded and epic is now creating a 3D hydraulic fracturing site."
The 3D drill rig can also be used for safety training, yet unlike traditional Computer Based Training (CBT), gaming technology immerses the student in a virtual rig environment. "We have a 'learning mode' where we guide the student around the rig, followed by a 'training mode' where the student is free to move around the rig to demonstrate that they understand a safety procedure," said Cherubini. "Human error is the number one cause of safety incidents, and accidents can be reduced through repeated practice in a virtual simulator," continued Cherubini.
The oil and gas industry has used traditional simulators for years. These require expensive hardware and dedicated training centers. epic's goal is to bring this high level training to the desktop, laptop and tablet computers we all use. And the future looks very bright. epic is now exploring the use of 3D virtual reality goggles to add yet another level of realism to their serious games.
The epic software group will be demonstrating this technology at the Energy Network Expo on April 3rd at The Woodlands, Marriott. Anyone can access the 3D Virtual Rig free of charge directly from the EFD Systems web site via: http://efdvirtualsite.org/
About Epic Software
The epic software group is a multimedia production company located in The Woodlands, (Houston) Texas. Founded in 1990, the company operates from a state-of-the-art production facility filled with an incredible team of Artists, Animators and Programmers. epic has the experience, knowledge and creativity to tell your story or showcase your products and services using all of the latest interactive technologies.
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New Book Shares Key Lessons from CCL’s Leading Strategically Program
Greensboro, NC, Feb. 4, 2014 – In an era of economic upheaval, shifting markets and rapidly changing technology, organizations must become engines of continual learning to jump-start and sustain success. But how do they build learning – and the ability to act on the resulting knowledge – into their DNA?
The Center for Creative Leadership (CCL®) finds there is no substitute for strategic leadership – the ability to create direction, alignment and commitment at every level to reach an organization’s full potential.
Becoming a Strategic Leader: Your Role in Your Organization’s Enduring Success, 2nd Edition, published by Jossey-Bass, offers a comprehensive approach to strategic leadership, drawing on CCL’s highly regarded Leading Strategically open-enrollment program.
Authors Richard L. Hughes, Katherine Colarelli Beatty and David L. Dinwoodie have worked together at CCL for 15 years, personally helping more than 2,000 leaders and dozens of organizations around the world tackle their toughest leadership challenges. Their book emphasizes three essential strategic elements – discovering and prioritizing strategic drivers; developing a leadership strategy; and fostering individual and organizational learning.
Hughes, a former CCL senior faculty member, served as transformation chair and academic department head at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Beatty is managing director of CCL’s Colorado Springs, CO campus, and Dinwoodie is CCL’s regional director for Latin America.
“Chock-full of tips and tools, this book puts ‘strategic’ within your reach with practical guidance for those seeking to learn this important skill,” said Mary Ellen Smith, corporate vice president of operations at Microsoft.
Written for executives, middle managers and junior managers – who all play critical roles in designing and implementing strategic leadership – this updated edition includes enhanced self-assessments that help leaders identify strategic gaps in their organizations’ approach to leadership.
“Strategic leadership increasingly is the responsibility of many people, not just those at the top,” the authors state in their preface. “More and more we see that leaders at different levels in the organization are charged with contributing to strategy formulation and leading strategy execution.”
About CCL
The Center for Creative Leadership (CCL®) is a top-ranked, global provider of leadership development. By leveraging the power of leadership to drive results that matter most to clients, CCL transforms individual leaders, teams, organizations and society. Our array of cutting-edge solutions is steeped in extensive research and experience gained from working with hundreds of thousands of leaders at all levels. Ranked among the world’s Top 10 providers of executive education by Bloomberg BusinessWeek and the Financial Times, CCL has offices in Greensboro, NC.; Colorado Springs, CO.; San Diego, CA.; Brussels, Belgium; Moscow, Russia; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Johannesburg, South Africa; Singapore; New Delhi-NCR, India; and Shanghai, China.
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Industry Report Ranks Docebo as a Top 10 learning Management System
Docebo ranked seventh in Craig Weiss’ independent Learning Management Systems report for 2014. The company was among more than 580 LMSs currently available in the global market.
The report not only provides a detailed analysis of the most notable e-learning solution providers, but also explores the state of the business and the related opportunities segmented by continent.
The document underlines with clear facts and figures the top trends, topics and predictions for each area, giving a comprehensive overview about the international LMS markets.
Docebo’s approach is highlighted by the following pluses:
One click apps and courses, simply click and they appear in LMS
Modern user interface
LMS automatically comes with some courses (at no charge)
Built-in video converter
About Docebo
Docebo is a disruptive Cloud E-Learning solutions provider that is revolutionizing the Online training market with its Cloud "As a Service" Learning Management System, doubling its active worldwide customers quarterly and building an international partner network in more than 26 countries. The main products (Docebo SaaS and Docebo Premium) are designed for both SMBs (Small and Medium businesses) and Enterprises. Customers benefit from Docebo solutions thanks to a scalable pricing model, a third party integration (via API), and a reliable service available 24/7 that empower further the user experience.
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The Training Associates Appoints New Senior VP
Westborough, MA – Feb. 11, 2014 ‐ The Training Associates, the largest provider of training talent and solutions, announced the appointment of John Higgins as Senior Vice President of Growth and Solutions Development. Higgins will be responsible for leading strategic growth and business development activities at TTA.
He joins TTA from Bridgeport Education where he was Vice President of Talent Management. He previously founded Higgins Learning Group, an independent advisory firm.
During his career, Higgins has held several senior leadership positions with Fortune 500 companies including Senior Executive, Global Strategy & Innovation at Accenture; Chief Learning Officer at BearingPoint; Partner at KPMG; and Principal at IBM Consulting Group.
He earned his MBA in International Business from the University of Miami, and his Bachelor’s degree in Management from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, FL. He is a candidate for his PhD in Organizational Development and Learning from the University of the Rockies in Colorado Springs, CO.
“We are always looking to invest in high-caliber talent who can bring a deep understanding of the learning and development industry as well as the connections to execute beneficial relationships, and John fits those criteria,” said Maria Melfa, President of The Training Associates. “John’s experience will be a huge asset to our organization and complementary to the talents of our existing team.”
About The Training Associates
Founded in 1994, The Training Associates (TTA) is the largest provider of training talent and solutions. TTA’s stringent quality procedures, vast network of over 25,000 diversely skilled IT and professional skills training delivery and design consultants, and convenient training delivery administration services enable organizations to secure top-notch training professionals, on demand. Importantly, they can accomplish this without the fixed overhead associated with a large training staff, or the delays, classification risks, and administrative burdens associated with recruiting training contractors directly. With unparalleled experience and expertise in all aspects of training delivery, TTA is best equipped to meet the unique requirements of each training initiative – regardless of size, scope, or location.
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GP Strategies Launches Global Tuition Assistance Program Management Solution
COLUMBIA, Md., Feb. 11, 2014 – Global performance improvement solutions provider GP Strategies Corporation, is pleased to announce that it has successfully launched a global tuition assistance program management solution to support The Boeing Company's Learning Together Program.
Boeing's Learning, Training and Development (LTD) group selected GP Strategies to improve the service level and process efficiency of their Learning Together Program. This program provides tuition assistance for Boeing employees around the globe who are seeking to continue their education in undergraduate and graduate degree programs as well as other instructive opportunities.
Recently launched, GP Strategies' global solution includes the processing of tuition requests, grade verification, invoice auditing, reporting and help desk support. Using a branded and custom-configured tuition system, seamlessly interfacing with several Boeing systems and processes, GP Strategies has streamlined and improved this organization's education assistance program, providing global employees with access to online tools, information and efficient payment processing. These services transfer global program oversight and administrative responsibilities to GP Strategies as the single point of contact, ensuring consistent, quality services and operational efficiency across the organization.
Heidi Milberg, GP Strategies' Director of Learning Solutions, stated, "We are thrilled to be awarded the opportunity to help Boeing meet their goals for an improved Learning Together Program. The size and complexity of the program presented opportunities for improvement, which aligns well to GP Strategies' strength as a custom tuition program management solution provider. A strong partnership has resulted from this successful outsourcing engagement, bringing significant value and benefits to both organizations."
About The Boeing Company Boeing is the world's leading aerospace company and the largest manufacturer of commercial jetliners and military aircraft combined. Additionally, Boeing designs and manufactures rotorcraft, electronic and defense systems, missiles, satellites, launch vehicles and advanced information and communication systems. Headquartered in Chicago, Boeing employs more than 170,000 people across the United States and in 70 countries. This represents one of the most diverse, talented and innovative workforces anywhere. More than 140,000 of Boeing's employees hold college degrees, including nearly 35,000 advanced degrees, in virtually every business and technical field from approximately 2,700 colleges and universities worldwide.
About GP Strategies GP Strategies Corporation is a global performance improvement solutions provider of training, eLearning solutions, management consulting and engineering services. GP Strategies' solutions improve the effectiveness of organizations by delivering innovative and superior training, consulting and business improvement services customized to meet the specific needs of its clients. Clients include Fortune 500 companies, manufacturing, process and energy industries, and other commercial and government customers.
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TrainingIndustry.com Announces Leadership Training Companies Watch List
Cary, NC – Feb. 13, 2014 – TrainingIndustry.com has announced its 2014 Leadership Training Companies Watch List, as part of its mission to continually monitor the training marketplace for the best providers of training services and technologies.
View the 2014 Leadership Training Companies Watch List
Selection to this year's Leadership Training Companies Watch List was based on the following criteria:
New and Innovative Service Offerings
Unique approach to Leadership Development Solutions
Commitment to Thought Leadership
Quality of Clients
“The 2014 Leadership Training Companies Watch List identifies a key group of companies who have made significant strides in the leadership training market,” said Ken Taylor, Chief Operating Officer, Training Industry, Inc. “There are several new companies on the list, which demonstrates the constant innovation and growth occurring in this market.”
“This year’s Watch List showcases unique approaches and increased customization to leadership training,” said Doug Harward, Chief Executive Officer, Training Industry, Inc. “These companies have earned business from significant clients and make an impact in the development of their employees.”
View the 2014 Leadership Training Companies Watch List
Please provide any thoughts or feedback on this list by emailing info@trainingindustry.com.
About Training Industry, Inc.
TrainingIndustry.com spotlights the latest news, articles, case studies and best practices within the training industry. Our focus is on helping dedicated business and training professionals get the information, insight and tools needed to more effectively manage the business of learning.
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NetDimensions Donates Learning Platform To Improve Lives in Developing World
Seattle, WA, Feb. 13, 2014 - NetDimensions, a global provider of performance, knowledge, and learning management systems, announced today that it has donated NetDimensions Learning to LINGOs to deliver a wide range of professional development experiences to the staff of its member organizations and others working to improve lives in the developing world.
NetDimensions and LINGOs have built an innovative learning offering that is based on NetDimensions Learning, the award-winning Learning Management System available as Secure SaaS, that can serve multiple LINGOs member organizations via highly personalized and distributed learning portals. The portals are developed on the popular WordPress blogging and content management system and utilize BuddyPress, a WordPress plugin that provides social networking functionality.
With the WordPress front-end, LINGOs can cost-effectively provide learning portals to each member organization that meet the unique requirements of their headquarters and country offices wherever they are in the world. These portals integrate with NetDimensions Learning via the NetDimensions SDK that provides single sign-on authentication and specific APIs and widgets for WordPress.
“We view this new offering as the next generation learning technology for our members,” said Eric Berg, President and CEO of LINGOs. “It allows us to move beyond simply providing traditional learning management functionality so we can now bring community and social aspects to the online learning experience. NetDimensions has been the only company that was able to provide the right product to enable us to build this distributed offering that delivers capacity to staff in the field as they need it.”
LINGOs’ Last Mile Learning provides free, contextualized learning resources to professionals working in the development and relief sectors. The learning resources are accessible in multiple formats and are designed to serve the needs of individual learners, trainers and organizations.
“We are proud to become a LINGOs partner and to contribute with our technology in helping to address many of the fundamental challenges faced by society today,” explained Alex Poulos, Chief Marketing Officer of NetDimensions. “There is no question that learning can be transformational to communities all over the world and can help better people’s lives with technology playing a key part in that.”
LINGOs will begin making this new learning offering available in the next month and will be able to highlight the technology together with NetDimensions at ASTD 2014 International Conference and Exhibition in Washington, DC on May 4-7. LINGOs members include Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) such as Save The Children, World Relief, Action Aid, CARE, Habitat for Humanity, The Nature Conservancy, Samaritan’s Purse, WWF, and others.
“This is an extremely elegant and powerful architecture to address some unique requirements faced by NGOs and to deliver personalized and collaborative learning at the point of need,” Poulos added.
“NetDimensions has always been true to its mission to make learning, performance support and knowledge sharing more accessible to global organizations,” said Jay Shaw, CEO and founder of NetDimensions. “We are honored to be able to try to do the same for non-profit organizations that have to serve their efforts under very difficult conditions. As a company looking for ways to give back to society, NetDimensions is fully committed to building our relationship with LINGOs and to helping provide a learning technology that has an impact on the world.”
About NetDimensions
Established in 1999, NetDimensions is a global provider of performance, knowledge, and learning management systems.
NetDimensions provides companies, government agencies and other organizations with talent management solutions to personalize learning, share knowledge, enhance performance, foster collaboration, and manage compliance programs for employees, customers, partners and suppliers.
Recognized as one of the top-rated learning technology suppliers in overall customer satisfaction, NetDimensions has been chosen by leading organizations worldwide including ING, Cathay Pacific, Hunter Douglas, Chicago Police Department, Geely Automotive, Fugro Group, and Fresenius Medical Care.
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Global Training Solutions Inc. Launches Security Awareness Programs
Ontario, Canada, Feb. 14, 2014 - Global Training Solutions Inc. is now offering fully interactive, role-based NERC CIP Security Awareness Programs.
All programs can be customized to include an organization’s specific policies, processes and procedures and links to internal and external documents.
Programs include:
CIP – 004 Personnel and Training E-learning Course
NERC CIP Security Awareness Poster Program
NERC CIP Security Awareness Newsletter Program
The NERC CIP – 004 E-Learning Course provides an on-screen instructor presenting background information and an overview of the requirements on the specific CIP Standard. The program also covers core standard content, and the importance of an agreed upon definition in order to meet the requirements. The course can be customized, delivers role-based content to multiple sites, and is available on our LMS or corporate LMS. Also included, is a time-stamped reporting feature and interactive knowledge checks to reinforce learning. Course completion certificates can also be printed.
All posters and newsletter subscriptions are branded with company logo, downloadable as a PDF and available monthly or quarterly.
About Global Training Solutions, Inc.
Global Training Solutions Inc. provides compliance, workforce training programs and classroom instruction aimed at the development, training and safety of employees in many diverse industries worldwide. As a global performance improvement company, our objective is to ensure that we provide content required to enhance knowledge and skills, comply with industry and government mandates and assist organizations and professionals best manage career, compliance and certification requirements. Our unique solutions assist in enhancing business performance, reduce costs and expand organizational capabilities.
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Docebo’s New LMS Cloud Solution Improves Delivery, Supports Enterprising Learning
Athens, GA, Feb. 18, 2014 - Docebo, the global e-learning solutions provider, announces today the release of Docebo LMS 6.2 version which is now available for up to 20,000 users. The e-learning platform has been enhanced with a number of new features and a pricing plan tailored for large enterprises making it a cost-effective investment that leverages the benefits and flexibility of a pure Cloud/SaaS solution. As part of Docebo’s employee-centred learning vision, the Docebo 6.2 version comes with key enhancements such as the Enterprise Cloud Solution (ECS) which gives organizations an unprecedented opportunity to access a package of applications. Activating the Enterprise Cloud Solution App brings the LMS to another level - the Isolated Cloud allows the LMS to run as a separate instance on a single-tenant infrastructure which translates as improved flexibility and performance. The ECS App comprises Gold or Platinum Help Desk Support, E-Commerce, Custom Domain, White-labeling. More improvements with the Docebo 6.2 update also include the ILT-Classroom App, which allows easy management of ILT and blended training activities so that trainers can easily organise Courses and Sessions, Classrooms, Locations, Enrollments, Assessments and Evaluations.
“Today's workforce needs knowledge, skills and abilities that are aligned with business objectives, while managers need to track the effectiveness of learning programs,” said Claudio Erba, CEO & Founder of Docebo. “With our new product version and pricing plan, we aim to transform the LMS into a ‘must have’ tool - like a CRM. Our approach helps re-humanize business processes through e-learning as companies become more people-centric. That’s why, for mid-sized and large enterprises, we’ve made available the Enterprise Cloud Solution which runs the LMS on an isolated cloud single-tenant instance, and gives access to a package of Apps. Our ILT-Classroom app enables a superior service delivery and cost-effective investment while leveraging the benefits and flexibility of a pure SaaS Solution.”
Online corporate training programs will benefit from an integrated E-Learning ecosystem designed to adapt to businesses as their needs and requirements evolve. With flexible solutions designed to support any learning strategy, the Docebo Learning Management System supports the entire learning programme cycle through developing business critical skills, removing complexity and enabling the delivery of training programmes by ensuring a global outreach to local content.
About Docebo
Docebo is a disruptive cloud e-Learning solutions provider that is revolutionizing the Online training market with its cloud "As a Service" Learning Management System, doubling its active worldwide customers quarterly and building an international partner network in more than 26 countries. The main products (Docebo SaaS and Docebo Premium) are designed for both SMBs (Small and Medium businesses) and Enterprises. Customers benefit from Docebo solutions thanks to a scalable pricing model, a third party integration (via API), and a reliable service available 24/7 that empowers the user experience.
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Upside Learning Enters European Market
Minneapolis, MN, Feb. 20, 2014 – Upside Learning, a leading provider of learning technology solutions, made its European debut at the LEARNTEC event in Germany, earlier this month.
Amit Garg, Director and co-founder of Upside Learning, spoke at the event.
“It is the beginning and our first step towards establishing Upside Learning in the EU market,” he said. “We already do business in Europe and are looking to expand this through partners and alliances as well as by building a direct presence.”
Upside Learning’s showcase of multi-award winning solutions were very well received and met with keen interest by delegates from Germany and the rest of Europe over the three-day event.
The Upside LMS and tablet & mobile solutions in particular attracted a lot of attention, and Garg’s session on 'What the Tablet means for eLearning and Performance Support' was also extremely well received.
About Upside Learning
A globally recognized leader in training outsourcing, Upside Learning is one of the leading names in Custom eLearning, Learning Management System and Mobile Learning Solutions. For over 7 years, the company’s award-winning solutions and services have enabled 150+clients from a diverse set of industries and countries manage their learning easily and effectively.
The company’s solutions and services portfolio ranges from Custom eLearning to Catalog Courses, Mobile Learning Solutions to Learning Management System and Technical support services tailor-made to an organization be it an Enterprise, a SMB or a Training Company.
Upside Learning has been consistently picking up awards and other recognitions every year, including the most recent, 2010 Brandon Hall Excellence in Learning Technology Awards for its flagship, best value Learning Management System – UpsideLMS and 2011 Apex Awards for Publication Excellence.
It is its constant endeavor to develop and provide innovative solutions to its clients thereby impacting their organizational learning and hence, performance.
For more information, visit: www.upsidelearning.com.
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NetDimensions Provides New LMS to Help Train 5000 Employees
Hong Kong, China, Feb. 25, 2014 — NetDimensions, a global provider of performance, knowledge, and learning management systems, announced today that the AURORA Group has successfully launched NetDimensions Learning as its new centralized learning management solution.
AURORA Group is a leading office automation solution provider in Greater China. Before adopting NetDimensions Learning, AURORA has been using a locally developed learning solution since 2007. The fast expansion of the Group, especially in Mainland China, drove the need for more complex internal training and management processes and technologies. The old system, both in terms of features and operational processes, failed to meet AURORA’s growing needs and necessitated the search for a new and flexible system.
AURORA started with shortlisting 4-5 domestic and international vendors that had presence on the ground in China. After months of evaluation and consultation, NetDimensions was selected as the strategic partner for AURORA’s learning and talent development system project due to the comprehensive product features of NetDimensions Learning and NetDimensions’ strong professional services team in China. NetDimensions also demonstrated extensive experience in learning and talent management, as well as a proven record of serving over 380 clients worldwide.
David Dai, AURORA Group’s HR Director, said that the most important factor his company considered when it chose NetDimensions is its expertise in both learning and talent management solutions.
“They consistently invest in R&D to upgrade and improve their core product,” he said. “NetDimensions’ continuous product innovation is what we appreciate most and believe the system is able to dynamically adapt itself to the changing environment and internal needs of our company.”
Ensuring success with a two-pronged launch strategy
In order to launch the new Learning Management System (LMS) within two months, AURORA and NetDimensions adopted a two-pronged approach: NetDimensions managed the setup and deployment of the platform, while AURORA focused on developing the learning programs and formulating learning content.
Within three months, AURORA developed more than 20 eLearning courses, covering a wide range of topics, such as product knowledge, company guidelines and regulations, and sales skills. All the courses were ready by the time NetDimensions Learning was launched, maximizing the value of the system immediately.
“Now that we have launched our new LMS, we will continue developing and promoting our online courses, so that we can constantly motivate our staff to utilize the LMS, and at the same time, grow the culture of learning within the company,” said Mr. Daoshen Wang, Training Manager of AURORA Group.
AURORA will also use NetDimensions Learning to provide onboarding training for 600 to 700 new hires annually. Completion of the onboarding courses will be a pre-requisite to become a full-time employee. Mandatory competency exams will be used as a performance indicator for new hires. AURORA is planning to expand the reach of the LMS into key departments, such as sales and service teams, to facilitate the development of sales skills and to improve employee engagement and performance.
Alex Cheng, General Manager of NetDimensions China said: “We are honored that AURORA Group chose NetDimensions Learning to support their growth strategy. We really appreciate their trust and confidence in our products and services. We are proud to share in their vision to continuously improve and invest in our products to stay at the forefront of our industry so we can satisfy the needs of our clients.”
About NetDimensions
Established in 1999, NetDimensions is a global provider of performance, knowledge, and learning management systems.
NetDimensions provides companies, government agencies and other organizations with talent management solutions to personalize learning, share knowledge, enhance performance, foster collaboration, and manage compliance programs for employees, customers, partners and suppliers.
Recognized as one of the top-rated learning technology suppliers in overall customer satisfaction, NetDimensions has been chosen by leading organizations worldwide including ING, Cathay Pacific, Hunter Douglas, Chicago Police Department, Geely Automotive, Fugro Group, and Fresenius Medical Care.
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GP Strategies Reports Strong Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2013 Financial Results
Columbia, Md., Feb. 25, 2014 – Global performance improvement solutions provider GP Strategies Corporation, today reported financial results for the quarter and fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2013.
Overview of Fourth Quarter 2013 Results:
Revenue of $117.2 million for fourth quarter of 2013, up $11.2 million or 11 percent compared to $106.0 million for fourth quarter of 2012
Operating income of $12.1 million for fourth quarter of 2013, up $1.9 million or 19 percent compared to $10.2 million for fourth quarter of 2012
EBITDA of $14.7 million, up $2.3 million or 18 percent for fourth quarter of 2013 compared to $12.4 million for fourth quarter of 2012
The Company's revenue increased 11 percent or $11.2 million during the fourth quarter of 2013 compared to the fourth quarter of 2012. The revenue growth is primarily attributable to organic growth in the Learning Solutions and Energy Services segments and businesses acquired in 2013. Operating income increased 19 percent or $1.9 million during the fourth quarter of 2013 and included a $1.2 million gain on the change in fair value of contingent consideration related to previously completed acquisitions. Income before income taxes was $12.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2013 compared to $10.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2012. Net income was $7.4 million, or $0.38 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2013 compared to $6.1 million, or $0.32 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2012.
The company recognized revenue of $436.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2013, representing a 9 percent increase over 2012 revenue of $401.6 million. Operating income increased $2.7 million or 7 percent in 2013 to $38.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2013. Net income was $23.8 million, or $1.23 per diluted share, for the year ended December 31, 2013 compared to $22.7 million, or $1.18 per diluted share, for the year ended December 31, 2012.
"I am extremely pleased to report another solid quarter," commented Scott N. Greenberg, Chief Executive Officer of GP Strategies. "We achieved record revenues for both the three months and fiscal year. These strong financial results were accomplished while expanding infrastructure to enable the company to continue on its path of growth and international expansion. Our results also include costs associated with implementing the global contract with HSBC, under which local service agreements were signed in September. Our goal continues to be to further establish GP Strategies' brand in the highly fragmented training industry."
Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Highlights As of Dec. 31, 2013, the company had cash and cash equivalents of $5.6 million compared to $7.8 million as of Dec. 31, 2012. The company had no long-term debt, $0.4 of million short-term borrowings outstanding and $48.9 million of available borrowings under its line of credit as of Dec. 31, 2013. Cash provided by operating activities was $16.3 million for the year ended Dec. 31, 2013 compared to $25.3 million for the year ended Dec. 31, 2012. During the quarter and year ended Dec. 31, 2013, the company repurchased 29,000 and 67,000 shares, respectively, of its common stock in the open market for approximately $0.8 million and $1.7 million, respectively, in cash.
About GP Strategies GP Strategies Corporation is a global performance improvement solutions provider of training, eLearning solutions, management consulting and engineering services. GP Strategies' solutions improve the effectiveness of organizations by delivering innovative and superior training, consulting and business improvement services, customized to meet the specific needs of its clients. Clients include Fortune 500 companies, manufacturing, process and energy industries, and other commercial and government customers. Additional information may be found at www.gpstrategies.com.
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SAVO Releases CRM Opportunity Pro for Microsoft Dynamics CRM
Chicago, Il., Feb. 25, 2014 – SAVO Group, the market leader in sales enablement, today announced the release of CRM Opportunity Pro for Microsoft Dynamics CRM. With this updated application, sales teams and IT executives using Dynamics can take advantage of CRM Opportunity Pro’s standard, out-of-the-box implementation, enabling them to harness the power of SAVO’s robust analytics capabilities directly inside their CRM system.
“Today’s sales teams have many solutions at their disposal, but instead of helping, the amount of solutions often causes confusion – it’s hard to know where to begin,” said Kurt Andersen, executive vice president of sales enablement and marketing, SAVO. “To simplify reps’ daily activities, CRM Opportunity Pro harvests data from both CRM and marketing automation solutions to provide sellers with a holistic view of their prospect or customer – without having to leave a CRM record.”
The CRM Opportunity Pro for Microsoft Dynamics CRM release enables sales reps and IT executives to use their customer data to better and more quickly align with prospects and customers, improve lead conversion rates and accelerate the sales cycle. It also helps to drive higher adoption and ROI on CRM investments. Through the application, sales leaders gain real-time insight into opportunities and are able to provide prescriptive coaching and push resources specific to the sales stage to reps whose deals are stalling.
Key Features of CRM Opportunity Pro for Microsoft Dynamics CRM include:
Prescriptive Coaching and Content – Gives sales leaders the ability to push assets and coaching within the opportunity record as deal characteristics evolve so reps can adapt and move forward.
Tactical Analytics and Insights – Provides executives with a view of what marketing and sales assets strongly resonate with buyers and are most effective so they can drive messaging consistency and overall deal success.
Marketing Automation – Aligns marketing content to conversations based off a lead’s interests and goals.
“Today’s selling environment is hyper-competitive, which is why we plan to use this new application to help us push sales resources to our teams based on opportunity attributes recorded in the CRM system, including past interactions, expressed interest and more,” said Dan Sytsma, senior vice president of sales at Logicalis, an international IT solutions and managed services provider. “We’re excited to start using CRM Opportunity Pro for Microsoft Dynamics CRM, and we expect this will make our team more efficient and effective.”
About SAVO
Founded in 1999, SAVO is the leading provider of sales enablement solutions. SAVO’s on-demand sales enablement platform maximizes the sales team’s ability to communicate value and differentiation in clear, consistent and compelling ways. Combining proven sales and marketing best practices with award-winning technology, SAVO addresses all aspects of the sales enablement challenge — spanning people, process, insight and technology.
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MicroTek Celebrates 10 Year Anniversary of Charitable Fund
CHICAGO, IL (December 2013) - MicroTek, a leader in the delivery of training room rentals and customized training solutions, is excited to celebrate the 10th anniversary of its benevolence account, the Dave Ironside Fund. Established in 2001, the Fund serves as a way for MicroTek to give back to the communities where it conducts business by helping local organizations that are in need of support. “Since its inception, we’ve donated over $140,000 to local charities. We all feel that Dave would be honored that we remember him in this way,” said Bill Taylor, Vice President of Facility Resources.
In keeping with tradition, MicroTek donated a total of $19,500 this holiday season to charitable organizations across the U.S. “Every year, our employees handpick the organizations that will receive a donation, which makes the whole process much more personal,” said Don Silvensky, MicroTek CEO. “We feel extremely fortunate that we can continue helping our communities in this way.”
Dave Ironside was one of the original employees of MicroTek. As part of his personal outreach, he worked with troubled and needy kids, many times taking them into his own home as they sorted out their lives. “I think we all share a sense of pride in working for an organization that has engrained philanthropy, as well as employee recognition, into its corporate culture,” said Taylor.
MicroTek’s employees selected 13 charities across the country to each receive a $1,500 donation. They are as follows:
Chicago Post Office Letters to Santa
The Pantry
The Jimmy Fund
Henry Street Settlement
DC Central Kitchen
March of dimes Birth Defects Foundation, Virginia Chapter
The First Tee Lakeland
Community Bike Works
Ronald McDonald House
Meals on Wheels
Children’s Hospital Colorado
Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles- High Risk Youth
City Team San Francisco
ABOUT MICROTEK
As the leading single-source provider of business training delivery services, MicroTek excels at providing training classrooms (both traditional and virtual), course materials, expert instructors, logistical support and technical assistance for complex projects and meetings. For more information on MicroTek's business learning solutions, please look around our website www.mclabs.com or follow us on Twitter @delivertraining.
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