Facilisgroup, St. Louis, announced the launch of the Facilisgroup Immersion Program, an experiential learning event designed to educate new staff members with a comprehensive foundation of the promotional products industry.
Beginning May 6, the three-week program provided 12 new-to-industry Facilisgroup employees an in-depth look into the world of promotional products distributors, suppliers and technology, while leaving the team with a heightened understanding of the value and services provided to Facilisgroup partners.
The program consisted of a combination of on-site visits, classroom activities and virtual learning, and resulted in all participants receiving their PPAI Trained Advertising Specialist (TAS) certification, on top of a treasure chest of beneficial knowledge.
“We feel this program represents a critical path to our future,” said Matthew Lamb, senior vice president of research and development at Facilisgroup. “As we continue to grow, we’re hiring more outside professionals with tremendous skill sets and perspectives that we can now blend with promotional products knowledge in a very effective manner. This is truly giving us the best of both worlds.”
During the program, participants spent time visiting and job shadowing at St. Louis-based distributor MPGTandem, as well as a road trip to Fredericktown, Mo., for an immersive experience with supplier Cap America. Additionally, long-time promotional product executive and acclaimed author Conrad Franey spent time with the team at the Facilisgroup headquarters to discuss his valuable history in the industry, and how his approach of preparation and perseverance have been vital to achieving maximum results within the industry and beyond.
Additional interactive classroom activities, discussions and individual assignments rounded up the curriculum, providing participants a thorough look into industry from several distinct points-of-view.
“The program wildly exceeded our expectations in terms of participant feedback, engagement and, of course, the knowledge base our new hires were able to build so quickly,” said Lamb. “But the added benefit of helping our people really feel like they’re part of something, and taking that to the next level, was a really positive result as well.”
“Learning the industry from an insider point of view was fantastic,” said Amanda Bujnak, product manager at Facilisgroup and participant in the program. “As a product manager, part of my job is to make sure our partners’ needs are represented in the development of software solutions. By better understanding the problems our industry faces, and developing empathy for those problems, we’ll directly contribute to building a better product.”
The Immersion Program is just one way that Facilisgroup is contributing to the growing need for businesses to invest in the development of their team.
“We never want to take a shortcut on our people, but rather invest in those who want to invest in themselves,” added Lamb. “We feel strongly that this approach is a necessary step to preserve the long-term success of our industry.”
For more information on Facilisgroup, visit www.facilisgroup.com.
