Advantage Performance projects earn Brandon Hall Group Excellence in Learning Awards

Cargill worked with Advantage Performance and its thought leader partner Root to create The GreenBook: Strong Foundations - Bright Future, an organizational guidebook for engagement and culture that won the Gold Excellence in Learning Award for Best Advance in Custom Content.

Armed with information from employees on what resonated best, Cargill Animal Nutrition and the Advantage Performance/Root team developed a strategy that would bring the GreenBook online and create interactive elements to dramatically strengthen employee engagement. Specifically, the team built an interactive portal that hosts GreenBook content and includes gamified scenarios, creative animal characters, and fun activities for an immersive experience designed to be fresh, memorable, and high impact.

“Cargill lives its values and it is impressive how this deliberate effort shows up in the culture across the entire organization,” said Mary Steiner, an Advantage Performance partner based in Minneapolis who led the project along with Lynda Michielutti and Erin Miser of Cargill and Quinn Haslinger of Root. “The Cargill Animal Nutrition business has built a legacy around their commitment to a values-based culture that enables every employee to thrive and succeed—and their choice to have some fun with their latest evolution leverages their past and drives excitement for their future.”

“We know that employees who live our GreenBook values and reinforce our culture of inclusion, integrity and exceptional performance are foundational to our success,” said Michielutti, senior director of corporate affairs for Cargill Animal Nutrition. “This creative tool helped us engage and mobilize our 23,000 teammates in 40 countries around the world in a fresh, unexpected way.”

American Honda Motor Co., Inc. and Advantage Performance won a Bronze Excellence in Learning Award for Best Advance in Creating a Learning Strategy with Discover Honda: Values Driving the Future.

“American Honda Motor Co., Inc. is a special organization to work with, their deep history and heritage, established by their founders, Soichiro Honda and Takeo Fujisawa, has had lasting impact on who they are as a company today,” said Peg Ruppert, managing partner, Advantage Performance Group. “Their unique philosophy of striving to be a company that society wants to exist is evident in every aspect of their culture.”

The strategy was designed to build pride in the Honda brand, and awaken among associates, external vendors and dealers the rich history and heritage of the founders’ dream to be a company that society wants to exist. Its mission is based on the Honda philosophy that fosters retail growth through improving the Joy of buying, owning and selling a Honda with collaborative initiatives, programs and tools that build on Honda’s core values: Dreams, Joy, Challenging Spirit, Passion and Respect.

The project was devised to address the needs of a variety of Honda audiences, including internal corporate and field, internal new hires, external partners, and dealers who represent Honda products directly to the customer.  Advantage Performance worked with Honda to design the programs, prepare internal leaders to facilitate the learning, and provide facilitation support.

“It has been a pleasure to work with Advantage Performance Group on this journey, they have served as the architect for our Discover Honda learning strategy, partnering with our internal team and external vendors to create a powerful experience for our associates and our dealers,” said  Stephanie LeBlond, manager, Honda Way Strategy and Solutions.

“Advantage Performance is grateful for the opportunity and the partnership provided by the teams at Honda and Cargill. Their trust, challenge, and inspiration is what allows us to do our best work,” said Advantage Performance President and C.E.O. Jonathan Hodge.  “We extend our heartfelt congratulations to those teams for the acknowledgement of all of their hard work to make a real impact on their organizations and empower their people to do the best work of their lives.”

The award entries were evaluated by a panel of veteran, independent senior industry experts, Brandon Hall Group analysts and executives based upon the following criteria: fit the need, design of the program, functionality, innovation, and overall measureable benefits.

“Excellence Award winners personify innovation that drives business results. Our winners embrace the future and embrace change and the challenges that go with it,” said Rachel Cooke, chief operating officer of Brandon Hall and head of the awards program.

Winners will be honored at Brandon Hall’s HCM Excellence Conference January 23-25, 2019, at the Hilton West Palm Beach in Florida.

About Advantage Performance Group
Advantage Performance Group is a professional services firm dedicated to providing a continuous stream of creative learning and consulting solutions that equip individuals, teams, and organizations to be the best at what they do.  With more than 30 partners across the U.S. working with leading organizations around the world, we help leaders lead, sellers sell, and businesses flourish. (advantageperformance.com)

About Brandon Hall Group
Brandon Hall Group is a research and advisory services firm that provides insights around key performance areas, including Learning and Development, Talent Management, Leadership Development, Talent Acquisition, and HR/Workforce Management. With more than 10,000 clients globally and 20 years of delivering world-class research and advisory services, its mission is to empower excellence in organizations around the world through research, tools and a membership program. (brandonhall.com)