Women’s leadership development journey wins 2023 Gold Award from Brandon Hall Group

SAN RAFAEL, CA - elevateHER, a strategic women's leadership development initiative at Reprise Digital, won a 2023 Brandon Hall Group HCM Excellence Gold Award in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Best Advance in Leadership Development for Women, organizers of the highly esteemed awards program have announced.

Reprise Digital, a division of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (IPG) and a global digital marketing agency, partnered with Advantage Performance Group to deploy Paradox Strategies’ Being the Boss, a mobile app powered by the 1st90 platform, and an accompanying learning journey as part of the initiative to increase representation of women leaders in senior leadership ranks across the globe.

“We are proud to have won our third Brandon Hall Group Award in the category of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion," said Advantage President & CEO Jonathan Hodge. "Our passions lie in helping people do the best work of their lives, and we are honored to live out our values in helping Reprise Digital increase representation of women in their senior leadership ranks across the globe. We are grateful for our partnerships with our wonderful thought leader partners and clients alike who allow us the opportunities to create positive change and business impact.”

Supporting and developing women as leaders

The Being the Boss learning journey, combined with internal mentorship and custom curated workshops, has effectively advanced the company’s need to support and develop women leaders globally. This program targeted specific development needs of women leaders at mid-level management and promoted a culture of diversity, helping to support women in their wholistic needs for advancing in leadership roles.

"As a senior female HR leader, I see first-hand that the need for programs and resources which support rising female leaders in passing the plateau of mid-level leadership is particularly evident and vital for the overall diversity and success of the organization." said Michelle Crenshaw, Global Chief Talent Officer for Reprise and executive sponsor for the program.

"At Reprise, we made a commitment to further the careers of our high-potential female talent, through our elevateHER program and a key partnership with Advantage Performance utilizing the Being the Boss curriculum. Moreover, we are proud of the growth and success of this program across two cohort cycles so far and are compelled to renew that commitment and investment year over year, as we collectively work toward the betterment of the agency as a whole,” Michelle said.

Reprise has seen steady gains in female retention, new hires, and promotions.

“It is exciting to have our work recognized and celebrated. It was a pleasure sharing the Being the Boss journey with these inspiring women," said Dr. Linda Hill. who is a Harvard leadership professor, founding partner at Paradox Strategies, and author of the widely acclaimed book on which the app and learning journey are based.  "Our combined approach of self-paced content and reinforcement sessions had a powerful effect on participants. Their impressive work in the program led to promotions and increased responsibility. We see women thrive after completing the program, and I am eager to see where their careers take them.”

The program included a powerful combination of self-paced content, via the leadership development app Being the Boss, and reinforcement sessions, including talks by Dr. Hill. Participants were high potential women from four markets: Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the U.S. These participants experienced promotions and increased responsibility following the program.

The camaraderie between the participants is an important component of the Being the Boss journey. One participant said, “It feels like we are not alone."

"We are delighted with our partnership with a client that values leadership development and invests in the advancement of women leaders," said Selva Blum, senior leadership development consultant at  Advantage. "Through this program, they have made significant progress in building a strong diverse pipeline of leaders at a global level."

"Dr. Linda Hill's timeless imperatives for becoming a great leader resonate profoundly, particularly in the context of the challenges that women often navigate on their journey to leadership excellence," she said. "I am personally grateful and honored to have met the remarkable women leaders in the program and witnessed their dedication to their resilience, growth, and development."

Partnering with 1st90's learning technology made this program possible through their innovative "learning in the flow of work" technology, she added.

"Receiving the prestigious Brandon Hall award for 'Best Advance in Leadership Development for Women' is a testament to our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion," said 1st90 CEO Paul Middleton. "Our 1st90 platform seamlessly integrates learning into the flow of work, nurturing leadership skills and driving growth. This recognition inspires us to continue pioneering equitable development."

Advantage has shared 6 other Brandon Hall Group awards

• A 2022 Brandon Hall Group Bronze Award in DEI for an initiative at The Kroger Company featuring The Inclusive Leader with our thought leader partner 10,000 Feet
• A 2021 Brandon Hall Group Bronze Award in DEI for an initiative at Synopsys featuring The Inclusive Leader with our thought leader partners at 10,000 Feet.
• A 2020 Brandon Hall Group Silver Award for Excellence in Technology at SAP with our thought leader partners at 1st90
• A 2020 Brandon Hall Group Bronze Award for Best Advance in Creating a Learning Strategy for a Multipliers initiative at Western & Southern Financial Group.
• A 2018 Brandon Hall Group Gold Award for Best Advance in Custom Content at Cargill.
• A 2018 Brandon Hall Group Bronze Award for Best Advantage in Creating a Learning Strategy at Honda.

About the award

Now entering its 30th year, the Brandon Hall Group Excellence Awards is among the most prestigious awards programs in the industry. Often called the “Academy Awards” by learning, talent and business executives, the program was one of the first of its kind when it debuted in 1993. The awards recognize the best organizations that have successfully developed and deployed programs, strategies, modalities, processes, systems, and tools that have achieved measurable results. We are honored to receive applications from organizations around the world ranging from small, medium, large, and global enterprises, to government, not-for-profits, and associations.

The 2023 Brandon Hall Group HCM Excellence Awards™ recognize best practices for initiatives in Learning and Development, Talent Management, Leadership Development, Talent Acquisition, Human Resources, Sales Performance, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, and the Future of Work.

"Excellence Award winners are shown to be organizations that truly value their employees and invest in them through their human capital management programs. These HCM programs have been validated as best in class for business value and the impact on the employees themselves," said Brandon Hall Group Chief Operating Officer Rachel Cooke, HCM Excellence Awards program leader.

Entries were evaluated by a panel of veteran, independent senior industry experts, Brandon Hall Group analysts, and executives based on these criteria:

• Alignment to their business need and environment
• Program design, functionality, and delivery
• Adoption, integration, user experience, innovation, and creativity
• Overall effectiveness, impact, and measurable benefits

Excellence Award winners will continue to be honored at Brandon Hall Group's HCM Excellence Conference, February 13-15, 2024, at the Hilton West Palm Beach, Florida. Select winners also will serve as presenters in breakout sessions, sharing their leading practices during the conference.

"Our award winners are relentless in their pursuit of excellence," said Brandon Hall Group Chief Executive Officer Mike Cooke. "We have received some of the most innovative use of HCM strategy that we have seen in the last 30 years, and in most cases, technology and collaboration across departments have helped them achieve amazing business results."

About Brandon Hall Group™

Brandon Hall Group is a professional development company that offers data, research, insights, and certification to learning and talent executives and organizations. For over 30 years, they have empowered, recognized, and certified excellence in organizations worldwide, influencing the development of over 10 million employees and executives.

View the complete list of award winners on their website.