Advantage shares 3 Brandon Hall Group HCM Excellence Awards for 2025

Together with our clients and partners, Advantage Performance Group is the proud recipient of 3 coveted 2025 Brandon Hall Group™ HCM Excellence Awards. These awards, announced August 14, 2025,  honor organizations that develop innovative learning initiatives with measurable impact, advancing both people and business performance.

The awards, their categories, and topics are:

• Gold – Best Unique or Innovative L&D Program: Parker’s Values Fuel Growth and Transformation with Parker Health Group
• Gold – Best Use of Games or Simulations for Learning: Wild West HR Escape Room with SRS Distribution Inc.
• Silver – Best Sales Leadership Development Program: LEAP Program for Aspiring Sales Leaders with AstraZeneca and BTS

They bring to 12 the total number of Brandon Hall Group awards we have won since 2018, including 5 Gold awards.

View the complete list of winners here: excellenceawards.brandonhall.com/winners/.

Each of these initiatives reflects what’s possible when organizations embrace creativity, collaboration, and purpose-driven learning. From developing the next generation of sales leaders, to embedding values as a catalyst for transformation, to turning HR education into a hands-on, gamified adventure—these programs show how learning can inspire lasting change.

We at Advantage continue to be honored and humbled by the invitation to do this award-winning work with our clients and our partners. It’s continued acknowledgment that we are helping people at all levels do the best work of their lives." — Advantage President & CEO Jonathan Hodge.

Book a quick call with us today to explore how Advantage can partner with your organization to deliver learning that makes a difference.

With Parker Health Group

Bringing values to life at Parker

Parker launched a bold culture initiative to align its team with its mission to Make Aging Part of Life.

Having defined 6 values and behaviors for every employee, from executives to care partners, Jean Rebele and her team at Parker reached out to Kelvin Yao and Richard Hodge of Advantage Performance Group to help co-create a custom learning experience that leveraged feedback and small-group, leader-led sessions to help staff gain personal understanding and commitment to bring their new values to life. In just 4 months, Parker achieved full organizational alignment, fostering a culture that enhances both care partner engagement and the quality of life for those it serves.

"Richard and I are so appreciative to have partnered with Parker and to receive this prestigious recognition, not only for the opportunity to work with Jean Rebele and her amazing team, but also for the opportunity to contribute to the supremely important purpose that Parker has to help transform the aging experience."—Kelvin Yao, Advantage

We appreciate your partnership and creativity in helping us think through the challenge of how to introduce our new values to our care partners. I am truly appreciative for your partnership and patience as we figured out the path forward. And what a great result we achieved together!" - Jean Rebele, MS Ed, Parker, Chief Administration & Talent Officer

"I have had the pleasure of working with many organizations and none have a better team, stronger values, or more important purpose.  Congratulations to Parker and thanks for your partnership and trust in this exciting success and deserved award."—Richard Hodge, Advantage

About Parker

Parker is a not-for-profit New Jersey-based aging services organization with more than 115 years’ experience empowering older Americans. Parker has a diverse and rapidly growing community of over 1,000 dedicated and passionate employees, caregivers, volunteers, thought leaders, researchers, educators, and partners. Its award-winning standards and approaches have made it a pioneer of inclusive aging services and long-term care residences, and a national thought leader on the conversation around aging in America. Founded in 1907, Parker has been challenging, changing, and expanding the idea of what it means to grow older in America and how its people can help "make aging part of life.”

With SRS Distribution

A Wild West HR escape room

Working with Advantage Partner Beth Boone and Instructional Designer Jeannie Taylor, SRS Distrbution Inc. created a Wild West escape room, complete with costumes and props, to turn standard HR content in PowerPoint slides into a fun and memorable experience.

“We transformed a traditional HR PowerPoint training into a hands-on Wild West HR Escape Room, turning everyday conference rooms into immersive, high-energy learning experiences. With puzzles, teamwork, and plenty of laughter, we made critical content stick and proved that even complex topics can come to life through creative, gamified design," said Sarah Cini, L&D Program Manager at SRS.

We’re grateful to Advantage Performance Group for partnering with us to make our vision a success. They were an absolute pleasure to work with.”— Sarah Cini, SRS

"It was such a pleasure partnering with Sarah and her amazing team at SRS to bring their vision to life. Together, we created a dynamic, hands-on simulation designed to make essential learning not just effective—but truly enjoyable and memorable." —Beth Boone, Advantage

"We had a great time working with the team at SRS Distribution. They brought us the bold idea of transforming a PowerPoint presentation into an escape game, and we jumped at the chance to make it happen. Collaborating with them to bring their vision to life was both exciting and rewarding, and we’re proud to have been part of this innovative program." —Jeannie Taylor, Advantage

 About SRS Distribution

SRS is one of the nation’s leading distributors of roofing materials and building products -- focused on providing the best service for their customers, building a great culture for team members and giving back to the communities they serve.

With AstraZeneca and BTS

LEAP program for aspiring sales leaders

Advantage Partner Kristina DiStasio and BTS teamed up with AstraZeneca’s US Biopharma Commercial Learning team to launch LEAP, a Sales Leadership Development Program for aspiring leaders. Combining immersive business simulations, coaching, senior leader fireside chats, and self-paced learning, LEAP gave participants real-world leadership experience and strategic insights. The program produced a more confident, capable pipeline of future sales leaders ready to drive business impact.

APG and BTS partnered closely with AstraZeneca’s Commercial Learning Working Team to drive engagement and adoption of their Sales Leadership program. Leveraging expertise in leadership development, industrial-organizational psychology, and pharma, they designed and facilitated the Multipliers experience to amplify leadership impact, and built a realistic, high-stakes business simulation reflecting frontline sales challenges. By conducting stakeholder interviews, APG/BTS ensured the program addressed real-world needs, defined excellence in sales leadership, and aligned with AstraZeneca’s business strategy and leadership expectations.

“I extend my heartfelt congratulations to the entire LEAP delivery team and our partners in HR and APG/BTS for together delivering a best-in-class learner experience with flawless execution. The LEAP program stands as a milestone in our Commercial Learning portfolio, and this award reflects the measurable impact of LEAP on leadership readiness and its alignment with AstraZeneca’s broader commercial learning strategy.” —Courtney Michener Miller, Head of Commercial Learning, US BBU

“We were able to build and launch a LEAP program that provides a comprehensive development experience, tailored to foster leadership capabilities for those aspiring to future sales leadership roles. We would not have been successful without our wonderful vendor partners at APG and BTS, and I look forward to continuing to prepare the next generation of AstraZeneca sales leaders.” — Marissa LaVigna, Associate Director, Enterprise Capabilities

“Receiving this award for co-leading the LEAP development program is a deeply humbling moment. Reflecting on the journey, I am genuinely grateful for the opportunity to help shape the future of our organization by supporting aspiring first-line leaders as they transition from individual contributors." —Johnny Jones,  Associate Director, Coaching & Selling Excellence

Our close partnership with APG/BTS has been paramount to our success. Ultimately, this experience has reinforced my belief in the power of intentional leadership development and the importance of collaborative program design.”—Johnny Jones, AstraZeneca

"We’re proud to partner with AstraZeneca on the LEAP program and honored to see it recognized with a Brandon Hall Silver Award. This program gives aspiring sales leaders the opportunity to practice, apply, and build the core capabilities needed to lead successful sales teams in the future. Seeing their confidence and readiness grow through the experience has been incredibly rewarding." —Kristina DiStasio, Advantage

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca has 11 R&D centers in 5 countries and 28 manufacturing sites across 16 countries. AstraZeneca sells its medicines to more than 130 countries and its main disease area medicines (excluding the vaccine) impact more than 100 million patient lives each year.

More than 130 countries served worldwide, and more than 150 million patients served. More than 120 Phase II and Phase III projects in the pipeline across 3 main therapy areas: Oncology, biopharmaceuticals, and rare disease.

About the awards

“This year's Excellence Award winners exemplify the transformative power of strategic human capital management. Through their innovative approaches to talent development and employee engagement, these organizations have not only achieved remarkable business outcomes but have also redefined what it means to create truly people-centric workplaces. Our comprehensive evaluation process has identified these programs as benchmarks for organizational excellence and innovation," 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 9-12, 2026, at the Hilton West Palm Beach, Florida. Select winners will also serve as presenters in breakout sessions, sharing their leading practices during the conference.

“The 2025 Excellence Award recipients represent the pinnacle of achievement in human capital management. What sets this year's winners apart is their bold embrace of emerging technologies and their commitment to creating meaningful employee experiences that drive tangible business results. These organizations have demonstrated that when you invest in your people with purpose and innovation, the impact resonates throughout the entire enterprise, creating sustainable competitive advantages in today's dynamic business landscape," said Brandon Hall Group™ Chief Executive Officer Mike Cooke.

About Advantage Performance Group

Recognized as a Top 20 Company in 2025 for Leadership Training by Training Industry, Advantage Performance Group (APG), a subsidiary of BTS, helps mid-size to large organizations across multiple industries develop great people by providing a continuous stream of creative learning and consulting solutions that equip individuals, teams, and organizations to be the best at what they do. Advantage works with more than 300 of the Fortune 500 and has deployed content and programs in more than 12 languages across 20 countries.

Experts in learning impact and measurement along with program design and development, Advantage represents a collection of leading discovery-based designers and thought leaders who address client needs for development in corporate learning, including leadership development, sales training, business simulations, talent assessments, coaching services, mobile learning solutions, and other talent development services across industries and geographies.

About BTS

BTS partners with nearly 500 organizations, including over 30 of the world’s 100 global corporations. The organization’s major clients are some of the most respected names in business: Microsoft, SAP, Chevron, Coca-Cola, Volvo Group, Citigroup, Salesforce, and Tencent. BTS works with leading companies to:

• Turn strategy into action through people
• Develop great leaders
• Change and sustain culture
• Shift leader mindsets through coaching
• Increase business acumen
• Accelerate their sales and marketing results
• Build innovation and digital transformation capabilities
• Leverage cutting-edge assessments for selection and development
• Create scalable, personalized experiences using digital technology.

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. The best minds in Human Capital Management (HCM) choose Brandon Hall Group™ to help them create future-proof employee development plans for the new era. For over 30 years, they have empowered, recognized and certified excellence in organizations worldwide, influencing the development of over 10 million employees and executives. Our HCM Excellence Awards® program was the first to recognize organizations for learning and talent and is the gold standard, known as the “Academy Awards of Human Capital Management.”

The awards recognize the best organizations that have successfully developed and deployed programs, strategies, modalities, processes, systems and tools that have achieved measurable results. They receive applications from organizations worldwide ranging from small, medium, large and global enterprises to government, not-for-profits, and associations.

(Updated 09.09.25.)