Facilisgroup, a St. Louis-based software-as-a-service company and partnering platform within the promotional products industry, recently launched its Facilisgroup Immersion Program for new staff members. The three-week-long experiential learning event was designed to give workers a comprehensive foundation to the promo industry.

Starting May 6, the program provided 12 new-to-the-industry Facilisgroup employees an in-depth look into the world of distributors, suppliers and technology. The program consisted of a combination of on-site visits, classroom activities and virtual learning.

“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 skillsets 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.”

Participants in the Facilisgroup Immersion Program took a road trip to Fredericktown, MO, to visit supplier Cap America.

Participants spent time visiting and job shadowing at St. Louis-based distributor, MPGTandem. They also took a road trip to Fredericktown, MO, for an immersive experience with supplier, Cap America (asi/43792). In addition, longtime promo executive and author Conrad Franey discussed his history with the industry. Franey, one of the original partners of top distributor Gateway/CDI and former vice president at Brand Addition (asi/202515), is the author of The Elements of Success: Using Preparation and Perseverance to Achieve Maximum Results.

“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,” Lamb said.

Facilisgroup plans to hold its immersion program for new staffers three times a year, and participants said the experience was invaluable. “By better understanding the problems our industry faces and developing empathy for those problems, we’ll directly contribute to building a better product,” said Amanda Bujnak, product manager at Facilisgroup and one of the immersion program participants.

Headquartered in St. Louis, MO, Facilisgroup also has offices in Ottawa.