Business and financial acumen training has helped this tech company prepare for upcoming industry challenges. Bazaarvoice Building Business Acumen Case Study WHY CHOOSE US CLIENTS STORIES FAQs ARTICLES OUR TEAM Download Press Release Introduction As the tech industry continues to evolve, companies must adapt and innovate to remain competitive. This is particularly true for Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies, which face unique challenges due to the constantly changing nature of their business. One of the key challenges that companies like Bazaarvoice must address is the need to develop business acumen skills among their employees. In response to this need, Bazaarvoice's executives recognized the gap in their employees' business acumen and partnered with Acumen Learning to provide customized business acumen and sales training programs. “As a leading SAAS organization specializing in user-generated content programs, Bazaarvoice understands the unique challenges and opportunities that come with this industry. By prioritizing leadership development in business acumen, Bazaarvoice is taking a proactive approach to addressing these challenges and positioning itself for continued success. I have no doubt that the investment in their future leaders will pay dividends in the years to come.” GREG KANDARE Senior Financial Consultant at Acumen Learning Benefits of Developing Business Acumen Skills Business acumen skills are essential for future leaders in the tech industry. These skills enable employees to make informed decisions and align their goals and strategies with the company's objectives. By developing these skills, future leaders can better understand their company's financial and business operations, analyze data and trends, and make strategic decisions that align with the company's objectives. This not only benefits the company as a whole but also enhances employees' career prospects and increases their confidence in their decision-making abilities. Furthermore, developing business acumen skills can also lead to increased innovation within a company. When employees understand the financial and operational implications of their decisions, they are more likely to propose new ideas and take calculated risks. They can identify market trends and opportunities, and make informed recommendations on how the company can capitalize on these trends. Additionally, employees with strong business acumen can effectively communicate the financial benefits and risks of new ideas to decision-makers, increasing the chances of those ideas being implemented. This fosters a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship, which can be a significant competitive advantage in the tech industry. Challenges Faced by SAAS Companies and the Importance of Business Acumen SAAS companies face unique challenges such as high customer churn rates, rapidly changing market dynamics, and fierce competition. To succeed in this environment, employees must have a solid understanding of business acumen. With the ability to analyze data and identify patterns, employees can identify areas for improvement, reduce customer churn, and make informed decisions that lead to sustainable growth. In addition to high customer churn rates, rapidly changing market dynamics, and fierce competition, SAAS companies also face other challenges such as the need to constantly innovate and stay ahead of industry trends, compliance and regulatory issues, and managing a remote workforce. These challenges require a deep understanding of the company's financial and business operations, as well as the ability to analyze data and identify patterns to make informed decisions. Developing business acumen skills among employees is crucial to overcoming these challenges and ensuring the company's success in a constantly evolving industry. By investing in the development of their employees, SAAS companies can position themselves for continued growth and success. Customizing Training Programs to a Company's Specific Needs Bazaarvoice recognized the importance of customized training programs to address the identified gap in business acumen among its employees. The company partnered with Acumen Learning, which tailored its Building Business Acumen course to incorporate Bazaarvoice's own data, challenges, industry, and competitors. This approach ensured that the training was relevant and specific to Bazaarvoice's needs, enabling employees to apply their newly acquired skills directly to their work. By customizing training programs, companies can ensure that employees receive the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in their specific industry, resulting in more engaged, efficient, and effective employees. Additionally, it is important to note that off the shelf and generic simulations that use dated or fake business scenarios and financial statements are not the answer. Such training programs may provide a general understanding of business concepts, but they often lack the specificity and relevance required to make a real impact on employees' decision-making abilities. And while customized simulations may seem like a viable solution, they can come with their own set of challenges. These simulations can be expensive to develop and require constant updates to remain relevant. Even a slight change in a company's strategy or operations could render the simulation outdated, leading to the need for another costly development cycle. This can create a never-ending cycle of development and costs, making it less practical for companies to invest in highly customized simulations as a sustainable business acumen training solution. Customizing business and financial acumen training programs to a company's specific needs and challenges, as Bazaarvoice did, is crucial to ensuring that employees are equipped with the right tools and knowledge to address the unique challenges of their industry. By incorporating real-time data and addressing the specific challenges facing a company, customized training programs can provide employees with timely and relevant information that they can apply directly to their work. This approach not only ensures that employees are up-to-date with the latest industry trends and developments, but it also helps to increase engagement, boost productivity, and drive growth. Impact of the Partnership The partnership between Bazaarvoice and Acumen Learning has already had a positive impact on the company's future leaders. According to Gayle Wiley, Chief People Officer of Bazaarvoice, "Partnering with Acumen Learning has been instrumental in bridging the identified gap in business acumen among our employees. We look forward to continuing this partnership to support the growth and development of our future leaders." The recent business and financial acumen course received an NPS score of 86, with feedback indicating that the course exceeded expectations. Employees cited numerous benefits, including improved decision-making skills, increased confidence, enhanced career prospects, better financial planning, and improved communication skills. By investing in the development of their future leaders, Bazaarvoice is taking a proactive approach to addressing the challenges and opportunities that come with the tech industry. This partnership has positioned the company for continued success by ensuring that employees have the business acumen skills needed to succeed in a rapidly evolving industry. Moving forward, Bazaarvoice is confident that their partnership with Acumen Learning will result in continued growth and innovation for the company. Keith Nealon, CEO of Bazaarvoice, states that, "Our partnership with Acumen Learning has provided us with the tools and knowledge to make more informed business decisions, enabling us to drive growth and innovation in the rapidly evolving tech industry. We are excited to continue working with Acumen Learning to further develop the business acumen of our employees and stay ahead of industry trends." By prioritizing the development of their employees' business acumen skills, Bazaarvoice is better positioned to adapt to changes in the tech industry and maintain their competitive edge. The Importance of Ongoing Training and Development Recent research by the Center for Creative Leadership reveals that a mere 15% of the knowledge gained through classroom learning is actually implemented on the job without any additional support or follow-up. This highlights the importance of providing employees with ongoing training and development opportunities to ensure that they are able to apply their learning effectively in the workplace. Without proper reinforcement, valuable knowledge acquired through training programs may go to waste, resulting in missed opportunities for growth and success. Organizations must make a concerted effort to support employees in their learning journey to maximize the benefits of employee development. To address this, Bazaarvoice recognized the significance of knowledge and skill transfer and partnered with Acumen Learning to provide employees with a comprehensive and sustained learning experience. The Building Business Acumen course offered by Acumen Learning is followed by the Acumen In Action, a learning portal which provides employees with access to a growing library of on-demand videos, twelve short lessons that can be shared by graduates as part of a team meeting, real-world case studies, and the same job aids that participants learned to use in the classroom. This exemplifies Acumen Learning's commitment to providing graduates with the necessary resources for continued learning and skill development, positioning Bazaarvoice for ongoing success. The Acumen In Action portal ensures that employees can apply their learning effectively in the workplace, leading to improved performance and growth opportunities. Conclusion The tech industry is rapidly changing, and Software-as-a-Service companies face unique challenges that require employees to have strong business acumen skills. Developing these skills is essential for future leaders to make informed decisions that align with the company's objectives, analyze data and trends, and identify areas for improvement. As demonstrated by Bazaarvoice's partnership with Acumen Learning, customizing training programs to a company's specific needs is crucial to ensure that employees receive relevant and specific knowledge and skills. The positive impact of this partnership on Bazaarvoice's future leaders highlights the importance of ongoing training and development to stay competitive in the tech industry. L&D leaders in technology or SAAS companies must recognize that if business and financial acumen is not a training priority, it should be. Investing in the development of their employees' business acumen skills will not only benefit the company but also fast track employees' career trajectory and increase confidence in their decision-making abilities. “We are committed to investing in the development of our future leaders, and that includes ensuring they have the business acumen skills needed to succeed in a rapidly evolving tech industry. Partnering with Acumen Learning has been instrumental in bridging the identified gap in business acumen among our employees. We look forward to continuing this partnership to support the growth and development of our future leaders.” GAYLE WILEY Chief People Officer of Bazaarvoice “The instructor made finance fun! Complex themes well distilled into easy-to-understand lessons on what matters in P&L / SaaS.” “Excellent, I learned about the key finance terms and how to apply changes and levers to move these in our org.” “Loved it! Great overview of business acumen with specific examples from our organization. Also, great job using SaaS language to make it super relevant.” “Fantastic course. Simplifying complex topics! Engaging instructor. Leaving with a lot more confidence and understanding of business acumen.” Net Promoter Score How likely are you to recommend this course to a colleague?* Download Dashboard About Acumen Learning Founded in 2002, Acumen Learning’s highly customized business acumen and sales training programs have helped organizations develop more engaged, efficient, and effective employees. To further support its mission, Acumen Learning published, Seeing the Big Picture – Business Acumen to Build Your Credibility, Career, and Company, in 2012 which quickly became a #1 Wall Street Journal and a New York Times bestseller. More than 20 years later, Acumen Learning has been trusted by more than 200 organizations on six continents to help employees understand how their company makes money, and to take real steps towards improving that process. CAREERBUILDER READ AEROSPACE & DEFENSE CLIENT READ PHILIPS HEALTHCARE READ ANTHEM READ

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We have business acumen training experience with all levels and functions within high-tech and telecom companies. Business Acumen for High-Tech & Telecom Industrial Hardware | Software | Cloud | Cable | Media | Wireless Expanding the world of communication with business acumen in the high-tech and telecommunications industry No industry reinvents itself as rapidly as the tech sector. Cloud computing, edge analytics, artificial intelligence, the digitization of media, and far too many other advances to count are changing the way we all work and connect with the world. Nevertheless, there are fundamental principles like customer value, quality, innovation, strategic investments, and execution that will always guide a CEO’s decisions. The real innovators of the industry are able to balance tech savvy with market savvy. The programs Acumen Learning designs and delivers for high-tech and telecommunications companies help participants understand why their CEO wants them to be a businessperson first and an engineer, salesperson, or human resource wiz second. He or she needs employees who use their business acumen to drive innovation and profits. Get the overview "It was super valuable to understand the workings of our financials and better ways to drive our programs in alignment with different financial goals." Circular Economy Specialist Cisco Start a Conversation Experience Our high-tech & telecommunications experience includes... 1 # World's Top Telecom Company of the Top 5 Largest Telecom Companies 3 4 of the Top 10 Largest Tech Companies 1 # World's Largest Tech Company Why Business Acumen is Essential for IT Teams Play Video Outcomes High-tech and telecom leaders engage us to improve Executive Alignment Know the strategic direction of your organization in order to align your priorities accordingly to enable optimal impact. Leadership Understand and effectively communicate where your organization is going and how it is doing to connect your employees’ roles to your organization’s success. Analytical Skills Increase your fluency of the metrics most vital to measure organizational and financial success and the key levers to pull to move the needle. Decision Making Make better, smarter, faster decisions that will drive impact and organizational success since every organization needs more employees at all levels to think like business people. Communication Drive better alignment and clarity of direction with the decisions you make with the organizations you lead or support. Do this by speaking the language of business and finance. Start a Conversation Explore more... Earnings Call Labs Join one of our free monthly labs and learn how to listen to earnings calls by breaking down Fortune 500 companies like Chevron and ExxonMobil. View Full Schedule Verizon Case Study Business and financial acumen training has helped this industry leader set the digital pace. Read Case Study Articles Read up on the latest articles on business acumen and news about Acumen Learning. Read Articles "I found this session very informative and helped to strengthen concepts that were previously minimally understood. This will certainly help with my personal growth and my strengths with ManTech. " Setup Manager ManTech

Simulations don't reflect the real-world needs and strategy of your company. We don't want to teach you how to play a game but how to be a business leader. Why not a game, sim, professor, or internal finance team? FAQs WHY CHOOSE US CLIENTS STORIES FAQs ARTICLES OUR TEAM WHY NOT USE A GAME OR SIM FOR OUR BUSINESS ACUMEN TRAINING? Instead of dumbing down your business and spending valuable time teaching people how to play a board game or sim, we teach people substantive things: a deeper understanding of how their company makes money and the skills needed to play a more meaningful role in that money making process throughout their career. By their very nature, simulations focus learners on concepts and ideas that have been programmatically set, and the richness of the sim is dependent upon how many variables have been developed. If there’s not enough variables then the experience is going to be rudimentary at best and you simply won’t produce a measurable behavioral impact. Games are designed to engage people, but when we interviewed a facilitator candidate, whose primary responsibility was teaching a business acumen board game for his employer, he confirmed what we’ve heard from others – the vast majority of participants sit back and observe the game being played. Only the most competitive participants really get into it. So you have to ask yourself if a game will have a real measurable impact on behavior when participants return to work - where it really matters. Instead of getting wrapped up in a game, we want our participants thinking about your business strategy . We want them figuring out how their ideas and decisions impact metrics that are important to the business. We want them spending time thinking about how to beat the real competition, not their colleague across the room. We want them to return to work eager to help your company win in the real-world. If you treat your employees like they’re vital to your business – they’ll be vital to your business. If you let them know that you take their personal development seriously – they’ll take their personal development seriously. Don’t make a game out of this important initiative. The development of business acumen is too important. "I attended the class with the hopes of learning about our business generically. What I received is how our products, culture, communication, and business impacts our strategy on a micro and macro level. I endorse the class so much that I think it should be mandatory for all associates." Anthem Participant Start a Conversation WHY NOT A PROFESSOR OR UNIVERSITY? Most highly praised academic types have never run or owned a business. They’re quick to point out what you and I as businesspeople are doing wrong and can pontificate for hours about case studies they’ve written, but they’ve never felt the pressure of managing inventories or the weight of risk that comes with a new initiative. They’re not experts in business, they’re experts in case studies. And case studies are backward looking documents that examine the obvious failures of others. There’s a time and a place to look through the rearview mirror, but we’re more interested in helping your employees drive the business forward. Relying on outdated models and too many lessons from the past isn’t going to develop the energy and business sense needed to lead your company into the future. Academics have it easy because they have nothing to lose. There’s a tremendous risk to us if we share bad advice or incorrect information – our business depends on getting it right. Our livelihood is at stake everytime we walk onto your corporate campus. Teaching business acumen successfully means everything to us. The stakes are much smaller for academic institutions. The “Univesity of whatever” isn’t going out of business if they do a poor job. The bottom line is this, we’re businesspeople just like you. We’ve learned from our mistakes and we know what it’s like in the trenches. Those working for that high-priced academic institution on the hill have learned from studying other people’s mistakes. To move the needle, your employees need “roll-up-your-sleeves” business acumen training , not “theoretical” business acumen training . WHY NOT MY INTERNAL FINANCE TEAM? It's not finance's job to run an employee training program and when they try to they're not usually very good at it. Most finance people are simply not that good in front of a classroom, especially a classroom of non-financial leaders. It's an uncommon talent that we even have a hard time finding. Even if you're lucky enough to find that special talent – is it really a viable long-term solution? Will he or she be able to spend the time necessary to not only get up to speed, but also stay current on your business, your industry, and your competitors? We require 3-4 hours of preparation per class. Can they commit to that? And for how long? The reality is… it isn't the finance department's job to teach business acumen to their colleagues. They're not going to stress over adult learning best practices, and ADDIE and rapid prototyping are as foreign to them as debt financing and negative working capital are to you. A boring lecture that goes over most people's heads isn't going to cut it, but that's what you're typically going to get if you rely on your finance team to teach employees business acumen . We're a better solution and most finance teams are happy to have us do it – especially after they've attended one of our courses. Start a Conversation

We have business acumen training experience with all levels and functions within consumer products. Business Acumen for Consumer Products Retailers | Food & Beverage | Apparel | Household Products | Hospitality Balancing business acumen with consumer products While innovation and product development will always be at the heart of consumer products companies, today’s market is increasingly transparent. From a consumer performing a price comparison using a smartphone app, to the eco-minded consumer who can Google whether your company is socially responsible, the emerging transparent marketplace presents unique challenges in our increasingly connected world. In response, consumer brands have been forced to transcend the old rules that run deep within the industry — easier said than done. Senior leaders know that they need employees who are able to see things anew, quickly perceive shifts in the marketplace, and understand how to leverage new rules to improve financial performance. Get the overview "This was one of the most rewarding classes I've taken in a long time. Understanding the financial principles and business drivers will help broaden my conversations with the customers. It will be a more rich discussion that will help accelerate us both to solutions to grow our mutual businesses. Well done!" Operating Lead Coca Cola Start a Conversation Experience Consumer products client includes… Consumer Products 36 Consumer Product Clients Food & Beverage Largest food distributor in the world World's largest food and beverage company World's largest protein company Retail Largest retailer in the world Largest home goods and apparel company #1 luxury fashion brand Leading athletic apparel company 2 of the 6 most profitable athletic companies in the world Hospitality 2 of the top 10 hospitality companies Acumen Learning Partners with a Top 10 Global Food and Beverage Company Acumen Learning recently teamed up with the world's 10th largest Food and Beverage company on a customized business and financial acumen course designed for their Market Leaders. View Press Release Outcomes Consumer product leaders engage us to improve Executive Alignment Know the strategic direction of your organization in order to align your priorities accordingly to enable optimal impact. Leadership Understand and effectively communicate where your organization is going and how it is doing to connect your employees’ roles to your organization’s success. Analytical Skills Increase your fluency of the metrics most vital to measure organizational and financial success and the key levers to pull to move the needle. Decision Making Make better, smarter, faster decisions that will drive impact and organizational success since every organization needs more employees at all levels to think like business people. Communication Drive better alignment and clarity of direction with the decisions you make with the organizations you lead or support. Do this by speaking the language of business and finance. Start a Conversation Explore more... Earnings Call Labs Join one of our free monthly labs and learn how to listen to earnings calls by breaking down Fortune 500 companies like Walmart and Amazon. View Full Schedule 300% ROI Their analysis demonstrated that business acumen training more than paid for itself with a 300%+ ROI. Read Case Study Articles Read up on the latest articles on business acumen and news about Acumen Learning. Read Articles "This was one of the most rewarding classes I've taken in a long time. Understanding the financial principles and business drivers will help broaden my conversations with the customers. It will be a more rich discussion that will help accelerate us both to solutions to grow our mutual businesses. Well done! " Operations Lead Coca-Cola

Get a detailed understanding of our business acumen training curriculum. Sales, Finance, and Business Acumen Training Related materials: Who is Acumen Learning? Video Case Studies with Team Activities Test Your Business Acumen 300% ROI Case Study I'm interested in everything. Get a wholistic view of Acumen Learning's sales, finance, and business acumen training options, including our customization process, curriculum, and customer experience.

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Get an inclusive guide to help you understand the format of an earnings call, discover key insights about company earnings, and make a greater impact on performance. Download the Earnings Call Workbook Submit Business Acumen Tool Earnings Call Workbook Understand any business... Break down any earnings call Get an inclusive guide to help you understand the format of an earnings call, discover key insights about company earnings, and make a greater impact on performance. Help your teams master business acumen with Acumen Learning Business is complicated. Acumen Learning knows that to engage an entire workforce, you need to empower and teach each individual their impact. That's why we commit to knowing your company's needs and helping every employee know their importance in the big picture. Whether you’re expanding your business acumen or increasing leadership skills, we'll partner with you and cater a solution that expands your people's capabilities. We’re committed to your business's success. © Acumen Learning | All Right Reserved

Meet Ron who's been a key part of us teaching more than 500,000 business leaders in more than 35 countries and 23 of the Fortune 50. Let's Talk! Ron Saffell • (801) 224-5444 • rsaffell@acumenlearning.com If employees don’t know how their companies make money (and research suggests that most don't), how can they be trusted to set the right priorities and implement the right initiatives? They can’t! Since 2002, more than 500,000 business leaders in more than 35 countries and 23 of the Fortune 50 have counted on Acumen Learning to drive their business results through customized trainings. To receive more information on our business acumen training give me a call: Ron Saffell • (801) 224-5444 , or send me an email: rsaffell@acumenlearning.com

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Learn more about Acumen Learning's work in its community — and celebrate our 20th anniversary with us! We're stronger together. In honor of our 20 year anniversary, our goal is to spread business acumen to those that may not have the ability to access our program without assistance. Watch the video Committed to Our Community Building a Better Future To celebrate our 20th anniversary, we’re working with a variety of non-profits by giving 20,000 licenses to our online course access to support everyone to improve their ability to speak and understand the language of business. Learn more Community Engagement 20 Years, 20 Acts of Service Each year we have a service committee that puts together activities and opportunities for our employees to give back to our local community. This year, our goal is to perform at least 20 charitable acts throughout the community. Get service ideas Employee Growth Investing In Our Future We’re committed to helping our staff continue to grow and advance both personally and professionally. Our team

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