A.O. Smith, a $4-billion Milwaukee-based firm, manufacturing water heaters, boilers, and water treatment/management systems, has partnered with ELS since 1998 to help all employees understand the game of business and how it’s won! 

ELS facilitates highly-customized, hands-on business simulations covering A.O. Smith’s real financial documents, important financial and operational measures, and cash-enhancing initiatives. 

Recently, A.O. Smith asked ELS to create a virtual two-hour workshop covering the basics of business.  This customized virtual offering is shared each quarter and allows A.O. Smith to reach more hourly employees, whose hands are on the manufacturing and assembly processes - thus, spreading business literacy deeper into the organization.

ELS also translated all materials into Mandarin Chinese and, with an interpreter, shared a custom one-day business literacy workshop for the top management team based in Nanjing.

We also partnered with A.O. Smith in creating an online “basics of business” offering open to all employees.

Henkel Corporation is a 21-billion-euro company based in Dusseldorf, Germany, with operations throughout the globe. 

ELS created a two-day custom business literacy workshop for Henkel North America in 2006 and since then has facilitated more than 120 of these workshops throughout the United States and Canada - and continues to lead sessions today. 

Each participant leaves the workshop with a project to implement within their department, positively influencing the cash position of the firm.

ELS also captained Henkel’s “Finance Week” in Shanghai for top decision-makers from countries throughout the Asia Pacific region.

A. Schulman was an American supplier of plastic compounding products, color concentrates, and additives before its acquisition by LyondellBasell in 2018. 

Prior to its acquisition, A. Schulman’s CEO knew it was the bottom of the ninth inning. Margins were eroding with buyers commoditizing the firm’s offering.  Cash had to be bolstered by “Cracking the Treasure Chest” on the balance sheet and attacking working capital! But how could he get his top 500 contributors to understand working capital, much less improve it? 

That’s when he selected Excelerated Learning Systems in the United States, France, and Belgium. A one-day custom workshop including the hands-on Celemi simulation Apples & Oranges helped Schulman improve working capital over $100 million. 

Part of this extra cash was used to buy one of Schulman competitors. ELS also created a five-module online business literacy offering for the entire organization.