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Global Medical Device Manufacturer Reaches Best-in-Class Learning Velocity with Workera, Upskilling Its Workforce Four Times Faster Than Industry Norms

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Workera analysis of over 800 participants finds a 42% average proficiency gain in 13 days and surfaces hidden capabilities across the workforce

PALO ALTO, Calif., June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Workera, the trusted skills data layer for the enterprise, today released findings from a leading global medical device manufacturer’s workforce transformation initiative, documenting measurable gains in learning velocity, proficiency, and capability maturity. The analysis, drawn from over 830 participants across structured upskilling programs, shows the company reached Workera’s highest performance tier, best-in-class learning velocity, while surfacing and developing previously hidden workforce capabilities at scale.

Medical device manufacturers face intensifying pressure to innovate faster while maintaining the safety and regulatory rigor that defines the sector. That demands a workforce that can move fluidly between established competencies and emerging technical capabilities, AI, cloud infrastructure, digital collaboration, without sacrificing precision or accountability. The challenge is widespread: the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025 finds that 39% of workers’ core skills are expected to change by 2030, and 85% of employers plan to prioritize workforce upskilling by then. This manufacturer’s results show how verified capability measurement and personalized development can unlock both velocity and resilience.

“What this manufacturer achieved isn’t a faster training program, it’s a different operating speed for capability itself,” said Kian Katanforoosh, founder and CEO of Workera. “Their active participants moved from foundational to accomplished proficiency in under two months, roughly four times faster than typical industry rates. That kind of velocity doesn’t come from more content. It comes from verified measurement. When employees and leaders can see exactly where proficiency stands and where the gaps are, development stops being guesswork and starts being precise.”

The Transformation Results

Workera’s analysis examined verified capability across the company’s baseline proficiency, structured upskilling programs, and continuous learning pathways. The findings point to both strong execution and a repeatable model for enterprise skill transformation:

Best-in-class learning velocity: Active participants achieved a learning speed of +39 points per week, well above the industry average of 5–10 points per week. At that pace, employees moved from Beginning to Accomplished proficiency in under two months, placing the company in Workera’s highest tier: Level III (“Best-in-Class”).

Rapid, significant proficiency gains: Across all participants who took an initial assessment, studied, and reassessed, scores rose from an average of 168 to 239, a +42% improvement, in an average of just 13 days between assessments. The gains show that personalized development paths let employees focus on closing their specific skill gaps.

Program-level overachievement: While the platform-wide gain matched the +42% benchmark, the company’s core structured programs exceeded it:Core technical programs: +53% average score improvement per employee, in an average of 14 daysGlobal enterprise programs: +44% average score improvement per employee, in fewer than 15 daysCorrecting the self-assessment gap and reducing training waste: A persistent workforce challenge surfaced clearly in the data: employees routinely underestimate their own capabilities. Across cohorts, 78% of the broader employee population underrated their skills. By surfacing these hidden capabilities through objective measurement, the company avoided the redundant courses that drive most training waste, directing development only where it was actually needed and moving employees into high-value roles faster.

Full transformation in core power skills: The company drove Teamwork to Level 5 maturity (“Successful Transformation”), with 84% of assessed employees ranking as Accomplished and none remaining at the Beginning level. Foundational AI and leadership capabilities, including Generative AI Essentials (70% Accomplished) and Digital Leadership Fundamentals (67% Accomplished), crossed into Level 4 maturity (“Broad-Based Capability”), establishing a resilient, AI-ready cultural foundation.

Why This Matters for Medical Device Innovation

Medical device manufacturers operate under constraints many industries don’t: regulatory rigor, safety criticality, and the need to maintain established competencies while rapidly acquiring new ones. These results show those constraints and fast learning velocity are not in conflict.

Verified measurement enabled three outcomes:

Confidence in AI readiness: With 70% of the workforce at accomplished proficiency in Generative AI Essentials, the company can deploy AI-augmented workflows across product development, manufacturing, and operations, backed by decision-grade evidence that employees understand both capability and risk.

Precision in capability development: By measuring actual proficiency rather than course completion, the business identified who needed further development and who could move directly into high-impact roles, eliminating wasteful training cycles and shortening time-to-contribution.

Resilience through cultural alignment: Reaching Level 5 maturity in Teamwork across 84% of the workforce reflects something deeper than a metric, a culture where learning is embedded in how work happens, not layered on top of it. That foundation makes future capability transitions faster and more durable.

The Broader Implication

What this manufacturer achieved, moving from baseline to accomplished proficiency in a core capability in an average of 13 days, sets a new benchmark for enterprise upskilling. It challenges the assumption that workforce transformation is inherently slow, and shows that combining verified measurement, personalized development, and employee agency can accelerate learning velocity to four to five times industry norms without sacrificing quality or safety.

For medical device manufacturers balancing innovation speed with regulatory accountability, the insight is direct: the bottleneck to faster capability development isn’t employee capability. It’s clarity. When employees and leaders can see exactly what proficiency looks like and where gaps exist, development becomes efficient, measurable, and fast.

“The velocity here matters for every manufacturer and healthcare organization watching the AI transition,” Katanforoosh added. “Workforce transformation doesn’t have to be a 12-month program. It can be a two-month sprint, but only when you measure capability rigorously, personalize development precisely, and give employees clear proof of progress. In regulated industries especially, that combination is what makes speed and accountability compatible instead of opposed.”

To learn more about how Workera supports workforce transformation in medical device manufacturing and other regulated industries, visit workera.ai.

About Workera

Workera is the AI agent platform built to maximize human potential. Workera reads capabilities from the tools people already work in, verifies them continuously, and does so at scale. Our four purpose-built AI agents handle every talent decision: who to hire, who’s ready to move, where the gaps are, and how to close them. The newest, Ambient Coaching, surfaces skills intelligence in the flow of work. Trusted by the Fortune 100, Workera has been recognized by TIME’s Best EdTech Companies and World’s Top HRTech Companies in 2025 & 2026; the World Economic Forum’s Tech Pioneers; and Inc.’s 2025 Fastest Growing Companies. In 2024, Workera was named one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies alongside Microsoft, Canva, and others leading the AI revolution. Learn more at workera.ai.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-medical-device-manufacturer-reaches-best-in-class-learning-velocity-with-workera-upskilling-its-workforce-four-times-faster-than-industry-norms-302804553.html

SOURCE Workera

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Genesis Wealth Welcomes Veteran $725MM JPMorgan Advisor

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Latest addition underscores Genesis Wealth’s drive to become a preferred destination for highly experienced breakaway advisors as new office opens in Chicago’s North Shore

CHICAGO, June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Genesis Wealth, a leading wealth management platform and non-OSJ branch office within LPL Financial, today announced the addition of a veteran advisor, Alan Feutz, CFP®, from JPMorgan Securities, who has previously overseen $725 million in client assets. Feutz, who joins Genesis Wealth as Partner and Wealth Advisor, is based in Deerfield, IL, and brings 26 years of industry experience. He currently serves high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients. The move continues Genesis Wealth’s recruiting momentum among experienced bank-based advisors.

Feutz has built a reputation for delivering highly personalized wealth management and long-term client relationships grounded in trust and transparency. Focused on customized wealth planning for affluent households, he attributes the strength of his practice to attentive listening and guiding clients through all market environments – an approach enhanced by serving a smaller number of households to deepen engagement and deliver highly personalized advice.

“We are delighted to welcome Alan to our young and burgeoning firm,” said Kosta Tanglis, Founder and Managing Partner at Genesis Wealth. “This transition further validates Genesis Wealth’s platform and supported independence model, as experienced advisors increasingly seek a better way to serve clients while maintaining the infrastructure and support they need to grow.”

The transition reflects growing demand among experienced advisors for supported independence models that allow greater flexibility, autonomy and client customization. For advisors seeking more freedom from traditional bank constraints, the Genesis platform enables deeper planning relationships and tailored advice. Feutz’s decision reinforces Genesis as a destination for breakaway advisors and validates the Genesis platform and advisor-first structure.

“Alan shares our commitment to personalized planning and client care,” said Genesis Wealth Managing Director Jack Kennedy. “The advisors joining Genesis Wealth are looking for more than independence – they want a platform that empowers them to deliver customized advice while being surrounded by partners who share the same client-first mindset.”

New Genesis Office Opens in Chicago’s North Shore

The addition of Feutz also marks Genesis Wealth’s expansion into Chicago’s North Shore, one of the Midwest’s most established wealth management markets. Recently recognized by Forbes as one of Illinois’ Best-in-State Wealth Advisors for 2026, Feutz will operate from Genesis Wealth’s newly opened North Shore office in Deerfield.

Designed to support the firm’s continued growth, the approximately 10,000-square-foot office accommodates more than 20 advisors and staff and features private advisor offices, a large conference room equipped with hybrid meeting technology, oversized digital displays and dedicated collaboration spaces. The office also includes an employee lounge and ergonomic workspaces designed to support productivity and client engagement.

Located in the heart of Deerfield, the office will initially be home to Feutz and his client service team, Genesis Wealth founding advisor Joel Feiger and his team, as well as Managing Director Jack Kennedy. The location establishes a strategic presence in Chicago’s North Shore while creating capacity for future advisor recruitment and expansion throughout the region.

ABOUT GENESIS WEALTH

Genesis Wealth (GW) is a partner in the growth and success of bank-based advisors who are ready to transition to fully supported independence, operating through LPL Financial as its broker-dealer and Registered Investment Adviser (RIA). Founded in January 2024, GW officially launched under the Genesis Wealth brand in July 2025 and its advisors currently service more than $3 billion in client assets. Genesis Wealth’s high-caliber, growth-oriented advisors are enriched by and strengthen the collective culture and enterprise value of the firm. For more information about Genesis Wealth, please visit the firm’s site at genesiswealth.com

MEDIA CONTACT

Mitch Manning

424 317 4858

mmanning@haventower.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/genesis-wealth-welcomes-veteran-725mm-jpmorgan-advisor-302804654.html

SOURCE Genesis Wealth

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79% of Global Data Center Capacity Faces Elevated Climate Risk

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New research from First Street finds the world’s largest and fastest-growing data center markets are concentrated in locations exposed to flooding, extreme heat, wildfire, wind and drought risk.

NEW YORK, June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — A new First Street analysis finds that climate risk is emerging as a critical factor in data center investment performance, with physical hazards increasingly shaping operating costs, infrastructure reliability, financing conditions, and long-term asset values across global markets.

The research, Climate Risk in Global Data Center Markets: Implications for Investment and Performance, examines 97 global data center markets and finds that many of the industry’s largest and fastest-growing hubs are concentrated in locations facing elevated exposure to flooding, extreme heat, wildfire, wind, and drought. As trillions of dollars flow into digital infrastructure to support cloud computing and artificial intelligence, the analysis suggests climate risk is becoming a key determinant of which markets can deliver durable returns.

Global data center capacity has expanded rapidly over the past decade and is expected to nearly double again by 2030. Yet while investors have traditionally focused on power availability, connectivity, land access, and demand growth, climate risk remains largely absent from many underwriting and valuation frameworks despite its direct influence on uptime, operating costs, insurance availability, and infrastructure reliability.

By analyzing climate exposure across global data center markets, First Street finds:

54% of global data center capacity is located in markets exposed to chronic climate stress, including extreme heat and drought, which increase cooling costs, reduce efficiency, and put operating margins under pressure.79% of global capacity faces elevated acute climate hazards, including flooding, wind, and wildfire risks that can disrupt operations, increase downtime, and drive insurance and repair costs.Chronic exposure varies significantly across major investment markets. Exposure reaches 89% of capacity in APAC, compared with 50% in the Americas and 46% in EMEA, creating meaningful differences in operating performance.The industry’s largest growth markets rank among its most climate-exposed. Major hubs including Northern Virginia, Johor, and Marseille sit in the highest climate-risk tier globally, while lower-risk Nordic markets rank among the least exposed.

The findings suggest that climate risk is increasingly differentiating data center markets that may appear similar based on traditional investment metrics but face very different long-term operating conditions.

“Where you build a data center determines a large share of what it will cost to run for the next 20 or 30 years. Climate is a big part of that: cooling, water, and reliability all depend on location,” said Dr. Jeremy Porter, Chief Economist at First Street. “But most valuations still focus on growth and treat climate as a secondary concern.”

“Most underwriting for real assets still uses historical data, but the climate is no longer behaving the way the historical record would predict. As heat, drought, and water stress increase, outdated models simply don’t offer a complete view of risk anymore,” said Matthew Eby, Founder and CEO of First Street. “Investors who incorporate these factors into underwriting and capital allocation decisions will be better positioned to identify resilient markets and avoid mispriced risk.”

The full report is available at firststreet.org/research.

To learn more or to request a demo, visit firststreet.org or reach out to bd@firststreet.org

About First Street:

At First Street, we are on a mission to connect climate and financial risk. For nearly a decade, our scientists have created transparent, peer-reviewed physical climate risk models that quantify the financial impacts of perils such as flooding, wildfire, and extreme wind events for every property in the world. In December 2024, we launched the First Street Enterprise Suite, a global software platform that transforms our models into actionable financial signals for decision-makers worldwide. First Street is the standard for Climate Risk Financial Modeling, empowering asset owners, asset managers, governments, real estate investors, corporations, and millions of homebuyers every day to make climate-informed decisions.

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View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/79-of-global-data-center-capacity-faces-elevated-climate-risk-302804656.html

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iLEAD Schools and School Pathways Expand Their Partnership with the Launch of iLEAD Flex in Lancaster

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With the California moratorium on the creation of new non-classroom-based (NCB) charter schools lifted this year, iLEAD is expanding into new communities, using the School Pathways SIS Suite to run its operations.

CHICO, Calif., June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — iLEAD Schools, a California network of tuition-free public charter schools serving TK–12 learners through classroom-based, hybrid, online, and independent home study models, announces the expansion of its charter network into Lancaster, California, adding a new charter school in their network beginning in 2026. The announcement builds on iLEAD’s longstanding partnership with School Pathways and its continued use of the SIS Suite, which has supported the network’s operations and compliance since 2021.

A New Opening for Flex-Based Charter Schools

Since the statewide moratorium on new nonclassroom-based charters concluded on January 1, 2026, mission-driven networks like iLEAD have been moving quickly to bring their programs to communities that have long lacked access to flexible, learner-centered options. For iLEAD, the moment reflects over a year of preparation. The decision to open in Lancaster was driven by the needs of families in the Antelope Valley, where a combination of school closures and strong community demand made the case for iLEAD Flex clear.

With California’s oversight standards for flex-based programs continuing to evolve, iLEAD’s investment in purpose-built compliance infrastructure, anchored by the School Pathways SIS Suite, positions the network to launch and grow responsibly.

“School Pathways has been a great partner in our beginning stages of growth. Their team is responsive, collaborative, and always willing to troubleshoot challenges as they arise, helping us build strong systems and processes as we expand,” said iLEAD Chief Integration Officer Cassandra Coleman. “We value the relationships we have built with their team.”

A Flexible Learning Model for Every Family

iLEAD Flex will open in August 2026, a community where iLEAD already has a strong presence. The TK–12 campus introduces a new level of flexibility to that community, offering families a choice between full classroom-based instruction, Independent Study, or hybrid options on campus each week.

Each pathway is designed to be adaptable as a student’s needs evolve, and all three are grounded in iLEAD’s established educational approach, which includes hands-on project-based learning, a social-emotional curriculum, and individualized instruction to meet the needs of every unique child. At the high school level, iLEAD Flex students will have access to dual enrollment with the local community college, allowing them to earn college credits at no cost while completing high school requirements. The campus is also developing Career Technical Education (CTE) pathways in partnership with local businesses and community leaders to build leadership and career readiness skills.

iLEAD Flex is expected to open with approximately 750 learners, bringing iLEAD’s total network enrollment to nearly 7,000 students. The launch is part of a longer growth plan that includes iLEAD Innovate, the network’s next planned campus, which would be their first school outside of Los Angeles County and is expected to open in fall 2027.

School Pathways and the iLEAD Partnership

The partnership supports iLEAD’s broader ten-year goal of positively impacting 10,000 learners across California with sustainable launches of new schools over the coming years. From guiding the scope and launching iLEAD Flex on a compressed timeline to maintaining clean data, streamlined CALPADS reporting, and efficient workflows across the organization, School Pathways has supported iLEAD’s growth at every stage with consistent, responsive support. As the network continues to grow, iLEAD also plans to leverage School Pathways’ AI-powered features to manage enrollment and administrative workloads, allowing staff to focus on serving learners and families.

School Pathways brings more than 20 years of experience partnering with charter and non-traditional schools across California and currently works with 300+ schools statewide. The integrated SIS suite includes a student lottery system, online registration, Student Information System, and a platform for Independent Study program management, all built specifically for hybrid, virtual, and non-traditional learning environments.

For iLEAD, the platform supports the full range of the network’s needs across all learning modalities, including:

Enrollment management with online registrationCALPADS reporting and state compliance for Independent Study programsLearning agreements, student activity tracking, and program documentationFamily and educator access to real-time student records and progress

“The lift of the moratorium marks a meaningful turning point for flex-based education in California and for the schools that have been doing this work with intention,” said School Pathways CEO Kacie Jester. “iLEAD is a strong example of a network that invested in the right systems, maintained compliance through a challenging regulatory period, and is now in a position to grow. We’re proud to support them, and to be the platform that schools across California trust to make that kind of expansion possible.”

About iLEAD Schools

iLEAD Schools is a network of tuition-free public charter schools in California committed to helping every learner become a lifelong learner, empathetic citizen, authentic individual, and design thinker. With classroom-based, hybrid, online, and independent home study options serving grades TK–12, iLEAD provides personalized, project-based learning experiences that celebrate each student’s individuality and inspire them to lead. For more information, visit ileadschools.org.

About School Pathways

School Pathways is a California-based education software company with more than 20 years of experience serving charter and non-traditional schools. We provide solutions for virtual, hybrid, and Independent Study programs that simplify school operations and foster student success in a variety of learning environments. In addition to a Student Information System better-built for non-traditional learning environments, we offer software that enables our clients to manage online learning agreements, student activity tracking, re-engagement communications, audit preparation, adult education, and more. For more information, please visit schoolpathways.com.

Media Contact:
Elena Chow
Growth Marketing Manager
elena@schoolpathways.com

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SOURCE School Pathways

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