Recognized in the Best Extended Enterprise Learning Program category for “Building the Gold Standard for Extended Enterprise Learning”

DALLAS, Texas, August 18, 2026. McElroy University and Pifini have won a Gold Brandon Hall Group™ HCM Excellence Award® in the Best Extended Enterprise Learning Program category. The HCM Excellence Awards® recognize organizations that successfully develop and deploy programs, strategies, technologies, and solutions that deliver measurable business results and advance excellence in Human Capital Management.

Often described as the Academy Awards of Human Capital Management, the program has recognized measurable achievement for more than 30 years. Gold is its highest level of recognition. This year’s winners were announced August 13, 2026.

“The HCM Excellence Awards® have become the most recognized benchmark for excellence in human capital management because organizations know they are earned, not given,” said Mike Cooke, CEO of Brandon Hall Group™. “Every winning program has demonstrated measurable impact, innovation, and execution through one of the industry’s most rigorous evaluation processes.”

The winning entry describes how McElroy University moved from an in-person-only training model to a hybrid one, and what happened when it did. The program trains people outside McElroy’s own walls: distributors, contractors, equipment owners, inspectors, engineers, and municipalities throughout the world.

The challenge was straightforward. McElroy manufactures equipment used to fuse thermoplastic piping systems across a wide range of applications, including water, gas, sewer, industrial, and mechanical/HVAC markets, and for decades learning to use that equipment typically meant several days away from the jobsite.

A two-day class often meant a contractor spent four days away. McElroy saw an opportunity to make training more accessible while preserving the hands-on experience that is essential to learning fusion. The question became: which parts of the learning experience truly required a classroom and equipment? The lecture did not. The machine did. Lecture-based content moved online through Pifini Learn, allowing in-person time to focus more fully on hands-on instruction.

Between 2017 and 2025, the results the judges evaluated included:

• • Course catalog growth from 7 offerings to roughly 75
  • 101 percent increase in learners
  • 465 percent increase in course enrollments
  • 617 percent increase in operator qualifications issued
  • 500 percent increase in certified McElroy instructors, from a few dozen to nearly 100

“We set out to make high-quality fusion training more accessible and scalable while improving the value of the time learners spend in person,” said Paul Brodsky, McElroy University Manager. “What started as a practical solution has grown into something that has significantly expanded the reach and impact of McElroy University.”

“This award belongs to McElroy,” said Brett Strauss, President of Pifini. “They did the hard part, which was rethinking how their training worked and then staying with that decision for eight years. We are proud that Pifini Learn is the platform they built it on. It is a good reminder that technology only matters when someone has a clear idea of what they want it to do.”

The full McElroy University story is available at
https://pifini.ai/mcelroy-university-building-the-gold-standard-for-extended-enterprise-learning

About McElroy University

McElroy University is the training organization of McElroy, a privately held manufacturer based in the Tulsa, Oklahoma area and a global leader in equipment for joining thermoplastic pipe. Established in 1981, McElroy University provides education and qualifications for distributors, contractors, equipment owners, inspectors, engineers, and other industry audiences. What began as a primarily in-person program has evolved into a hybrid learning ecosystem with online courses, hands-on training, certified instructors, and a rapidly expanding course library. Learn more at mcelroy.com/university.

About Pifini

Pifini is a learning management system (LMS) and AI-enabled revenue enablement platform built for sales and partner teams across the full sales cycle. It pairs an enterprise LMS with AI tools that support sellers before, during, and after every customer interaction, including product training, AI instructor-led learning, role-play against simulated customer personas, meeting preparation, real-time call guidance, post-call analysis, and buyer engagement workspaces. Pifini also connects learning activity to CRMs and other operational systems, so organizations can measure what training actually changes, from sales performance to customer engagement. Through its Customer LMS and Community solutions, Pifini extends that same enablement to customers. Learn more at pifini.ai.

About Brandon Hall Group™

Brandon Hall Group is the only 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, the company has empowered, recognized, and certified excellence in organizations worldwide, affecting the development of over 10,000,000 employees and executives. Learn more at brandonhall.com