Baird Again Honored with ASTD “BEST” Award

Awards Recognize Organizational Commitment to Employee Learning

Baird, an employee-owned, international wealth management, capital markets, private equity and asset management firm, announced today it ranked No. 13 in the American Society for Training & Development’s 2009 BEST Awards program. This is the second consecutive year Baird has received an ASTD Best Award, which recognizes organizations that demonstrate enterprise-wide success through employee learning and development.

“We are thrilled to again be recognized internationally for training and development,” said Beth Kavelaris, Director of Culture & Integration. “As we look at the list of winners, Baird is in really good company with other companies that use innovative learning and development solutions to drive business results.”

“This recognition is about much more than providing great learning opportunities for associates,” said Tiffany Guske, Baird’s Manager of Training & Development. “It shows that Baird excels at aligning learning with the needs of our business units, and that our focus on continuous improvement has a positive impact on business results.”

Each year, associates from Baird University – the firm’s in-house training and development organization - meet with business unit leaders, conducting formal needs analyses and informal interviews to ensure programs are aligned with associate needs and strategic businesses needs.

According to Tony Bingham, ASTD’s president and CEO, “The ASTD BEST Award winners set the standard of excellence for exceptional learning practices, and demonstrate that a skilled workforce is vital to achieving results. They use learning as a strategic tool and have the support of senior leaders who champion a learning culture.”

Members of the Baird University team received the ASTD BEST Award during a reception held in Washington, D.C. on October 1. Baird is among 39 organizations from Canada, Hong Kong, India, Singapore, and the United States to be honored. All winners are recognized in a special section of the October 2009 issue of Training + Development (T+D), ASTD’s monthly magazine.

Through an online application, the 2009 BEST Awards received entries from 93 organizations in 10 countries. These organizations submitted quantitative and qualitative information to ASTD about their learning and development practices and programs. Their applications were assessed by members of the BEST Awards advisory committee, a group of experts in the learning and development field. This is the seventh year of the ASTD BEST Awards. More information about the 2009 ASTD BEST Award winners may be found in the October 2009 issue of T+D magazine and online: www.astd.org/best. Details about the 2010 ASTD BEST Awards program will be available next February.

About Baird
Baird is an employee-owned, international wealth management, capital markets, private equity and asset management firm with offices in the United States, Europe and Asia. Established in 1919, Baird has more than 2,400 associates serving the needs of individual, corporate, institutional and municipal clients. Baird oversees and manages client assets of more than $66 billion. Committed to being a great place to work, Baird ranked number 14 on FORTUNE’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” in 2009 – its sixth consecutive year on the list. Baird’s principal operating subsidiaries are Robert W. Baird & Co. in the United States and Robert W. Baird Group Ltd. in Europe. Baird also has an operating subsidiary in Asia supporting Baird’s private equity operations. For more information, please visit Baird’s Web site at www.rwbaird.com.

About ASTD
ASTD (the American Society for Training & Development) is the world’s largest association dedicated to the training and development field. ASTD’s members come from more than 100 countries and connect locally in 130 U.S. chapters and with 30 International Partners. For more information, visit www.astd.org .