FIS by the numbers
1968
Founded in 1968
15k+
Over 15,000 global clients
56k employees
56,000 employees in 58 countries
Jacksonville, FL
Headquartered in Jacksonville, FL
The challenge
Building multiskilled, high-performance teams
In 2023, FIS President and CEO, Stephanie Ferris, launched Future Forward, a multi-year, enterprise-wide transformation aimed at achieving reductions in cash spend through enhanced operational performance and improved profitability. The FIS Capital Markets team (FIS CM) needed a strategic partner to help them upskill their technologists, ensuring a multiskilled, high-performance workforce that could execute the CEO's vision.
Achieving this required more than conventional ad-hoc training. FIS needed the ability to assess and close skills gaps across the organization and offer technologists a structured path for continuous learning. They sought a solution that aligned with their strategic goals and drove significant, measurable progress.
With Pluralsight, we know the colleagues’ skill set right away, and they can be productive faster.
Andie Cardwell
TPO Senior Business Partner
The solution
Equipping employees with the skills to adapt
FIS partnered with Pluralsight to provide the tools needed to benchmark skills, personalize learning paths, and foster a culture of continuous development. Kais Abdelhedi, VP, Business Executive, CM Technology Services, noted, "What we’d like to achieve is to align our talent strategy with the client experience from a learning perspective. We’ve been developing role-specific learning paths, fostering a culture of continuous improvement, and empowering our employees to innovate."
By the end of 2022, FIS CM led the charge, recognizing that staying competitive required employees with the skills to adapt to ever-evolving market demands. They created 28 custom Role IQs tailored to match critical roles in the company and provided clear benchmarks that allowed each employee to understand where they stood and what they needed to learn to reach the next level. This approach ensured employees could target specific skills gaps, leverage Skill IQs for personalized learning recommendations, and maximize their learning time.
FIS CM implemented a robust learning strategy centered around quarterly skill blitzes and continuous learning campaigns, all strongly supported by executive leadership. Christopher Parkins, SVP Product Development Group, emphasized the importance of this top-down commitment: "Leaders go first. We’re very open and transparent about our own learning journeys, demonstrating to the organization how we learn and acquire new knowledge."
FIS CM also dedicated two hours per week for employees to focus on their learning, further embedding skill development into their daily routines. This commitment created a culture of learning that permeated every level of the organization.
The impact of the partnership has been transformative. In 2023, the Capital Markets team alone achieved over 1,500 skill-ups, a direct result of the quarterly blitzes and continuous learning campaigns. Kais highlighted the measurable outcomes: "When I see that we’ve reduced the percentage of novice-level employees from 47% to 13%, it’s clear the structured approach we’ve taken with Pluralsight has had a significant impact. This investment in upskilling is paying off with tangible results."
The assessments are absolutely key. They give you the journey where you should go and provide metrics and KPIs that have credibility with the team, showing what you understand and what you don’t.
Christopher Parkins
SVP Product Development Group
Next steps
Sparking interest across the organization
The progress made within the Capital Markets team has sparked interest across other departments, including banking, leading to new engagements and expanded use of the platform.
By investing in their people and aligning their learning strategy with their business objectives, FIS has not only met the challenges of today but positioned the company to thrive in the future. As Kais remarked, "It’s not just about giving a license; it’s about a vision, a strategy, and structure. Learning is now part of our DNA at FIS."
The FIS story is a powerful example of how an organization can achieve near-term strategic goals while driving long-term success.
Our goal is not only about creating a better learning and development program, it’s about creating a better experience for our people and driving great outcomes for our clients.
Andie Cardwell
TPO Senior Business Partner
