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RAMSEY SOLUTIONS CELEBRATES NATIONAL FINANCIAL LITERACY MONTH

WITH ANNUAL TEACHER APPRECIATION GIVEAWAY AND FINANCIAL LITERACY CHALLENGE

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Ramsey Solutions honors teachers and students across the country during National Financial Literacy Month in April with the Teacher Appreciation Giveaway and Financial Literacy Challenge. The annual giveaway and scholarship contest is an opportunity for Ramsey Solutions to highlight the need for financial literacy in schools across the country.

Teacher Appreciation Giveaway

From April 2 through 30, teachers can register at RamseyEducation.com/teacher for a chance to win:

• A $5,000 vacation
• $3,000 towards technology for the classroom
• One of three $1,000 gift cards
• One of three cases of The Graduate Survival Guide

The Financial Literacy Challenge

From April 6 through 25, students can take a financial literacy quiz at RamseyEducation.com/challenge. Students who score 100 percent on the online quiz are eligible to win prizes, including:

• A $10,000 college scholarship for a high school senior
• One of two $500 Amazon gift cards for underclassmen

The high schools of each of the winners will receive a one-year subscription to the Foundations in Personal Finance and Foundations in Entrepreneurship digital curriculum. See official rules on the contest websites for details.

Ramsey Solutions’ Foundations in Personal Finance is offered in schools all over the country to teach students how to manage their finances and have a solid financial future. Foundations in Personal Finance is an easy to use, turn-key curriculum that meets standards and benchmarks in all fifty states and Jump$tart national standards. More than three million students have taken Foundations in Personal Finance nationwide.

The contests are sponsored by Amridge University, a long-time leader in online education. Amridge University is a private, nonprofit distance learning university offering undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs online to the working adult. With a commitment to academic excellence, their mission is to prepare men and women for a lifetime of learning, leadership, and service to their professions and to society.

To find out more information about Foundations in Personal Finance, go to www.ramseyeducation.com. 

About Ramsey Solutions

Ramsey Solutions is committed to helping people regain control of their money, build wealth, grow their leadership skills, and enhance their lives through personal development. The company’s success is defined by the number of people whose lives are changed by a message of hope. Through a variety of mediums including live events, publishing, syndicated columns and a nationally syndicated radio show, Ramsey Solutions uses common sense education to empower people to win at life and money. Millions of families have graduated from Financial Peace University classes across the country, and Ramsey Solutions’ world-class speakers have brought vision, inspiration, and encouragement to more than a million more. Voted among Nashville’s best places to work ten times, Ramsey Solutions employs more than 700 team members focused and dedicated to doing work that matters.

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5 Ways Giving Employees A Stronger Voice Can Make Your Company Sing

Do many employees feel management is deaf when it comes to hearing their concerns and considering their ideas?

Apparently, yes.

“Employee voice” in the workforce has become a catchphrase in human resource departments as companies see the benefits of opening their ears to their employees. The Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology last year listed “capturing the employee voice” as the No. 7 workplace trend.

Research ties in employee voice, among several factors, with employee engagement. A  Gallup poll revealed that more than half of U.S. employees were “not engaged.”  Leadership expert Keith Martino thinks giving employees a voice leads to more engagement on multiple levels – and more successful companies.

“When we provide employees with access to the corporate microphone, the music can be instantaneous and breathtaking,” says Martino (www.KeithMartino.com), author of Expect Leadership and head of CMI, a global consultancy that customizes leadership and sales development initiatives. “Companies are constantly striving to please their customers, but the same vital attention needs to be given to their strongest asset, the employees.

“When employees are given a voice, it makes all the difference, building trust, bringing a higher level of performance, and leading to success for all.”

Martino suggests five ways that giving employees a voice benefits a business:

• Discovers hidden talent. People who were buried deep in the organizational chart bring solutions with their fresh perspective and broadened roles. “Once viewed as disengaged, they are seen in a new light, now fully utilized and helping the company to prosper,” Martino says. “By inviting more ideas, you’ve opened up a new world for your organization.”
• Increases camaraderie, enhances culture. The mood shoots up when everyone suddenly feels more valued by being heard. ”You will be pleasantly surprised by the smiling faces and camaraderie that return to your employee base,” Martino says. “Employees love working in an environment where everyone is really listened to and their ideas matter.”
• Energizes, drives productivity. .A happier, more appreciated work culture leads to a more energized workforce.  “When employees start feeling heard – seeing ideas implemented, and knowing they have real input – it encourages buy-in and even more effort, so productivity goes up,” Martino says.
• Diagnoses, clarifies. “Getting to the source of problems means getting to the truth, and without repercussions in telling it,” Martino says. “This clears obstacles. And by bouncing ideas off others, hearing their concerns and perspectives, you stay true to company goals and improve the company’s way of getting there.”
• Identifies future leaders. Empowering everyone by giving them a voice inspires confidence, allowing leaders to emerge. Some may not initially see themselves that way, but they will be self-evident by the clarity of their reasoning and the courage of their convictions,” Martino says. “Good management unlocks potential, empowers it, and here is another example of that.”

“The results of this dramatically improved communication between employer and employee are immediate and lasting,” Martino says. “The relationship is enhanced in multiple, measurable ways.”

About Keith Martino

Keith Martino (www.KeithMartino.com) is head of CMI, a global consultancy founded in 1999 that customizes leadership and sales development initiatives. Martino is the author of Expect Leadership, a series of four leadership books – The Executive Edition, in Business, in Engineering, and in Technology. He has also published three sales handbooks, Get Results, Results Now, and Selling to Americans. After more than 20 years and numerous awards at FedEx, Xerox and Baxter Healthcare, Martino and his team provide world-class counsel and proven web-based tools that produce consistent results. He has been the keynote speaker at business development conferences for Xerox, Bass Pro Shops, New Horizons Computer Learning Centers, the American Banking Association, Baker-Hughes, Shell Oil, RadioShack, Schlumberger, and others.