UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — One faculty member and one alumnus of the Penn State College of Education were recognized at the recent conference for the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI) in Jacksonville, Florida.
William Rothwell, distinguished professor of workforce education and development (WFED), was honored with the Thomas F. Gilbert Distinguished Professional Achievement Award while Farhan Sadique, who earned a doctorate in workforce development and training from Penn State and is now an assistant professor at Kansas State University, received the Distinguished Dissertation Award.
Rothwell has been a College of Education faculty member since 1993 and is president of Rothwell & Associates Inc., Rothwell & Associates LLC, and Rothwell & Associates Korea. As a consultant, he has worked with more than 50 multinational companies and many governments and nonprofits.
At Penn State, he is the head of the World Campus master’s program in organization development and change and also teaches and advises doctoral students in Workforce Education and Development (WFED). In addition to the three consulting companies he founded, he also founded three small businesses in State College, Pennsylvania, and has conducted training on every continent except Antarctica.
“To be honored with the Thomas F. Gilbert Distinguished Professional Achievement Award by ISPI is a powerful acknowledgment of a career spent advancing the science and practice of human performance improvement, talent development and organization development,” Rothwell said. “This award reflects my steadfast commitment to measurable, sustainable change by pioneering succession-planning models and competency-based talent development systems; mentoring thousands of professionals from many nations; and authoring more than 170 books. It is a tribute to the values I’ve championed throughout my work and to the legacy of Thomas Gilbert that continues to inspire our field.”
To qualify for the award, nominees must have 10 or more consecutive years as a contributor to the field of human performance technology (HPT), a systematic approach to improving performance in organizations by addressing the root causes of performance issues, not just training deficiencies; be recognized by professional organizations related to HPT; be a regular presenter at conferences such as ISPI or other related HPT organizations; and have not served on the ISPI board or as a full-time member of the ISPI staff for at least three years prior to the award presentation.
Among qualified nominees, criteria used to choose a winner include whether a candidate has made significant contributions to the knowledge base of human performance technology; has made contributions to the definition, communication or demonstration of HPT; has mentored other HPT practitioners; has the respect of their peers in technology; has published in journals, books or media to communicate achievements and findings in HPT; and/or has promoted HPT through presentation to other professional groups.
ISPI said Rothwell was selected due to “his extensive contributions to the field of human performance technology. His remarkable career encompasses authorship of foundational texts, creation of globally recognized competency models and mentorship of emerging leaders.”
"ISPI is one of the major professional organizations in the field of workforce education and development, and the award Dr. Rothwell received is considered the most prestigious award in performance improvement,” said Hyung Joon Yoon, associate professor and professor in charge of Penn State’s Workforce Education and Development program. “The figure associated with the award, Thomas F. Gilbert, is known to be the father of performance engineering or performance improvement. This is great news to the WFED and Penn State community.”
Sadique earned a doctorate in workforce development and training from the College of Education in 2023. While at Penn State, he received the Outstanding Graduate Award, the Leadership Award, multiple scholarships, and external recognitions including the Emerging Practitioner Award from the Organization Development Network.
His dissertation “Exploration of Salesperson Competencies for Customer Engagement in Retail” described a study which identified key competencies required for retail sales staff to engage effectively with customers in the home improvement sector, assisting retail companies with training and recruitment strategies.
“I'm incredibly grateful to receive the Distinguished Dissertation Award 2025 from ISPI,” Sadique said. “My time at Penn State was deeply fulfilling, and this recognition is not just about me; it reflects the dedication and belief of my entire dissertation committee, especially committee chair, Dr. Mark Threeton, who played a pivotal role in shaping the scholar and educator I’ve become. These experiences ultimately led me to my dream role at Kansas State University. What made it even more meaningful was sharing the stage with my mentor and hero, Dr. Bill Rothwell. That moment will stay with me forever.”
The Distinguished Dissertation Award promotes excellence in student research that focuses on performance improvement technology. Only doctoral dissertation research defended successfully within the current calendar year and four previous calendar years are eligible. Any doctoral students attending an accredited university throughout the world are eligible.
“Dr. Farhan Sadique receiving the Distinguished Dissertation Award is icing on the cake, demonstrating academic excellence of the Penn State WFED program,” Yoon said. “We are highly proud of the two award winners.”
ISPI is a non-profit association for performance improvement professionals dedicated to improving individual, organizational, and societal functioning, productivity, and accomplishment in the workplace. Learn more about Penn State’s chapter of ISPI here.