• by Tobi Elkin , Staff Writer @tobielkin, April 11, 2017

Havas is offering its employees training in programmatic principles. The Paris-based agency holding company in February kicked off a global online training program on programmatic through its Havas University portal. The training comes at a time when programmatic media practices and processes are under scrutiny and automation is affecting not only media and advertising but other sectors as well.

Havas’ “100% Programmatic” program consists of 10-week modules with short videos, quizzes, and other materials that are designed to educate employees at their own pace. There are three levels—Programmatic Fundamentals, Advanced, and Elite.

The interesting thing is that all employees on both the creative and media sides of the business are required to take the Fundamentals online training—that’s everyone from CEOs to trainees, 20,000 employees across 60 countries. The course, which is free for all employees, must be taken by year-end.

Hanae Chino, a Paris-based knowledge manager at Havas, helped create the course. “We didn’t want each country to create their own course. We believe the training is essential to understanding how employees’ jobs will evolve in the next few years,” she said. “The idea behind this program is to raise the level of knowledge and analysis.” Chino also said the training is critical to employees in recruitment and human resources roles.

The Advanced module targets employees serving in media functions (about 10,000 people) and goes into depth about the concepts explained in the Fundamentals course. The Elite module is designed for employees who pitch and sell programmatic to clients—between 5,000 and 7,000 people. Once employees complete the training, offered through early May and then twice during the rest of the year, they receive badges and a diploma.

The Fundamentals training addresses ad fraud and brand safety, while the Advanced training goes into depth on those issues, plus viewability. “We explain the different types of fraud and in Elite, we explain to trainees how to tackle the topic with clients depending on their level of knowledge,” Chino said. “We try to be as transparent as possible. We’re here to educate.”

Havas' next global training will take up the topic of smart data and also offer three levels.