Greenvale, NY (October 14, 2016) – New York State Education Department recently honored KWI during National Disability Employment Awareness Month, observed every October. The award acknowledges KWI for its leadership in workforce development to increase employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities.
KWI was nominated by Mill Neck Services, which provides vocational, social, residential and rehabilitation services to individuals who are deaf, many of who have secondary disabilities. “MNS can appreciate that the ability to communicate effectively is crucial, and applauds KWI for understanding that effective communication happens in a variety of ways. They gave a very deserving individual exactly what we are seeking for all our candidates – a fair shot,” said Marta Reeger of Mill Neck Services.
When Rino DeGuida first interviewed with KWI for an internship as an Install Analyst they were impressed, but admitted concerns about his ability to communicate in a role that interacted with clients on a daily basis. Admiring his determination, KWI’s Chief of Staff, Sheri Lyons, took a leap of faith, slightly redefined the role to better suit his talents, and has had no regrets.
As he quickly excelled in his role, Rino received recognition as Employee of the Month by his peers and management team and was recently promoted to a full-time role as Junior Desktop Support/Configuration Specialist. His Supervisor added, “Rino’s drive to learn and positive attitude have been contagious. Without hesitation he quickly learned mPOS and took on more and more tasks with great focus, while seeing them through from start to finish.” Rino continues to make significant contributions to KWI clients and his team, while enjoying the corporate culture, including playing on the company’s softball team and participating in KWI’s community service events and other social functions.
“We are on a mission to grow and nurture the best team in the industry. Finding talented employees with the right DNA – those who want to delight our clients is not easy. When you see someone, embrace them, regardless of their limitations. Inclusion does work,” expressed Sheri.
About KWI
KWI has been transforming retail and the shopping experience for over 30 years with our complete and customizable portfolio of Cloud-based enterprise solutions for specialty retailers. Many prestigious brands look to KWI for our innovations and leadership in POS, CRM, Merchandising and Loss Prevention. We pride ourselves on our best-in-cloud technology, achieved through the relationships we develop with our retail partners, the expertise of our technical teams and our dedication to providing exceptional service, 365/24/7. Recognized for our many contributions to the fashion world, the CFDA (Council of Fashion Designers of America) named KWI a Strategic Partner and their official retail merchandise management and POS solution.
Many of KWI’s original team has been with the company from day one, which contributes to an extraordinary depth of knowledge and demonstrates our most important belief: People are the difference! Located in Greenvale, New York, KWI was founded by Sam Kliger in 1985 and today remains a privately held company committed to its clients by providing game-changing technology to drive their success.
About NDEAM
National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) is observed each October to reflect on the important role disability plays in workforce diversity, this NDEAM celebrates the contributions of workers with disabilities and educates about the value of a diverse workforce inclusive of their skills and talents. This year’s them was #inclusion works.