WATERVILLE — Thomas College is proud to announce a new partnership with Central Maine Motors to deliver customized, on-site professional development and workforce training, marking the official launch of the College’s new Corporate Campus initiative.
In January Thomas College Executive Director of Business Innovation and Corporate Campus, Nate Pelsma delivered customer service training to 35 Central Maine Motors employees at the company’s facility. Following the success of the initial sessions, Central Maine Motors has committed to expanding the program across the organization in the coming months.
This partnership represents the first official collaboration under Corporate Campus, Thomas College’s employer-focused professional development model designed to help organizations grow and thrive by investing in their people. Corporate Campus works directly with employers to identify workforce and leadership development needs and delivers customized training that strengthens leadership capacity, enhances team effectiveness and supports long-term organizational growth.
With Central Maine Motors, Corporate Campus is delivering CliftonStrengths®-based leadership development to help teams identify and leverage their natural talents to improve collaboration, performance, and customer outcomes — translating strengths awareness into stronger partnerships, clearer communication and more consistent execution across departments.
“Our engagement with Nate Pelsma and Thomas College continues to exceed our expectations of what culture development can look like for our 240 associates,” said Central Maine Motors owner Chris Gaunce. “Our once small family business that was a single location with 20 employees, is now a large employer in Central Maine with nine buildings across 20 acres. We want to keep our long-standing guiding principle of taking care of people with a personal touch, front and center of what we do. As we continue to grow, Thomas College and Nate have given us an answer to how we scale without losing who we are. Most importantly, this experience will help increase workforce satisfaction and retention by focusing on what we do right, and how we can continue to do what is right, while facing the adversity of an ever-changing marketplace. Feedback from those that have been through the classes is exciting.”
Thomas College’s Corporate Campus partners with private businesses, nonprofit organizations, municipalities and public agencies, healthcare, education and service organizations. Programs are designed for employees at all levels, including new managers, experienced supervisors, senior leaders and specialized functional teams.
Corporate Campus offerings span a wide range of professional development areas, including leadership and management, team and organizational effectiveness, senior leadership and strategy, innovation and the future of work and functional and specialized training such as project management, human resources, cybersecurity management, nonprofit accounting and digital marketing. Select programs may culminate in Thomas College certificates.
Courses are led by Thomas College’s expert faculty and professional staff, including Pelsma, Assistant Professor of Business Analytics Alyssa Dassa, D.B.A., PCC and Donald Cragen, D.S.M., Chair of the H. Allen Ryan School of Business, who bring deep expertise in leadership development, strategy, innovation, analytics, and emerging technologies.
“Our goal is to be a resource for Maine companies and organizations,” said Pelsma. “Corporate Campus reflects Thomas College’s commitment to supporting our local business community, strengthening talent pipelines, and helping employers build the leadership and skills they need to succeed in a rapidly changing environment.”
All Corporate Campus programs are adaptable and customizable to meet employer-specific goals, ensuring training aligns directly with organizational priorities and delivers meaningful, long-term impact.
For more information about Thomas College’s Corporate Campus and partnership opportunities, visit Thomas College’s website or contact Pelsma at [email protected].
