If you are a member of our local ATD STL chapter and haven’t become a Power Member, this is a great time. This month the national ATD organization is going to hold a Webcast on how to use your ATD membership to grow your leadership skills and boost your career. During the session, local chapter leaders will share how volunteering at the local level can connect you to networks and learning opportunities that will develop you professionally. They will share their own stories about the benefits of volunteering. Learn more about this ATD Webcast by clicking here: https://webcasts.td.org/webinar/3429

Here is just a few of the Webcasts being offered in November:

• ATD Chapter Membership: Grow Your Leadership Skills and Boost Your Career
• How to Upskill for Digital Transformation: A play-by-play guide
• Memes and Scavenger Hunts: 10 Ways to Improve Your L&D Program on a Budget
• Collaborating in a Multi-generational Environment

To register for these sessions, you must be a national member and if you add this on to your chapter membership, you get a discount.  Head to the ATD Store  to select a level of membership and enter ATD STL’s Chip number at checkout (CH6012)

On September 12, Learning and Development professionals from around the region attended this year’s  Learn Conference at Wells Fargo in downtown St. Louis. Registrations sold out in the last week with attendance topping 150 participants eager to learn and network. Nine local companies sent 5 or more participants to qualify for the group discount and multiply their learning. One team member came from as far away as New Mexico.

Team from Save-A-Lot

The day kicked off with a keynote by Fernando Sanchez-Arias reminding us to stay humble and ask for help. Using a fun rope activity, we learned the more we ask, the more ideas we get. Fernando’s message and humor sent participants into their day energized and ready to learn. For the breakout sessions, participants headed to the Connections Center, Wells Fargo impressive training and learning facility, to attend 1 of 4 sessions.

   

 

With Paul Nedeau and Kirsten Johnson of Hussman Corporation, participants raced around a road track to immerse in 7 strategies for interactive learning.

Paul Nedeau, Hussman Corporation

If they visited Colin DeCair, they learned what makes good data when making the training and development case to the C-Suite.

 

Colin DeCair, Busey Band

Between sessions or during lunch, attendees could visit the vendor fair.

 

SumTotal and Skillsoft

DevelopPEOPLE

There were two more opportunities to attend break-out sessions in the afternoon. Samantha Proutry from Alliance Credit Union said that Molly Grisham’s Experiential Learning in the Workplace session was her favorite because it reminded her to be ok with silence when facilitating a group. Some people may need more time to formulate ideas and share them. Samantha also liked how to properly use ice breakers.

Molly Grisham

In another session, attendees learned about a new approach to crafting a leadership competency framework implemented by the National Association of Electrical Distributors. Elizabeth Haberberger, of Dale Carnegie St. Louis, and Dr. Kelly Jones, of NAED, walked the group through identifying competencies and conducting a needs assessment.

Elizabeth Haberberger, Dale Carnegie and Kelly Jones, PhD, NAED

The day concluded with a panel discussion on the future state of learning and development. The large crowd heard ideas and predictions from local leaders in the industry; Andy Armbruster, Bayer, Jim Sokolowski, Edward Jones, and Renie McClay, Caveo Learning. We concluded with a few giveaways. Amy Rolfes from MOHELA was the big winner with an all access pass to 2020 ATD STL local events. This not only includes professional luncheons but also the next Learn Conference.

ATD Board thanks the presenters, vendors, panelists, and volunteers who helped to organize this event. A special thanks to Kathleen Young who led the organizing efforts and coordinated with Wells Fargo.  

Last week, attendees at the June Professional Luncheon heard how to hire, retain, and train the latest generation entering the workforce: GenZ. Thomasine Joyce, our local chapter’s President-Elect and Talent Development Lead at Hussman Corporation lead an interactive workshop on what to consider as you attract this generation to your workplace and encourage them to stay.

Constantly wanting to feel connected socially is one of the unique characteristics of this group. They don’t know life without social media and 80% feel distressed when without their mobile device. GenZ can’t help but incorporate this connectedness into their professional workday. Since they are so linked, there isn’t a clear distinction between work and life which requires a lot of flexibility in schedules and where people are physically located.

GenZ wants to have their own workspace so the open work environment of low walls and shared tables might not be appealing to this group. Perhaps offices might look at a configuration that has open space for collaboration and private space for phone calls and deep work time.

Thomasine also shared that recruiting efforts for those just now entering the workforce needs to look more like a marketing campaign than our traditional methods of web postings and career fairs. Employers are competing for GenZ’s time right along with the latest restaurants and Instagram influencers. Online reviews hold a lot of weight with them so maintaining an honest image on sites like Glassdoor are very important.

Organizations may want to re-evaluate their comprehensive benefits packages. For instance, GenZers are starting jobs with high levels of student debt so rather than offering tuition reimbursement, consider paying off loans. Their personal time is important so policies around flextime and paid time off should be reviewed and updated.

Given the flexibility, this cohort is ready to work hard and learn fast. About 77% expect to work harder than previous generations. The majority want to work for mid to large size companies and hope to develop through multiple roles. They are going to bring new energy and creativity into the workforce, and we want them selecting our organizations.

Last week, ATD STL hosted a professional luncheon with guest speaker Sarah McLaughlin. The room was packed despite freezing rain and snow falling all morning. When people were still asking to register the morning of the event, we knew they were eager to hear about the importance of collaboration so we proceeded with the event. After warming up with a delicious lunch, members and guests settled in to learn how being open to working with others can break down silos and raise levels of engagement and productivity.

Sarah shared Ken Blanchard’s heart, head, and hands domains of collaboration. Begin with the heart which is impacted by your character and intentions. It is very important to recognize people’s differences. A few ways you can do this is by making sure every voice is heard, regardless of title. Also, encourage polite disagreement remembering that diverse perspectives lead to better decisions and innovation. While seeking out difference, ensure people feel safe. Be a role model by being accessible, dependable and transparent when making decisions.

Approaching collaboration with your head means knowing your beliefs and attitudes. Get your team on board by involving them in defining purpose, values and goals. They should outline what collaboration means for them overall and on each project they work. Then check in regularly by setting accountability standards and ranking values in order of importance.

Finally, the hands domain looks at your actions and behavior while collaborating. While encouraging your team to both speak up and listen, ensure you are doing the same. Create opportunities for cross functional teams to network and work together. Invite other departments to participate in decision making meetings or brainstorming sessions. If needed, invest in training for your team’s communication skills and development.

While explaining Blanchard’s approach, Sarah described a client that had all the best tools and technology for their workforce but struggled to be productive. They didn’t understand how not reaching out across departments and the silos they created was impacting their success. The luncheon participants completed the session with the self-assessment How Collaborative Do You Think You Are? Then, at their tables, they discusses their findings and reactions and then created an action plan to improve the domains that need the most improvement.

Join us for our next luncheon on April 18 when we will hear Joe Totherow, a department leader of experience design for Edward Jones, explain the distinction between gamification and instructional games. You will learn how to expand your design team's capabilities in instructional game design and how to leverage commercial games for skill building. Click here to register.

The St. Louis Organization Development Network (STL-ODN) has invited members of St. Louis ATD Chapter to join them for their April professional development program called Taking Leadership Development to Scale with the CFO as your Champion. 

Past ATD STL speaker, Terrence Donahue, will lead the discussion on how a multinational company of 90,000 employees conceived, developed, and executed a global leadership development program that is achieving sustained, relevant, compelling, and credible business outcomes. He will also describe how Emerson's CFO became an active advocate for this learning investment.

Learn more about this session and register by clicking here. 

Don't miss out on a great opportunity! 

Are you an ATD St. Louis member who is attending the ATD International Conference and Expo in Washington DC? If so, join our chapter team! The chapter team allows ATD St. Louis members to receive the very best conference registration rate ($1,325 for power members; $1,625 for non-power members). 

To join the chapter team, please complete our chapter team survey to provide us with the necessary details: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ATDICE2019

Do you know a Talent Development superstar that deserves some recognition? Nominate them for an ATD St. Louis award!  

The Awards

Member of the Year

The Member of the Year award recognizes an outstanding ATD St Louis chapter member that has made significant contributions to the chapter over the course of the year. Contributions may include activities such as volunteering at a chapter event, completing volunteer projects for the board, mentoring chapter members, and/or speaking at chapter events. Deserving members will be nominated and chosen/determined by the ATD St. Louis Board of Directors.

Young Professional of the Year

The Young Professional of the Year award recognizes a rising star in the ATD St. Louis chapter. This individual should be viewed as a leader by peers and colleagues and have demonstrated professional achievements, such as leading successful projects, managing teams, displaying excellent leadership capabilities, or mentoring others.

Additional Criteria:

• Must be a member of the ATD St. Louis chapter.
• Must be 35 or younger to win.

Professional of the Year

The Professional of the Year award recognizes an ATD St. Louis chapter member that has made significant contributions to the Talent Development community. This individual should be creating innovative learning solutions that incorporate sound adult learning practices. Nominations may pertain to a single event, a course/class, a program, or the nominee’s overall body of work.  

Additional Criteria

• Must be a member of the ATD St. Louis chapter.

Nominations

To nominate an ATD St. Louis member for the Professional of the Year or Young Professional of the Year award, complete the nomination form by Friday, November 9. Winners will be chosen by a selection committee and announced at the December Professional Luncheon on Thursday, December 6. Self-nominations are not permitted.  

Winners will receive a plaque and ATD St. Louis All Access Pass which grants free registration to all five 2019 ATD St. Louis professional development luncheons and the annual Learn St. Louis conference.

ATD St. Louis is looking for dedicated members that have a desire to impact the local talent development community and help shape the direction of the chapter. If this sounds like you, please consider joining the board of directors.

Serving on the ATD St. Louis Chapter Board of Directors provides you with an opportunity to contribute and shape the direction of the Chapter. Board leaders serve two-year terms, and are expected to actively participate in monthly Board meetings, Chapter events and planning meetings during the term year.

 Joining the leadership of ATD St Louis Chapter is an excellent way to enhance your professional development, build you network within the talent development community and broaden your understanding of the latest industry trends. If you are interested in serving as a board member, please contact Danielle Buscher at presidentelect@atdstl.org.

Open Board Positions for 2019

VP of Communication

• Provides communication support for the chapter. 
• Develops and executes a comprehensive annual communications plan that supports the mission and image of the chapter.
• Sets goals and performance measures for the chapter’s communications plan. 
• Ensures the consistency, relevance, timeliness, and accuracy of the chapter’s public messages. 
• Manages the chapter’s website and social-media channels. 

 

 

Unless you were one of the lucky 50, you probably missed out on our recent workshop - Instructional Designer's Toolkit facilitated by Megan Torrance. Thankfully, ATD St. Louis member, Derek Kindig from Rabo Agrifinance, was willing to share his insights.

Recently, I attended a workshop facilitated by Megan Torrance about her “Instructional Designer Toolkit.” Along with 40+ others, I absorbed as much information as I could and began to think about how I can implement these ideas. Below is a summary of my takeaways but if you’d like to learn more about Megan’s toolkit, visit torrancelearning.com/toolkit. Feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn if you want to discuss my experience.

Rocketbook app

I must first admit that I’m incredibly biased on this topic. Some time ago my wife was on one of her Kickstarter rampages and ran across the Rocketbook Everlast and thought I would be interesting in the product. She was right.

Essentially, the app scans pages and can send a PDF to just about any location you want; OneDrive included! Megan went on to explain that Rocketbook has some of these pages available for download on their website and she enlarges them up to use as a flip chart. She agreed that making the printouts even larger to laminate and mimic a whiteboard would be a good use of this resource as well.

Learning Personas

Megan and her team uses Learning Personas as a way to gear their training for a specific audience. This goes deeper than identifying that a general audience needs the training. Rather, it looks at that audience and defines characteristics about 2 or 3 types of people within that group. When it comes to instructional design knowing your audience is arguably the most important piece and this concept can really help with driving home the training. I’m really excited to try using this on an upcoming project.

Action Mapping

We briefly covered Cathy Moore’s Action Mapping and how it helps keep the end goal in mind during the design process. I like action mapping because it helps me stay focused on the things my learners have to do. It also helps me refine content so that I’m not just throwing information on a screen because “it’s important.” We got to practice action mapping in small groups which was nice to get that practice in.

Evaluations

This one is definitely a can of worms but… The main point was that the 4 levels of evaluation in the Kirkpatrick model doesn’t really work. Megan uses 8 Ls (not actual levels) for measuring training and to be honest I don’t remember them all. The one that stuck out to me was learner experience. I believe it could be the center of our measurement if we can create a standard definition for learner experience. I could go on for a while here but am hoping I haven’t lost you just yet; feel free to contact me if you’d like to dive down this rabbit hole together. 

Learning Moments

Some of you may be familiar with Bob Mosher and Conrad Gottfredson’s 5 Moments of Learning Need, but Megan believes there are 9 moments. Regardless of it being 5 or 9, I am a big proponent of this concept as it approaches what a learner needs from a different angle. Megan went on to say that although she has 9 moments mapped out, not every project will use all of them. It really depends on your audience and the business goal. I like that it makes you think about a time in which a person would need training. Are they in the middle of doing a task and need help? Are they completely new to it? Do they need a refresher?

 

ATD St. Louis is looking for dedicated members that have a desire to impact the local talent development community and help shape the direction of the chapter. If this sounds like you, please consider joining the board of directors.

Serving on the ATD St. Louis Chapter Board of Directors provides you with an opportunity to contribute and shape the direction of the Chapter. Board leaders serve two-year terms, and are expected to actively participate in monthly Board meetings, Chapter events and planning meetings during the term year. The President Elect serves a three-year term to succeed the current President, then to serve as Past President for one year.

 

Joining the leadership of ATD St Louis Chapter is an excellent way to enhance your professional development, build you network within the talent development community and broaden your understanding of the latest industry trends. If you are interested in serving as a board member, please contact Danielle Buscher at presidentelect@atdstl.org.

 

Open Board Positions for 2019

 

President Elect

·        Prepare to be Chapter President by staying abreast of ATD compliance requirements.

·        Serve as the Chapter ATD CARE recorder and is responsible for submitting the Chapter CARE report to ATD by the required due date.

 

VP of Community Engagement

·        Serve as a liaison between the chapter and local community, educational, and nonprofit groups.

·        Manage and promote community engagement within the chapter by developing and executing initiatives, programs, and outreach efforts

 

VP of Professional Development

·        Responsible for planning chapter events of value to our members that also reflect the vision of the Chapter. 

·        Communicate and coordinate with speakers, event site staff and collaborate with the board members to manage all aspects of each event. 

·        Responsible for special events to provide additional value and development to the members’ experience including the annual chapter conference, special interest groups, workshops/seminars, etc. 

·        Collaborate with the VPs of Communication and Marketing to promote events. 

·        Collaborate with the Chapter President to set appropriate goals and performance measures to ensure the chapter is meeting goals and providing meaningful events for members’ Professional Development.

 

For a full job description, please contact Danielle Buscher at presidentelect@atdstl.org.