CLIENT SPOTLIGHT: Custom Training That Built Shared Knowledge Across a Workforce

Jul 21

When a client wanted to create company-wide training to affect learning for 250+ team members, they called me. Completely flattered by the request, I said, “What are we training your team on?”

Their leaders and I met for sixty minutes to unleash the varied, yet critical content they wanted their workforce to learn. Pages of notes later, I sat with the words, and big bucket themes began to emerge.

The themes were outside my typical focus areas, such as manager training, soft skills, and professional development. However, it was all about developing training in a way that would create consistent learning across the workforce and a shared language. I got you!

What emerged was a 45-minute, interactive training for their workforce delivered over six sessions at Providence Park. It began with getting to know their coworkers, critical to safety and fan experience, and ended with a competitive team review.

Together they learned about safety and emergency procedures, a de-escalation framework, and a wealth of information on creating a premium fan experience (think: how-to, permission to engage, how to recover a situation, an emphasis on creating that vibe we all love as guests at Providence Park). It was a waterfall of content, yet it resulted in 100% of teams acing the review. I attribute this to their highly engaged workforce and a little friendly competition.

It’s no small feat for an organization to create a consistent language and learning among a team. Think: multiple departments each focused on their own unique responsibilities, but the return on the investment, knowing that each person has the common language, know-how, and understanding, is well worth the effort.

Thank you to the Portland Timbers organization; it’s truly been a pleasure working with each of you.