I've always been a precocious instructional 'desigNERD'. Starting in grade school, I would come home and re-write the lessons my teachers delivered, and then pilot them on my stuffed animals. Imagine my giddy delight when I discovered a field of study dedicated to the design of learning! And then imagine my ungainly (but ultimately successful) entrance into a field that demands a renaissance approach.
I began my actual career designing learning for real, live learners when I was 19. I helped a wonderful woman—Kira King, PhD—create a course on managing depression in hepatitis C patients. We used actual illustrators and created a virtual mentor—in the 90s! And so much more helpful than Clippy!. Under her tutelage, I absorbed, practiced, ate, drank, and slept instructional design.
Shortly thereafter, I moved to military training, then government training, then private consulting, and ultimately on to consulting with Fortune 500 companies who seek to change their culture, create employer brands, and move from the 70:20:10 rule into the new world of social sense-making.
My special skill sets include global-scalable initiatives, story-based learning, simulations, change management support, culture and brand support, induction support (speed to proficiency), and mentorship and development programs. Though what clients have most often valued is my thought leadership and holistic partnership to identify their real organizational pain points and connect them directly to my solutions.
The world of instructional design has let me work with amazing people at amazing companies. I've been so fortunate as to be welcomed to teams at McDonald's, Pfizer, Microsoft, Cigna, Toyota, Eli Lilly, the USMC, Duke University, Rolls-Royce, Bank of America, Amway, the VA, SABIC, HSBC, and countless more. I've also been so fortunate as to win Brandon Hall Excellence in Learning awards, including a Gold in 'Best use of mobile learning' back in 2010 when it was fairly new, and be acclaimed as Elliott Maise's Top 30 under 30 in 2011.
I can't wait to keep going. I hope I get to work with you someday soon.