Meet Kelly

A few years ago, my organization was behind in technical skills needed to move forward with best practices. New technology was adopted by the organization, but users were not putting it into use or building better workflows. I was tasked with training 1,200 employees, while implementing several different programs to meet the needs of various sectors of the organization.

Through SWOT analysis, time blocking, and listening to feedback we were able to meet and exceed expectations.

Challenge:

Get staff on board to change practices, spend extra time learning new skills, and move forward willingly.

Solution:

Understanding the dynamics of the Change equation, I delivered a clear honest-to-the-bones speech with a full stop WHY for the shift in our organization. I started with the sacrifices and difficulties (what was lost) these changes would certainly bring. Then I clarified the benefits (what was gained). Then I added forecasting and trends, which allowed them to see a bigger contextual picture. It was well-received, and the objectives of that year were met.

Challenge:

Grow capacity throughout the organization.

Solutions:

Develop train-the-trainer and lead leader programs, wherein small representative groups came to receive training and build skill sets. They then led skill development within their buildings and departments. Start with skill-based training within a certain level of the organization identified as the most needed for technical development. We scaffolded skills into identified levels, and built training programs around those tiers. This allowed users to self-identify their own skill set tier, and attend training that best fit their skill development needs.

Over 15 years ago, leadership tasked me with using state and local data to recommend instructional changes within our departments.

Challenge:
Transform the raw data.

Solution:
The state data arrives in a large raw format. It must be taken into a program, and then disaggregated for various users to make it meaningful. I used pivot tables, conditional formatting, and visualization tools to bring the data to the end users. Over time, I was able to create timelined data visualizations to also encourage continued best practices, as department members could see their efforts were helping the organization to meet its goals.

Challenge:
Present data in a user-friendly manner that doesn’t shock or create judgment from department members.

Solution:
The strategy used was the “3rd point of reference.” We kept the focus, not on the members of each department, but on the goals at hand and the data before us. We used the data to ask questions, and then build objectives and strategies to guide our actions forward.

Challenge:
Create a data workflow for our foundation’s gala fundraiser night to get results in real time.

Solution:
I built a series of forms that fed the data into a main spreadsheet from which we ran formulas to bring the data together so fundraising reporting and totals could be broadcast throughout the evening of the event.

I started Pottery Lane less than two years before the pandemic hit. The pottery studio has been a challenge since its inception, from creating a brand and presence from scratch to surviving the pandemic – through several months of closure, to reopening and finding massive growth year over year.

Challenge:
We faced explosive growth after reopening after the pandemic.

Solution:
As the business expands, I find joy in partnerships with other organizations and professionals. I lean into the challenges of business ownership, while maintaining a keen awareness to listen to my team for feedback on how and when pivots should be made. 

We have certainly had our growing pains, and lessons have been learned throughout the each year of business ownership. Maintaining a velocity that keeps the team feeling challenges, yet not exhausted, is key to providing a great studio experience to our community. 

A few years ago, my organization was preparing for a renewal in millage finances campaign worth about $15 million for our schools, and as part of the strategic planning group, we developed a list of obstacles that needed addressing before we could ask our community to vote for a proposal to increase funding for schools.

Challenges:

• Our community did not/does not understand school finance, millage taxes, and rules regarding spending at the state and federal level.
• Proposal A (a law passed in the early 90’s) also has had negative implications on our district’s finances, and many are not aware of this impact still today.

Solutions:

One solution that I spear-headed was to create animated budget videos to explain how school finance works.

The images you see to the write are notes taken from our executive on school finance and how he wanted the information to flow. From there we drafted scripts. After scripts were written, I edited and storyboarded them and worked with a motion graphics designer to bring the words to life.

Artifacts included here are the original notes, to one of the scripts, to final edits being given to the designer. 
Final Videos: 
Introduction
Expenses
Revenue
Looking Ahead

Challenges:

The challenge was to write a technical book, that allowed for immediate application and use by readers that were either new to or proficient with the geo-based technologies put forth in the book.

We had a complete draft written before the end of 2016. As the Google Earth team wanted to use this book as a piece of their media package and promote it, they were requesting that we wait for publication until specific tools were released.

Once the tools were released, we were given about two weeks from our publisher to get the new details and screenshots in the book so we could go to press.

Solutions:

Because we were waiting for almost two years until publication, we were able to look at and analyze several books from other professionals and decide what elements had the best impact for the readers.

We sent the draft-in-waiting to several colleagues for review. While they loved how we laid out the technical explanations, including tips for both new users and “pros,” the message we kept hearing was “What can I do with this right now? What can I implement tomorrow?”

We had already included the real life examples of how these technologies were being used at the start of every chapter, but taking cues from the feedback we received, we added a block at the end of each chapter, “What You Can Do Tomorrow.”

Since publication, the feedback has been how digestible, useful, and applicable our book is for the reader. We couldn’t be happier.