Instructional Design
Projects
Bringing to life a bespoke curriculum that reflects your signature style and team culture.
Certification Course
During my tenure, Vacasa's Certification in Vacation Homes course led to a 300% increase in partners and the real estate department exceeded expected revenues.
Vacasa is the largest full-service vacation rental management company in North America, managing 30,000 short-term rentals. Vacasa had set some lofty goals in their real estate department around building their realtor partner network to generate new referrals across key vacation markets in the US. They had been marketing their realtor referral program informally and my task was to create a standardized certification program to engage and excite real estate agents to generate new referrals and additional revenue.
The Opportunity
Vacasa needed a simple, easy to access "opportunity in vacation rentals" certification class and agent tools to teach real estate agents how to build their business niche in vacation rental markets. The challenge was to build something from the ground up and provide both in-person and virtual live classes to education and connect with agent partners in order to drive property management referrals.
The Approach
Using the ADDIE process, I interviewed internal and external subject matter experts asking about the target audience for referrals, key challenges in vacation rentals, untapped opportunities, and information that would help real estate agents become more informed about the vacation rental niche. Once I had enough information, I started outlining my course objectives, selecting a Learning Management System, and evaluating/iterating the course along the way. I collaborated across multiple departments to create an Agent Hub with rental calculators, 1-pagers, and helpful tools that agents would want to learn how to use in their vacation rental business. To gather cross-department feedback, I hosted mock presentation round tables to ensure each slide was specific, engaging, full of resources, and finished with a clear call to action.
The Outcome
The result was a Vacation Rental Certification program. I partnered with Vacasa's Sales Department to schedule live trainings, traveling around the country, offering classes to individual agents and brokerages. I worked in alongside Vacasa's Learning and Development team to train new Sales Representatives on how to grow their agent partner networks using the certification program as a tool in their toolbox. As a result, the agent partner network saw a 300% increase in partners and the real estate department exceeded expected revenues.
"The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any."
– Alice Walker
Social Entrepreneurship Syllabus
LMU's Social Entrepreneurship class received consistently positive feedback from students reflecting on their hands-on learning experience, particularly the integration of current events into the class.
As a result of the positive feedback, I was invited to serve as a consultant and workshop facilitator for an immersive social enterprise travel experience for Korean students visiting from Sogang University.
Based in Los Angeles, California, Loyola Marymount University (LMU) is a top-ranked, social-justice oriented Catholic university offering a rigorous academic experience to ambitious students. They are committed to fostering a diverse academic community rich in opportunities for intellectual engagement and real-world experience.
As an Adjunct Faculty member at LMU, I taught a Social Entrepreneurship curriculum that facilitated an environment for students to explore, apply, and gain hands-on experience in the Los Angeles social enterprise community. Having a strong belief in non-traditional education, I turned the classroom into a learning lab, incorporating current events, guest speakers, fast pitch competitions, and consulting opportunities for students to experience the field of impact entrepreneurship.
The Opportunity
Business classes are often taught from a textbook with a lot of business "lingo," boring lectures, and no real life experience. Students are encouraged to memorize instead of ask good questions an think critically. This is a missed opportunity for students to learn from each other by engaging with businesses in the field and engaging in the process of solving actual business problems.
The Approach
I taught a social entrepreneurship course where students were graded on their participation and discussion skills. I opened the class with current events, encouraging the students to approach current events through the lens of inquiry, thinking critically about opportunities for social enterprises to solve social and environmental challenges. Students learned from their peers and engaged with guest speakers who shared their personal experience delivering social impact programs and services. Students analyzed case studies, identifying six aspects of each organization: the the problems the organization solves, key partnerships, important resources, marketing strategy, ability to measure impact, and challenges they face today.
The Outcome
My LMU experience helped my hone in on my teaching style and the type of environment that would inspire learners. I knew early on that I was not a "lecturer" but a facilitator. I learned that I wanted to facilitate learning in a workshop style where students had to participate to succeed. And I wanted to give my students real-life, relevant learning experiences by discussing current events, creating business plans, and engaging with business leaders in the community.
The class received consistently positive feedback from students about their learning experience and the benefits they received from integrating current events into the class. As a result of a successful class, I was invited to co-host a Korean student group from Sogang University visiting Los Angeles for an immersive learning experience in the field of social enterprise. I presented on the topic "Making an Impact and Designing a Business," guiding students through a business planning workshop using the Business Model Canvas.
