Top hospitality training professionals gather at a unique conference designed by trainers for trainers. Learn from inspiring keynote speakers, participate in interactive break-out sessions, network and share best practices. The best value for the dollar for trainers in the industry. View full agenda with details by day below, or open Agenda at a Glance summary.
Pre-Conference Workshops
American Hotel and Lodging Association Educational Institute (AHLAEI) In order to attend this session, you must apply directly to AHLEI. Please register by January 30, 2016
CHART does not charge a fee for this session, but there is a fee paid directly to AHLEI which is discounted if the exam is taken at the CHART conference. To obtain an application, visit the Educational Institute’s web site at: www.ahlei.org or call the Educational Institute at 888.575.8726. If you are currently enrolled in the CHT program, email Erica Nieves at enieves@ahla.com to reserve your seat.
Service Event
Arrive early to participate in the service event on Saturday. A great way to start your networking while giving back to the community. Enjoy an afternoon of volunteering and team-building to support a local non-profit. Activities usually include light assembly work, cleaning, painting, sorting or organizing. Close toed shoes usually preferred. Lunch will be provided. NOTE: Time is to be determined, but it is likely to be 8 am to 12:30 pm.
The Hospitality Suite is in a large hotel suite or meeting room where attendees get together at the end of each night to relax, play games, catch up and get to know each other personally in a casual setting. After a day of intense learning, join us in the hospitality suite to look over CHART photo albums, play Jenga, have a cocktail and share casual conversation - it's a great way for attendees to spend a little more time together and form the lasting friendships that are going to help you with your training network throughout the years to come. All attendees are welcome and encouraged to come by. Your CHART experience will not be complete unless you spend at least some time here.
Jim Sullivan Sullivision
Workshops Round #1
Trainer Track: Presentation Effectiveness
Are your presentations driving the desired results? If not, this workshopwill teach you the behaviors that will enhance your ability to prepareand make a quality presentation that will more effectively drive yourcompany’s sales and build profits.
This workshop focuses on need to:
Instructional Designer Track: Program Design
Shaping raw information into easily digestible, relevant training programs that are directly linked to your company’s mission and business goals is a tricky feat. This information-packed workshop will provide you with a roadmap to do just that. It encompasses everything you need to know about training program design, including:
Manager Track: Operational Knowledge Successful managers need to understand how their team relates to others and fits into the company’s overall organizational structure and strategy. Operational excellence can be achieved if the team of operators and trainers work together for a common purpose. After this session, you will learn the importance of:
You've earned a seat at the strategic table, and this workshop will help you become a closer business partner with leaders in your organization. This workshop will:
Soon, you will be sought after your expertise on the impact of training and development on company’s success
Breakout Session Round #1
Peter (PK) Kirwan Director of Marketing Wisetail LMS
The value of creating rich, engaging cultural stories on video is often outweighed by the supposed time, expertise and outside resources needed to produce these videos. In this breakout session, we will work through the proven Wisetail video production process from a trainer's point of view. We'll give you the insight and techniques needed to tell your cultural stories using the tools (smartphone, laptop) already at your disposal. In a work session format, we'll take an sample project from conception through final cut - providing tools, templates, tips and examples along the way - so when you return home from Seattle you'll be ready to complete your own amazing project quickly and efficiently
Note: There are two consecutive breakouts offered during Round two of the competencies for people that do not wish to take a competency that round. Attendees not attending a competency are free to sign up for either or both.
Put the Power in Powerpoint: Maximizing Techniques to Create Vibrant & Effective Presentations 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Todd Horchner, Josh Miller & Jill Harper Legacy Event Productions
Death by Powerpoint? Come and learn how to breathe life into your presentations! Your communication can always improve, and with the ever-changing software and media world, it is important to make sure you are leveraging every tool available to you. If you’re strategic in how you present, your message will be vibrant, effective, and most importantly – retained. In this workshop we will work alongside you in creating templates and establishing ideas to make your communication as effective as possible. We will take direct looks at PowerPoint, as well as some basic image editing, audio creation and editing, and we will assemble some basic templates together. Come and make sure your message is heard.
This tried and true session will add new relevance and fresh perspectives to your hottest topics and challenges. This is truly the next generation of CHART's highly-interactive and ever-popular roundtable version of our on-line discussion forum, once named one of Restaurant Business Magazine's Top 50 ideas of the year.
Optional Activity
Optional Sunday Night Event Join us Sunday night from 6:30-8:30 pm at Seattle’s most famous landmark, the Space Needle. It’s hard to take Seattle for granted when you see it from 520 feet on the Observation Deck. Trace the outlines of the Cascades against the misty horizon. Instagram Mt. Rainier. Track ferries and boats as they cruise through Elliott Bay. Listen to the distant hum of people, cars, trains, buses, and bikers bustling around Downtown Seattle. To top it all off (pun intended), you can download the Space Needle 360° App, a virtual reality (VR) mobile app with three amazing experiences! Also available for download is the Space Needle app which allows you to picture yourself with a life-size Needle and be floored by a “see through” view over Seattle. To learn more, visit www.spaceneedle.com $50 includes your ticket to the top (a $26 value), food, a drink ticket and roundtrip transportation. A cash bar will also be available. Unlike the black-tie views, attire for the evening is casual. A huge thank you to DiscoverLink, Viatech and ServSafe Alcohol for sponsoring this event to keep the cost to a very low $50.
Join most of the conference attendees for this optional event. You will definitely be glad you did! The optional Sunday evening event has drawn over 90% of attendees every time it has been offered. Make the most of your time at CHART. Come bond with other attendees over a drink, spectacular views, and maybe some shooting stars!
Workshops Round #2
Trainer Track: Participant Management
If your participants fall asleep, it’s a sure sign your training session needs modifications! Because time is too important to waste on ineffective training; this session will help improve your skills to more effectively manage and facilitate objective-based training sessions. Learn how to:
Instructional Designer Track: Process Improvement Training programs need to constantly adapt to changes in the operational environment and respond to feedback and goals set by executive management. Programs need to be evaluated to ensure they are meeting objectives and in compliance. This session will give you the tools to do just that and:
Manager Track: Project Management It is critical that managers oversee projects but determine which ones take higher priority and which ones meet objectives and provide the best ROI. The workshop will teach you how to:
Executive Track: Communication & Influence
Breakout Session Round #2
1. Identifying Mission Critical: How to Avoid E-learning Bloat 8:00 am - 9:45 am
Josh Lowry Director of Content Development Discoverlink
One of the keys to effective e-learning is keeping the learner engaged with the content throughout the course. But if your course is too long and unfocused, you risk losing the learner before they have a chance to engage. While it’s tempting to include as much information as you can, that approach can result in a bloated learning experience that’s destined for failure.
In this session we’ll share how to determine what content to include in an e-learning course, and what content is best left to other learning modes – or eliminated altogether. We’ll provide criteria for prioritizing content, identify types of training that is suitable for e-learning, and help you figure out how to leverage existing content when transitioning to e-learning.
Optional Workshop Component: Participants will work with a skill position job description that will be the basis for an e-learning course. During a hands-on exercise, they will learn to apply the skills covered in the session and come away with a list of prioritized topics for their course.
2. A Deep Dive into Ivar’s 10:00 am to 12:00pm ++
This breakout is currently FULL. Please Email Allison to be placed on a wait list.
Patrick Yearout Director of Recruiting & Training Ivars Restaurants
Join Patrick Yearout, Past CHART President and Ivar’s Director of Recruiting and Training, for a special “deep dive” into the world of Ivar’s Restaurants. This session will include:
After the classroom portion, attendees will walk down to the Seattle waterfront for a tour of Ivar’s recently remodeled flagship location, Acres of Clams, led by our company president, Bob Donegan, and they will also be provided with a complimentary lunch while at the restaurant. Each attendee will also receive a copy of Ivar’s Seafood Cookbook from its 75th Anniversary Celebration and a few other surprises!
Bruce Tulgan Rainmaker Thinking In this presentation, Bruce presents his latest research and insights on the newest “new” young workforce, along with his decades of experience helping managers in hundreds of different companies bring out the best in young talent. Bruce separates the facts from the myths about today’s young workers. With verbatim (and often hilarious) quotes from young workers and their managers, Bruce offers actionable advice for leaders, managers, and supervisors to better recruit, train, engage, develop, motivate and retain the best of the next generation of talent.
Workshop Round #3
Trainer Track: Evaluation & Assessment Simply offering training and holding classes doesn’t always translate to success. You must establish training objectives and then conduct evaluations to determine the level of success. This workshop session will teach you how to:
Trainers have to understand sometimes complex issues; but also how to clearly explain it to others using the best tools and show its value. It’s not an easy task but this workshop will help you. This session will teach you to be successful you must:
A successful training manager must constantly evaluate and give feedback to their staff as well as set goals and provide opportunities for them to develop, grow and improve. After this session attendees will:
Attendees will walk away with greater confidence, ownership and the ability to achieve peak performance.
Executive Track: Business Acumen Chip Romp Alisha Gulden National Restaurant Association
Hone your ability to make profitable business decisions and secure executive buy-in for your programs. This high-level session will help you become a valuable partner in your company’s business strategy. Speak the language of business by:
Breakout Sessions Round #3
Building your Dream Team: 10 keys to building a highly motivated, empowered and loyal workforce that will keep or help create dynamic culture in your organization.
Jacob Judd Zone Manager/trainer Little Caesars
This in-depth and interactive session will give you 10 areas of focus to help create a business culture that exceeds customer expectations, decreases turnover and helps build trust among multiple levels of employees. In this session, Jacob will also facilitate a discussion on motivating employees. He will look at some of the myths that don't work as well as give proven methods that are highly effective. This session will be full of real life examples, discussion points, stories and techniques that Jacob has personally implemented during his 10 years as director for a non-profit organization, 4 years as restaurant manager and multi-unit supervisor and now as a national trainer for Little Caesars.
Key ideas will include:
Foundations first What's your cause? Hunger and passion The Standard Bearer Don't be superman Running your own race One more step Insanity Speak their language Speak life
Eat. Laugh. Network. Drink. Dance. Bond. The Monday Night Dinner is a fun, relaxing celebration of all that we have accomplished and is a welcome break before heading into the final stretch Tuesday morning. This casual event allows attendees to strengthen the bonds they have formed over the weekend.
Zack Phillips Performance Development & Culture Manager (eLearning Specialist) Newk’s Eatery
During this session we will cover a wide range of topics that we have all faced while building and managing an eLearning Academy. These topics will include; how to choose an LMS, content creation, site management, troubleshooting, user guides and reporting. We will also discuss the importance of cross-department collaboration and effective communication. We will learn from each other as we have roundtable discussions about the challenges we have all encountered when managing an eLearning program.
Amanda Hite Co-Founder BTC Revolutions Amanda describes social media as “life digitally with superpowers.” Social media has the extraordinary power to change your life, work, and world. How many of you in your hearts truly believe that? Through real-life cases of people doing good and amazing things on social platforms, Amanda will make you a believer and send you home charged up to make a difference! Come and learn how to identify your superpowers, and get inspired that each one and all of us can change our workplace, marketplace, and world.