Rapid Learning Cycles Institute
We help innovators get their best ideas to market — faster!
In 2020, we can't run Kickoff Events with Post-It® Notes
- COVID has changed everything about how we relate to each other.
- Zoom fatigue is real, and online collaboration is hard.
- Many teams were already globally-distributed before the crisis.
- Climate change may make some of these changes permanent.
Why You Need This to Update Your
Rapid Learning Cycles Skills
You may have tried to figure this out on your own . . .
- Following the face-to-face process but with Zoom.
- Using online Excel® or another hard-to-use collaboration tool that gets in the way.
- Having the PM take more responsibility for planning rather than do it with the team.
- Keeping your events small and local.
- Avoiding Kickoff Events altogether in the hope that you will be able to get back in the office.
. . . we can make this a lot easier for you.
Shouldn't I Already Know How to Do This?
We developed the Face to Face Kickoff Event using facilitation techniques, brainstorming tools and organizing methods that were designed for a group that was in one location for an extended period of time, doing creative work together.
The Virtual Kickoff Event uses techniques, tools, methods and a sequence that are designed for online collaboration among individuals who are in many locations at the same time.
These events have the same goals; they need different pathways to reach their goals.
Why Can't I Just Run This With the Tools I Have?
Many teams already use a variety of online tools to support Rapid Learning Cycles. Some teams have tried to repurpose these tools to support a Virtual RLC Kickoff Event.
None of these tools perform the same function in the virtual space that the sticky notes perform in the physical space: an easy way for team members to contribute their ideas, and organize them collaboratively.
The Virtual Kickoff Event process needs the right tool for maximizing collaboration and focus while minimizing distraction.
The Virtual Kickoff Event Update
for Rapid Learning Cycles
Certified® Professionals
Learn How to Prepare Your Team and Your Online Space for Flow
We'll share templates, checklists and guides for organizing a Virtual Kickoff Event, and show you the prep work you need to do in the tool so that your team can dive right into the content.
See What You Need to Do Behind the Scenes to Support Your Team
As we go through the process, I'll pause to share with you the things I need to do behind the scenes to ensure that the event flows well, and no data gets lost from step to step.
Experience a Virtual Kickoff Event For Yourself
You will work a case study in the class that will model the steps of a Virtual Kickoff Event, including some of the challenges that may arise, so that you will be prepared to lead your team over these obstacles.
Get Guidance on How to Populate Your Tools
We'll share how to export and manipulate the data from the Learning Cycles Plan so that you can readily populate your Virtual Visual Planning system and Team Knowledge Library. Not everything can be automated but many things can be made easier and less time-consuming.
The Details
This Class Includes:
- Two live half-day sessions to give you the experience you need to run these meetings with confidence.
- Updated materials for both Virtual and Face to Face Kickoff Events that leverage our most recent experiences so that you can help your teams achieve better results.
- Pre-recorded video covering key content that you can review multiple times on your own time to help you get ready for your first real event, so that you can walk into that event well-prepared to lead your team through the process.
- Templates and checklists for key preparation and follow-up tasks.
- Access to our video library of core content for Rapid Learning Cycles to help you prepare new team members for their first event.
- One year membership to CardSmith, our recommended tool for Virtual Kickoff Events (in coordination with your company’s videoconferencing solution).
Total Time Commitment: 8 hours
Format: Pre-recorded video + two live web conferences
Date / Time Options: If these times don’t work, please let us know — we’re maintaining an active waitlist for this class and we are committed to running it as long as we can put together minimum group sizes.
Region A: EMEA / Eastern Americas
Tuesday & Thursday — November 3 & 5
15.00 – 18.00 CEST / 9 am – 12 noon EDT
Region B: Western Americas / Asia-Pacific
Tuesday & Thursday — November 10 & 12: 12 pm – 3 pm PST
Wednesday & Friday — November 11 & 13: 9 am – 12 pm NZDT
Facilitator Level Bundle
If you are ready to go deeper into the framework, or you work in an industry that has additional complexity, like medical devices, pharma, aerospace, energy systems, transportation or biotech, you may need the Facilitator license.
That level of licensing gives you three additional benefits that are important for teams like yours:
- Specific instruction on how to adapt Rapid Learning Cycles for large, complex programs.
- Best practices for scaling Rapid Learning Cycles as you grow beyond your pilot team.
- The ability to modify the materials to match your industry's language where that is important, and provide more relevant examples, with coaching on how to do that while maintaining the integrity of the Rapid Learning Cycles framework.
We'll discuss your needs during an interview to see if this is a good fit for you. In the meantime, you can learn more about our Advanced Certification Levels.
Facilitator Upgrade
Includes Virtual KOE Class
- Two live sessions to build your experience and confidence with this event.
- Updated reusable training materials for both Virtual and Face to Face Kickoff Events that you can share with your program team.
- Pre-recorded video of key content to review before your first real event
- Templates and checklists for Virtual Kickoff Events
- Access to our video library of core content for Rapid Learning Cycles to help you prepare new team members for their first event
- One-year membership to CardSmith
- Editable training materials that can be tailored to your team
- Six coaching sessions with a small, elite group of peers.
- Techniques for coaching decision makers to make data-driven decisions
- Methods for scaling Rapid Learning Cycles for large teams
- The Portfolio view of the Rapid Learning Cycles framework
Virtual KOE Update
for Our Certified Professionals
- Two live sessions to build your experience and confidence with this event.
- Updated reusable training materials for both Virtual and Face to Face Kickoff Events that you can share with your program team.
- Pre-recorded video of key content to review before your first real event
- Templates and Checklists for Virtual Kickoff Events
- Access to our video library of core content for Rapid Learning Cycles to help you prepare new team members for their first event
- One-year membership to CardSmith
Complete Agenda and Resources
The Guarantee
We offer ongoing support to our Rapid Learning Cycles Certified® Professionals by phone, email, and through online forums to make sure that you never slow down or get stuck as you use the Rapid Learning Cycles framework for the first time. If you run into any difficulties using the ideas we’ve taught in the workshops, please contact us right away to make an appointment. Chances are, we’ve seen your challenge before, and we can help you overcome it. And if you've given it an honest try, reached out for help and it's still not working, we'll refund your registration fee.
Talk to Katherine
Find Out if This is Right for You Now
Book a call with Katherine to discuss your next steps!
Your Instructor: Katherine Radeka
You’ll have the opportunity to work directly with Katherine Radeka, the author of The Shortest Distance Between You and Your New Product: How Innovators Use Rapid Learning Cycles to Get Their Best Ideas to Market Faster.
After completing the workshop and a few other certification requirements, you will join the Rapid Learning Cycles® Professionals Community, a growing user group with special learning opportunities, regular update calls and resources to help you go deeper into the framework.