Pathways Update for Ambassadors

Presenter Sally Newell Cohen Chief Operations Officer Toastmasters International Welcome, Ambassadors, The Toastmasters Pathways learning experience is just months away from launching! After all the hard work and collaboration and efforts by so many---including what you have contributed to this process----we have just about arrived at the starting gate. This is the first update intended to address how everyone on each district’s Pathways rollout team will work together. In her recent webinar presentation, Sally Newel Cohen stressed that we are in a very good place as we get ready to launch the Toastmasters Pathways learning experience. Throughout this process, the Pathways team at World Headquarters has received excellent feedback on the Pathways learning experience ---- from members, from WHQ staff members involved in the process, and from others. The team incorporated suggestions and made corrections. Fortunately, the corrections have been relatively few and minor in light of the bigger picture. World Headquarters employees participated in user acceptance testing. These were staff members who were not involved in the Pathways configuration process, because the team wanted testers who had no previous connection to the project----who went into the testing “blind,” so to speak. The Pathways team received very good feedback from these individuals. In addition, members who participated in the Pathways content pilot provided the team with extensive positive comments about the new learning experience. Both employees and members have indicated that Pathways is intuitive, clear and user-friendly. As we get closer to the launch, the Pathways team is confident that we’re on firm ground. That doesn’t mean, of course, there won’t be obstacles or things that need to be changed. As Sally said, the team always expects the unexpected.

Webinar Agenda How to get started in Base Camp Alpha testing Beta testing Pathways rollout Program pilot Training program Details on Pathways Guides The rollout kit We’re going to start off with something special : giving you a sneak peek at Pathways Base Camp---the learning management system ---so you can see what it looks like and why it will be such an exciting and valuable system for members to use. Then we’ll review alpha and beta testing, as well as the rollout, including information about the program pilot. Finally, we will look at the plan for training members, including details about the Pathways Guides and the rollout kit that all clubs will receive to help them prepare for Pathways. This webinar will provide you with answers to many of the questions you no doubt have been getting.

How to Get Started in Pathways To get to Base Camp, you must go to the Pathways Start Page on the Toastmasters website. This is what that page looks like. Toastmasters uses a single sign-on system, so everyone has to log in on the Toastmasters website with their user name and password, whether you’re trying to access Leadership Central, for example, or the Pathways Start Page. Both require the same log-in credentials. It’s important for you to remind members that that if they haven’t yet logged in on the Toastmasters website, they should do so as soon as possible. One of the biggest obstacles we anticipate is that members will try to get into Base Camp and not know their log-in credentials or have trouble using them. So the sooner they try logging in, the better. There are three tiles on the Pathways Start Page: The first tile is The Navigator, a guide that is both online and in print. It explains how to work in Pathways and also explains meeting roles and club officer roles and how everything works. It also explains Pathways and how you use Base Camp as well as the print version of the program. The Navigator essentially replaces the New Member Kit that we have now. The second tile is Choose your path, where you will take the Pathways assessment to determine which path is best for you. And remember, members don’t have to choose the recommended path if they don’t want to; they can change it and choose a different path. From there, you can connect to Base Camp, or you can come back to the Start Page and click on the third tile: Pathways Base Camp.

Sneak Peek of Base Camp So here is a sneak peek of Base Camp! This is what your home page will look like every time you go into Base Camp. There are a lot of design elements here. First and foremost, this is the look and feel for all the pages in Pathways----you see the red bars and the different types of images that show the different aspects of the Pathways experience. When the Pathways team has talked about the configuration of the learning management system, this is what they’ve been talking about. As you can see, there are five main sections here: Navigating Base Camp, My Education Transcript, My Feedback, My Badges and Speech Evaluations. These are the areas that the Pathways team feels will be most important to members. The system truly is a gateway to an engaging, multi-layered learning experience that will enable you to develop many new skills and maximize your growth. So now let’s take a look at the first tile: Navigating Base Camp. [NOTE TO PRESENTER: Click to highlight the Navigating Base Camp tile. Then click again to advance the presentation to the next page.]

Sneak Peek Base Camp From this page, you can do many things, as you can see by the six tiles here: Explore My Profile, Work In My Projects, Complete My Assignments, give Feedback and Recognition, Complete a Level, and find out more about the Pathways Mentor Program. We’ll start with Explore My Profile. This is where you can go in and post information about yourself in addition to the data being pulled from the Toastmasters data base. When you click on this tile, you’ll see the Base Camp Profile page. [PRESENTER: CLICK TO HIGHLIGHT THE TILE, THEN CLICK AGAIN TO ADVANCE TO THE NEXT PAGE.]

Here’s an example of a Base Camp Profile page. Every member who chooses to work in Pathways online will have a Base Camp profile. You post your photo and share information about yourself---it could be a little bit about your background or perhaps a description of what your goals are. Below that is the “Summary” section and below that “Interests.” “Additional Information” lists how long you’ve been a member and what your education credentials are. On the right side of that section, it lists the functionary roles the member has filled. The date listed under the role will be the most recent date when the member served in that role. So there’s a lot of information you can put on this profile page, information that is going to be available for your fellow club members to see. In the “Options” section, you can indicate how much you want to share---you can make everything accessible for members to see, or only a portion of it, if that’s what you want. Let’s return to the Base Camp Home Page [NOTE: ADVANCE TO NEXT PAGE.]

Sneak Peek Let’s look at the next section: My Education Transcript [NOTE: Click on the tile, advance to next page.]

Sneak Peek The Education Transcript page is home to all your educational content, where you can access your path and track your progress. Here is an example of a transcript. In the center of the page is a box, where there are two phrases in red. The first is the name of your path----so in this hypothetical example, Motivational Strategies is the path this member has chosen. This is where you can look at your curriculum. You can see an overview of all the projects in your path, and you can open up the projects in the level you are working in. (Remember, each path has five progressive levels.) So if you are working in Level 1 of your path, you can see all the projects in that level. You can’t see all the projects in the other levels, although you can see overviews of those projects. When you complete a level, it will open up the next level for you to view. Below the name of the path, you will see The Navigator. As soon as you activate in Pathways, The Navigator goes immediately into your education transcript. It will always be there for you to access---a guide that you can come back to time and again as you work through your paths and projects. Now let’s return to the Base Camp Home Page.

Sneak Peek The next section we’ll look at is “My Feedback”

Sneak Peek You can send a message to anyone in your club and ask them to provide feedback for you on a speech you’ve given or a meeting role that you’ve filled. This is where they will complete the feedback for you. And you have the choice of whether to make the feedback public, so that everyone can see it if they go to your profile, or whether you want the feedback only shared with you. Let’s return to the Base Camp Home Page.

Sneak Peek Next we’re going to look at the My Badges section

Sneak Peek This is the page where badges will live. So you can see there are three images on the screen: The first is orange and says “Courageous” underneath. This is an example of a badge that members can give to each other. For example, if you know that a particular member was terrified to get up and speak but they did it anyway, you can give them this badge. In the center is a level achievement badge. As soon as you complete a level, you will get one of these badges, from Level 1 all the way up to Level 4. The third badge here shows what path this member is working in: Motivational Strategies. So if a club member sees your path badge and your level achievement badge, they will know where you’re at in Pathways. Let’s return to the Base Camp Home Page.

Sneak Peek Let’s go to the Speech Evaluations section

Sneak Peek When Pathways launches, there will be more than 50 tutorials to help members use different features in this system. On this page, for speech evaluations, you see some of the sample tutorials: “How do I access my evaluation resources in Base Camp?” “How do I give my evaluator access to my evaluation resources?” …… There is also another way for you to access tutorials. If we go back to the Base Camp home page [NOTE TO PRESENTER, ADVANCE TO THE NEXT PAGE HERE],

Sneak Peek You’ll see on the top left of this page, on the navigation bar, “Tutorials and Resources.” Let’s go to that page.

Here is an example of the evaluation resources Here is an example of the evaluation resources. The evaluation form is going to be different for every project, because it’s based on what skills you achieve in that particular project. Each one of those resources will be available here on the resource page. So when a member is going to give a speech, they can tell their evaluator ahead of time which project it is, and the evaluator can go to this page, print out the form and take it with them to the club meeting. On the left side of the page, you’re going to see other things, like project descriptions and additional resource documents. Also, you’ll see there that under “Evaluation Resources,” it only says “English.” But as the Pathways team adds languages to the Pathways program, you’ll see them listed here so that you can find the resources in your language. Let’s go back to the Base Camp Home Page one more time.

Sneak Peek So today we have given you a high-level overview of Base Camp. You can see what a robust and expansive tool it is. There are so many things members can do in this system! It will make for a very exciting learning experience.

Alpha Testing Internal testing Simulate user experience Fix bugs Expected time frame: November/December Now that you’ve seen all the pieces of Base Camp and how elaborate the system is, you may have a better understanding of why this is a long process and one that takes so much effort to get things just right. To ensure that the configuration is complete and that the Pathways team has allowed enough time for alpha testing, the team has made the decision to push back the timeline by a few weeks. Toastmasters is committed to launching Pathways with the best possible experience for members. Please know that there may be some more fluctuation in the launch timeline, if certain things don’t go as expected. A cross-section of World Headquarters staff will participate in the alpha test. The testing will simulate the user experience, and testers will work from test scripts that direct them on what to do. They will test specific steps, actions and results to ensure that what is supposed to happen happens. The primary goal is to ensure that all components of the Pathways learning experience work as they are intended to, including the integration with the current systems. The Pathways team doesn’t expect any significant issues to arise, because the system has already been thoroughly tested. But this lets them know if any bugs exist, so that they can fix them before we move into the program pilot. Alpha testing will also include “stress testing,” to help ensure that the system can handle a high volume of users simultaneously. The testing is expected to take place in November and December.

Beta Testing Participants: Chief Ambassadors Learning Masters District Leaders: District Directors, Program Quality Directors, Club Growth Directors Region Advisors Board of Directors Expected time frame: January After the alpha testing, Chief Ambassadors will get the opportunity to test out Base Camp in the beta test. The testing is expected to take place over three weeks in January.  

Pathways Rollout Launch in phases Start with program pilot Here’s a recap of the rollout structure: Pathways will launch in early 2017, and the rollout will be conducted in phases. A phased rollout enables us to manage support for Pathways and test its capacity---not only for World Headquarters but at the local level as well. The rollout will kick off with the program pilot.

Program Pilot Districts 57, 27 and 51 Phased pilot Test materials, capacity and Base Camp The program pilot is scheduled to begin in late January/early February. The end date will still be April. It will be a phased pilot with districts 57, 27 and 51. District 57, Region 2 This district is in Northern California. It will be the first district to begin the pilot. District 27, Region 7 This district is in the Washington, D.C., area. District 51, Region 14, This district is in Malaysia. It will be the last district to start the pilot. The reason why this change in order is being made is to make sure all the Pathways materials translated to Chinese are ready by the time District 51 starts the pilot. The pilot is intended to: To test our training materials designed to help members work in Pathways To test our capacity to support our members To test Base Camp The pilot is expected to last about three months----less if all goes well. Distinguished Club Program recognition during the Pathways transition period----which we discussed in the last webinar---begins when the program pilot begins. The transition period will last two years after the last district rolls out. So now let’s look at the region rollout order

Rollout Schedule Rollout 2 Region 14 Rollout 3 Region 2 Rollout 4 Regions 6 & 7 Rollout 5 Regions 10 & 12 Rollout 6 Regions 1 & 11 Rollout 7 Regions 4 & 13 Rollout 8 Regions 3 & 5 Rollout 9 Regions 8 & 9 After the pilot program, there will be eight subsequent rollouts by region. Here is the order of those region rollouts.

How Does Your District Prepare? Your role is crucial! Teamwork is essential Pathways Guides Train clubs Conduct club visits with Ambassadors Hold office hours to help VPE’s Serve for 6 months Today we have more information for you about Pathways Guides. These individuals will have the opportunity to have a very positive impact on the rollout of Pathways! Chief Ambassadors, Ambassadors and Program Quality Directors will all play key roles in the rollout training. We all have the opportunity to make a huge difference. To that end, it’s crucial that we all work together as partners in the training. Such teamwork and partnership will be vital to a successful launch of Pathways. If we don’t all work together, clubs will suffer and members will suffer. Each of us is responsible for the success of the launch---and that’s a big responsibility but also a very exciting challenge and opportunity. Pathways Guides will work with the Chief Ambassador and Program Quality Director in their district, while partnering with an Ambassador to prepare the clubs assigned to them for the launch of Pathways in the district. Pathways Guides and Ambassadors complement each other in a wonderful way: The Guides will educate and train club members on how to work in the Pathways program, while the Ambassadors will build excitement for Pathways and raise awareness of its many benefits. Pathways Guides will be the primary local point of contact for clubs when it comes to learning how to use Pathways. They will be an invaluable resource! With Ambassadors, they will conduct visits to their assigned clubs. There will likely be 10 clubs at most. The communication and leadership skills of Ambassadors will be highly valuable in these visits, and indeed, during the whole rollout process. The Guides will provide support to the VPE’s of the clubs by conducting regular office hours. During these times, they will make themselves available to answer questions from VPE’s about Pathways and Base Camp. The Guides will serve in their role for at least 6 months. They will earn DTM credit for serving as a Guide. The reason why they will earn DTM credit is because they will be held accountable for all their efforts. They will be required to make club visits and required to submit a club visit report for each one.

Pathways Guides More responsibilities: Read materials to prepare for training Complete and submit Club Visit Reports Follow up with VPE’s Collect and submit questions Attend office hours conducted by WHQ staff Provide answers Here are some more of the specific responsibilities the Pathways Guides will have. They will: Read a number of materials prepared by the Pathways team at World Headquarters to help them train the clubs, including the Pathways Guide Handbook. Complete and submit a Club Visit Report to World Headquarters staff after each club visit they make. Follow up with VPE’s proactively to ensure they and their club members are comfortable operating in Pathways and Base Camp Collect questions from VPE’s when the Guides hold their office hours, then submit those questions to the Pathways team at World Headquarters Attend office hours held by World Headquarters staff to answer any questions. Staff will conduct office hours twice a week for Pathways Guides for the two months following rollout in the Guide’s region. Provide answers to the VPE’s to the questions they asked.

Knowledge and Skills Verbal, written and interpersonal communication Organization and time management Leading or moderating discussions Presentations, both in-person and virtual Using technology Setting and meeting deadlines Candidates for the Pathways Guide role should have knowledge and skills in the following areas. They should have exceptional verbal, written and interpersonal communication skills They must be organized and know how to manage their time. They should have the skills to lead discussions or moderate panel discussions They should know how to deliver engaging presentations, both in-person and virtual They should be technologically-savvy They need to be self-motivated---a person who is able to set and meet their own deadlines

Selecting Pathways Guides PQD’s choose the Guides PQD collaborates with Chief Ambassador Selection based on criteria Criteria includes: Member of a club in good standing At least one year of presentation experience Uphold Toastmasters’ core values Able and willing to travel to clubs Commit to serving 6 months Program Quality Directors will be the ones to select Pathways Guides in their district. The Pathways team highly recommends that the PQD’s collaborate and work closely with their district’s Chief Ambassador in making this selection, because of their knowledge and history with Pathways. They will choose Guides based on criteria that was carefully established by the Pathways team at World Headquarters. Let’s go over that criteria. Pathways Guides must: Be a member in a club in good standing. That means they are up to date on membership dues and in an active club. Have at least one year of presentation experience inside or outside of Toastmasters. Uphold Toastmasters International core values of integrity, respect, service and excellence. Be able and willing to travel to 10 clubs – at the most --- in their district. Commit to at least 6 months serving as a Pathways Guide----beginning from two and a half months before their region’s rollout.

Starting the Selection Process Starts 3 and a half months before rollout Steps PQD’s should take include: Post a call for Guides on district website Have CA’s see if Ambassadors are interested Post job description at district events Have area directors distribute job description Ask about ‘shining stars’ The process to select a team of Pathways Guides must start about 3 and a half months before your region rolls out. Here are some of the steps PQD’s should take at that time: Post a call for Pathways Guides on the district website, and include the Pathways Guide job description. Have Chief Ambassadors contact Ambassadors to find out if any of them are interested in serving as a Pathways Guide. Ambassadors, you can serve in both roles ---- Ambassador and Pathways Guide ---- if you feel you can handle that. Provide the Pathways Guide job description at district-sponsored events, such as trainings, conferences and speech contests. Have area directors distribute the Pathways Guide job description during club visits. Ask area and division directors about any shining stars they’ve encountered in the district. At Mid-year Training, Program Quality Directors will be provided with more detail about the Pathways Guides selection process.

Pathways Rollout Kit Platform to prepare and inspire Physical kit Generates excitement about Pathways Provides information and tools to get clubs and members prepared for the rollout Physical kit Instructions for Vice President Education One Navigator handbook 25 Quick Start guides 3 Pathways pins Flash drive with assets The purpose of this kit is to help generate excitement for the Pathways learning experience. Before each region rolls out, kits will be mailed to each of the Pathway Guides. In turn, the Guides will distribute these kits to every VPE in their designated area. A great deal of thought went into the design and visual representation of this kit. The exterior art symbolizes each member’s journey through the program and, once opened, the inside flap denotes an inspiring message about members’ impending journey in the Pathways learning experience. There are five items in each kit. Upon opening the box, you’ll find a letter resting on top that describes the contents of the kit and instructions for the VPE. Just below the letter will be The Navigator handbook, which arms the VPE with information about Pathways and the club experience. Inside, a shrink-wrapped package contains 25 “Quick Start” guides that help members prepare for the region rollout. The Quick Start guide also serves as a souvenir for the members. Three pins are included with each kit as well as a promotion code to procure an additional 20 pins as a reward for those who sign up for the program. Finally, a flash drive contains digital versions of the The Navigator, Quick Start guides, membership application, and much more.

Questions