Coaching, Consulting & Training
for High Value Personnel
Client Testimonials
Hey, not to encourage you to raise your rates or anything but I had a comment from [participant name], the gentleman who is critical of most everything, that you guys were worth every penny we were paying you!!! Thanks for making this past weekend such a success! You have really gotten to know what our needs are over the past few years. I will get with you soon to schedule a date for next year. Lynda Richards Hi Rob, Hi Rob, The feedback that I received from our salaried and hourly folks is
consistent: the training goals were clearly identified and reached with a
very high level of employees' satisfaction. I know for certain that some
of the tools learned in the January KT training were shared by the attendees
with other employees who later utilized them for their projects - that
directly speaks to the usefulness of the training. I just wanted to drop you a note to let you know how pleased our staff have been with the work you have done with us over the past year. When we began our initial assessment of the state of things in our office, we had some major hurdles to overcome. Trust levels were low, and communication problems and personal conflicts were getting in the way of our delivering services as effectively and efficiently as we need to. I am happy to report that things are very different in our office now, and I can only attribute it to the skill that you exercised in working with our group over the past year. Your one-on-one coaching of our supervisors, the teambuilding retreats, and the conflict resolution training were very successful. I was skeptical at first, but the results speak for themselves. Again, thank you for being a significant catalyst in our transition. Laura Mullens, Mississippi Development Authority, Director, Human Resources I am pleased to offer my wholehearted recommendation of Rob Benson and First Steps Training and Development for educational retreats and workshops. For the past two years, First Steps has provided the programmatic portion of our Freshman Orientation Trip to the Henry S. Jacobs Conference Center. Our trip is designed as an orientation for our 9th graders into the Upper School at McGehee. We have found that the ropes course and related workshop designed by First Steps goes hand in hand with our emphasis on integrity, honor, respect and trust. First Steps worked closely with our teacher sponsors to tailor the program as needed while it was going on. Rob provided great personalized feedback to us after the workshop, so that we could continue to build on the lessons learned in working with our students. The staff is highly professional, very knowledgeable and easy to work with. Our students have benefited from this program, and we plan to continue our relationship with First Steps for our freshman trip for the foreseeable future. I would not hesitate to recommend Rob Benson and First Steps to any school looking to build an orientation or workshop that is about problem-solving, team-building, communication, honesty, and integrity. We look forward to continuing to work with First Steps as a part of our Upper School curriculum. Sincerely, Kim Wargo, Louise S. McGehee School, Head of the Upper School I am writing to commend you for the work you did on behalf of the Board and staff of Voice of Calvary Ministries. The strategic development planning process that you led us through was a major step in our efforts to insure the long range sustainability of our community development organization. I was particularly impressed with the extent of your preparation prior to, and between, our meetings. Your diligence enabled us to accomplish our objectives in a very short period of time. You delivered exactly what you promised in a timely manner. That is truly a rare occurrence in today's consulting industry. I give you and First Steps Training my highest recommendation. I look forward to working with you in the future. Phil Reed, Voice of Calvary Ministries, President/CEO Rob Benson has worked with our organization on numerous occasions over the last five years. His services are provocative, heart-felt, effective and timely. I love how Rob always works with us before the training to be sure we are all in agreement about our goals and expectations. Beth Dickson, CampusLink AmeriCorps, Training and Member Development Specialist David Hayes and Robert Benson have developed and conducted a full-day Diversity Awareness program for St. Dominic Hospital. Overall evaluations from the participants were very positive. We would definitely use their services again to deliver this training and highly recommend them to other organizations. Dianne N. Smith, St. Dominic/Jackson Memorial Hospital, Director, Education Services Thank you and First Steps Training & Development for your assistance with our recent staff program review and planning meeting. Your detailed preparation efforts were obvious, and your professional facilitation activities were perfect for our organization. For an agency such as ours, that also conducts many training and development related activities, you helped us to organize our thoughts in a manner that we could not have done on our own. We especially appreciate your well thought out agenda and your ability to target your activities to our particular needs. Your professional assistance had provided us with a beneficial product outcome. We look forward to working with you in the future, and thank you and First Steps Training & Development again for your excellent facilitation assistance. We will be seeking your services again. Steven C. Hardin, Mississippi Development Authority, Manager, Community Operations I write on behalf of the Board of Trustees, Mississippi Institutions for Higher Learning Campus Link AmeriCorps program to express our gratitude for the superlative training services provided by Rob Benson during our staff retreat. Mr. Benson conducted an in-depth team assessment that included the completion of a survey prior to the retreat, observations of staff interactions at one of our regular staff meetings, and a review of results prior to the retreat. During the retreat, he facilitated discussions relating to our internal work habits, work styles, team roles and structure. As a result, we as a staff were able to unveil issues that contributed to conflict within our team. The staff unanimously left feeling that this was a very intense and rewarding experience. The newest member of the team expressed afterwards that she was so thrilled to be working with a group that could share so openly (even with the Executive Director) about such sensitive issues and work honestly through them. To say the least, the retreat was a great success. We achieved the goals that we had put forth for the training, we learned new skills for working together, and we had fun doing it. We are grateful for Mr. Benson's training expertise and would recommend his services without any reservation. Carlotta Brown, CampusLink AmeriCorps, Program Officer Your work as a trainer and mentor for our staff members has made a tremendous difference in their performance and success on the job. Of particular note are the lessons about leadership, group management, and communication that your training imparted. Many of our staff members look to you as a role model -- quite a compliment. Jonathan Cohen, URJ Henry S Jacobs Camp, Director You have enhanced our training programs with your innovative approach to learning through experiential and interactive activities. The feedback received from participants in your training sessions is positive and reinforces the need for relevant material and unconventional methodology. You have a great ability to engage participants in the learning experience and relate to individual styles in the classes. Lesly Lloyd, Mississippi State Personnel Board Office of Training, Management Training Division, Director The enthusiasm that you have for management training does not go unnoticed. I often get requests from other state agency training directors for you to conduct their training. I know that when I schedule you to facilitate our leadership programs that you will perform your duties in a consistently professional manner. Juette Bingham, Ph.D., Mississippi State Personnel Board Office of Training, Management Training Division, Basic Supervisory Course Program Director Our warmest thanks and respect for the thorough work that you did this past year on our Unified State Plan. This strategic planning took various stages, each one unique and crucial and took skills to maneuver. The work involving two state agencies and a federal partner was paradoxical and frustrating but with your assistance we managed to accomplish our strategized goals. Marsha Meeks-Kelly, Mississippi Commission for Volunteer Service, Executive Director I am writing to say thank you for the wonderful job that you did facilitating the Parents for Public School's Annual Planning Retreat. I know this was a difficult day to facilitate as we had so much we needed to accomplish. I congratulate you on successfully taking us through all of the necessary activities and doing it in a way that we all enjoyed. The report card activity where we evaluated the accomplishments of the organization was a big success and will provide a useful tool for the coming year. You were also very helpful in leading us through the process of identifying and creating activities for the coming PPS year. I feel that we are off to a good start for this year as a result of our planning retreat. I was not surprised that you did excellent work at this planning retreat, as I was also impressed with the previous training that you facilitated for the Foundation for the MidSouth in which I participated. During those sessions I learned a lot -- and had a lot of fun -- as I worked with my colleagues to develop a team as well as to enhance our skills at our primary jobs. Rob, I always enjoy working with you; from the planning stages through the final event. I look forward to working with you in the future. Mary Esther Schnaubelt, Parents for Public Schools (Jackson), Executive Director Partial Client ListBased in central Mississippi, First Steps has served a diverse clientele, including
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