Crucial Connections
August 6-8, 2024 | The Little America Hotel, Salt Lake City, UT
AGENDA
Contact your Excom leader to learn more about your team agenda. All employees are expected to attend planned activities and meals during Crucial Connections.
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Pre-Event Meetings for Sales, Product, Technology, and CX&O Leaders
3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Hotel Check-In Little America Lobby
5:15 p.m. – 5:45 p.m. | Coaches depart from Little America | Lobby
6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. | Welcome Reception | Red Butte Garden – Orangerie
8:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. | Coaches return to Little America | Lobby
7:30-9:00 a.m. / 3:00-6:00 p.m.| Professional Headshots | Ballroom C Foyer
8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. | Breakfast | Ballroom C
9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. | Breakout Sessions | Descriptions Below
11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. | Small Team Lunches | Offsite
1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. | Breakout Sessions | Descriptions Below
3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. | Free Time | Optional Games | Level 2: Olympus
6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. | Company Dinner | Ballroom C
8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. | Breakfast | Ballroom C
9:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. | Team Time | Contact your Excom leader for additional details
- CX&O | Level 2: Olympus then Top Golf, Art Class, Escape Room, Afternoon Tea, or Cooking Class
- HR | Hike to Cecret Lake up Little Cottonwood Canyon
- Marketing | Nature walk around Silver Lake in Big Cottonwood Canyon
- Product | Explore Snowbird and ride the tram
- Sales | Adventures at the Utah Olympic Park
- Shared Services | Ride the scenic Sundance ski lift
- Technology | Explore Park City or visit Utah Olympic Park
2:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. | Company Social & Raffle | Ballroom C Foyer
3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. | Closing Session | Ballroom C
BREAKOUT SESSIONS
GTD Best Practices: Up-Level Your Productivity Game
Mark Carpenter, Master Trainer
Level 2 | Tucson
Join this breakout session focused on mastering Getting Things Done (GTD) best practices. You’ll learn how to:
- Implement the fundamental principles of GTD, including how to more easily clarify your work.
- Refine your trusted system and tool of choice with a focus on optimizing your lists.
- Learn tips and tricks for managing your email inbox more effectively.
By embracing GTD best practices, you will leave empowered to streamline your workflow, have increased focus, and be able to accomplish more with less stress.
Leveraging the SDI for More Effective Crucial Conversations
Justin Hale, Principal Consultant & Master Trainer
Level 2 | Teton
Discover how to pair insights from the Strength Deployment Inventory (SDI) with your Crucial Conversations skills to help improve team relationships. Specifically, you’ll learn how to:
- Use your team’s strengths to help you behave in ways that align with your goals and priorities.
- Become more self-aware of your overdone strengths and how they may trigger conflict within others.
- Manage conflict triggers by learning how to master your stories.
- Hold crucial conversations with others to address overdone strengths.
By integrating SDI insights with Crucial Conversations methodology, you’ll leave with a powerful toolkit to improve your relationships with others and build a high-performing team.
Crucial Conversations with Kids: How to Communicate with Children of All Ages
Nicole Samuels-Williams, Master Trainer
Level 2 | Flagstaff
Explore practical strategies for engaging in Crucial Conversations with children from toddlers to teens. You’ll learn how to:
- Identify the role you are playing, or how you may be contributing to conflict, and how to identify what you really want from the relationship.
- Use skills to establish mutual purpose and build psychological safety to combat defensiveness or silence.
- Recognize signs that the child isn’t feeling safe during the conversation and use skills to restore safety.
- Adapt Crucial Conversations principles to different age groups.
You’ll leave well equipped with the tools to navigate challenging conversations with confidence and build stronger connections with children.
Feedsmacked: The Art of Receiving Tough Feedback
Scott Robley, Director of Professional Services & Master Trainer
Level 2 | Sun Valley
Each of us can be responsible for our own reaction, safety, and worth—regardless of the feedback we get from others. In this session, you’ll learn skills for receiving feedback in a healthy, productive way. Specifically, you’ll learn:
- Skills to recognize when your psychological safety is at risk and how to remain open to feedback, versus becoming defensive.
- Strategies for seeking to understand and get curious about feedback, and then reflecting on the feedback as an opportunity for improvement rather than criticism.
- How to look for truth and substance in tough feedback, even if you don’t agree with all of it.
By mastering the art of receiving feedback, you’ll be better equipped with the skills to cultivate stronger relationships and improve your performance.
Beating Burnout: Using SDI Insights to Identify and Overcome Burnout
Kyle Menig, Master Facilitator
Level 2 | Olympus
A 2021 Gallup poll revealed that 74% of employees said they experience burnout on the job. However, burnout is more than just feeling a little stressed – it’s emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion that happens due to overwork. When you learn how to identify and reduce burnout, you can feel healthier and more productive. Join this session to learn how to:
- Recognize common burnout triggers and how they affect your wellbeing, your work, and your team.
- Leverage insights from the SDI to help build trust, promote recognition, and cultivate supportive team environments.
- Learn how to connect what you do with why it’s important to who you are to feel more energized, engaged, and confident.
Attend this session to improve how you handle workplace challenges and burnout, using insights from the SDI to help increase compassion and teamwork.
People Leader Workshop
Andy Shimberg, Chief Executive Officer & Derek Cullimore, VP, People and Culture
Level 2 | Olympus
Join this breakout session focused on best practices of handling the issues of leading people with our Crucial Learning skills. You’ll learn how to:
- Implement the fundamental principles of our content into our day-to-day work of leading employees.
- Share your best practices with other people leaders and infuse leadership skills into application.
By embracing our own skills and work-shopping with your fellow People Leader community, you will leave empowered to better achieve your leadership goals.
KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Hotel Details
Early Check-In: Check-in is at 3:00 p.m. Early check-in is granted by the front desk based on availability. Guests can check in as soon as a room is ready with no additional charge. If you arrive early and a room is not ready, you can check your luggage and wait to be notified when your room is ready.
Late Check-Out: Checkout is at 11 a.m. Late check-out is based on availability for the day of your departure. Check with the front desk on the morning of your departure. If your check-out is Thursday, August 8, you are welcome to store your luggage in the Ballroom C Foyer until the conclusion of the event at 4:00 p.m.
SWAG
You’ll be going home with several gifts! Please leave enough space in your luggage to take home a lightweight Ogio sweatshirt which will be handed out during the closing social. Anyone who does not attend will have their swag shipped to them in mid-August. Notify a member of the planning committee if you did not receive your swag.
Ground Transportation & Parking
You are responsible for your own ground transportation to and from the event. We recommend using a rideshare service (Uber/Lyft) to and from the airport. Employees will carpool to any offsite meals or activities. For details on personal car mileage reimbursement, please review the Event Guidelines found in The Fine Print section further down this webpage.
The Little America Hotel has onsite parking available for overnight guests and visitors. Request overnight parking at the front desk when you check in and use your room key to enter/exit the parking garage. Don’t forget to use your room key to exit a final time after checking out. If you are not staying overnight, we will have a full-day parking voucher at the event registration table. You will need a parking pass each time you enter/exit, so grab what you need and return what you don’t use.
Headshots
Arrive in Ballroom C Foyer at least 5 minutes before your assigned timeslot. Photos will take less than 3 minutes per person. You’ll receive a copy of your professional headshots to use for all your Crucial Learning accounts including Outlook, Slack, etc. The Human Resources team will manage employee photos and use it for internal use and an organization directory.
Dress Code & Weather Forecast
The dress code throughout the event is business casual. However, attendees are encouraged to dress smart casual at the company welcome reception on Tuesday, August 6. The reception will be held at Red Butte Gardens which is an indoor/outdoor venue. The Salt Lake City weather forecast is hot and sunny! Please pack and dress accordingly.
We recommend bringing a light sweater to use during indoor sessions since air conditioning can get cold. Depending on your Thursday, August 8 team activity, you may want to bring additional sun protection (hat, sunscreen, sunglasses) or athletic shoes if your group will be walking longer distances.
Red Butte Gardens Coach Rides
The welcome reception on Tuesday, August 6, will be held at Red Butte Gardens which is a 15-minute drive from The Little America Hotel. There will be limited parking at the venue due to a nearby concert, but if you’d prefer to drive yourself you are welcome to do so. Alternatively, we have hired several coaches to take our entire group to the welcome reception. We encourage all employees to take the coaches and request that you follow the schedule below.
- 5:15 – 5:45 p.m. Meet in The Little America Hotel lobby and board any coach. Coaches will depart when it is full; the last coach will depart no later than 5:45 p.m.
- 5:30 – 6:00 p.m. Coaches will drop you off at the front of Red Butte Gardens. Upon entering the building, turn left and go upstairs to the Orangerie event space.
- 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. Welcome Reception. Enjoy several food stations, bar service, and great company in this beautiful setting.
- 8:00 – 9:00 p.m. Meet at the front of Red Butte Gardens where you were dropped off. Board a coach which will return to The Little America Hotel when filled. The last coach will depart no later than 9:00 p.m.
Receipts & Expenses
Keep all your receipts and submit an expense report according to the guidelines found in the Expenses section on this webpage. Use the event code “Crucial Connections Aug 2024” on any expense report you submit in Concur. Expense reports are due within 15 days of making the purchase.
Dietary Restrictions & Full Menu
All dietary restrictions have been shared with the Little America catering team. Please notify a member of the onsite catering staff if you have a question about ingredients or if you require special meal accommodations for allergies, halal, or vegan meals. You can now view the full catering menu.
Health & Safety
We encourage anyone feeling sick to stay home and notify your manager and events@cruciallearning.com that you are no longer able to attend Crucial Connections. If you have had any symptoms that are concerning, or you feel like you are contagious, please seek the guidance of a medical professional and get tested to assure you are safe to be in proximity of others. We will have face masks, hand sanitizer, Emergen-C, and individual pain reliever packets onsite for attendees.
Just for fun
You will receive a “Bingo” card at the Welcome Reception that you’ll fill-out throughout the event. Turn in your bingo card at the Closing Social to be entered into a prize raffle which will be announced at the final session.
During the optional free time on Wednesday, August 7, we will have games, puzzles, and a special Uno tournament for people who are game to come and play. Feel free to bring your own games to share!
THE FINE PRINT
OUR VALUES
All Crucial Learning employees gather together in-person during our annual 3-day employee event, Crucial Connections! We use this time to build relationships and strengthen our company culture. Our agenda includes professional development sessions, designated team time, fun activities, and networking opportunities. We are committed to reinforcing our company values that are vital to a happy and healthy team culture.
![](https://cruciallearning.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Group-Talking_Round-500x500-1.png)
Speak Up Candidly and Respectfully
Collaborate Cross-Functionally
Hold Others Accountable
Execute Effectively
Move Fast
Love and Respect Others
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO ATTEND?
All full-time Crucial Learning employees are eligible and expected to attend Crucial Connections and should notify their manager if they will not be attending for any reason.
AM I REQUIRED TO ATTEND ALL CRUCIAL CONNECTIONS EVENTS AND MEALS?
All invited Crucial Learning employees who are attending the event are expected to attend all planned meals and activities. If there is an extenuating circumstance that would prevent you from attending a portion of the event, please discuss this with your manager and/or Excom leader.
WHAT IF I CAN NO LONGER ATTEND?
Please notify your manager and email amanda.horton@cruciallearning.com as soon as you know you will no longer be attending. You will be responsible for canceling your own flight and hotel if applicable.
WHO SHOULD I CONTACT WITH QUESTIONS?
You can always email events@cruciallearning.com or a member of the Crucial Connections Planning Committee. The planning team members include Derek Cullimore, Mary McChesney, Amanda Horton, Destine Wilson, Teresa Harry, Erin Schwartz, Sarah Danek, Charlotte Lake, Rachel Cain, Alexis Rich, and Adam Richardson.
WHEN IS THE NEXT CRUCIAL CONNECTIONS?
The next Crucial Connections will be held on August 5-7, 2025 at The Little America Hotel in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Can I bring a plus one or significant other to the event?
No. This event is for Crucial Learning employees and invited guests only. We do not include any additional guests for meals, activities, or sessions in our planning.