Arthur Murray Training Weekend 2018
The Area 6 Arthur Murray Studios will be coming together in Northern California January 20th-21st for a weekend of dance training, customer service skills, motivation, and an, always important, awards banquet.
The Tournament of Champions banquet and conference, also referred to as "TOC", not only recognizes the studios, teachers, and executives who fared well in the Fall Festival, but also for the entire 2017 year.
Featured Speakers
Britt Evans has made multiple trips to speak for the Area 6 AM professionals and has quite a resume. As a franchisee, her Fort Worth studio has finished as the top location in the world for the last two years, and as a speaker, she was a member of the original AM Training Team where she was a designated keynote speaker for the worldwide organization.
Leslie Spearin is a dance champion, traveling consultant, and second generation franchisee. In addition to being one of the most sought after dance consultants for footwork and leg lines, Leslie also has valuable insight on the professionalism and culture of the organization having grown up as the daughter of Harry and Maggie Spearin, franchisees who worked alongside Mr. Murray himself.
Cha Ling Chang is a franchisee in Lincolnshire, Illinois and has created one of the most successful new student departments in the organization. As a business trainer, she brings an electric personality with an expert skill set that keeps her as a highly sought after consultant year after year.
The Format
This weekend event begins with registration, a meet and greet, and then an opening talk by an Arthur Murray International representative. For this event, that representative is Tom Murdock, originally from Stockton, California. Mr. Murdock, the VP of Events and Promotions, will share news on a global level for the company, including year over year growth, as well as new locations opening in the business.
Additional Speakers
Russ Clark is the director of Area 6 and the organizer of this twice a year event, and in addition to arranging the logistics of the conference, he will also be holding a meeting for the franchisees, as well as staff under one year. Clark has been successful in every position in the AM studio, and is the owner of a network of studios in the greater Seattle-Tacoma area.
Daisey Lynam is no stranger to the keynote speaking environment at these AM conferences. She will be holding an Executive and Franchisee training session on how to run a successful training program for new hires. This area, in particular, is something that Daisey has been asked to speak about in numerous areas.
Juan De Dios Garcia, franchisee in AM San Jose and Los Gatos, will be conducting a session with the teachers and executives of Area 6 to construct an Area Formation - as is the tradition for this event - to perform at the San Francisco Dance-O-Rama. In addition to his numerous dance and teaching accolades, Juan is also one of the original members of the Arthur Murray training team.
William Jacobsen, the Assistant Area 6 Director, and Bobby Gonzalez, the area 6 Dance Director, will be holding a meeting with studio Dance Directors on how to conduct effective dance training sessions with the AM staff. In addition, Bobby will speak on developing the culture in the studio, and signs to watch for if it's in jeopardy.
As a well versed Office Manager, Studio Owner, and now a traveling business consultant, TJ Lacey is an Area 6 training mainstay. For the Office Managers, essentially the first face and voice a current, or potential, student encounters, there can never be enough development on communication and customer service skills. Fortunately for Area 6, that's TJ's specialty. She will be holding her meeting on delivering great customer service revolved around the benefits of dancing.
Madisen Sena, who you may also know as Madisen O'Laughlin, has not only been asked to be a contributing speaker at the Area 6 meetings, but she's also been invited to be the keynote speaker in other area meetings. This weekend, the franchisee and multiple keynote speaker, shares her insight on the dynamics and importance of the Administrative Staff and their relationship with management.
Barbara Ferchuk, franchisee of the AM Port Coquitlam, shares her expertise in the area of creating and enhancing your professional image in our industry. As a certified dance judge, teacher, executive, and former dance competitor, Ferchuk sets a great example in the image department.
Charlotte Keezer returns to the Area 6 list of speakers in 2018 with a presentation on effective, and current, ways of improving studio communication. Drawing on her experience as an award winning Office Manager, and now an award winning New Student Counselor, Charlotte has a unique perspective to share for both the Admin and Management teams.
Chris Lynam, never a stranger to the keynote speaking duties, shares his insight on the skills and tactics necessary to staying relevant in the current digital landscape of marketing and advertising. In a company with roots as far back as 1912, and with the rapidly evolving nature of marketing today, the goal of the presentation will cover everything from website best practices to constructing and optimizing Facebook ads.
Brienne Thompson, the long time Office Manager and Executive in Redwood City, and future partner in AM Salt Lake City, will be joining the conference to give a presentation to the Office Managers of the Pacific Northwest on troubleshooting challenging studio situations. As a multiple All Star winner, and Office Manager in one of the busiest studios in the company, Brienne understands the importance of effective and nimble troubleshooting.
Rebekah Personus and Ethan Taupea return for a second consecutive weekend conference to share their tips and tricks on producing social media content.
One on One's
A relatively new feature of the training weekend is a one-on-one session where AM professionals can book appointments with other professionals who finished the year ranked in the top 20 in their respective staff divisions.
For those asked to participate, it is a wonderful opportunity to help encourage and lay out tips and best practices for up and coming teachers and executives.
Banquet & Awards
No weekend AM activity would be complete without an awards banquet. In many cases, these awards are proof of progress for the individual professional, and also for the studio as a whole.
Jack N' Jill
You may have a dance teacher that has pushed you outside of your comfort zone on just about every lesson. That doesn't mean that your teacher hasn't also followed that same advice. For evidence of that, look no further than the Area 6 Jack N' Jill competition where professionals are paired up randomly in a competition for cold, hard cash, and professional bragging rights. The event is judged by the current Certified Examiners in Area 6, and there are always some exciting moments to say the least.
Professional Show
As the Area Dance Director for Area 6, one of Bobby Gonzalez's responsibilities is to hand pick competing professionals for the Pro Show on Saturday night. Being asked to dance is a big honor, and also quite a challenge to perform in front of other professionals.
Purpose of the Weekend
If you haven't noticed already, the AM Staff put out a lot of energy - both physical and emotional. They care, the work hard, and they are constantly searching for ways to improve the finished product on your dance journey.
These weekends, held twice a year in every AM area, are designed to develop skills as well as serve as a motivational fueling station for the coming year. A weekend conference in any industry always leaves the participants with insight and enhancements to think about and implement, but there aren't many conferences like an Arthur Murray conference.
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