1 Family x 12 (April)

 

Easter - later than normal this year...but still too cold to have the eggs outside.  Wah wah!  In fact, the day after this picture was taken, we had 3 inches of snow on the ground.  Here's to spring arriving here soon, or...even better, I'm ready to skip right to early summer at this point!

A post about work....my work...which I rarely write about

 

Immediately upon returning from Jamaica on Sunday night, I threw all the laundry in the washing machine and started packing my suitcase for the following week.  I had our first post-COVID, in-person training event with nearly 100 people from my division + an additional 65 from the second division coming for 3.5 days of training and we had a lot of last minute details to tie up before they all arrived on Tuesday morning. 

I rarely post about my own work here on the blog - in fact, this might be a first now that I think back on it.  Mostly because my work really isn't all that interesting, and in a picture based book about our family, my work just doesn't seem to be something I want to document much.  But, this even in early April is definitely something I'm very proud of - a long term project I've been working on since the end of 2019 and a project I won't soon forget.

Let me take you back a few years here quick.  At the end of 2019, the Sales Training Manager on our team at the time left for another organization, and, being 4th quarter we weren't able to immediately open up her role to fill it, so I started to take on some of the work she was managing.  When I joined Gallagher in 2018, my manager Peggy was already talking about wanting to redo our onboarding program for new production (sales) hires.  That initiative didn't live under me, it wasn't part of my job role, but, when we lost that team member in 2019, I started to think about how I'd design a training program if it was my responsibility.  I wanted to totally replace our existing program (a 2.5 day in person event for new hires who had joined anywhere from 1 week ago to up to 18 months ago).

My proposal included moving a large portion of the content to a virtual program, creating a hybrid program where new hires would complete some amount of pre-work prior to coming into the a live training program.  The live program would be much more in depth, more focused on activities and using the information they'd learned in the virtual program in an in person setting.  This blended program would mean that we could take a lot of the "sit and listen" aspects out of the existing program and really make the most of our time together in person.  

When I proposed this program to leadership in 2019 I was met with some resistance - mostly around the virtual piece because, as I was told more than once, "Gallagher is a relationship company and we value face to face interactions".

To be clear, I wasn't trying to take away the face to face portion, just make it more valuable...but, in any case, in their minds my proposal still needed some work and we weren't aligned and moving forward.  So, fast forward to March of 2020, calling COVID serendipitous is hard to do, but, in this specific case, it did help me force their hand into a virtual program, allowing me the opportunity to prove that content delivered virtually can be engaging, interesting, and can provide value.  While the rest of the world pivoted to virtual everything, I started building out the virtual piece of my big picture training plan.

Throughout 2020 we weren't given the opportunity to reopen the Sales Training Program Manager role so I continued to hold two roles at Gallagher, working towards a Jan 2021 launch of the virtual onboarding program I'd envisioned back in 2019.  In Jan of 2021 I launched a 12 week program to all production new hires.  It included 40 hours of training over then 12 week period and in 2021, we ran over 250 new hires through the program.  The early survey responses to the program were strong though nearly all of them included comments about wishing we could be in person.  I knew that way back in my original proposal...and had been working to build that out the entire time.  I had a vision, it just took time to get there!

In August of 2021 we were finally able to hire a new Sales Training Program Manager to replace the team member we lost in 2019, and I was able to slowly transition the ongoing program management of the virtual program over to Kurt, our new team member.  Kurt took on the day to day and my focus moved towards the capstone piece of the program (the in person part everyone had been clamoring for).

In October of 2021 we brought in a small group of new hires (12 total) to pilot a portion of the capstone that I'd been working to create with a vendor for the last 10 months.  It's an experiential learning game called A Week in the Life (seen in one of the photos above) and it might have been one of the most fun projects I've worked on to date.  It's a blend of time management + using the tools and resources available to you and my favorite part about it is that it's a TOTALLY new way of training here at Gallagher.  People leave thinking they had a great time and learned something along the way. 

Anyways, our pilot was a total success and it was the final piece we needed to complete before planning the first ever full capstone event set to happen in January 2022.  We were all set to go for January.  Invites had gone out, my support staff was lined up, we had hotel contracts signed and about 40 participants headed into Rolling Meadows for an event Jan 18-21....and then, New Years Day, Pat Gallagher sent out a message saying the offices were reverting back to full time remote until the Omicron variant burned itself out and we could be together in person safely again.  Wah wah wah...a full event cancel less than 15 days before our event.  The whole team was bummed - we'd done all the work with none of the pay off.  But, if COVID has taught us anything, it's the ability to be flexible.   

To say that this April event was a long time coming is an understatement.  It's been a 2.5 year journey to get to this point and, just a few weeks ago I finally got to see it all come to life.  I got to see all of our hard work and planning through the eyes of the participants.  We laughed, we celebrated, I may have even cried a little!

When I tell you that pulling off an event like this isn't easy, please believe me.  Imagine a 3.5 day wedding where you not only need to feed and entertain people, but you also need to accomplish learning objectives all while making it fun for them.  It was a long long week, but there was much to celebrate in the end and I'm so very proud of the work I've done here over the last 2.5 years.  So proud, in fact, that I decided to give it it's very own blog post :)

I left this week with a sense of pride and accomplishment.  I left feeling very valued here at Gallagher and feeling like the work I do means something...that we're having an impact on what the future of the organization looks like.  Probably the best compliment I heard all week was when more than one of my support staff (some how have been attending these events for 10+ years) came up to share that they were so very impressed by the participants level of questions.  They said that they are asking deeper, more meaningful questions than they've ever seen new hires ask.  If nothing else this proves, to me, that the slow drip of information over 12 weeks + this capstone event to solidify the learning is working!  Dean told me that we're on track to creating one of the best training programs in the industry right now, and THAT is a legacy I want to be a part of!

There is lots of work ahead, but for now I'm going to relish in this success for awhile (and...maybe take a nap or two!).

Jamaica

In 2019 Wes and Taylor got married at a destination wedding in Jamaica.  In true Murphy/McGrath family fashion a big group of family showed up - I'm guessing around 35 people in total.  We had such a fun time on that trip with the cousins that Erin started lobbying for Cuzzies All Inclusive 2020 to replace our annual cousin's camping trip.  It took a few years for us to get it together (COVID didn't help) but last summer I contacted the travel agent that helped plan Wes and Taylor's wedding and the wheels were in motion for a spring break trip - Cuzzies All Inclusive 2022!

Since I was doing the planning, I planned it for my birthday weekend - which, happened to nicely coincide with the kids spring break so we hit up Mom and Dad to take the kids for us and we boarded a plane for a Wednesday to Sunday trip which was the perfect amount of time.  In the end, the timing wasn't totally ideal for my work, I had a big, in person event the following week, but...with enough prep you can pull off just about anything!

Jamaica was beautiful and the resort was lovely.  We booked an all inclusive, which, at the time was exactly the amount of planning and effort I had in me, but in hindsight, I think I'll do the extra legwork next time and skip the all inclusive.  It was exactly the vibe we were going for (easy and not a lot of work) but the food and drinks were just ok, and I think for the same amount of money, plus a little more effort, we could have done it a little better.  Next time!

But, you can't argue with these views though!  We arrived Wednesday mid day and it took us a few hours to get the whole group together and on the same page (we basically ended up traveling in two groups, one from O'hare and one from Midway).  By dinner though we'd all been checked into our rooms, sat on the beach for a little bit and started to figure out the lay of the land (like, where exactly are the restaurants, what is the dress code at each, when do they open, do we need masks here...where is the water...how do we get more drinks...lol!  It takes a while to get it all figured out!).

(One of my favorite pictures from the trip!)

Thursday we had exactly zero things planned.  Erin, Sarah and I did a quick beachbody workout poolside (the gym was packed) and luckily grabbed chairs on the beach for the group before they got snatched up!  I should have known people would reserve chairs, I just didn't expect it to be before 8am!  LOL!

We had such a fun group along on the trip.  I wish all of the cousins had been able to make it.  Liz and Bobby and Brenna had plans to join but things changed...but there's always the next one!  I'm so glad we grabbed this group photo.  They always seem like a pain in the moment - a "we'll get it later" sort of thing....but, seriously, I've said it a million times.  Nobody is sad when we have them to look back on (especially me!).

(My other favorite photo from the weekend - taken on my birthday!)

Friday we managed to book ourselves a catamaran/snorkeling tour - which we nearly missed because we weren't paying attention when they said we needed to be at the lobby at 2:25....somehow one of us heard 2:45 and that just became the time we all said to be ready.  Thankfully the bus driver didn't leave without us - though, the group of other people from the hotel was less than pleased when we boarded the bus 30 minutes late.  I get it...I would have been annoyed too.  

I typically hate boat tours like this - they make me nauseous, even the snorkeling is bad for me....the roll of the waves just is NOT my friend.  But, thanks to a stupid Instagram ad a few years back, I had my trusty reliefband which worked pretty well.  The waves (and the wind) were CRAZY on the boat ride to the snorkeling....and I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a moment where I swallowed some puke down (gross, sorry!) but, I made it through.  It's just really not my most favorite of activities but I wasn't going to miss out and I'm so glad that I can at least partially participate now.  I snorkeled for about 10 mins, long enough to see a few things before the waves started to get to me.

The boat crew included 2 photographers who went around staging groups together, grabbing photo after photo, documenting the trip.  It was funny and Erin and Sarah ended up buying the set of pictures so now we have a whole host of silly photos from the day.

HAHAHA!  I mean, how would we pass up on some of these gems!  I think this will be one we recreate in 20 years from now.

Saturday was our last full day of vacation (and my birthday!).  Our plan for the day was to sit on the beach...drink at the swim up pool bars, take a nap (that might have just been MY plan), and to have a big group dinner at the "fancy French restaurant" where the boys needed pants and closed toe shoes to be seated - the ONE time in life that the dress code for the boys was less comfortable than for women.  

It truly was a great way to spend a birthday weekend but also a wonderful chance to hang out, just us adults, and spend a long weekend together.  It was nice to get out of the Chicago winter (it snowed 5 inches in Marengo while we were gone), to spend some time away without the kids (we love them, but hanging with adults is fun too!), and to really vacation with Jenny/Jack was also very special.  Having lived in Nashville for so long - we're so lucky to have them local now (in Naperville), so we can do more trips together in the coming years.

And - just like when we ditched the kids for San Fran in my last post, I thought I'd share a little bit about what the kids did while we were gone.  This time we sent them with Mom and Dad (along with Copper AND Fern and Olive...two hamsters, two dogs, and two kids!).

There is never a lack of activities and adventures for the kids when we send them to Freeport with Grandma and Papa.  Dad has all sorts of jobs that he hauls the kids along for, like these photos where they went to the Misery to check the racoon traps.  Hazel found a shed antler and some other deer bones which she was VERY excited to take to school for show and tell.

They went to a butterfly sanctuary in Rockford (which!  I want to go next time!)....died Easter eggs, went to see a Sing 2 sign along (in the theater!  A first since COVID...) and even though the rest of us are sick of winter, they were excited to make a Snow Bunny with all the snow we got while we were gone.  

Again, we really are so very very lucky to have such a strong support structure around here to help make weekends and trips like these possible for us.  Without Dan and Erin and Grandma and Papa, I don't know how we'd make it all happen.  The last few months have been crazy with all the travel.  Between Disney, the spur of the moment San Fran trip, and Jamaica, this is the most Ryan and I have traveled together ever in such a short period of time.  

We're home now for a little bit, but this summer promises to be a busy one with our new camper, another trip to Cali, and a big group camping trip to the UP already on the books.  If you're wondering what exactly is wrong with us, just remember our family moto - "We're the McGrath's and we do all the things".  

A quick trip to San Fran

If you've seen or talked to us anytime over the last 2.5 years, you'd know that Ryan has been traveling for work (alot) - since basically the fall of 2019.  Fox River Millwork has been around long enough that I know that the really good jobs only come around every once in awhile, and while even though they are good, they can be exhausting...and, they don't stick around for forever.  Back in the fall of 2019 Ryan had the opportunity to go in on a job with another local company doing the finish trim work on a Restoration Hardware storefront in Columbus, Ohio.  That job led to more jobs (which during the early days of COVID was a blessing) and these RH stores have taken Ryan and a crew of 7 other guys all across the country and back, traveling nearly every week for the past two years.  It meant a LOT of solo parenting here on the home-front for me, but about a month ago I had the special opportunity to fly out and see one of the job sites in San Francisco, where the home office of RH is located.  

Being the flagship store means the crew put a LOT of love, sweat and maybe even tears into this specific jobsite.  Ryan once told me it is the most technically complex work he's ever done and he wanted to be sure to see this one through to the end.  The company was set to have a big pre-grand opening party on Thursday evening and Bobby (Ryan's boss) offered to fly me out for the weekend.  There was quite a bit of back and forth on if we'd be going to the party or not, but the morning of my flight I talked to Ryan and he told me it looked like we'd just be hanging out with the group that evening either at the hotel or getting dinner somewhere (a side-celebration of sorts).    

Then, just as I was about to board the plane I got another call saying "Scratch that!  We're going to the party tonight."  I'd already repacked my suitcase and had exactly zero clothes with me that I could wear to a formal party but Elise from RH (one of the top people at RH that the crew became very close friends with) was on a clothing run for not just me, but the 8 guys in the group.  It was seriously like a scene out of pretty woman.  She showed up with full outfits for each of the guys.  I'm talking shirts, shoes, belts, pants, the whole nine yards...plus 2 dress options for me, shoes, a blazer...everything I'd need to feel pretty at the event.  

The party started at 7 but the guys worked right up until about 6:45.  They came back to the hotel, showered quickly, we all got dressed and we went right back to the store.  It was so so fancy guys.  There were 1500 people all crammed into the 4 story building.  There was a Bellini bar and a mojito bar, there was champaign on tiered ice trays, tiny tiny appetizers, a DJ, people dressed to the nines and, while we were waiting in the line to get in, I kid you not, we stood 5 feet away from Ellen Degeneres and Portia (apparently Portia has a hardware line at RH and they flew one of the private jets to LA to pick them and a few other celebrities up for the evening).  What even is this life!?!  

We stayed for an hour and a half or so, I got to see all of the hard work the guys did, including this staircase that Ryan worked many many months on - other than the metal banisters the entire staircase is made of curved wood.  We sat on the $15K cloud couch, had coctails on the rooftop, walked through the designers floor (where the boys installed a lot of cabinets and hardware displays to show off the options available).  By the end of the night I had blisters on my feet from all the walking (I can't tell you the last time I wore heels because of COVID) but I'm so so glad I made the trip out.

Ryan and I are terrible about planning time for just the two of us.  Don't get me wrong, we have tons and tons of adventures, but if the kids aren't with us, then we're dragging other friends along on our trips.  It was really quite nice to be just the two of us for a few days.

Our trip didn't end on Thursday night though!  I worked for a few hours on Friday morning and then we headed out to explore!  It was really really fun to see all of the places that Ryan has been telling me about for the past few years.  And, I think it was fun for Ryan to play host and take me around - especially since the city was much more open that it had been in the past two years.  Chicago was pretty strict when it came to COVID protocols but Ryan says that San Fran was even more so - lots of people were still masking, even outside when I was there in late March. 

You guys know we're dorks and we love our National Park stamp book, right?  Well, guess what!  We got FIVE stamps over the 2 days we had to explore.  We visited:

• Golden Gate Bridge
• Fort Point
• Muir Woods
• The Maritime Museum 
• Rosie the Riveter National Park (my second favorite place after Muir Woods)

Of everything we did (including the fancy party) I was most excited to go to the Redwoods.  I've been to a lot of places, but I've never traveled west of Colorado so making it all the way to the Pacific coast was very cool.  Someday I want to see the sequoias, but the redwoods are pretty darn amazing!

We trapsed all over San Fran in the two days we were there.  We had lunch in Sausalito (so yummy...though I regret not going to the crab restaurant next door to where we ate), we hiked 4 miles (which I swear was straight up!) around Muir woods, we ate dinner at a fancy sushi restaurant where I drank Saki for the first time, we had cocktails at an amazing cocktail bar (I asked the bartender about 4,000 questions and learned a lot), we journeyed to Sanoma, went to 2 breweries, had a (strange) wine tasting at a little place right on the square, we rode electric scooters, and visited the 5 national park locations I listed above.  

Ryan says it best!  "We're the McGrath's and we do all the things".

 

It really truly was an amazing, once in a lifetime trip and I'm so very thankful I had the opportunity to have this experience.  I'm thankful for a job that is flexible enough to let me travel in this way, a family support structure that can help with the kids while we were gone (thanks Erin and Dan! - I'll write about the kids adventures a little further down), and for Trim Tech for flying me out to experience it all.

(Can you tell that the woods was my favorite part just by the number of photos?!) 

 Oh!  I forgot to tell you!  We also got upgraded to first class on the way home.  It was very very fancy - and I could get used to traveling like this!  Between the extra space and Ryan's 1K status on United right now I just might change my tune on my utter dislike for flying.

You might be wondering what exactly we did with the kids during all this - ha!  Well, I owe Dan a ton because he stepped up and took care of the kids for us for 4 full days.  I was able to get the kids on the bus Thursday morning before my flight, but he played parent for us Thursday night through Sunday when we got home.  He got them on and off the bus, dealt with lunches and homework and probably a squabble or two (though he didn't mention those).  

Then, on Saturday he hauled them downtown to hang out with Erin and play tourist in the city on a cold windy, rainy weekend in March.  The went to the Bean, went to the top of the Sears Tower (I haven't even done this myself!)...and ate Chicago style pizza with Auntie and Grandpa.  I think they tired the kids out - I heard Hazel fell asleep at the table at dinner.  

Oh!  And their first ever train ride.  The kids have been wanting to ride the train for years and this weekend Auntie finally made it happen.  I wonder if if still smelled like pee like how I remember it - lol!