Kailee Courts is a Training, Safety, and Quality (TSQ) Specialist focused on training and safety initiatives. She helps create learning content and recently was part of the team who developed our New Hire Integration Program, including building the new hire surveys designed to measure employee onboarding success.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR CAREER PATH AND WHAT LED YOU TO YOUR CURRENT ROLE?
I was lucky enough to get into the telecom infrastructure industry by chance. I was searching for a job where I could use my skills and education and happened across the TSQ coordinator role. I had recently taken a course on Articulate Storyline and had a very basic understanding of the program. That caught Jonathan Meyer’s eye, and I interviewed and got the job. I started out as the TSQ coordinator, which was supposed to be more of an admin role. By the end of my first month, I started to create basic tutorials. I was promoted at the beginning of this year and am now a TSQ Specialist.
WHAT KINDS OF EDUCATION OR ON THE JOB TRAINING HAVE HELPED YOU BE SUCCESSFUL IN YOUR CURRENT JOB?
My education journey has been a bit all over the place. I received my undergraduate degree in Journalism/Communication. After graduating, I spent a lot of time working in the service industry. Both my degree and time in the service industry helped me to be able to communicate with all kinds of people, no matter their background. I credit these two things for most of my success because they truly helped to shape me into the professional that I am.
During COVID, I decided to go back to school to get my Master’s in Organizational Psychology. I graduated with a 4.0 which is still one of my biggest accomplishments to date. This degree has been incredibly useful in my career. I learned the science behind why people behave the way they do in the workplace, what motivates people, and how to retain employees. My favorite class was the class on instructional design and training which taught me the science behind how people learn in the workplace and what goes into employee satisfaction when it comes to training and employee development.
Since joining Network Connex, I’ve become a certified First Aid/CPR/AED instructor through the Red Cross and have had the opportunity to teach a lot of classes in the last three years. I will be getting certified in Basic Life Saving through the Red Cross soon.
WHAT CHARACTERISTICS DO YOU THINK ARE NEEDED TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN YOUR ROLE?
The biggest characteristic needed to be successful in my role is to be personable. I work with people across almost all of the markets and divisions, from field level to executives. Another characteristic is adaptable. Sometimes things change quickly and priorities are moved around, so being able to go with the flow of what is needed is super important.
WHAT DOES A TYPICAL DAY AT WORK LOOK LIKE FOR YOU?
Right now, a typical workday means me getting to the office around 7AM. I’ve been splitting my time between an eLearning project and a New Hire Integration presentation for new managers. The Dallas warehouse is huge so for my breaks, I will go and take a few laps to get my steps in.
WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT WHAT YOU DO?
The thing I love the most is that it is I’m never doing the same thing for a long time. I love being able to work on different projects and work with different people across the company. It keeps things interesting.
HOW DO YOU LIKE TO SPEND YOUR TIME OUTSIDE OF WORK?
I have a dog, Ginger, and a cat, Minou. I spend a lot of my time with them. I take Ginger on walks, and I spend time on the patio with Minou. I have an herb garden on my patio, so I like to spend time taking care of my plants. I’ve gotten into herbalism recently and have made my own oils and salves. It has been fun combining my first aid knowledge with herbalism to learn how to use herbs for basic first aid. I love to read and am just about finished reading my 14th book of the year and will be joining a book club in September. I also like to lift weights and build Lego sets with my boyfriend.
TELL US A FUN OR SURPRISING FACT ABOUT YOU!
A fun and surprising fact about me is that I am a published author. I used to work for a print newspaper and had my own weekly column, and I’ve had a personal essay published in a book!