“We are dreaming big. We are casting the net wide. We are thinking about high leverage points. Get ready for hard fun!”
These were the words of Phalana Tiller, Vice President of Bendable Labs and director of the Harbor Freight Leadership Lab (HFLL), as she primed the group for a phase of expanded thinking before redirecting them back to addressing specific challenges in their unique communities and contexts.
In November of 2024, 12 leaders from across the K-12 skilled trades education ecosystem came together at the Carpenters International Training Center in Las Vegas as part of the fourth cohort of HFLL. HFLL is designed to deliver practical tools for leaders’ career advancement, deepen their connection to each other and elevate the sector’s performance, prestige and standing in society.
The focus of the two-day session was to identify high-potential leverage points and then to work together to generate promising ideas that could lead to systems change unlocking the power of transformational skilled trades education. Over the previous two months, the group had been conducting research to help pinpoint leverage points, places within a system where small changes could have large effects, that could exponentially increase the impact of any interventions they might pursue.
Participants worked with their peers to refine “How might we” statements drafted prior to their research phase. Findings from that research then positioned them to rapidly and collaboratively ideate or brainstorm possible solutions to challenges they face in their own community. Some examples included the following:
- “How might we leverage industry to improve CTE teacher recruitment practices?”
- “How might we create opportunities for skilled craft trainees to prepare for and be competitive for leadership positions in industry?”
- “How might we integrate wrap-around services for high-need skilled trades students that lead to longevity in the industry?”
- “How might we better enable mobility for skilled trades workers to get to where the jobs are?”
Those familiar with the principles of “Design Thinking” will recognize the “How Might We” statements as a critical element in a problem-solving approach that requires careful framing of challenges before launching into a solution mindset. HFLL employs this strategic process as one of many leadership development tools included in its curriculum.
HFLL’s 10-month leadership program will conclude in February 2025 after current participants submit applications for mini-proposals to fund the solutions they’ve developed with help from their peers.
