Nicki Bond is the Owner and Chief Executive Officer of Life Strategist Consulting Group LLC, which is a full-service learning and organizational development consulting and training firm. She works with federal, state, and local companies and organizations throughout the U.S.
Some of the previous clients and ongoing clients of Life Strategist Consulting Group LLC includes the U.S. Department of State, Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICIJIA), Decatur Public School District, Decatur Public Library, The Community Foundation of Macon County, Ed Farm (Apple Start-up Company), USA Test Prep, My Strong Tower Youth Services and a host of others. The consulting and training services that Life Strategist Consulting Group LLC provides are designed to take companies and organizations to the next level and to address organizational development needs and demands.
FWM: You spent 7 years working in the field of child welfare. How did this experience lead you to become a much sought-after Learning and Organization Development Consultant & Trainer?
Three and a half of those years, I was a Lead Statewide Trainer for the Office of Learning and Professional Development for the Department of Children and Family Services. In 2019, I relocated to Oklahoma to join The University of Oklahoma to become an HR Trainer with the Learning and Organizational Development department. During this time, I was working on my first master’s degree. In December of 2020, I graduated with a M.S. In Leadership and Organizational Management. In 2022, I graduated with a Master of Legal Studies in International Business Law from The University of Oklahoma College of Law.
My career and education, ultimately, is what lead to me start my own Learning and Organizational Development firm. I love training because it is an opportunity for me to educate and equip organizations and their employees with knowledge and skills that they need in order to be effective and impactful. I am a problem-solver by nature. I enjoy consulting with companies and helping them to solve their organizational problems. The strategies and answers that I provide are designed to help improve the organizations structure, processes, operations, and employees.
FWM: Tell us about Life Strategist Consulting Group and how your consulting and training services are taking companies and organizations to the next level.
Life Strategist Consulting Group LLC, is a full-service learning and organizational development consulting and training firm, that services local, state, and federal organizations and companies. Learning and Organizational Development aims to drive strategic learning and development through robust and rigorous solutions; enabling individuals, teams, and organizations to achieve extraordinary results personally and professionally.
The purpose of Learning and Organizational Development, is to build a foundation for a learning culture by focusing on enhancing competencies and behaviors needed to support an organization’s key objectives. By aligning effective strategies with their organization, it positions their organization, leaders, and employees to achieve key objectives by providing opportunities to obtain the skills needed for current challenges; while addressing the immediate needs of the organization into the future.
FWM: What are companies seeking today?
Companies and organizations today are seeking strategies to assist with implementing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and using a DEI Lens. Specifically, assistance with the recruitment and retention of diverse employees.
They are seeking ways to intentionally improve workplace culture and employee engagement. My companies have now figured out the “corporate formula” to increase their profitability. When employees are engaged in their work, enjoy the company they work for, and are motivated, employees are more productive. Productive employees yield profit for companies, which helps to improve the bottom-line.
Lastly, I see that companies today are seeking improvement in their talent acquisition; recruitment, hiring, and onboarding. The creation of paths to promotion, ongoing training and development for their current employees and leadership teams, and succession plans.
FWM: You are regularly recruited for your impactful work. Share your key areas of expertise. What can people expect when working with you?
What people can expect when working with me? I have a wheelhouse of knowledge on various topics and competencies that is quite vast, which is why I am able to consult and train companies and organizations across various industries and fields such as legal, non-profit, education, tech, for-profit, and the list goes on. While I do not deem myself to be a “subject matter expert” in any particular field, she is regularly recruited and sought out for the impactful work that she does with the various philosophies of diversity, equity, and inclusion. I have been working in the DEI spaces for nearly seven years.
Another key areas of expertise are a vast number of professional development topics and also leadership development training.
FWM: Are you seeing any trends?
Some of the trends that I am seeing:
- Employee well-being is becoming a priority- a human imperative
- The abandonment of outdated systems and processes. Companies are realizing that the “way we have always done it” is no longer going to work or be used as an excuse to avoid change.
- Skills-based hiring is on the rise as companies recruit based on knowledge, skills, and abilities rather than solely on degrees and previous experiences.
- Employers are being more equitable in their practices and operations. For example, being willing to revisit/rewrite job descriptions and requirements.
- Future of work is flexibility. Hybrid working will force companies to re-invent their brick-and-mortar workplaces. 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday in the office is the old way of doing thing
- Human and bot create a new blended workforce.
- You are also a Training Curriculum Designer and Developer. Tell us more.
One of the unique aspects of my experience in learning and development is that I am also a Training Curriculum Designer and Developer. All of the trainings that I facilitate for companies are personally designed and created by me. I complete a Training Assessment to identify specifically what the organization wants to accomplish through the training. This allows me to tailor the training based on the organizations needs. You want to know why I love this? I love this because I never facilitate the same training twice. No organization is getting information that won’t be helpful or useful to them. The organization’s training and learning objectives are met and they are able to apply what they learn to enhance their organization.
www.lifestrategistconsultingllc.com
