🎙️ Culture Craft | Tommy Kroll

What do Star Wars relays, Bake-Off-style competitions, and Slate CRM have in common?

In this episode of The Innovation Forge, we sit down with Tommy Kroll, Senior Business Systems Analyst at Columbia College Chicago, who’s spent nearly 20 years transforming data-heavy work into playful, theatrical, and wildly effective training experiences.

Tommy’s approach isn’t just about having fun, it’s about designing culture on purpose. From over-the-top retreats to themed learning competitions, he shares how creativity in the workplace fuels retention, builds strong teams, and prevents burnout.

If you’ve ever thought training couldn’t be engaging or that culture only happens on someone else’s team, this conversation will shift your mindset.

🧠 What We Cover:

• The power of themes in team training • Why Slate is secretly the perfect canvas for creativity • The “Great Query Clash-Off” and other legendary trainings • Staying energized and inspired in a long-term role • Building office culture into everyday work

📌 Subscribe for more interviews on innovation, design, and edtech.

Music

"Cold Sober" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

"Wholesome" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

"Teller of the Tales" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

"Midnight Tale" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

"Galway" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

“Goblin_Tinker_Soldier_Spy” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

“Southern Gothic” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

"Village Consort" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

"Club Seamus" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Also featured was Build it Like a Game, an original song based on this interview, created with the help of AI.

👇 Tell us: What's the wildest (or most fun) training you’ve ever been part of? Or want to try?

#CultureCraft #InnovationForge #TommyKroll #SlateCRM #HigherEdTech #CreativeTraining #OfficeCulture #TeamDevelopment #GamifiedLearning #EdTech #WorkplaceInnovation

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