On October 10th, IPI staff members from all of our locations across the state convened at the Des Moines Showroom for the annual staff training conference. Because the IPI shops are spread out throughout the entire state, the annual conference serves as a valuable opportunity for staff members to connect with those they wouldn’t normally get to see, as well as build on knowledge and skills that will assist them in their work. According to surveys sent out by the IPI Leadership Team, it was made clear that communication continues to be a topic of interest to staff. Therefore, the overarching goal of this year’s conference was to lay the groundwork for an improved culture of communication throughout the company moving forward.
The day kicked off with opening statements from DOC Director Beth Skinner and IPI Director Bob Fairfax. Dr. Skinner took time to show her appreciation for IPI and the organization’s staff for being such valuable assets to the Iowa Department of Corrections and the state of Iowa. She also emphasized that there is always room to grow, which takes patience and repeated efforts from us all.
The first ice-breaker of the day was a timeless fan-favorite, Two Truths and a Lie. In this activity, each staff member was asked to write down two fun facts about themselves and one fib. One by one, staff members took the microphone to read their three “facts,” and the rest of the staff were tasked with sniffing out the lie in their table groups to earn points. It was very interesting to learn surprising facts about each other, from Anamosa’s Keith Paulson being a published poetry author, to IPI Director Bob Fairfax having been in the fashion industry!
Within the umbrella of communication, one specific thing numerous staff asked for was more information and updates on the other IPI shops. For the next activity, each shop was asked to create a 3-5 minute presentation to give the inside scoop on their location’s operations, with hopes that the rest of the staff in attendance would take away some interesting information they didn’t know before and be a bit more familiar with what everyone else was up to. The presentations kicked off with a great video made by IPI Anamosa, which showcased each and every shop operation alongside visuals and words from each manager. Throughout the day, every shop would get their turn to address the audience and share the great things going on at their location. From the feedback received so far, it sounds like these presentations were a big hit and a beneficial inclusion to this year’s conference.
After the first round of presentations, the floor was handed over to a special guest speaker, who may have been the highlight of the whole event for many in attendance. Jim Miller, a former college wrestling coach and motivational speaker, gave his presentation on “Going the Extra Mile.” Jim was the head wrestling coach at Wartburg College from 1991 to 2013, taking the school from a complete underdog to a titan in their division. Over his career, Miller amassed a record of 394-34-2, won nine NCAA Division III team championships, 20 consecutive Iowa Conference championships, and six NWCA national dual championships. In his presentation, Jim hit on many important lessons he learned from his professional career that can be applied to our everyday lives and work at IPI. These lessons included:
- Choosing results over excuses, because you can never have both
- How you THINK has everything to do with how you PERFORM
- Not letting the last disappointment affect the next opportunity
- Leaving unrelated negatives at the door
As a complement to these messages, Jim also shared two stories of his biggest takeaways from being a wrestling coach, which were both emotionally impactful and full of valuable messages. It was an honor to have Jim Miller speak at our event this year, and given the overwhelming positive reactions to his presentation, it seems he really struck a chord with many of the staff in attendance.
After the lunch break, staff regrouped with their tables for the second team-building activity of the day: Trivia! Each table had to put their heads together and choose the correct answer for a game of Iowa and IPI-related trivia questions. The competition was fierce, but it was clear to see by the amount of smiles and laughter in the showroom. For those who weren’t in attendance, here’s some trivia from the event to prove your knowledge! (answers at the end)
1. What year did the Iowa state legislature pass the code to allow prison to establish prison industries?
- 1924
- 1934
- 1974
2. What was the first product produced by inmates at Anamosa?
- License Plates
- Butter Tubs
- Dorm Furniture
3. Who is the most recognized famous actor from Iowa?
The final activity of the day was a panel led by the IPI Leadership Team addressing questions staff submitted before the event. The questions pertained to each of the four pillars of the IPI Vision that the company hopes to build upon moving forward. These pillars include:
- Developing staff and incarcerated individuals into leaders and problem-solvers
- Promoting a culture of communication and cooperation
- Achieving and exceeding financial goals
- Developing new opportunities for growth in traditional and private industries
Each member of the Leadership Team took turns answering the questions submitted by staff, providing insight into how these aspects of the IPI vision will be implemented and what is currently being done to solve certain problems within the organization. Moving forward, we want to continue this transparency throughout IPI, and multiple means of doing so are in place. This panel provided a chance for leadership to communicate directly with staff, which is always a valuable opportunity.
As the training conference wrapped up, Director Bob Fairfax addressed staff with his closing words, the theme of which being familiar to last year’s. At the 2023 conference, Bob struck home the idea that “We are good” at what we do. This year, he came back to this idea with a twist: “Show them why.” He explained that we as staff need to continually go the extra mile to show everyone why what we do at IPI is important; from the general public, to the DOC, to the incarcerated men and women in our care.
Though the location of next year’s annual training conference is yet to be determined, for the past two years, the IPI Des Moines Showroom has served as a great location for this important event. And we know that no matter where it ends up being held next year, the goal will remain unchanged: Provide a valuable opportunity for our staff to connect, learn and develop in order to continue growing both individually and as a organization.
Trivia Answers:
1. 1924
2. Butter Tubs
3. John Wayne