April 2024 | Issue No. 37

I first met Dr. Britt Andreatta over 25 years ago during a self-empowerment workshop by Motivation Management Services (MMS). We immediately became friends and proceeded to earn our coaching certifications together from MMS. Over the years, I attended her wedding, helped them buy their home, and became “aunty” to their daughter. Britt has been actively involved in Santa Barbara for 40 years, serving as a faculty member and dean at UCSB before becoming the chief learning officer at lynda.com (now LinkedIn Learning). She’s a former board member for The Fund for Santa Barbara and a long-time donor.

Britt is also an internationally recognized thought leader who uses her background in leadership, neuroscience, psychology, and education to create science-based solutions for today’s workplace challenges. Britt is the CEO of Brain Aware Training and the author of several best-selling books on the brain science of success including Wired to Grow, Wired to Resist, Wired to Connect, and Wired to Become. She has over 10 million views worldwide of her online courses. In 2022, she was named a Top 10 Influencer in Learning, and in 2021, she was a Top 20 Learning Influencer and a Top 20 HR Influencer for Leadership Development. It’s been exciting catching up and learning about her latest developments.

ML/CR: What are your company’s mission, vision, and values?

BA: At Brain Aware Training our mission is to help people and organizations rise to their potential. We create science-based training products that drive real behavior change, and our vision is to build thriving workplaces in every industry. Our core values are Excellence, Growth, Integrity, Collaboration, and Innovation.

ML/CR: Can you give us a couple examples of how do you operationalize them day to day?

BA: We strive to practice what we teach, and our company values reflect the skills and concepts featured in our training programs.

Collaboration is at the core of what we do, internally and with our clients. Collaboration is one of three types of teamwork. It is more complex than cooperation and coordination, both of which are part of collaboration. In addition, we know that diversity creates strength, so we intentionally seek various international perspectives. As a team, we value each other’s thoughts and contributions, building psychological safety as the core differentiator of every high-performing organization. We also collaborate with our clients, partnering closely to help them achieve their goals and ensure success. We strive to be impeccable and enjoyable to work with.

We help our clients achieve excellence by building the skills and capabilities of their people. We also deliver excellence in the form of our products and services—we are proud that we have won several prestigious awards. We continually evaluate the effectiveness of our programs on a range of criteria to ensure we deliver results and a significant return on investment, while enhancing the health and wellbeing of a company’s people and its culture.

Growth is important because humans are wired to learn and can form new neural pathways until the moment of death. We also know that as organizations grow, they move through predictable phases of development. We work with organizations to ensure their people will be ready, giving them a competitive edge. Because we know how the brain best learns, our training programs are engaging and build the habits that drive sustainable success.

ML/CR: You work with a wide range of clients. How do you help them?

BA: I am so grateful that we get to work with many wonderful organizations in countries around the world. We can support an organization in various ways, and many of our clients start with one service and then expand to more.

As an author of several books on the science of success, I often receive invitations to speak at corporate events or provide short-term consulting to executives for specific issues. We also offer consulting on various topics including, change, culture, teams, learning strategy, and leadership development.

In addition, we provide science-based training programs that we can deliver to their employees or certify learning professionals and independent consultants to provide the training themselves. We always start by focusing on what they are hoping to shift but also provide them with best practices.

We recognize that organizations exist on a consciousness continuum from profit-driven to actively healing the world. Our programs and trainings help them move to be purpose-driven and healing focused.

ML/CR: What sets your training programs apart from others?

BA: While many companies offer training, we differ in two distinct ways. First, we focus on creating science-based products with an emphasis on neuroscience. Understanding human behavior is crucial for maximizing employee potential and customer loyalty.

We seek the latest cutting-edge research from neuroscience, biology, psychology, organizational development, and economics. We source research from scholars and firms committed to accuracy and synthesize these findings into comprehensive training that gives people actionable tools they can implement immediately.

Second, we know that both people and organizations are holistic systems. Unlike many other programs focusing on a single topic, our training programs cover various topics. This approach equips learners with tools that create a common language and approach across the organization. We offer three levels of training that cater to the specific needs of frontline employees, managers, and executives to ensure that everyone receives training that is relevant to their role.

ML/CR: You mentioned that you work with executives. What are 3 things leaders should focus on right now to ensure future success?

BA: First, ensure that you are building a purpose-driven organization. You will need to provide meaningful work to attract and retain the best employees. Today’s consumers are highly concerned about the environment and social equality and will offer their loyalty to the brands that demonstrate proven commitment to these critical issues.

Second, be future-focused. The best executives are about ten years ahead of the present, considering potential opportunities and challenges. You want to launch new products and initiatives while you’re still enjoying the growth of your current one. In addition, in a decade, the earth will be very different with sea level rise, changed weather patterns, and mass migrations to more temperate climates. The time to start planning is now.

Third, invest in building a learning organization. The world is complex and fast-paced, requiring an adaptive and resilient workforce. Investing in high-quality learning opportunities for all levels of your organization can increase adaptability, resilience, productivity, engagement, retention, and profitability, giving you a significant competitive edge.

To learn more about Dr. Britt Andreatta and her Brain Aware Training, visit: www.BrittAndreatta.com and www.BrainAwareTraining.com or email her at [email protected].