By Allison L. Andersen, Content Designer
The Growing With Elevo series features mission-driven people from across our organization sharing their stories and growth experiences as they strive to make a positive impact for the students we serve every day. This month, we follow Sam Monsen on his journey from part-time Coach to full-time Employee Experience Specialist
Elevo’s mission is to transform the well-being of students, so they look forward to coming to school. For Sam Monsen, his mission is to engage employees on all levels throughout Elevo, so they look forward to coming to work, because he understands how each and every employee can have a positive impact on the students we serve. For him, the missions are inseparable.
Like so many of Elevo’s full time employees, Sam began as a part time Coach. Out of a need for living expenses, Sam found himself in search of a part-time job while in grad school. “I was a grad assistant strength conditioning coach at Concordia University, Irvine and I loved it. As a grad assistant, Concordia paid for my Master’s degree which was awesome, but they paid my tuition and nothing else, so I needed something on the side to pay for other expenses while I was finishing up school. I was already familiar with Elevo because as an undergrad, a rep from Elevo came in and talked to us about their programs and opportunities. Fast forward a few years – as I’m scrambling, looking for a job part-time – I see an ad on Indeed for coaches with Elevo.”
Sam was already coaching adults, so coaching kids felt aligned with his current work and the focus of his degree. He got the job and planned to stay on until he finished school. He still had about a year left.
While working in the field, he began to pick up on a few things of note. “When I was coaching, I noticed there were some coaches that just were not a good fit and in the back of my mind I was thinking, maybe I could help with coach recruitment one day.”
As fulfilling as the Coach position was, he still found himself in need of more hours to make ends meet. He was back on the search for an additional job. “And sure enough, there was a Talent Coordinator position that had opened with Elevo.” It ticked all the immediate need boxes. It was full time, remote, and flexible. He could work and continue to finish his schooling. In addition, he now had a place to share his field observations.
Once he graduated with his Master’s Degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration, he began to rethink his initial goals and the planned trajectory of his career. “While in school, I really wanted to be an Athletic Director of a high school or college. Really a college. The plan was to work as a strength conditioning coach and eventually work into the position of Athletic Director.” But, a peek behind the curtain of college athletics showed Sam the amount of time it takes to make it, the steps to get there, and the time that position takes away from families. He became hesitant.
Instead, he put his efforts and talents into growing his career with Elevo. After being a part-time coach for five months he took on the Talent Coordinator position on the Recruitment Team. Here, he was able to influence the quality of the coaches being hired. He helped innovate the way recruiting was done. “I was part of the first Virtual Interview committee where we re-shaped the virtual process to filter out better suited candidates for coach positions. It helped us send more qualified individuals through to field interviews where they met with Field Ops before getting an offer letter.”
In just three years, Sam has worked his way up from a Coach through the Recruitment Team, and now as an Employee Experience Specialist. In his current position, his responsibilities are broad. He oversees onboarding for all new employees which includes setting up trainings and a welcome orientation for each new hire. In addition, he is training Site Managers – a relatively new position that oversees the field operations on-site for Elevo’s programs. But, perhaps the most important part of his job is employee engagement. “Any sort of initiatives we have are designed to get employees engaged with their teams, with each other outside of their departments, and to give everyone a voice, helping them be heard.”
The big initiative he and his team are working on now is the development of Employee Impact Groups, where employees form groups around topics of a common interest to uplift each other, share, educate, and support one another. “Our focus remains to continue to foster a sense of belonging for all employees of all backgrounds.”
As fully committed as Sam is to the Employee Engagement Team, he hasn’t lost sight of his coaching roots. “I help run a focus group for Coaches at one of our school districts. When I was a Coach, it was really easy to see my direct effect on the kids, but now kind of being behind the scenes, sometimes I forget about that. This focus group helps me reengage with those in the field. What support do they need? How can we help make their jobs easier, more enjoyable?” The answers to those questions help Sam and his team develop additional trainings to better prepare the Coaches to deliver high quality programs to the students.
For Sam, it’s still always about the students.
