Key Highlights
• Defined a success strategy centered on advocacy across teaching, marketing, and consulting.
• Integrated storytelling into learning to foster deeper, personal connections with ideas.
• Created personalized, learner-centered experiences that reflect learner needs and organizational goals.
Success Strategy
My success strategy revolves around advocacy, for that drives powerful outcomes. In teaching, marketing, or client consulting, I put at the forefront the individual or people central to that project. I use a student-centric model in teaching and learning development. I make everything about the target segments in marketing campaigns. I focus first on my client’s needs and ideas when opening a new project. Advocacy has always been my avenue to success.
Storytelling in learning
I often use storytelling in my lectures. I find this allows students to connect in a more personal way to the ideas. In one lecture I was discussing the difference between generalists and specialists. I shared that I was a generalist. I described through my own stories what that meant to my career. I told them about how I see my own strengths.
One student, in her 50’s, broke out in tears. She explained that she always felt there was something wrong with her for not being able to focus on one thing. We stopped and talked about it and shared different personal stories. She then saw herself anew. She was not unfocused. She was drawn to varied interests. A year after she graduated I checked in with her. That one moment she said changed everything for her. She reset her career, and there was a rippling effect. She said, “I never knew I could be this happy.”
Student-centric teaching
This is at the heart of why advocacy leads to success. When I create a student-centric learning environment, I am making them the heart of that story. They then can find their unique place in that process. It leads to profound learning adaptation. That leads to students building on that knowledge for their successes in life. My programs help yield successful graduates.
Client-centric consulting
It’s the same in marketing. If the brand makes it about the people they are speaking to, they connect and bond. Audiences need to feel seen and heard. That generates shared values, trust, and loyalty. The brand is then successful because they are building lasting customer relationships.
I have found over 25 years of consulting that the client has a wealth of treasures to ensure a project’s success. By making them the central focus, I am in time welcomed inside their inner circle. Connecting in this way with clients best allows me to respect their business culture while introducing new solutions to reach their goals. No matter how large or small the client organization, this has been at the core of my success with them.
Client Testimonial: “Mary is great to work with on projects. She is inventive and great with developing creative concepts that ring true and stand out. She is organized and takes the time to understand your project's scope so she can present you with ideas that exceed your objectives.” — Wendy Cromwell, (then) associate director of publications and editor of Emory Lawyer
Advocacy in Learning Architecture
Whether designing learning experiences or consulting on a project, I focus on what each individual needs to succeed. I design environments that honor and empower their journey. A learning architect consults, strategizes, and advocates for the learner or client. She creates personalized, learner-centered environments. She designs learning frameworks that reflect the needs of the learners and the goals of the organization.
That’s why I treat each student, client, and audience segment as an individual. Each has their own rich and deep unique story. As a learning architect, I am an advocate for the learner’s experience. I do all I can to ensure that the design of the learning environment is in their best interest. Advocacy-driven design creates environments that empower every learner to succeed, bringing long-term value to the educational ecosystem.
