The sovereign tribal government of the Cherokee Nation provides a broad array of services to citizens, including healthcare, education, employment, housing, economic and infrastructure development, and environmental protection. With approximately 11,000 employees, Cherokee Nation is one of the largest employers in northeastern Oklahoma. Its focus, however, is not profit, but service. The organization firmly believes that by training and empowering its workforce, they in turn will empower the community. The Cherokee Nation partners with OpenSesame to provide much of that training.
Building a next-generation L&D program
“Previously, we only offered classroom-style training,” recalls Chris Welch, Supervisor of Employee Development for Cherokee Nation. “We know that everyone learns in a different way and that we were only reaching about 15% of our workforce with an in person format. We needed to become more adaptable in a changing world. We wanted to make training available to everyone, wherever they are working — and we wanted to provide much more of it.”
Cherokee Nation discovered OpenSesame through the LinkedIn Learning Hub. “I did some more research and reached out to them to learn more,” Welch says. “Once I did, I was convinced they have the best offering. OpenSesame’s content library is enormous. With some content providers you just have access to the content they create, but OpenSesame curates content from dozens of publishers. Plus, they integrate with our new LMS, so it was an easy decision for us.”
The Cherokee Nation’s goals for its revamped learning and development program are lofty. In addition to general skills and compliance training, Cherokee Nation seeks to educate and inspire its employees to make a difference — both in their own lives and in the tribal community. To that end, the organization partnered with the University of Oklahoma to provide university-level certification courses in combination with OpenSesame’s professional development and skills curriculum. “We want to develop future community and tribal leaders,” Welch says. “It starts by helping them learn new skills, gain advanced training, and grow their careers and earning power.”
12
courses completed per user per month, up from an average of 3
95%
course completion rate
4⭐️
average review across courses
Rapid engagement
With its new LMS and OpenSesame course content in place, Welch and his team launched a major rollout of the new learning and development offering. “We hit it from every angle,” he says. “We sent email announcements, held in-person demonstrations and presentations, and even offered prizes to employees who attended.”
The initiative worked. Engagement numbers continue to increase and every employee has completed at least one course. “We were averaging around three courses per user per month, but last month we hit 12,” Welch says. “There’s a 95% course completion rate and a 4-plus star average review across the courses. Plus, people are taking courses on nights and weekends, embracing the portal to help them chart their futures.”
Each month, Welch’s department sends out a newsletter to employees. “We pick a theme and include courses that surround that theme,” he says. Speaking to the organization’s commitment to the community, it often promotes courses on topics such as parenting skills and personal finance.
A resounding success
Everyone agrees that the Cherokee Nation’s learning and development initiative is succeeding. As evidence, Welch points to one employee who wanted to advance her career by moving into a role in the organization’s finance department. “She enrolled in 80 courses to improve her technical, project management, and leadership skills,” he says. “She’s now a budget analyst for the tribe. That’s the kind of success that lets us know this is working.”
“We’re attracting a younger generation to the organization — and we’re honored to help nurture that talent.”
Chris Welch, Supervisor of Employee Development
The tribe’s training program has also become a recruiting tool. “People find out they can access college-level training and certification courses at no cost,” Welch says. “We love that we’re attracting a younger generation to the organization — there is great young talent among our citizens, and we’re honored to help nurture that talent.”
Welch says that one of the perks he values most about the partnership with OpenSesame is his personal relationship with the organization’s customer success representative. “They understand the challenges and opportunities we face. During our quarterly meetings, we discuss trends and they offer suggestions for new subject areas to consider. I’m continually impressed with the quality of OpenSesame’s content — it’s continually evolving and improving. For example, there are now more courses with hands-on learning lab components which our staff loves.”
Cherokee Nation Principal Chief, Chuck Hoskin Jr., adds, “We remain an employer of choice in northeast Oklahoma, and to maintain that status, the next generation of talented Cherokees must see how committed we are to developing a workforce that is diverse, trained and prepared for a bright future. The roll out of the Otsoliga Learning Portal and the usage of the Open Sesame software, has been an essential tool in our success.”