# Blake (he/him/his) 🏳️‍🌈 (@iblake94.bsky.social)

Profile: https://sifa.id/p/iblake94.bsky.social
Headline: Operational Manager at Sedgwick | Learning and Development Champion | Passionate People Leader

## About

As a Project Manager, I lead the implementation of new processes and solutions that significantly enhance the quality and efficiency of our workforce absence services. Drawing from my five years of experience in learning and development, I design and deliver tailored training programs for both clients and our internal team. These programs elevate the skills and performance of our colleagues and team leaders, fostering a culture of continuous growth.

My passion lies in empowering individuals to thrive in their roles and achieve their career aspirations. My track record speaks volumes: I’ve successfully promoted colleagues to higher positions, facilitated seamless collaboration across cross-functional teams, and consistently received quarterly awards for my unwavering commitment and contributions.

Equipped with a Coursera Instructional Design Foundations and Applications Certificate, as well as a Bachelor’s degree in Educational/Instructional Media Design, I am on a mission to leverage my expertise in project management and learning and development to create a positive impact for both my team and our valued clients.

## Experience

- **Operations Manager at Sedgwick** (2024 – present)
- **Project Manager at Sedgwick** (2024 – 2024)
- **Senior Service Center Representative at Sedgwick** (2018 – 2020)
  Deliverables: *Responsible for handling complex escalation calls for one of the largest clients *Collaborated with other departments to design job aids for each departments *Mentored new colleagues to ensure quality training for the program  Key Accomplishments: *Completed the LEAD leadership program *Participated in process improvements for multiple lines of business (FMLA, STD, ADA)
- **Account Manager at Discover Financial Services** (2015 – 2016)
- **Customer Service Project Coordinator at Yellow Cab of Columbus** (2013 – 2018)
  Deliverables *Presented trends of incoming customer requests and assisted with taking Operation's idea and translating them into projects *Designed Access database to house fare information to efficiently assist our client *Designed and developed training for our Customer Service team to elevate the level of service provided *Orchestrated collaboration with Operations department to roll out streamlined accounting processes *Presented data to internal and external clients to streamline processes with customer service processing *Created virtual accounting templates to improve efficiency in billing for Accounts receivable and payable.
- **Workforce Absence Team Lead at Sedgwick** (2021 – 2022)
  Leads a team of colleagues that process client specific, State, Worker’s Compensation and Long-Term Disability leave of absence claims.
  
  Deliverables: *Onboard other Team Leads to same role *Ensure KPIs are met daily, weekly, and monthly for the team and program *Delivers necessary auxiliary training for colleagues to meet metrics and KPIs *Utilizes databases to forecast overtime and scheduling for future work *Consults with Project Managers, Trainers and Operations to ensure program changes are rolled out smoothly *Develop colleagues to ensure they take away the skills they need to move to the next position.
  
  Key Achievements: *Promoted examiners within first 6 months of getting team to higher positions *Create efficiencies in processing claims to meet target deadlines for KPIs and PGs *Designed and created step processes for multiple line of businesses
- **Training Specialist at Sedgwick** (2020 – 2021)
  Deliverables: *Consulted with Operation leaders to create a remote training environment for the Service Center. *Utilized several programs such as Webex, Microsoft Teams, and Articulate to deliver and develop trainings.
  
  \*Facilitated both self paced trainings and live training virtually. Managed training groups of 25-35 colleagues in a virtual and in-person setting.
  
  \*Collaborated with project managers to roll out courses to the customer service and leadership teams *Evaluated feedback on instruction and design of curriculum to improve efficiencies in project roll-outs. *Coordinated multi-week trainings for onboarding new colleagues to the program (internal and external)  Key Achievements: *Received quarterly award for displaying Sedgwick's core value Collaboration *Rated 4.8 on feedback from delivering training courses
- **Workforce Absence Team Lead - Team Coordinators at Sedgwick** (2022 – 2024)
  Leads the line of business' team coordinators to ensure training needs are met.
  
  Deliverables: *Onboard new trainer team coordinators *Track training completion and success *Conduct training needs analysis to develop necessary training for Line of Business *Allocate training resources to training, projects and job aid creation/review *Develop client specific training to support LOB in SurveyMonkey, Articulate/Rise360, SharePoint *Evaluate training program and trainers to ensure quality *Review feedback from training and identify opportunities for improvement *Schedule training and subject matter experts to keep tenured colleagues engaged

## Education

- **Ohio University** — Master of Science - MS (2024 – 2026)
- **The University of Arizona Global Campus** — Bachelor's degree (2022 – 2024)
- **The Ohio State University** — Major (2015 – 2017)

## Skills

- Leadership Development
- Project Management
- Camtasia
- Teamwork
- Customer Service
- Microsoft Office
- Data Entry
- Professional Phone Skills
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Outlook

## Certifications

- Certified Tourism Ambassador (CTA) — Certified Tourism Ambassador™ (CTA) Program
- Introduction to Information Technology (CS1001) — Sophia Learning (https://www.credly.com/badges/2fc9b380-44dd-454c-97ad-a63f56663758/linked_in_profile)
- Leading a Learning Culture — Skillsoft (https://skillsoft.digitalbadges.skillsoft.com/e6fa81de-3c15-44d6-9806-bde285839ded)
- Developing Effective Teams (BUS1200) — Sophia Learning (https://www.credly.com/badges/6ea2f8e9-7d26-4c62-9b4a-2958c1e9c426/linked_in_profile)
- New Project Manager Essentials — Skillsoft (https://skillsoft.digitalbadges.skillsoft.com/9bf4a2f4-2e80-4867-a621-629bdbc02c52)
- Corporate Trainer Journey — Skillsoft (https://skillsoft.digitalbadges.skillsoft.com/213748f4-4912-47f1-98c5-7c685b05a667)

## Honors and awards

- Quarterly Values In Action
- Quarterly Values In Action

## Languages

- Spanish (limited_working)
- English (native)

## Other profiles

- linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blake-polzer?utm_source=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=member_ios