Employee engagement · Internal programming
Thumbtack University Live: turning employee feedback into action
When employee survey feedback revealed that people wanted more visibility into what other teams were working on, I saw an opportunity to build something new. I conceived and launched Thumbtack University (TTU) Live, a monthly learning series that brings employees closer to the people, projects, and decisions shaping the company.
- Company
- Thumbtack
- Focus
- Employee engagement, cross-functional storytelling, live programming
- My role
- Program creator and ongoing lead, from concept through live production
- Audience
- Employees across the company
- Cadence
- Monthly
- Participation
- Typically 150–180 attendees per session
The challenge
Employee survey feedback surfaced a specific gap. Employees didn't have enough visibility into the work happening across other teams. In a company with different functions, priorities, and projects moving at once, that lack of context can make it harder to understand how everyone's work fits together.
I wanted to create a regular opportunity for employees to hear directly from the teams doing the work, ask questions, and see more of what was happening across Thumbtack.
My approach
I created TTU Live as a monthly program built around a different team, initiative, or topic each session. The goal was to make cross-functional work more visible and approachable through a format that employees would want to attend.
I lead the program end to end
- Identify topics and teams whose work would be valuable for a broader employee audience
- Partner with subject-matter experts and team leaders to shape the story
- Develop session outlines and determine what employees most need to understand
- Coach speakers on clarity, structure, and presentation
- Produce the live sessions and manage the overall employee experience
The editorial work
For each session, I work with the featured team to figure out what employees would find interesting or useful. I help shape the content, coach the speakers, and make sure the presentation is clear and engaging, especially for people who aren't familiar with that team's work.
The result
TTU Live regularly attracts 150–180 attendees per monthly session. It has become a recurring way to introduce employees to different teams and initiatives, grounded in a need employees themselves identified.
What this work demonstrates
I enjoy finding gaps that employees have already told us matter, then building something practical and engaging to address them. TTU Live brings together the parts of communications I like most: listening, finding stories, collaborating across teams, coaching speakers, and creating an experience people choose to join.