Expanding Educational Programming
The National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals™ (NAPO) has approximately 3,500 members dedicated to helping people and organizations bring order and efficiency to their lives. NAPO’s mission is to be the leading source for organizing and productivity professionals by providing exceptional education, enhancing business connections, advancing industry research, and increasing public awareness.
NAPO originally offered education to members through the annual meeting and other in-person events. Recognizing the need for more formal professional development opportunities in the nascent profession and adopting the education model of the times, NAPO developed an education curriculum for professional organizers. NAPO identified that members needed access to education throughout the year and from that, live webinars were added as a member benefit. Soon enough, technology quickly transformed members’ demands for flexible learning opportunities to accommodate their growing workday schedules.
Recognizing the limitation of only offering live classes during the workday when members were working with clients and identifying the growing demand for new content, NAPO pursued a new learning management system (LMS) to grow the education program.
NAPO saw a need for intermediate and advanced member education for those not yet certified.
NAPO leaders developed bundles of educational offerings to assist members in easy access to professional development opportunities at a discounted rate. NAPO Members quickly embraced the concept of paying one price and having an annual pass to certain groups of classes.
NAPO also launched a new specialist certificate program. Specialist Certificates enable those newer to the profession to earn a designation by completing a set number of classes specific to an area of study. Members quickly embraced the ability to gain professional development and earn a digital badge to share the achievement with their prospective client base.
NAPO’s ability to respond to the evolution of the profession and embrace new technology has resulted in a 33% increase in education revenue during the first year of implementing the changes.
Currently, NAPO offers three Specialist Certificates in Residential Organizing, Workplace Productivity, and Life Transitions. NAPO leaders have also made the strategic decision to continue to grow the number of Specialist Certificates they make available to those interested in joining the profession. New Bundles of educational content focused on the class options required to earn the certificates are now being offered to members to provide a clear and easy path for professional development.
