Electives For Businesses
FAQ:
How do I get started?
Simply, complete the request form below or on our home page and we'll start brainstorming Elective ideas with you.
How many Electives do I need to book?
That's up to you. Some companies book one or two at a time. Other companies plan 10-12 Electives to build a monthly calendar of learning experiences!
How much does it cost?
Every Elective is priced depending on the teacher and then length of the session. Once we kick off the brainstorming process, our team will show you a variety of pricing options that fit within your budget.
Can I request an Elective that is not listed on the platform?
Of course! In fact, it is encouraged. We would love to hear what topics you’d like to teach your employees. Email us at info@electives.io and we’ll do some expert research.
Can I request to meet the teacher before booking?
Yes, most companies do! Once you express interest in a particular topic, we can introduce you to the expert(s) for you to meet and discuss your goals.
How long is the live class?
Some classes are 30 minutes. Others are 2 hours. And some are even full day workshops. Each Electives.io teacher is flexible in terms of the format that works best for your organization.
What is the format of each class?
It depends on the teacher and the topic. Some Electives are panel discussions. Some Electives are lectures and others are workshops with breakout sessions.
How can I find out what Electives are launching next month?
Subscribe to our newsletter on our “About Us” page. Our email community gains early access to new class and new teacher alerts.
Instructor Spotlight
Gary Noesner
Former Chief of the FBI Crisis Negotiation Unit, Gary had a 30 year FBI career as an investigator, instructor, and hostage negotiator involved in numerous terrorist, kidnap, and hostage incidents covering: right wing militia standoffs, religious zealot sieges, prison riots, embassy takeovers, skyjackings, and over 120 kidnappings of American citizens abroad. Author of "Stalling For Time: My Life as an FBI Hostage Negotiator" published in 2010 by Random House and used as the basis of the 2018 Paramount Network six part television event "Waco," Gary has appeared in numerous broadcast and print interviews.
Sample courses by this instructor:
AK Ikwuakor
AK Ikwuakor, also known as Coach AK, is a former top ten world-ranked athlete, triplet, entrepreneur, educator, consultant and strategic storyteller who has traveled to 30+ countries working with students, professional athletes, coaches, governmental agencies, celebrities, CEO’s, employees of Fortune 100 companies, scholars, victims affected by terrorism and even community leaders from around the world through his entrepreneurial ventures. His endeavors have included work in sports diplomacy, storytelling, fashion, Virtual reality, global education, business coaching, as well as several others.
He has led an unorthodox path which began by narrowly missing the 2008 Olympic games to working at top educational institutions such as Phillips Exeter Academy and The St. Paul’s School, to now founding a fashion company for athletes. AK has collaborated or worked with companies such as Google, Raymond James, UBS, Biogen, Dear World, Duke Basketball, NYU, Dermelogica, Jimmy V Foundation, the State Department, WeWork, ImpactHUB, Oath and even victims affected by terrorism.
Through his work he has been featured in Sports Illustrated, Nike, Yurbuds, Women’s Health, Sony, Fox Sports, The Doctors, and was even a contestant on the Fox game show, Are you Smarter than a 5th Grader? with his triplet brother. (Unfortunately, they were not smarter than a 5th Grader.)
AK is the founder of ELETE Styles which is a made to measure clothing provider for athletes and working professionals, an international speaker, and also advises several startups around the globe. He currently resides in Boston with his partner, Yasmin, and 7-year-old daughter, Haiven. AK enjoys rock climbing, standup comedy and traveling.
Rob Salafia
Rob Salafia is an Author, Speaker, Facilitator and Executive Coach.
Rob combines two decades of experience as a top leadership development executive with a well-established career in the performing arts. He has a passion for coaching leaders to develop their presence, tell compelling stories and establish authentic connections. He is the author of – Leading From Your Best Self: Develop Your Executive Poise, Presence and Influence to Maximize Your Potential (McGraw-Hill).
As an executive coach, Rob finds great satisfaction in guiding leaders through personal transformations as well as transitions to more senior roles. He is hightly skilled at helping senior executives and leadership teams enhance team effectiveness and prepare for strategic presentations.
What is unique about Rob is that for the first half of his career he was a performing artist where he traveled the globe delivering his unique, one-person variety show. He utilizes the skills learned to coach senior executives to become excellent speakers and leaders.
Rob is a lecturer in MIT Sloan School of Management and an MIT Leadership Center Master Executive Coach. He is certified in the PRINT® Assessment to reveal one’s Unconscious Motivators®.
Over the past 20 years Rob has worked with a multitude of Fortune 500 companies in the capacity as a speaker, executive coach, learning partner and workshop facilitator. These include, Harvard Business School, Discover Finanical Services, Alexion Pharmaceuticals, PepsiCo, TJX, Publicis Sapient, ING Bank, NN Group, News Corp, Sony Music Entertainment, Thought Ensemble, Metro AG, Philips International, Alliance Bernstein, and Fidelity Investments.
Catherine Sanderson
Catherine Sanderson is the Poler Family Professor and Chair of Psychology at Amherst College. She received a bachelor's degree in psychology, with a specialization in Health and Development, from Stanford University, and received both masters and doctoral degrees in psychology from Princeton University. Her research has received grant funding from the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Health.
Professor Sanderson has published over 25 journal articles and book chapters in addition to four college textbooks, middle school and high school health textbooks, and trade books on parenting as well as how mindset influences happiness, health, and even how long we live (The Positive Shift: Mastering Mindset to Improve Happiness, Health, and Longevity). Her latest trade book, published in North America as Why We Act: Turning Bystanders Into Moral Rebels (Harvard University Press) and internationally as The Bystander Effect: The Psychology of Courage and Inaction (HarperCollins), examines why good people so often stay silent or do nothing in the face of wrongdoing.
Professor Sanderson speaks regularly for public and corporate audiences on topics such as the science of happiness, the power of emotional intelligence, the art of aging well, and the psychology of courage and inaction. These talks have been featured in numerous mainstream media outlets, including The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, USA Today, The Atlantic, CNN, and CBS Sunday Morning with Jane Pauley. In 2012, she was named one of the country's top 300 professors by the Princeton Review.
Marta Kagan
Marta has created some of the most memorable presentations of all time, amassing over 10 Million views and resulting in over $100M in venture funding. Her work has been featured on Mashable, SlideShare, and LinkedIn (where in 2015 she was credited with one of the "Must-Read SlideShares of the Year"). She is the former head of "Brand & Buzz" at HubSpot, where she coined the company's first tagline ("For the Love of Marketing"), produced several of their most beloved/most shared presentations, and was responsible for bringing the very first INBOUND Marketing Conference to life. Since 2013, Marta has been helping entrepreneurs, sales teams, and purpose-driven brands get noticed & get funded as the CEO & founder of Martafy Inc.
Sample courses by this instructor:
David Marino
David Marino has been coaching industry leaders in transformative communication for over 25 years.
Using creative and dynamic presentation techniques from scripted and improvisational theater, he engages with individuals, non-profit and for-profit companies to create inspiring and interactive leadership practices that demonstrate powerful and effective communication strategies.
In addition to individual coaching, David has shared his skills and experience with financial institutions, hotel industries, museums, theaters, research laboratories, non-profit charities, retail companies, and environmental conservation organizations.
David was an executive coach at ImprovBoston, in Cambridge Massachusetts, for over 15 years and is the Director of Improv at Curry College. He has been affiliated with Peter Bubriski Associates since 2006, where he collaborated on creating executive management workshops for UBS in London, Hong Kong, New York City.
Sample courses by this instructor:
Louis Masur
Louis P. Masur is Distinguished Professor of American Studies and History at Rutgers University and an award-winning teacher and Lincoln scholar. He has received teaching prizes from Harvard University, the City College of New York, Trinity College, and Rutgers University. His books include Lincoln’s Last Speech (2015), Lincoln’s Hundred Days (2012), and The Civil War: A Concise History (2011). His most recent book is The Sum of Our Dreams: A Concise History of America (2020). His essays and editorials have appeared in numerous publications including the New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, and Slate. His website is www.louismasur.com
Sample courses by this instructor:
Joan Ryan
I am a longtime sports journalist and the author of five books. I've spent more than two decades in clubhouses and locker rooms, covering every sport from baseball, football and basketball to championship boxing and the Olympic Games. I was one of the first female sports columnists in the country. My two most acclaimed books are "Little Girls in Pretty Boxes: The Making and Breaking of Elite Gymnasts and Figure Skating'' (1995) and my newest book "Intangibles: Unlocking the Science and Soul of Team Chemistry'' (2020). "Little Girls'' exposed the physical and psychological abuse in gymnastics more than two decades before the arrest of sexual predator Larry Nassar in 2018. Sports Illustrated named the book one of the top 100 Sports Books of All-Time. "Intangibles'' is being hailed by coaches, general managers and business executives as a game-changer in our understanding of what team chemistry actually is and how it elevates performance. I am a story-teller.
Sample courses by this instructor:
Curtis Smith
An award-winning and highly-rated former school leader in Brooklyn, New York, a seasoned public speaker, and creator of Moment of Mindfulness (MOM), a mindfulness methodology and company committed to empowering communities to activate their best intentions through culturally responsive evidence-based mindfulness tools. With eleven years of service as an educator, in 2013, Curtis co-founded one of the top-rated public middle schools in Brooklyn, New York and designed the mindfulness curriculum that’s infused into the foundation of the school's mission and culture. The success and notable impact of the program contributed to an improved learning community and led to his work with the New York City Department of Education District 19. There he created and facilitated district-wide workshops and training for Barack Obama’s My Brother’s Keeper Alliance and eventually the First Office of Chancellor in New York City while supporting over 1.1 million students in New York City.
Curtis holds a Bachelor of Science in Political Science from the University of Michigan, a Master of Science from Brooklyn College in Education, a School Building and District Leadership Degree from the College of St. Rose in partnership with the Center for Integrated Training and Education, a certification in Mindfulness and Loving-Kindness from The Path in partnership with The Nalanda Institute, and is a RISE for Educators recipient from Kripalu‘s Center for Yoga and Health. He’s transformed thousands of lives by using music, movement, art, and writing to activate the science-based benefits of mindfulness. He’s taken the leap to evolve his career towards social entrepreneurship as he expands his mission to promote wellbeing across the world.