Training, Workshops, and Consultation

Why most MI training doesn't stick

Workshops don't work very well.

Agencies spend millions of training dollars nationally to run workers through trainings that don't fit their clients or their agency practice, and that aren't supported by ongoing practice and feedback. Staff come back energized, the binder goes on the shelf, and six weeks later nothing has changed.

This is not a mystery. It is a well-studied problem. Implementation science is the field concerned with what makes evidence-based practice actually take hold in an agency setting, and it has clear answers about what transfer to the workplace requires: repeated practice, individualized feedback, supervisor involvement, and organizational support that outlasts the training itself.

We build every engagement around those findings. Our founder's doctoral research examined the specific organizational and delivery variables that determine whether MI training transfers to the job, and that research shapes how we structure our work with you.

We also see Motivational Interviewing as more than a technique. It is a philosophy about how to treat people, with compassion, empathy, and partnership, and by evoking people's own goals and supporting their self-determination. Agency culture shapes how staff treat each other, and that shapes how staff treat clients. When MI is genuinely adopted in a department, it improves culture and becomes self-reinforcing. This is sometimes called parallel process.

We want to help you help the vulnerable people in our communities live better lives. This is how we have an impact beyond our own direct practice, and we believe it is the way to have the biggest one.

Who we work with

We work with:

• Child welfare agencies and state child welfare systems

• Healthcare practices and care management teams

• Court-involved and criminal legal settings

• Community-based behavioral health and substance use programs

• Programs serving veterans

Our trainers are members of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT), hold clinical social work and addictions credentials, and come out of direct practice. We have been front-line staff. We know what a caseload feels like.

Our full agency package

We prefer to work with agencies that want their staff to actually use MI, not just hear about it. Here is what a full engagement looks like.

Training. We train up to 20 people per cohort, including front-line staff and supervisors, for 30 hours over 10 weeks, meeting 3 hours a week online. Every class is participatory. Trainees practice in class and between classes.

Organizational consultation. Between the first and second training sessions, we meet with your administrative team to jointly identify the specific barriers and facilitators to ongoing MI use in your setting, and how to support fidelity to the model.

An MI champion team. We help you build internal capacity so the work continues after we leave.

Measurement. We help you identify ways to measure the impact of MI on your workforce and your clients.

Six months of coaching. After the 30 hours of training, we meet with trainees on Zoom in groups of about four, once every other week for six months. They bring real challenges, and they keep and sharpen their skills instead of losing them.

Six months of supervisor support. During those same six months, we meet monthly with supervisors on how to use MI as a coaching tool in supervision, how to assess and support supervisee skill use, and how to sharpen their own practice.

Ongoing administrative consultation. Up to 10 hours of as-needed consultation with your leadership team across the six months.

What it costs

A full year-long package includes 30 hours of training, organizational consultation, champion team development, six months of biweekly staff coaching, six months of supervisor coaching, and 10 hours of leadership consultation.

That package costs approximately $30,000. For a cohort of 20 staff, that is roughly $1,500 per person for a full year of training, coaching, and organizational support. It may be the biggest return you ever get on an agency training dollar.

If you need to train more than 20 people, additional cohorts cost less, because the organizational consulting is already paid for. If your group is smaller than 20, costs are lower as well, because fewer coaching groups are required.

Other ways to work with us

Not every agency is ready for a year-long engagement. These smaller options stand on their own, and each one can be credited toward a full package later.

Introductory MI workshop. A one-day or two-day foundation in MI spirit and core skills for teams that want to understand what MI is before committing to implementation. [Confirm format and hours.]

MI fidelity coding and feedback. We code recorded practice samples against a validated MI fidelity measure and return individualized written feedback to each practitioner, with an aggregate summary for leadership. This is how you find out whether your staff are actually doing MI, rather than whether they enjoyed the training. Available as a standalone service or as an add-on to any training. [Confirm pricing structure, per sample or per cohort.]

Supervisor coaching. A focused package for supervisors and coaches who need to support MI in their teams. Useful for agencies whose staff were trained elsewhere and need reinforcement.

Advanced and booster training. For teams with an existing MI foundation who need to go deeper or refresh skills. Participants must have appropriate background in MI for anything beyond the intro level.

Conference and in-service presentations. Including trauma-informed motivational interviewing, MI in child welfare, and MI in healthcare settings. [Confirm your standard topic list.]

What we teach

In our 30-hour training, we cover:

• The spirit and philosophy of Motivational Interviewing as a way of being with people

• How to have conversations that guide people toward positive change

• What to do when clients seem unmotivated

• How to help people who want to change but struggle with follow-through

• How to help people identify their own goals and reasons for change

• What to do when someone is angry or upset with their worker

• The impact of trauma on client contact, and how to work in ways that respect social, cultural, and historical differences

We teach reflective, trauma-informed practice that centers positive relationships, client well-being, and self-determination.

The technical skills behind the outcomes

The outcomes above are achieved through specific, research-supported skills. These include:

• Theoretical underpinnings: self-determination, reactance, positive regard

• Practical mnemonics such as OARS (Open-ended questions, Affirmations, Reflections, Summaries)

• Tools for recognizing readiness for change, so you know where to start

• Tools for setting an agenda and focusing a conversation

• Tools for using complex reflections to deepen motivation

• Tools for recognizing change talk and evoking more of it

• Tools for disarming conflict, including understanding the helper's role in it

• Tools for knowing when and how to give advice

• Cheat sheets and back pocket questions to support early practice

• Tools for measuring how well you are using MI

Online training

In-person training is often preferred, but online training improves accessibility for rural agencies, for organizations with sites spread across a region or state, and during periods of disruption.

We are experienced online trainers and have taught practitioners to use MI online for years. Our approach combines mostly synchronous live classes with asynchronous homework participants complete on their own time. Classes are interactive and dynamic. We use Zoom, including breakout rooms and supervised practice.

All courses can be customized to the needs of your setting.

Are you an individual looking for MI training or coaching?

We periodically run open-enrollment online training, and we start a cohort once we have enough participants. Join our email list and we will let you know when the next cohort opens. [Add signup link.] We also help participants stay connected to their cohort afterward, so you have practice support even if your workplace is not implementing MI at scale.

For individual or small-group coaching, email ToddSage@gmail.com.

Start with a free consultation

Our first step with an agency is usually a 30 to 60 minute conversation, by Zoom or in person, about what you are thinking and whether this work fits your setting.

We are not salespeople. We are social workers. We will give you a realistic perspective on whether MI is a fit for your agency, suggest alternatives if it isn't, tell you honestly what our availability looks like, and get to know each other a little.

Email ToddSage@gmail.com or call 971-285-6228 to schedule.