By Kim E. Jackson, CAPP
I have the distinct honor of being a trainer for IPMI. I have been training for the past 23 years and one of the major highlights has always been the face-to-face interactions with trainees. During COVID-19, I decided to participate in Frontline Training Live Class Series in addition to teaching a session during the IPMI Virtual Parking & Mobility Conference & Expo. What an incredible experience! I was challenged in ways I did not think possible and realize this experience will make me a better manager.
In the world of Zoom and virtual meeting space, the interactive feedback I was used to during in-person trainings was often a black square, sometimes an initial and last name, making it impossible to see trainees’ reactions to the information I was sharing. Now there were those brave souls who turned their cameras on; they have no idea how helpful that was to this trainer.
Then there are the chat functions—a great feature when you have a co-facilitator, but very nerve wracking when training or teaching solo. It is nearly impossible to keep up with the flood of messages being shared to your questions or comments from others in attendance.
So you may be asking: How can this help me become a better manager? I have learned to be patient with the silence. I have learned eye contact, something I highly value, is not always necessary for comprehension or understanding. It is OK to take a risk and trust your own skills and abilities to communicate in any situation!
Kim E. Jackson, CAPP, is director of parking and transportation at Princeton University and an IPMI trainer.
Tom Wunk, CAPP, is vice president of PARCS solutions for T2 Systems and has been in the parking control industry since 1973. He is a CAPP and a graduate of the State University of New York system. He has developed and provided training presentations for IPMI, ASIS, and the AAAE. He is a member of IPMI’s Technology Committee and the IPMI Education Development Committee, the Smart Card Alliance, and the EMV Migration Forum.
Arnold (Gabe) Mendez, CAPP, has been with ASU’s Parking and Transit Services since June 2008. He serves as assistant director of strategic support, and provides support and leadership in the areas of strategic planning, parking technology applications, reporting, and involvement with department initiatives including campus access master planning. He is an active member of the ASU PM Network leadership team and IPMI’s Education Development Committee and Conference Program Task Force.
Jeremy Rocha, PE, is a parking consultant with WGI with more than 20 years of experience in parking, project management, engineering and planning. His focus at WGI is planning and project management. He has led multiple projects as design team project manager nationwide. As a representative of the parking industry, he is committed to making parking friendly and understandable.
David Taxman, PE, is a parking and transportation engineer at Kimley-Horn. He has been a passionate advocate for reform in parking planning practices, spearheading efforts to include t
Brett Wood, CAPP, PE, is a parking and t
George Richardson is the manager for Transportation and Parking Services at the University of Florida Health. He’s been in this role for the last three years. Prior, he worked for SP+ in New Orleans, La. In addition, he has 10 years’ experience with parking and transportation services in university systems.
Roque Perez-Velez, PE, CSSBB, MEng, is Project Manager at UF Health, where he previously worked as coordinator of management engineering services, operational effectiveness, and director of management engineering consulting services. He is also adjunct faculty of the Industrial and Systems Engineering Department at the University of Florida. He is a Professional Engineer (PE) and Certified Six Sigma Black Belt (CSSBB). He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in industrial engineering.
Mark Vergenes is the president of MIRUS Consultants.
Tim Horstmann is a public finance and tax attorney at McNees Wallace & Nurick in Harrisburg, PA. Tim advises governmental entities on the structuring of taxable and tax-exempt revenue bond and general obligation bond financings for a variety of capital projects, including parking facilities, schools, and higher education institutions and water, sewer and stormwater infrastructure. He also represents clients in the monetization of publicly-owned assets through various arrangements such as sales, leases, sale/leasebacks, and lease/leasebacks.