10/9/2017
Schenectady, New York, entrepreneur Kat Koppett helps executives at Facebook, Apple and GE get creative - Albany Business Review
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From the Albany Business Review: https://www.bizjournals.com/albany/news/2016/11/01/how-this-schenectady-entrepreneurhelpsexecutives.html
How this Schenectady entrepreneur helps executives at Facebook, Apple and GE get creative SUBSCRIBER CONTENT: Nov 1, 2016, 2:59pm EDT
When companies such as Facebook, Apple and General Electric want to inspire more creativity in their employees, they look to Kat Koppett, a Schenectady, New York, entrepreneur and businesswoman. Koppett started her eponymous business more than 10 years ago to teach improvisation in corporate and nonprofit settings with the goals of building leadership, creativity and other skills. CHELSEA DIANA
The traction Koppett has received nationally is beginning to take root in the Albany area. Her improv company now works with MVP Health Care, CAP COM Credit Union, Ellis Hospital and others.
When companies such as Facebook, Apple and General Electric want to inspire more creativity in their employees, they look to Kat Koppett, a Schenectady entrepreneur and businesswoman.
"Organizations were starting to realize that it was no longer possible to plan something, to say here’s a five-year plan and have the world be the same five years later and have the plan exist," said Koppett, who is also co-director of The Mop & Bucket Co., an improv theater company in Schenectady. "Organizations realized that we’re improvising all the time. The skills of flexibility and creativity and adaptability and being able to celebrate failure, to fail fast, are important marketable skills." Koppett moved to the Schenectady region 12 years ago from the San Francisco Bay Area. She joined The Mop & Bucket Co. as co-director soon after moving here. The theater company recently invested almost $500,000 to purchase and renovate a former firehouse on North Jay Street. The space, which has a stage area for shows, also serves as Koppett's base. With a bachelor's of fine arts in drama from New York University and a master's in organizational psychology from Columbia University, Koppett was on the forefront of Applied Improvisation, which uses the principles, tools, practices, skills and mindsets developed in comedy theater in corporate settings. That early insight helped Koppett grow her contacts in the Bay Area and her business in Schenectady. Koppett develops programs for clients to improve leadership, creativity, communication and teamwork.
https://www.bizjournals.com/albany/news/2016/11/01/how-this-schenectady-entrepreneurhelps-executives.html?s=print
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10/9/2017
Schenectady, New York, entrepreneur Kat Koppett helps executives at Facebook, Apple and GE get creative - Albany Business Review
A major aspect of the programs is accepting and celebrating failure through games and activities. Koppett said in one of the first activities, she instructs people to throw their hands in the air and say "I failed!" They then jump into games that celebrate failure and analyze how they can improve. As more companies recognize the need to adapt quickly, Koppett said her business is growing. “It’s an interesting business dilemma for us, scaling what we do," Koppett said. "Most of what we do is customized, but we can say, 'Here’s a standard creative skills packet, a standard leadership packet, a standard communication skills packet,' and have facilitators stand in and do the same program off the shelf without much customization. We've done that, but we tend to be more boutique." Revenue for the last four years has grown 150 percent each year. She did not provide specifics. Koppett expects the staff to triple to 20 full-time employees in the next three years. She currently has seven employees in the office, with 25 consultants around the country. "That's great, but it's OK for us to take a little bit of a breath," Koppett said. "In the next year, I'd like us to feel really stable and focused. We're excited that the traction we've had nationally and internationally is growing more locally." Chelsea Diana Reporter Albany Business Review
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