What do Amy Pohler, Tina Fey and Bill Murray have to do with the learning industry? Well, Nothing really. But the three comedians are all alumnus of the comedy troupe The Second City. And on Sunday, April 12, the vastly different worlds of learning and improv comedy will collide when the famed group provides the entertainment during the LearningElite Gala. As a bonus, The Second City will also officially kick off the CLO Symposium the following morning. @SecondCity
For those unfamiliar with The Second City, it’s safe to say the group is one of the main pipelines for comedians looking to make it on Saturday Night Live or other mainstream comedy productions. In addition to Pohler, Fey and Murray, Dan Akroyd, Chris Farley and Steve Carrell have all graced the Second City stage at one time or another.
Since its beginning as a one stage production on Chicago’s northside in 1959, The Second City has grown to become a diversified entertainment company. While The Second City continues to create unique media in television, film and the digital realm, Second City Works, the B2B side of The Second City, is an industry
leader in bringing improv-based methodologies to the corporate sector.
As with comedy, Second City Works sees a strong connection between having great improvisational skills and being successful in business.
“The businesses that thrive in the chaos of ever-present change are the ones with a new toolkit,” according to the group’s website. “It’s a toolkit that values speed, agility, collaboration, comfort with change, willingness to fail, and the creativity to solve old problems in new ways. Ultimately, they have the toolkit of an improviser.”
We know your trip to Miami for the CLO symposium and the LearningElite Gala is a business trip, first and foremost. But while you’re networking with peers and attending keynote presentations, we also hope you have fun. So when Wednesday afternoon rolls around, we not only want every one of our attendees to leave Symposium feeling like they increased their industry knowledge, but that they also leave feeling like they had great time. We hope The Second City can make you feel both. @SecondCity #LearningElite
Until next time!
Max Mihelich
Marketing Associate
Chief Learning Officer magazine
