Staff training · Leadership development
Two hands-on programs led by David Flam, MS, NCC: clinically grounded mental-health training for the staff who provide care, and Steady Lead leadership training for the people who lead them. Both built to leave your people informed, confident and empowered.
I'm a mental-health counselor in private practice, and I've spent years consulting with CEOs in nonprofit social services, helping them build their leadership teams. Seeing the work from both sides, clinical and organizational, is why I train the way I do: hands-on, real situations, no PowerPoint. My goal: your staff and leaders leave informed, confident and empowered.
— DavidDavid Flam, MS, NCC
Book a free 20-minute call with meTraining in action
The challenge
Mental-health conditions are significantly overrepresented among people with developmental disabilities, and they are often under- or misdiagnosed, even by experienced professionals. When psychiatric distress is treated as "behavior," the people you support get the wrong response, staff burn out, and agencies pay for it in incidents and turnover.
Nearly half of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (49%) have a diagnosed mental-health condition, more than double the rate among U.S. adults overall (23%).
Sources: National Core Indicators, 2023–24 In-Person Survey; SAMHSA, 2024 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
Programs
I teach both programs myself, on-site with your team. Pick the one that fits, or bring both.
Specialized training so your DSPs and front-line managers can recognize mental-health presentations, respond calmly and know when to act, consult or escalate.
Interactive leadership development for your supervisors, emerging and experienced leaders, built on my Steady Lead Six Pillars.
Each pillar is original to Steady Lead, shaped by real leadership work in direct-care organizations and drawing on thinkers including Peter Drucker, Stephen Covey, Daniel Goleman, Patrick Lencioni and Jim Collins.
A six-session series, just you and me, for leaders who want less reactivity and more clarity. We apply the Steady Lead pillars to your real role, team and week.
Need something specific? DFT also builds custom sessions around one team, population or challenge, such as cultural competency or a team working through a difficult situation. Talk about a custom training.
Why David's training is different
Developed and led through the lens of mental-health practice and years of staffing, consulting and leadership-coaching work in the IDD field.
Accounts for trauma in the people receiving services and in the staff doing demanding support work.
Discussion, role-play and real scenarios, never a PowerPoint lecture. Participants practice, question and reflect.
Adapted to your organization's needs, resources, culture and real challenges.
The question throughout isn't "do you understand this?" It's "what would you do with this on your next shift, or in your next team meeting?"
Why invest in training
In a field where turnover is one of the costliest risks an agency faces, strong leaders and well-trained staff are two of the most cost-effective retention tools you have. The research backs that up.
415%
annualized ROI one study found on training for 2,000+ first-time managers.
Training Industry, 201912%
improvement in employee retention from leadership development, in a Forrester study commissioned by DDI.
Forrester, 2024Format & pricing
Discounts available when you book multiple trainings. Custom pricing for larger groups or agencies outside the main service area.
Making it easy to fund
Share a session with agencies facing the same challenges. Split the cost per seat, based on how many participants each agency sends, or have one agency cover the total as a single line item.
Training together is a benefit in itself. Staff and leaders from different agencies, with a shared mission and similar day-to-day pressures, learn from each other, not just from David.
David has direct experience with grant funding and can help put together the cost breakdowns and documentation an application needs, for either program.
Certificate day
Testimonials
"I've been in the field for almost 26 years and I'm still learning so much, and today was a perfect example of that."
Director"I learned a lot… I even learned a couple things about myself today. So just come and see what you'll learn."
Residential Manager"He had us doing hands-on. We didn't fall asleep. That's a good thing… I definitely would recommend this to all DSPs."
Direct Support Professional"David did a wonderful job explaining how different mental disorders show up in the population that we serve… I think it's imperative that everybody that works with people with IDD gets this training."
Training participant"I have never in my life felt energized after a day of training like I have with David. He opened my mind to things that I didn't realize I was capable of."
Direct Support Professional
"I did a double take after I sat in on one of David's trainings. I have never seen staff so engaged in the work, and a few months later, I still see the results."
Director of Clinical Services
"David's view of leadership through the six pillars feels like I just read ten textbooks on leadership."
Chief Program Officer
"I wouldn't call this a training. It was an interactive chance to truly learn. I feel so much better informed about dual diagnosis in our population."
Direct Support Professional
About the trainer
David brings a rare combination of clinical expertise and first-hand industry knowledge. He is a practicing mental-health counselor in private practice. Before becoming a counselor, he spent years in IDD staffing and leadership coaching, consulting with CEOs across nonprofit social services and helping them build their leadership teams.
That dual view, clinical and organizational, is why the training doesn't stay theoretical. Participants think, talk, practice and connect the material to the work waiting for them when they leave the room.
You don't need to know which program fits. Tell David what's happening with your staff or leaders, and he'll help you work out whether DFT, Steady Lead, coaching or a custom session makes sense.
Prefer to reach David directly?
