Meet an IDEA Team Member: Ryan Halvorson

At IDEA, we love to extol the talents of our lively staff, but if there’s one IDEA family member who best embodies fun, creative flair and hard work, it just might be our director of event programming, Ryan Halvorson.

 Ryan and husband, Rafael, with pups Millie and Ruby Tuesday.

Ryan flexes his diverse skill set by crafting the education and content for IDEA events and supporting the team’s marketing strategies. Though he’s only been in his director role for a year, his time at IDEA stretches back to 2004! In those days, Ryan proved his editorial chops as senior editor for publications—writing several monthly columns, lead-editing content and managing the production of our retired publication IDEA Trainer Success.

“Ryan is the ultimate team player,” shares Amanda Dingle, our event project manager. “He makes the complexity of his job look effortless, manages an intense workload with ease, is innovative, is always there to lend a hand and makes me laugh constantly!”

If the impressive scope of his work doesn’t sweep you off your feet, maybe you’ll get a kick out of his charming hidden talent: “He is a tap-dancer,” says Amanda. “What could be more fun than that?”

When he’s not being quick on his feet at IDEA, Ryan loves caring for his plants and honing his tap-dancing skills. He cites the “paddle and roll” as his favorite move, which frankly sounds as intriguing as Ryan himself!

The Ryan Report

Ryan showing his tap-dancing chops.

• The toughest athletic challenge he conquered was “a 9.5-mile run that included eight laps up and down a street with a 10% incline. Because that apparently wasn’t enough, we also did a 1.5-hour leg workout. Walking the following week was tough.”
• His favorite TV binge? “Baking shows—even though I don’t bake much nor eat baked goods.”
• If he could be any pro athlete, he’d be former MLS all-star Landon Donovan. “His dedication to supporting his diverse team at the expense of games and championships is inspiring.”
• He was “once a DJ for a radio station in Derry, Northern Ireland.”
• His ultimate inspiration is one we can all get behind: “Kindness,” he says.