In this episode we hear from Brian Carney President of International Training for all things happening with the SDI TDI ERDI and PFI brands.

Welcome To The Show!

Welcome to the dive locker podcast, the podcast for dive professionals where we bring you the latest in diving industry resources that make you excellent at teaching techniques, risk management and dive business.

I’m your host TEC Clark. In today’s episode we get to hear from another one of our dive training agencies, SDI TDI. Actually they’re more than that. It’s multiple brands under International Training including SDI, TDI, ERDI and now PFI. We will hear from Brian Carney, president and CEO as he tells the latest happenings in those brands. Before we get to my interview with Brian, as promised last week I launched my new online tutorial called Mastering Dive Tables and Decompression Theory. Yay! I’m so excited about that. It’s only a year and a half in the making. Oh my gosh. But I say tutorial, although it’s more like a course. Actually there are three separate courses to this. but let me explain. Since you’re a pro, you know the challenges of teaching dive tables. And many of you might’ve even stopped teaching dive tables to your lower level students like open water or advanced.

But when they get to divemaster and higher, they need to know it. So what we’re seeing is a whole wave of divemaster candidates who have never used a dive table because they’ve grown up on computers and their open water course was the computer version and so forth. But now they are in a divemaster program and they have to learn tables for the first time and they got to learn it along with decompression theory, the weighty subject with M values and halftimes and all the wonderful things, right? And so especially if you’re in the PADI system, not only after learn that, but you also have to learn the E R D P M L that’s the electronic recreational dive planner multilevel. So I’ve created an online course that is designed to be more like personal tutoring. You do a great job teaching, right?

The books and materials do a good job. But what about those students that are struggling? What about those ones that are nervous about their exams or whatnot? Well, this course is thorough and it patiently goes every possible scenario of how to work dive tables. Now I mentioned that there were three courses. Well those are three packages actually. Package one is the actual tables. Now I’m talking the PADI version by the way. the first one released is the PADI edition of the mastering dive tables and decompression theory. There are others that are in the queue with other agencies, but this one, the first one out of the gate is, is with PADI, so that the package one version is all about the actual use of the RDP. There are 38 examples of how to work the RDP backwards, forwards finding SITs, RNTs. Every possible combination is in there along with every possible rule that can be done within the dive tables.

That’s all calculated in there. So rules, procedures, everything that is in the package one, which is the diver package. Package two is the pro package and the pro package includes everything that package one the diver package has, which is all of the dive table stuff. But it also includes the diving decompression theory section. So the entire courses on, on, all about decompression theory, the history of decompression theory, gas laws, the gases we breathe. it gets into the experiment that we’ve all seen or talked about with soda bottles. I do multiple variations of that, which is pretty cool. and it gets into halftimes and M values and all of that. So kind of the weighty things are part of this and also comes with the pro package, a study guide, and this study guide goes through the course in order of all the testable terms that are talked about in the course that you’re probably going to see on an exam.

So that is the pro package. And then finally, the pro deluxe package is everything in the diver package and everything in the pro package, but it also includes an additional whole seminar on how to use the E R D P M L that’s the electronic recreational dive planner multilevel. So every function that that does is gone over. And by the way I’m using the app version, which is the new modern version that you do on app on your phone or device and not the calculator version, although I talk about it. So it goes over every function that is in the ERDPML and how to use it. And also there are 50 practice test questions in the pro deluxe version as well. So that is what we’re talking about here. Now if you think this sounds good for your students, especially the ones who struggle with decompression theory in dive tables, well it even gets better as a dive professional.

You can become an affiliate. That means when you send or recommend this course with your special affiliate link, you’ll receive 30% commission from each sale purchased through your link. This works for all three course packages. Now you might want all your open water students to have the diver package and you might want your divemaster candidates to have the pro or pro deluxe package. Doesn’t matter. When students purchase these courses from you, you get 30% commission. Pretty good considering the dive package sell diver package sells for $25. The pro package sells for $50 and the pro deluxe package sells for $75. So check out the promo video about all this so that you can see what it’s all about by going to scubaguruacademy.com and clicking on any of the mastering dive tables and decompression theory courses. I think you’re really gonna like it.

So, all right, pros, let’s get to my interview with Brian Carney for the SDI, TDI, E R D I and PFI check-in.

Interview with Brian Carney

TEC CLARK:                  All right Brian, so welcome to the show. Yeah, and it’s great to have you here. Tell us what you got going on with SDI TDI.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  We got a lot going on. I get, my staff keeps on asking me, you know, you’re going to, you’ve got to SDI TDI. ERDI we bring on a first response and now PFI they said, how many more logos you’re going to add to the brand in the next couple of months. I said, ah, give me some time. We’re still working our way along here. It’s been a little bit chaotic to say the least.

TEC CLARK:                  Exactly. That’s awesome. We’ll tell us about the brands. What’s going on, what’s new, what’s, what’s developing?

BRIAN CARNEY:                  All right, so, let’s see. SDI adding international, our recreational arm, if you want to say of our organization, is probably our largest growing. It’s our largest portion of international training, largest entity of it. And it’s growing in leaps and bounds, in large part because of our eLearning platform. Our elearning platform that we developed back in 2001 was the first time we launched the learning, but he’s grown and taken us to places where we never expected to be. So our SDI brand as a result of that, leverage with the way that we’ve always taken the no nonsense approach to our customer service. Couple of things instilled in us as an organization was, from the very beginning that diver’s going to pick up the phone, divers can respond to emails and we’re going to do a both those things in 24 hours. Same thing with credit card processing and certifications. Those would become next kind of culture of our company, of what we want to do and how we want to do things. So we continue to push that and maintain that.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  And for the last 25 years we’ve been doing it, international training has been going or TDI has been around for 25 years from the day one. It’s been the same type of philosophy. Right? So, the SDI side of things, we did a revamp of our instructor trainer material is their it materials so that we can get a whole lot more consistency throughout the world. We’re doing updates here at the show and we do updates around the world, for people throughout 2020. Oh my gosh. Can’t believe it’s already. And bringing people up to speed on that are in 2020 and we’re going to take an update all number of the videos and stuff that our basic program and then advanced from there. Okay. SDI. So TDI, TDI has been continuing actually this year for TDI. We did more certifications under TDI than we had ever done than any year previous.

TEC CLARK:                  No kidding. Congratulations.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  The brand’s continued to grow even after 25 years.

TEC CLARK:                  What do you attribute that to?

BRIAN CARNEY:                  I think there’s more people in the marketplace right now. If the open water numbers go up, the TDI numbers go up. So I tied some of that to the economy. Okay. And, but one of the things that we’re seeing is we’re seeing more open circuit certifications compared to closed circuit certification. Yeah. I’ll be a, I’ve got a presentation and some data that we’ll be releasing in the next day or so that’ll show the total number of certifications for TDI, open circuit versus closed circuit. And then in addition to that, what rebreathers were, we’re doing the largest amount of, certification for and what courses are our primary courses that we teach? So the two most popular courses, it’s still 25 years later. It’s still advanced nitrox and deco proceedures the highest amount of people taking those around to kind of have the entry into the program.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  It’s still extremely popular product and program. So on the public safety side with ERDI we continue public safety takes a while to get established in the marketplace and we’ve been in the market for a strongly in the market for about 10 years. And the reason it takes a little bit longer, is that you have to build the relationships with the municipalities. That’ll bring it up. So you’re talking to a guy on the fire department who needs to talk to his chief who needs to talk to that person and so on and so on. We’ve been doing that for 10 years now. as a result of that, we have a number of departments that have all come on board and I’m happy to say that that program is also growing and expanding at the levels that we had hoped it to. The standardization of standards on a global level is something that public safety no organization had ever done, has ever done before.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  And to date, no other organization has done that. There have been pockets of organizations that done and they’d done a fantastic job, but nobody’s taking these standards global. So through our network of our, of our regional offices around the world and through our relationship in the States, that’s allowed us to grow that particular brand, in a number of ways.

TEC CLARK:                  Right. So that’s great. Excellent. And then how does that tie into first response?

BRIAN CARNEY:                  Well, first response, we built a program years ago called cprox, which is CPR, oxygen, first aid. and that program went for a couple of years and we kinda, it was written to be an add on facility or add on course for divemasters and  assistant instructors. So here’s diving centered program and it was getting old. So we need to do a revamp on the product. So when we want to look to rebound for product, we went, you know, staying within the diving industry is one thing.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  But if we could get outside the diving industry with the first aid product, it would help our members have additional place to gain revenue and additional program. They’re already teaching CPR courses, so why can’t they teach CPR courses to a local school? Or a boy scout troop. or you know, anything of, you know, Coca Cola or something like that, you know, a division of Coca Cola, right? So we built this first responder program from the ground up from just a brand, to facilitate that market share. And so far in its first year, we’ve doubled the amount of qualifications that are running, in large part because there’s nobody out there. There are, there are entities that do it, but there’s so much demand and not enough, not enough supply. Not enough of our people providing the programs. We were surprised, we went into our local community, went to the chamber of commerce and within that short period of time with our communication chest at our local chamber of commerce, we were able to pick up the school system and local school system.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  and then we ended up going on to two nursing associations.  You’re talking to hundreds of people. And I, as a result of that, we had to find more stores and make more instructors in the area. Cause when we get an agreement or a contract like that, we bring in our dive professionals that will teach the courses. So local store in the area said I need to hire three more instructors to help handle this demand.

TEC CLARK:                  Yeah, exactly. Wow, that’s really cool. I think it’s, you know, it’s, it’s interesting we’ve done our share and I think other dive pros have done their share of saying, Hey, we can teach our course to other people outside of diving. but there’s always that little kind of head nod that goes, but it says diving in the name or something like that. Do you think that having that kind of neutral name, that neutral brand of first response does help get it outside of the dive center into the community?

BRIAN CARNEY:                  Absolutely. We did keyword searching. We looked on before even pick the name of the company. We did a lot of background on that. So we would not have that. You’re a diving centric company interests. One of the reasons why we have the parent organization is international training,  So if they need to know the parent organization, it’s not a scuba diving company. because you’re talking to different segments of the people, at different times. The branding and the marketing is probably one of the things that we find that dive professionals get as much confused about with our other organizations. But if you’re training a family how to go look a pretty fish, you’ve got one brand. If you’re walking into a police department and you need to talk to a municipality, they don’t want the organization that trains pretty fish. They want the organization that’s all those pros.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  So they talk to you on that level and you have to, that’s probably about the most difficult thing I have to do at my job is change the way I’m approaching and thinking about. We knew this when we started with technical diving, started with technical diving and we were really good at technical diving. But then we started talking to organizations about,  pretty fish diving, which is our background, but a, different group of people Which we came from. So it was easy. But we recognize that difference between those that we said two brands and it especially came apparent when we got to the public safety side.

TEC CLARK:                  Interesting. So that’s really cool. Well, speaking of brands, what we, here we are, we’re at the DEMA show 2019 in Orlando. your booth looks great and you’ve got your staff all decked out in the newest brand. PFI tell us about that.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  Well, this has been a passion of mine for years freediving, Free diving is in all through high school and college, you know, I taught diving and stuff to make a living. Yeah. But I freedove for fun. That was my escape and it was my place to go get peace and quiet and really where my roots came from. It’s a matter of fact, my son is 10 learns is learning how to freedive before he’s learning how to dive on scuba just for the quiet. And that’s nice. and being with one nature and stuff,

TEC CLARK:                  you and I couldn’t be more alike in that, you know, I say the exact same thing. scuba is my job. Freediving is my hobby. You know, I love it and my kids are the same thing. They could, I’ve delayed them into scuba just so they could be good free divers first and get that foundation that and we’re in the same boat there. That’s awesome. Great. I’m sorry I cut you off.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  Yeah, no problem. They I don’t have, I love hearing the stories about it cause I get really [inaudible] it was a passion for mine to try to bring this and our members, our members had asked us, Hey, where’s your free diving program? Where’s your freediving program? And I’m like, you know, I got all this experience, I can write it, I can write courses and build all this stuff. But I couldn’t find the time that I didn’t know if we wanted to do our own thing or partner with a group. And along the way, I’ve known about PFI for many years. The founder of that, Kirk Krack and TDI.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  We’ve been involved with one another on one fashion or another for a long time. And the raw portion for that is when the free divers went deep. They needed the divers down there and we trained train the divers to be there and be the safety divers side. Right? So there are big program DeJa Blue TDI has been the backup support for years. So, through a mutual acquaintance, associated with, a movie project that Kirk is still working, he’s working on currently right now. the diving safety officer for that particular group is a good friend of mine. And he said, Hey, you know, come on out, meet Kirk and I got together and Kirk told me the issues he was having run in these organization. I told them I needed a freediving in program and our philosophies aligned, from a no nonsense approach, no min, you know, it’s a minimum standard, but it’s a high minimum standards which came right in line with TDI.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  Right. and let’s say, you know, this couldn’t really work. And through conversations back and forth, he built an amazing product. It just in the, in the PFI instructors around the world that I’ve had the opportunity to meet with whatever, they’re unbelievable professionals. So I was like, this is the only way to do this. I don’t, I don’t want to compete with that. I can’t compete with that. So, Hey, can we find a way to make this work? And, Kirk saw an opportunity to meet our company and see our philosophies and see how we work on a day to day basis. And he goes, this would really work. I, I, he, he was probably shell shocked how quickly things started to happen, and how, much, how much capabilities we had internally to do these things. I told him again, I said, hold on for the ride.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  it’s going to be fun. Your organization is going to be something bigger than what we, then whatever, come.

TEC CLARK:                  Awesome. So that is so cool. That is so cool. All right, so with this new relationship with PFI, NAUI has a relationship with PFI. How does this impact that, if at all?

BRIAN CARNEY:                  Well, I can tell you that’s a little known thing that’s in the industry. The training agencies actually work together. It’s secret. It’s a little bit weird. And I know that he might be shocking and we might have to create some support groups to realize that I talked to NAUI and NAUI talks to us, considering TDIs past history with NAUI, you know, but you know, we’ve always had the philosophy that to work with everybody. And when the this thing came together, we communicated with NAUI and I’m currently talking with the top people at NAUI about how do we make this work cause we’re willing, we want to see it work.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  Okay. At the end of the day, if NAUI’s making great PFI instructors, it’s good for everybody and we’re trying to support and bring more people in. So if NAUI grows, we’re going to grow. And then we talk about, Hey, the pie’s got to get bigger for us all. The only way that happens is if the top of all the training organizations, you sit there and get around a table and say, what are we going to do together? Rather than fight with one another. So at our very core, at an organization and from it, and NAUI’s got the similar approach to it is we forget about all the noise. How do we make this work? So we’re in that process of working through it right now. We have a temporary kind of agreement in place that truth be told. It’s because of a relationships between myself and a couple of people over there.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  but I, you know, I’m a former NAUI guy myself. So yeah, I got a special place in my heart for what goes on over there.

TEC CLARK:                  It’s awesome. That’s awesome. You bring up such a good point. And I wish that our industry wasn’t as closed off or in silos in some, some contexts like that. it is healthy. It is healthy to get together and be together. We, we need the bond as an industry. Yeah. Yeah. I love that. Well, that’s great. Awesome. That’s good to hear.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  I have a lot of a lot of friends in the industry. I mean truth be told there’s probably 50% of us that could leave this or 75% of this industry could leave this, go on to other industries and make a lot more money. cause there’s a lot of talented people in the industry and we have to be talented cause we don’t have we have to make that dollar stretch a little bit further.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  So building that relationship in, working with those people, especially at the training agency level, is such an important part of how we go. I believe someday in the future we’ll stop spending our money as individual organizations in marketing and the training organizations will do it collectively if we want to have an impact to the mainstream and bring people into diving. I think that’s one of the things that really needs to have happened is we’re all spending our advertising money outside of the industry. There’s lots of us doing ads and things, outside the industry. But could you imagine if we pooled our money together? What the impact we could have. And I hear of stories of of, Oh, I’m drawing a blank on the name sea hunt. How sea hunt created this whole industry. I came in at the tail end of it, right, right at the tail end of it.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  I grew up on flipper and Jacques Cousteau. Jacques Cousteau or undersea World. So that was my, Oh, but I didn’t know anything about brands or ancencies. All I want to do is go into water, look at fish stuff. So I think that as the industry matures, we’ll be able to have those conversations a little bit more. And I’m happy to say I, some days I joked with somebody day in the first day of the show, I think I said I spent more time this morning talking to other training agencies than I did our own customers.

TEC CLARK:                  So that’s good stuff. All right. Well Brian, this has been awesome. Thank you so much for the SDI TDI Checkin and all the other brands, PFI, ERDI, all of them. This has been awesome. And I think that, you know, you guys are doing some fantastic stuff, so all the best to you and all the best here at the show.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  Fantastic. Thank you Tec. Definitely appreciate the opportunity to talk to you guys and thank you for what you’re doing and bringing the message to the professionals.

TEC CLARK:                  You’re welcome. Thanks so much. Have a great show.

BRIAN CARNEY:                  Thank you.

Wow, they’ve got a lot going on, don’t they? And as far as training agencies go, they have grown in a relatively short amount of time. That’s great success. Good job. Thanks for that interview Brian. Check out all that SDI TDI, E R D I and PFI has to offer by going to their website at tdisdi.com I’ll also have the links to that in our show notes Page at scubaguru.com and once again, if you’re interested in becoming an affiliate for my ScubaGuruAcademy courses, the new one, mastering dive tables and decompression theory, simply contact me through scubaguru.com and I’ll get you set up to make commissions while helping out your students with these outstanding tutorials.

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