Dozens of Funnel users gather for the first in-person training session in Scottsdale, AZ, kicking off the third-annual Forum conference.
SCOTTSDALE, AZ — Before the third-annual Forum conference officially began, more than 45 Funnel super users arrived early for something new: Funnel University, a first-of-its-kind, hands-on training designed to help operators get more out of the platform they use every day.
Representing companies across various owner-operators, third-party managers, and centralized leasing teams, attendees spent the day learning directly from Funnel product experts
Through guided exercises and live walkthroughs, participants explored how workflow design, reporting insights, automation tools, and troubleshooting techniques can help teams operate more efficiently and deliver better renter experiences.
“We all know markets shift fast, and we want to give you the tools to adapt to those changes to implement and configure these new features in real time,” said Wes Lacson, Funnel lead product manager. “[We want to help you] configure ahead of the problem, not after. When your workflows are set up right, you can deliver a consistent renter experience at scale and move faster than your competitors.”
By the end of the day, the group left as Funnel University’s first graduating class, equipped with practical skills they could take back to their broader teams and immediately apply across their portfolios.
Designing workflows for specialized teams
The goal of this session was simple: help teams clearly understand when to use Funnel’s My Queue vs. Pipeline features so they can get more out of both.
Too often, teams rely on one or the other based on habit. But when used together with intention, they unlock a much deeper level of visibility and control.
My Queue is where the day begins. It’s your operational command center, a focused to-do list built around your role. What needs to happen today? What’s overdue? When designed well, queues are calm, scoped, and specific. About half the room shared that they have already introduced specialized roles, routing tasks to the right people, and making it easier to stay focused and actually get to zero.
Pipeline is where you zoom out. It’s not a task list, it’s where you understand what’s happening across your funnel and decide what to do next. Teams can monitor virtual assistant conversations for a quick gut check and use filters to instantly build targeted lists.
Sarah Bozarth, Funnel product marketing manager, customer enablement, shared her workflow onsite when performing call marathons, complete with printed excel spreadsheets, highlighter ink, and handwritten call notes. Flash forward to 2026, and Pipeline has that covered, no excel sheets required.
“If you have a stale unit and need to run a call-a-thon, this is where you tell Pipeline exactly what you’re looking for,” Bozarth said.
Simply put, My Queue drives execution and Pipeline drives insight and decision-making.
Reporting foundations: Performance coaching and Funnel reporting
When working in a platform as robust as Funnel, it can sometimes be overwhelming to know where to begin. In this Funnel University session, users learned about measuring performance and coaching with data inside Funnel, and how each report can assist specific business focuses.
To bring this to life, attendees broke into three groups, Analytics, Marketing, and Operations, and worked hands-on inside a demo account. Each group explored reports relevant to their role, from marketing attribution and lead sources, to agent activity and task performance, to portfolio-level visibility.
From there, the session walked through key reports across the platform. Property-centric and Renter-centric® reports showed how to track performance at both the community and portfolio level. Prospect, Voice, and Resident AI reports highlighted how automation is contributing to tours, conversations, and time savings. Across all of them, the focus stayed on identifying patterns, spotting breakdowns between stages, and diagnosing root causes. When something goes wrong, the data is there to tell you why.
Self-service + transparency
As Funnel continues to roll out more self-service capabilities, the goal is to make it easier for teams to configure their workflows, adapt quickly, and drive real business impact without waiting on support.
The Funnel University class walked through the growing list of self-service tools, from customizing dashboards and user mapping to configuring skill-based routing and community settings. Whether it’s optimizing AI workflows, adjusting office hours, or updating message templates, teams can now shape their operations directly in the platform
On the leasing side, self-service now includes rental options, fee transparency, and lease packet configuration, making it easier to stay compliant and consistent at scale.
With more features moving into self-service, from workflow design to reporting inputs, the direction is clear. Operators aren’t just using Funnel, they’re actively shaping how it works for their business.
The advantage is how you configure it
Across every session, one thing stood out: customization is the advantage. The teams moving fastest are the ones actively configuring their workflows, data, and AI to match how they operate. From My Queue and Pipeline to reporting and AI workflows, success comes from shaping Funnel around your operations, not the other way around.
