The Learning & Development Podcast

Stepping into a new L&D leadership role is challenging, and establishing both yourself and your team can be even harder. It’s not just about filling gaps—it’s about aligning your vision with the business’s needs and building a strategy that delivers tangible results. In this episode, Sam Allen, Global Head of Learning and Development at Ideagen, shares how he has navigated this journey, from understanding the company’s culture and expectations to creating an L&D strategy that drives real performance. Sam talks about the key steps to establishing yourself in a new L&D role: how to build trust with stakeholders, identify the right learning needs, and bring your team on the journey. If you're a new L&D leader or looking to reposition your team, this episode offers real-world insights into how to take L&D from a function to a business partner. KEY TAKEAWAYS Work really hard to understand where the business you have joined is going. Identify the decision makers and sit down with each one to find out what their priorities are and where they are heading. To do this you need an effective way to take notes and analyse what you learn. Assess how your team currently performs. Make it clear to everyone what your approach to L&D is. Acquire the right tools for your L&D team and for your stakeholders. Set up self-serving learning resources that enable departments to fill skill gaps themselves. Break skills content down to enable truly targeted learning. Establishing yourself is about creating a strategy that truly drives business impact. BEST MOMENTS “How capable are the team members within that organisational structure?” “Build credible relationships with stakeholders.” “Create content where there are gaps.” Sam Allen Bio Sam Allen is the Global Head of Learning and Development at Ideagen, where he leads the company’s L&D strategy to drive performance, capability, and career growth. Before joining Ideagen, Sam was the Interim Head of L&D (Central Functions) at Cazoo, where he established the central L&D function, delivering leadership programs and automating onboarding and compliance. Before that, Sam founded Insightful People, partnering with businesses to deliver strategic L&D projects. He also held senior L&D roles at Whitbread, developing management teams, and at Argos, where he led the L&D strategy for IT, Digital, and Marketing, supporting around 500 colleagues and delivering high-potential and leadership development programs. Throughout his career, Sam has been committed to transforming L&D into a strategic driver of business performance. VALUABLE RESOURCES The Learning And Development Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-learning-development-podcast/id1466927523 L&D Master Class Series: https://360learning.com/blog/l-and-d-masterclass-home ABOUT THE HOST David James  David has been a People Development professional for more than 20 years, most notably as Director of Talent, Learning & OD for The Walt Disney Company across Europe, the Middle East & Africa.  As well as being the Chief Learning Officer at 360Learning, David is a prominent writer and speaker on topics around modern and digital L&D.  CONTACT METHOD  Twitter:  https://twitter.com/davidinlearning LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidjameslinkedin  L&D Collective: https://360learning.com/the-l-and-d-collective Blog: https://360learning.com/blog L&D Master Class Series: https://360learning.com/blog/l-and-d-masterclass-home

Mike Ohata, author and former leader at KPMG, shares insights on transforming organizations through talent frameworks. He discusses the shift in employee expectations, emphasizing that talented individuals seek opportunities for skill development alongside job fulfillment. Ohata challenges conventional talent management, urging leaders to cultivate an environment that values every employee's contributions. He also highlights the critical need for ongoing learning and adaptability within companies, advocating for L&D to take the lead in shaping the workforce of tomorrow.

Jennifer Sutherland, a Global Leader of Culture, Learning & Development at Trustwave and Adjunct Professor at Davenport University, shares her unique career journey through the non-linear landscape of L&D. She emphasizes the value of resilience and authenticity in presentations. Jennifer discusses the importance of building relationships, staying curious about learning research, and continuously developing skills. She advises seeking experiences even if they don't appear on your resume and stresses the significance of networking within the L&D community.

Ajay Pangarkar, an award-winning author and professor, shares his insights into how Learning and Development (L&D) can better connect with finance and other departments. He emphasizes the importance of using business language to enhance credibility and advocates for focusing on results, not just metrics. Ajay encourages L&D professionals to adopt a consulting mindset, engage deeply with stakeholders, and leverage data analytics. He believes this approach is essential for L&D to prove its value and become a strategic partner in achieving organizational success.

When we have an opportunity to understand L&D and Leadership trends from global L&D experts we should take them, right? On the eve of DevLearn, David Kelly (Chairman of the Learning Guild) gives us his perspective on the things we should be paying attention to as well as the areas we should be focusing our development on. KEY TAKEAWAYS Technology is changing the L&D landscape and we need to evolve with it, but this is something L&D has always done, the same conversations are happening the circumstances are just slightly different. L&D can sometimes be one of the first departments to be downsized if a company just looks at them as a cost centre, rather than how they should be looking at them, as a performance partner that is connected to driving the organisation forward. Mixed reality is very powerful, AR and VR can be good solutions to specific problems but their advantages and speed have slowed down, with AI taking a lot of attention away from development.  Whilst AI is impacting many areas of almost all organisations, it’s important to understand where your organisation sits on takeup and where you can fit into that and act accordingly. L&D can appear to be susceptible to 'trends' but this isn't negative. Those who work in L&D are naturally curious and are looking for ways to help and support people's growth which naturally lends itself to new ideas and tools.  As the world develops and changes around us, so does how we learn, are our education and learning models keeping up pace? Leadership is something that is given by others and it isn't a set of traits but skills that can be learnt. Leadership is about what we do, rather than who we are. You can be an effective leader at any level of an organisation; it's about how you approach the job you are assigned.  A modern L&D organisation always needs to be looking to what's next, what does the L&D need to look like to support the organisation in the future.  BEST MOMENTS 'I was always very involved in my career at giving back to the industry’ ‘The industry is in the exact same space it’s been for 20 years’ ‘I can tell you that the industry is growing rapidly…doesn’t make a difference where I am working for an organisation where I am seen as a cost that needs to be mitigated' 'AI is sucking all the energy out of the room' 'Hype is nothing more than shared energy, but what is driving that energy' 'We don't want to do something because it's cool but because it can make a difference' 'My focus in leadership in the L&D space is removing the role from the equation and focusing more on the environment that learning exists' David Kelly Bio As Chairman of the Learning Guild, David Kelly constantly explores the convergence of learning and technology, demonstrating a profound commitment to transforming workplaces and enriching lives through innovative learning strategies. With over two decades of experience in learning and performance leadership and consulting, he brings his passion to life in his daily work building events and resources with the Guild and as a dynamic speaker and writer, inspiring others to view their work through a fresh, technology-enhanced lens. You can follow and connect with David via: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lnddave/ Learning Guild Website: https://www.learningguild.com/ DevLearn: https://devlearn.com/ VALUABLE RESOURCES The Learning And Development Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-learning-development-podcast/id1466927523 L&D Master Class Series: https://360learning.com/blog/l-and-d-masterclass-home/ ABOUT THE HOST David James  David has been a People Development professional for more than 20 years, most notably as Director of Talent, Learning & OD for The Walt Disney Company across Europe, the Middle East & Africa.  As well as being the Chief Learning Officer at 360Learning, David is a prominent writer and speaker on topics around modern and digital L&D.  CONTACT METHOD  Twitter:  https://twitter.com/davidinlearning/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidjameslinkedin/ L&D Collective: https://360learning.com/the-l-and-d-collective/ Blog: https://360learning.com/blog/ L&D Master Class Series: https://360learning.com/blog/l-and-d-masterclass-home/

A governance structure in L&D is a move from implicit to explicit practices. It brings rigour and structure to decision-making practices that would otherwise be nebulous and ill-defined. It is a recognition that L&D is, fundamentally, a strategic function – equally critical for the organisation’s growth and for its survival in turbulent times. But it doesn’t exist in every L&D team.  In this episode, Noah and Tom break down why it is essential and how we, as L&D, get to grips with it.   KEY TAKEAWAYS Governance aligns L&D more closely with business objectives and ensures consistent, scalable impact. The decision on where the L&D budget is spent has to be made by the business so that the budget can be allocated to training that generates profit. Governance includes careful management of your key constituencies and relationships. Alignment, communication, consistency, planning, measurement, execution, tracking, and project management are all equally important. Ask yourself what does better look like? Properly define what you are aiming for. New technologies are not always better, be sure to properly assess them. Good governance is never 100% done, it is an ongoing process. Taking a “solid core, flexible edges” approach to governance works well for most organizations. Be brave. It´s worth a little bit of pain to make big gains.   BEST MOMENTS “Governance is about aligning learning to the strategic objectives and needs of the business… so that you can demonstrate the value of that learning function.” “You have to create consistency in the learner experience .” “AI is going to be a lightning rod.” “Shiny object syndrome  is the enemy of good governance.” “We not only define what governance is, but we define what's what it's not.”   Noah Rabinowitz Bio With 25+ years of experience in learning and leadership development, Noah has been Chief Learning Officer at Intel and Moderna and consulted globally with Korn Ferry and Deloitte. He specializes in innovative learning strategies, executive development, and large-scale digital upskilling programs, driving impactful results across industries. Tom Kupetis Bio Tom brings over 25 years of management consulting and learning solutions experience with Fortune 500 companies. As Executive Vice President at St. Charles Consulting Group, he oversees the firm’s go-to-market strategy. Previously, he held senior roles at Xerox Learning Services and Intellinex LLC (EY subsidiary). Report: https://learningforum.substack.com/p/clo-lift-governance-as-a-strategic   VALUABLE RESOURCES The Learning And Development Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-learning-development-podcast/id1466927523 L&D Master Class Series: https://360learning.com/blog/l-and-d-masterclass-home/   ABOUT THE HOST David James  David has been a People Development professional for more than 20 years, most notably as Director of Talent, Learning & OD for The Walt Disney Company across Europe, the Middle East & Africa.  As well as being the Chief Learning Officer at 360Learning, David is a prominent writer and speaker on topics around modern and digital L&D.  CONTACT METHOD  Twitter:  https://twitter.com/davidinlearning/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidjameslinkedin/  L&D Collective: https://360learning.com/the-l-and-d-collective/ Blog: https://360learning.com/blog/ L&D Master Class Series: https://360learning.com/blog/l-and-d-masterclass-home/

Heather Stefanski, Chief Learning and Development Officer at McKinsey & Company, and Bjorn Billhardt, a specialist in skills acceleration, delve into the pressing need for L&D to evolve. They argue that L&D professionals must become true business partners, leveraging data and focusing on impactful skill development. The discussion includes the integration of AI and simulations for quicker training solutions and the importance of aligning learning with business goals to enhance employee capability. A must-listen for those in the L&D sector!

Lisa Christensen, an expert in learning and development, dives into the evolving landscape of organizational learning. She emphasizes that quality trumps quantity when it comes to upskilling, urging leaders to focus on delivering true value rather than just clocking hours. The conversation highlights the need for L&D professionals to align with business goals and actively engage with managers to tackle real challenges. Additionally, the integration of generative AI is discussed as a means to personalize training experiences and democratize access for all employees.

Neil John Cunningham, an experienced Head of Talent & Learning and author of "Numbers & Narratives," shares insights on demonstrating the value of Learning & Development. He discusses the importance of using data stories to convey effectiveness, emphasizing the Hero's Journey framework for structuring narratives. Neil highlights the need to align L&D objectives with business goals and make data simple and relatable. He encourages honesty about L&D capabilities and the necessity of engaging emotionally driven stakeholders alongside data-driven audiences.

Nick Shackleton-Jones, a learning and development expert, joins Kenny Temowo, focused on enhancing learning outcomes. They dive into how leadership profoundly impacts employee mental health and satisfaction. A striking statistic reveals leaders influence mental health more than partners! The discussion challenges conventional approaches to learning content, with a focus on relevance and experiential training. They also explore the generational shift in job tenure, emphasizing the need for L&D to adapt to evolving workplace dynamics.