Learning Experience Leader: Recent Episodes
Greg Williams
The Learning Experience Leader Podcast is a project devoted to design, leadership, and the psychology of learning. The aim of the show is to help you expand your perspective of learning design through conversations with innovative professionals and scholars across the world. Every other week a different practitioner or researcher shares insights from their work and experience to bring a more holistic view on how learning happens and what we can do to create amazing learning experiences through design and leadership. If you are interested in how people learn and how you can be more effective in helping others grow and develop, then this podcast is for you.
Today’s guest is my father Dr. David Williams. Dr. Williams is an emeritus professor from the Department of Instructional Psychology and Technology at Brigham Young University where he conducted and studied evaluations of teaching and learning in various settings. He currently serves as a missionary with his wife Denise for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day saints.
Today we discuss:
- Everything Evaluation, what it is, and all of the moving parts associated with it
- The difference between evaluation, measurement, and assessment
- Dr. Williams’ 10 part evaluation model, along with multiple examples
Resources
- Dr. Williams Evaluation Model (image): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VEGkVJMQYoJRX2SP4iSEVd8wqYtaRvRQ/view?usp=sharing
- Seven North American Evaluation Pioneers (Book) https://books.google.com/books/about/Seven_North_American_Evaluation_Pioneers.html?id=8HpTDAAAQBAJ
- Twenty-Nine Evaluation Lives (Book) https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ev.20273
- Dr. Williams blog with entries about various individual evaluation lives: https://evaluationlives.blogspot.com/2017/08/introduction-and-invitation.html?m=1
- Dr. Williams Qualitative Inquiry book (open access) mentioned in the end of our conversation - https://edtechbooks.org/qualitativeinquiry
- Interview with Dr. Bonnie Beresford (episode 44) https://www.buzzsprout.com/1797613/8659885
- Interview with Megan Torrence (episode 63) https://www.buzzsprout.com/1797613/8659853
- Interview with Sam Whitney (episode 26) https://www.buzzsprout.com/1797613/8659853
- Interview with Beth Wilkins (episode 49) https://www.buzzsprout.com/1797613/8659879
- Malcolm Gladwell and testing (podcast episode) https://www.pushkin.fm/episode/puzzle-rush/
Join the conversation on the LX Leader LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/learning-experience-leader-podcast
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today's show is a solo episode in which Greg gives an audio version of a mini-research study he conducted this year.
Check out the article here, and don't miss all the resources listed at the end!
https://uxdesign.cc/solving-the-greatest-challenge-to-measuring-organizational-outcomes-of-learning-programs-5e4677a78ca7
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Aaron Airmet and Ash Roberts join me again, but this time to talk about career development using PM tools and mindsets. Together they host Path into Product, a podcast for college students or professionals considering a career as a product manager but don't know where to start. Both Aaron and Ash are currently working as Product Managers at Weave Communications and have previous experience working with and in learning design environments.
Today we discuss:
- Building your career through curiosity, experimentation, and data collection
- Examples and stories of using product management tools for personal development
- The importance of reflection and giving yourself space to be wrong
- Using product management prioritization principles in career decisions
Resources
- Path into Product Podcast - https://anchor.fm/pathintoproduct
- Design Your Life (Book): https://designingyour.life/the-book/
- Design Your Worklife (Book Review Podcast Episode): https://www.buzzsprout.com/1797613/episodes/8659877
- Aaron’s article, “Want to be a Product Manager in Tech? Study the Humanities”: https://medium.com/@aaron.airmet/want-to-be-a-product-manager-in-tech-study-the-humanities-4ff169d9d0e6
- The Proximity Principle (Book): https://www.ramseysolutions.com/store/books/the-proximity-principle-by-ken-coleman
- Borrowing Brilliance (Book): https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/304339/borrowing-brilliance-by-david-kord-murray/
- How Will You Measure Your Life? (Book): https://claytonchristensen.com/books/how-will-you-measure-your-life/
- Measure What Matters (Book): https://www.whatmatters.com/the-book/
- Linchpin (Book): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00354Y9ZU/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i5
- Way of the Peaceful Warrior (Book): https://www.peacefulwarrior.com/way-of-the-peaceful-warrior/
Join the conversation on the LX Leader LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/learning-experience-leader-podcast
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today’s guests are Aaron Airmet and Ash Roberts. Together they host Path into Product, a podcast for college students or professionals considering a career as a product manager but don't know where to start. Both Aaron and Ash are currently working as Product Managers at Weave Communications and have previous experience working with and in learning design environments.
Today we discuss:
- Different ways of defining product management
- Frameworks and mindsets instructional designers can utilize to build better learning solutions
- Curiosity, ruthless prioritization, and being a partner rather than an order taker
- Measurement in product and navigating the constraints to make an impact
Resources
- Path into Product (Podcast) - hosted by Aaron and Ash - https://anchor.fm/pathintoproduct
- Borrowing Brilliance (Book) - https://www.amazon.com/Borrowing-Brilliance-Business-Innovation-Building/dp/1592405800
Join the conversation on the LX Leader pages:
- Facebook (NEW)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today I’m joined with Bryan Tanner, a recent PhD graduate from BYU’s Instructional Psychology and Technology department. He has a professional background in K-12, higher ed, and corporate instruction. Bryan is an avid reader of biographies and business nonfiction and our discussion today is all about this book.
From the book description: "To most of us, learning something "the hard way" implies wasted time and effort. Good teaching, we believe, should be creatively tailored to the different learning styles of students and should use strategies that make learning easier. Make It Stick turns fashionable ideas like these on their head. Drawing on recent discoveries in cognitive psychology and other disciplines, the authors offer concrete techniques for becoming more productive learners."
In summarizing and reflecting on the book we cover topics such as:
- Learning myths and tactics to overcome them
- 8 principles from the book that will change how you approach learning
- And a bunch of examples from the book and our own lives of these principles in practice
Resources
- Make it Stick book resources: https://www.retrievalpractice.org/make-it-stick
- Bryan’s blog post book summary: https://bryantanner.wordpress.com/2018/04/02/8-techniques-to-encourage-long-term-memory-retention/
- Feynman learning technique: https://fs.blog/2021/02/feynman-learning-technique/
- BYU Idaho learning model - https://www.byui.edu/learning-model
Credits
Introduction music, “For Mimi” by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Kate is a marketer turned L&D expert, microlearning addict, and founder and product leader at 7taps, a micro-learning technology tool we dig into here in the episode.
Today we discuss:
- The features and overview of 7Taps and where it’s name comes from
- The principles Kate follows to develop the product
- How Kate leads her team with values and constraints in prioritizing what to build
- What microlearning is best used for, and what it isn’t
Resources
- 7Taps company website - https://www.7taps.com/
- MicroLearning: Short and Sweet (book) https://www.amazon.com/Microlearning-Short-Karl-M-Kapp/dp/1949036731
- Designing Microlearning (book) https://www.amazon.com/Designing-Microlearning-Works-Talent-Development/dp/1950496120/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=designing+microlearning&qid=1634094343&s=books&sr=1-3
- Check out the 2-week design challenge hosted by L&D Lounge and sponsored by 7Taps: https://thelearninganddevelopmentlounge.mn.co/users/onboarding/plans/165757
Join the conversation on the LX Leader LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/learning-experience-leader-podcast
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Dr. Stephan Taeger is a religious educator and an adjunct professor at Brigham Young University’s Department of Ancient Scripture. He has authored or co-authored chapters and articles in various instructional design, educational, and/or theological venues. Dr. Taeger’s research interests include homiletics and narrative instructional design.
Today we discuss:
- The principles of Narrative Distance and its applications to instructional design
- Insights from Homiletics –the practice and craft of preaching– for designing learning
- Creating cognitive and emotional space for people to learn through indirect stories
- How to use story to create meaningful content that promotes transformational change
Resources
- Dr. Taeger’s Article we discuss: Applying the Design of Narrative Distance to Instruction https://edtechbooks.org/jaid_10_2/applying_the_design_
- Adam Grant’s book, “Think Again” - https://www.adamgrant.net/book/think-again/
- First few minutes of the Disney Pixar movie “Up” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2bk_9T482g
- Nike golf clubs - the power of the Halo Effect - https://www.fastcompany.com/3055747/proof-you-really-will-golf-better-with-a-nike-branded-club
- Dr. Taeger’s website: https://www.stephantaeger.com/
Join the conversation on the LX Leader LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/learning-experience-leader-podcast
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Laura Fletcher is a Senior Program Manager for Leadership Development at Salesforce where she designs and manages programs that improve performance and engagement. Prior to joining Salesforce, she was the Manager of Instructional Design at Bottom-Line Performance, where she led a team that designed and developed award-winning learning solutions. Laura co-authored the book, "Design Thinking for Training and Development," published by ATD Press in 2020 which we’ll get into in this episode.
Today we discuss:
- Designing for learner value rather than engagement
- Adapting the sweet spot for innovation for learning design
- Handling training requests
- Examples and stories that illustrate the principles of the book
Resources
- The book: https://www.amazon.com/Design-Thinking-Training-Development-Sharon/dp/195049618X
- Connect with Laura on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurafletcher-indy/
- Stanford D School website: https://dschool.stanford.edu/resources
- IdeaU.com resources - https://www.ideou.com/
Join the conversation on the LX Leader LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/learning-experience-leader-podcast
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today’s guest is Guy W. Wallace. Guy is a Performance Analyst and Instructional Architect – and has been designing and developing performance-based instruction and training content since 1979. Guy has been consulting since 1982 and has served 80+ consulting clients, primarily in the Fortune 500.
Guy's work has won a host of awards and he has authored over 90 articles, 16 books, and 4500+ blog posts. He has presented professionally over 125 times. You can check out the tremendous resources on his website which I’ve linked in the show notes along with some specific items we discuss in this episode.
Today we discuss:
- How most current learning design trends are old ideas wrapped up in new language
- Why awareness (but not anxiety) of history matters to design practitioners
- Some of Guy’s experiences that have informed his design process over the years
- And additional key insights from two of Guy’s articles
Resources
- What is old is new again (blog post): https://eppic.biz/2018/07/09/td-the-woina-syndrome/
- 1984 Training Magazine article: https://eppicinc.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/cad-training-mag-1984.pdf
- Guy’s collection of resources for human performance improvement https://hpttreasures.wordpress.com/
- Guy’s website: www.eppic.biz
- Guru series on Guy’s favorite thought-leaders (including people mentioned at the end of the episode): https://eppic.biz/resources/misc-resources/my-favorite-friday-guru-series/
Join the conversation on the LX Leader LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/learning-experience-leader-podcast
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Yolanda is the founder and owner of Lumiere Learning Experiences and the host of The L&D Lounge, a podcast show, and virtual gathering space. Yolanda seeks to use learning and development as a strategic tool to create behavioral change and improve on-the-job performance. She is especially passionate about crafting best-in-class leadership development programs to support high potentials, emerging leaders, and people managers. Over the past 15 years, she has worked with a large variety of organizations to foster intellectual curiosity and promote a culture of continuous learning.
Today we discuss:
- An article Yolanda wrote about leadership development and bad bosses
- Yolanda’s experience developing her own leadership skills and leadership in others
- What being a leader means, and how you can start thinking like one
- And suggestions on creating people development programs that go beyond a one-time event
Resources
- Yolanda’s SRHM article: Bad Bosses https://blog.shrm.org/blog/bad-bosses-developing-the-manager-to-become-the-leader
- The L&D Lounge Podcast https://yolandafraction.com/podcast/
- Yolanda’s website: https://yolandafraction.com/
- Volunteer opportunities: https://www.idealist.org/en/
Join the conversation on the LX Leader LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/learning-experience-leader-podcast
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today’s guests are Moritz Philip Recke and Stefano Perna. Moritz is a media technology engineer and develops transformative tools for education. He does research in the field of learning design and is co-founder of https://learningdesign.tools.
Stefano is a designer and educator working at the intersections of technology, media, and humanities. He is a learning design researcher and co-founder of https://learningdesign.tools.
Today we talk all about learning objectives, including
- The Learning Objective Design Card Deck that this team has been working on
- An overview of Bloom’s taxonomy and the language of learning objectives
- The function of objectives and their place in an evolving ecosystem of learning content
Resources
Connect with Moritz and Stafano online
- Moritz on Twitter https://twitter.com/mprecke
- Moritz on LinkedIn https://linkedin.com/in/mprecke
- Moritz’s website https://moritzrecke.com
- Stefano on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefano-perna-b2715417/
Learn more about the Learning Objective Design Deck with these resources:
- Website: https://learningdesign.tools (access free downloads)
- PDF of overview deck https://bit.ly/LO-Design-Deck
- Miro version of the cards http://bit.ly/miroverse
Join the conversation on the LX Leader LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/learning-experience-leader-podcast
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today I’m joined by Mandy Lambert, an instructional designer interning at Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) and our discussion is all about the book Design Thinking for Training and Development by Sharon Boller and Laura Fletcher. From the back of the book:
"When training and development initiatives treat learning as something that occurs as a one-time event, the learner and the business suffer. Using design thinking can help talent development professionals ensure learning sticks to drive improved performance. With its hands-on, use-it-today approach, this book will get you started on your own journey to applying design thinking."
In summarizing and reflecting on the book we cover topics such as:
- 4 key pillars design thinking for learning design
- The value of the 5 kinds of constraints
- How a great design considers the sweet spot of all stakeholders, not just learners
- The elements of a great implementation plan
And much more!
You can check out more about the book here:
- Q&A with the authors: https://www.td.org/press-release/q-a-with-the-authors-of-design-thinking-for-training-and-development
- Buy the book: https://www.td.org/books/design-thinking-for-training-and-development
Also, learn more about Mandy at her website! https://mandylambert100.wixsite.com/website
Credits
Introduction music, “For Mimi” by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Samuel is the person behind UserOnboard.com, which provides tips and tricks for user onboarding in the form of critiques of popular web app onboarding examples. Samuel has worked with UX and User Onboarding for companies like Spotify, Audible, Intuit, and Khan Academy, and a host of others. He's also working on something new at ValuePaths.com, a growth framework for reliably and sustainably generating revenue.
Today we talk about:
- Overview of Samuel’s Value Path concept and how it relates to learning design
- The messy process of converting raw materials into a determined outcome
- How can we create an ecosystem to help people succeed beyond their expectations
- Orienting people towards the goal of your learning product will help them achieve
Resources:
- Learn more about Samuel and access his work: https://www.useronboard.com/contact/
- View the epic teardowns of onboarding sites at https://www.UserOnboard.com
- Video explaining the concept of value path: http://valuepaths.com/
Join the conversation on the LX Leader LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/learning-experience-leader-podcast
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today’s guest is Lieutenant Commander Ryan Williams of the US Navy. Before joining the Navy he enlisted in the US Air Force where he served as a member of The Band of the Golden West and later he served as a staff chaplain at Hill Air Force Base, Utah. Additionally, he served as a Staff Chaplain at St. Mark’s Hospital and the Salt Lake City VA hospital. Ryan’s Navy Chaplain Corps service has included assignments with the Marines, Clinical Staff Chaplain at Naval Medical Center in San Diego, Command Chaplain on the USNS MERCY hospital ship, and the USS Antietam. He is now at the US Coast Guard Training Center in Petaluma California.
Today we discuss:
- Identifying and aligning with your values
- The power of inviting reflection to make room for learning
- Motivation as an outcome of taking action
- Facing conflict by choosing to engage and letting go of controlling the outcome
Resources
- See the transcript and chapter headings on the LX Leader Website
- Join the conversation on LinkedIn
- 64 // Reframing Conflict and Helpfulness with Heather Gilmartin Adams
- 26 // The Outward Mindset with Sam Whitney
- 23 // Learner Agency & Responsibility with Dr. Michael Matthews
- The Application of Layer Theory to Design: The Control Layer (Dr. Andy Gibbons and Matt Langton)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Heather is a senior consultant at RedThread Research. Trained in conflict resolution and organizational development, Heather has spent the past ten years in various capacities at organizational culture and mindset change consultancies as well as the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
Today we talk about:
- Heather’s journey in trying to answer the question: how can I help people and organizations to stop fighting and get along?
- What makes us human and implications for learning design and conflict resolution
- Systems change vs behavioral change
- The 3 levels of partnership from Arbinger Institute and how to to reframe what it means to help
- Methods for approaching conflict and hard conversations, including saying “no”
Resources:
👉 ReadThread Research Paper - Humanizing Learning research
👉 Episode 26: The Outward Mindset with Sam Whitney
👉 Episode 49: Positive Deviance and Facilitating Transformational Leadership with Dr. Beth Wilkins
👉 The Making of a Manager: What to do When Everyone Looks to You (book)
👉 Difficult Conversations (book)
👉 Works from John Paul Lederach
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Hey everyone! I wanted to provide a very brief update about the hosting of the show. I’m moving the podcast to a new podcasting service and am keeping my fingers crossed that I don’t lose any of you in the process.
What does this mean for you?
Moving to Buzzsprout means better show notes and access to resources for you, it appears to include tags and chapter headings which if your podcast service supports it should make it easier for you to scan or reference parts of episodes after the fact, and it's simply more accessible than what I was using before.
I’d like to call out a few special people who have been supporting the show through Patreon. A huge thank you to Matt, Rodrigo, Kyle, Colin, and Sam who have believed in the show to support it as a Patron.
If you are not on LinkedIn and would like to see content and discussion on other platforms, please send me a note at gregoryspencerwilliams@gmail.com or leave me a voicemail at (801) 900-5970.
- The new website: lxleader.buzzsprout.com
- Support the show on the Patreon page
- Follow the LX Leader Podcast on the LinkedIn page, follow up resources and discussion will be plentiful!
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Megan Torrance is CEO and founder of TorranceLearning, which helps organizations connect learning strategy to design, development, data, and ultimately performance. Megan and the TorranceLearning team are passionate about sharing what works in learning so they devote considerable time to teaching and sharing about agile project management for learning experience design and the xAPI. Megan is the author of multiple books, including Agile for Instructional Designers which will talk about today.
Also in this conversation we discuss:
- Megan’s definition and application of agile project management
- Examples of agile development projects that Megan’s team is working on right now
- And insights into working with stakeholders and making better for project estimates
Resources:
👉 [BETA] Review this episode with this mini-review!
👉 A Quick Guide to LLAMA (complimentary eBook for LX Leader Listeners)
👉 Agile for Instructional Designers (book)
👉 April 2021 Learning Guild Research (article)
👉 Collection of articles and resources: https://www.torrancelearning.com/llama/
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
While earning her master’s degree in Instructional Psychology & Technology at BYU, Alyssa worked on instructional design projects and teams in university, K-12, and corporate settings. Her work at BYU Independent Study introduced her to how Agile principles can be applied and adapted to instructional design, which became the subject of her master’s thesis. She currently works as a Learning Experience Designer at Qualtrics in the world of sales enablement.
Today we talk about:
👉 Agile and waterfall project management methodologies as related to instructional design
👉 Alyssa’s experience of using agile methodologies in academic and corporate organizations
👉 Estimating work to be done using “planning poker”
👉 An example of a traditional waterfall project viewed from an agile perspective
Resources:
👉 Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time (Book)
👉 Tiny Habits (Book)
👉 Episode 42: Habits, Context and Designing for Behavior Change with Andrew Webb
👉 Agile for Instructional Designers (Book)
Did you know the LX Leader is currently ranked in the top 40 L&D podcasts? Check it out and THANK YOU for listening!
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Dr. Cara North is a learning & Development leader, speaker, and researcher and currently works as the Operations Training Manager at Silfex, inc. Her previous experience includes learning experience design work at Ohio State University and Amazon and President of the Columbus Ohio chapter of ATD.
Today we talk about:
- Transitioning from being an individual contributor to a learning leader
- Tenacity and daily committed learning as key things to help you to the next level
- How Cara uses social media and daily habits to cultivate a personal learning environment
- The three buckets of networking
Resources
👉 Nuzzle - social media aggregator
👉 Feedly - blog post aggregator
👉 Buffer - social media publisher
👉 Cara’s job ID and resources posting texting number - 614-963-2951
👉 Edtechbooks.org - free open source books, articles, and journals
👉 Journal of Applied Instructional Design (via Edtechbooks.org)
👉 eLearning Heroes Challenge - Articulate
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today’s episode is the third and final part of an extended conversation about experience design with Dr. Bob Rossman and Dr. Mat Duerden. If you haven’t heard the first and second episodes in this mini-series, I recommend you go back and check those out. The focus of this conversation is on the third section of the book Designing Experiences, which my guests co-authored.
Today we talk about:
👉 The role of story and corporate strategy in experience design
👉 How services and experiences work together and differ
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today’s episode is the second part of an extended conversation about experience design with Dr. Bob Rossman and Dr. Mat Duerden. If you haven’t heard the first part, I recommend you go back and check it out! The focus of this conversation is on the second section of the book Designing Experiences, which my guests co-authored.
Today we talk about:
👉 6 universal experience elements to consider when designing
👉 Leveraging principles of intentionality and heterogeneity to make design decisions
👉 Experience mapping and the value of designing each discrete touchpoint, including the ending of the experience
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Dr. Bob Rossman is professor and dean emeritus at the College of Applied Science and Technology at Illinois State University. Dr. Mat Duerden is an associate professor in the department of experience design and management at the Marriott School of Business at Brigham Young University.
Today’s episode is a first for me in that I’ve got two simultaneous guests AND this is the first part of an extended conversation about experience design that will be picked up in a later episode. The focus of this conversation is all about the first section of the book Designing Experiences, which my guests co-authored. We talk specifically about what an experience is and what that means for designers. Additionally, we get into the three phases of macro and micro experiences and the role of human participation to make real meaning and transformation.
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Roy is the CEO of Weave Communications. He is a highly experienced executive and veteran of the United States Navy with over 20 years of public and private company leadership, executive management, and operations experience in sales, marketing, finance, mergers and acquisitions, product development, manufacturing, and distribution of products and services. Over the course of his career, he has been responsible for generating approximately $2.5 billion in shareholder value.
Today we talk about:
👉 The role of the CEO in helping people fulfill their potential
👉 Learning by observing others
👉 Leading with empathy and intellectual curiosity
👉 How Roy learns about the organizations he leads
Resources
👉 Admiral William H. McRaven University of Texas at Austin Commencement Speech (Video)
👉 Sea Stories: My Life in Special Operations by Admiral William H. McRaven (book):
👉 Daring Greatly, by Brene Brown (book)
👉 Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents, by Isabel Wilkerson (book)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
From the website for the book, "So often in life, we get stuck in a cycle of response. We put out fires. We deal with emergencies. We stay downstream, handling one problem after another, but we never make our way upstream to fix the systems that caused the problems. Cops chase robbers, and doctors treat patients with chronic diseases, and call-center reps address customer complaints. But crime and chronic disease and customer complaints are preventable! So why do our efforts skew so heavily toward reaction rather than prevention?"
In summarizing and reflecting on the book I'll cover:
👉 The three barriers to upstream thinking and how to start overcoming them
👉 7 questions to ask yourself when trying to solve upstream challenges
👉 Reflection on ways instructional and learning experience designers can be more like systems designers in helping organizations realize their goals
Resources
👉 Book information and helpful resources
Introduction music, “For Mimi” by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license
Check out the artist
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
The survey: https://forms.gle/r98TXPpDNhcdiUpG8***In late 2019 I started podcasting as a way to force myself to learn new things and meet new people. It was scary and sometimes frustrating. and still is much of the time! It has been an amazing journey and I’ve met those personal learning goals in ways I couldn’t have imagined. But I want to do better, and I need your help. In an effort to improve I’d LOVE your input as I work to discover more about what you are facing and working towards. Will you complete this survey? https://forms.gle/r98TXPpDNhcdiUpG8It should take you about 5 minutes to complete and you’ll receive the anonymous results when I’ve closed the survey. I hope to hear from you and am excited to share the next iteration of the show with you. Keep learning!🙏🙏🙏Also, here is the episode I mentioned with Seth Godin. It's gold!https://fs.blog/knowledge-project/seth-godin/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Dr. Harold Nelson is a visiting scholar in the School of Computer Science at the University of Montana. He was the 2009-2010 Nierenberg Distinguished Professor of Design in the School of Design at Carnegie Mellon University. He was an occasional Senior Lecturer in the Graduate School of Business and Public Policy, and in Defense Analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. Dr. Nelson was the head of the Graduate Programs in Whole Systems Design (WSD) at Antioch University and has held teaching positions in several universities. He is a licensed architect in the State of California and worked as the assistant regional architect for the U.S. Forest Service in San Francisco, California. He is a past president and a trustee of the International Society for Systems Science. He is the co-founding Director and President of the Advanced Design Institute and owner of Harold G. Nelson LLC. He has worked with a variety of organizations, including non-profits and corporations, state and federal agencies, military organizations, international governments, and the United Nations. Dr. Nelson received his Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley graduating with ‘Distinction’ where he designed his own doctoral program in the Design of Social Systems. He received his Master of Architecture degree from U.C. Berkeley and a Bachelor of Architecture from Montana State University.
Today we talk about a book called The Design Way, which Dr. Nelson co-authored. Some highlights of our conversation include:
👉 The ancient roots of design and the concept of Sofia and why we need to return to it
👉 What actually is Design and what does it mean to be a designer?
👉 The service-client relationship balance, including future generations of people as a stakeholders
👉 Design as a distinction from science and art in helping us shape the world we want
👉 The critical role of character and courage in taking ownership of our design judgments
Resources
👉 The Design Way (Book)
👉 Dilemmas in a General Theory of Planning (article about Wicked Problems from Horst Rittel and Melvin Webber)
👉 The Promise of Design (book chapter)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today I’ve got a special treat for you, a different kind of episode with returning guest Andrew Webb. You’re going to hear a few clips from one of his recent episodes of a new podcast launched this year called Microbehaviors where he explains how stories of the past can help you apply modern behavioral science. In each episode, you walk away with a MicroBehavior—a small action that takes the best research out of the lab and into your life so you flourish at home, work, and relationships.
These episodes while not directly about learning and design are very much relevant to some of my favorite topics and I think you’ll find them thought-provoking. I hope you enjoy this preview and when you’re done go check out Microbehaviors! Details are below.
Episode notes
👉 Link to the full episode from Andrew’s podcast Microbehaviors
👉 Dare to Lead - Brene Brown, see “confabulation” “conspiracy theories” and “SFD” in this glossary of terms from her book
👉 Episode 29 // The Learner’s Journey with Bastian Küntzel
👉 My first interview with Andrew (Episode 42)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Kyle Cooper is the owner of Instruction Studio, a training, and development firm in Tooele, Utah. He lives in Tooele with his wife, Morgan, and 3 kids, Evelyn (8), Nelson (6), and George(4). Kyle’s passionate about education and using effective teaching methods to create a clear and memorable message.
Today we talk about:
👉 Training vs communication
👉 Value-based training vs function-based training
👉 Building learning objectives that actually sound interesting to learners
👉 How to discover and articulate the value that your learners really want
👉 Why value-based training is more than a simple WIFM statement
Resources:
👉 Value Exchange is Product Management (This is Product Management podcast episode)
👉 Merrill’s Principles of Instruction (Blog post summary of the article)
👉 Customer Education Manifesto (CELab)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Dr. Parrish is Chief of Training Activities for the Education and Training Office at the World Meteorological Organization. He has been in the training profession for 35 years, including 19 years with The COMET Program of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado. Dr. Parrish has published over 20 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, receiving over 1000 citations, on instructional design and technology, cultural dimensions of learning, and the aesthetics of learning and teaching.
Today we talk about:
👉 What is aesthetic experience?
👉 Why our traditional focus on effectiveness and efficiency can miss the point
👉 5 principles of aesthetics for instructional design And much much more.You can show your support for the podcast by going to patreon.com/lxleader.
Resources:
👉 Aesthetic Principles for Instructional Design (Article) by Dr. Patrick Parrish -
👉 Learning ecologies (YouTube video by Dr. Patrick Parrish)
👉 Art as Experience by John Dewey, (Dr. Parrish recommends chapter 1)
👉 A Practice-Centered Approach to Instructional Design (Article) by Dr. Brent Wilson
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Kevin’s career in the learning and development profession includes over 20 years of experience in just about every learning professional role you can imagine. Known in the global L&D community as “the L&D detective,” Kevin answers the question, “What is the impact of learning?” He solves measurement mysteries and investigates how learning activates performance and business goals using facts, clues, evidence, and data.
Today we talk about Kevin’s journey across his various roles, and what he has learned about why measuring the impact of learning can be so difficult. In our conversation we touch on:
👉 What Kevin means by measuring the influence of learning and performance behavior
👉 Impact interviews and alignment with stakeholders on performance expectations
👉 The mindset required to help activate learning that makes a measurable difference
👉 And one of the most common traps teams set for themselves related to measuring impact
In our conversation, we touch on Kevin's L&D detective kit which you can find on his website along with articles and videos on the topic of measuring impact for training and learning.
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Dillon Winspear is an experienced UX Designer with a background in marketing and advertising. After 3 startups, Dillon moved into a corporate role with Domo, a business intelligence platform, where he leads a team of UX Designers on their Explorer portfolio. Dillon is also the host of the Designed Today Podcast, where he shares insights he’s gathered throughout his career and shares them with any designer looking to up their game. His guests have ranged from entry-level designers sharing their experiences, to experienced experts.
Today we talk all about the role of soft skills in the work of designers, including:
👉 An overview of the discipline of UX and its evolution as a field
👉 The role of soft skills in both getting and succeeding in your design job
👉 How to become aware of your opportunities for soft skills to work on
👉 Dillon’s take on the most important soft skills for designers
Resources:
👉 Dillon’s podcast: Designed Today
👉 Soft Skills Self Assessment
👉 The Soft Skills Disconnect (Research)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today’s guest is Kat Kennedy, Chief Experience Officer at Degreed. Kat is a problem solver, passionate about making great products that help people lead more productive lives. Kat has worked with top companies and brands in leading their companies to be the best in the industry. As part of the founding team at Degreed, she has helped build the company into an award-winning learning platform. She has helped shape a tech and product team that is inclusive and has been a leader in sharing how to build more inclusive workplaces in technology.
Today we talk about:
👉 How and why Degreed created the concept of the Learning Experience Platform and how this has evolved with technology and growing interest in skill credentialing
👉 How Degreed is working to use technology to help facilitate taxonomies and language of expertise and skill
👉 All about how work is changing and what role technology might play in helping humans learn and develop into the future
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Are you one of the 68% of US workers (and 87% of global workers) who are disengaged from your job? Are you ready to quit your boss? (People quit bosses, not companies) don’t do it yet! Authors Bill Burnett and Dave Evans provide solutions to these and so much more in their book Design Your Work Life. Today I’m joined with Hope Kramek, an Instructional Designer and Content Manager at Intuit. Here’s a primer from the book’s website:
"Bill Burnett and Dave Evans show us how design thinking can transform our present job and our experience of work by utilizing the designer mindsets: Curiosity. Reframing. Radical collaboration. Awareness. Bias to action. And, the new mindset, Storytelling, helps engage others in helping you find the best job for you."
In summarizing and reflecting on the book, Hope and I cover topics such as:
👉 How reframing your problems can help determine what’s next in your career
👉 Focusing on the best doable options rather than the best theoretical option
👉 The power of aiming for “good enough for now” and a growth mindset
👉 The flaw of trying to “follow your passion”
👉 And the many ways that simply figuring out what you are curious in and talking to others about it can open new doors in your career.
Resources
👉 The Peril’s of Following Your Passion (podcast episode)
Introduction music, “For Mimi” by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.
Artist: TwinMusicCom
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Meghan is a Principal Learning Experience Designer at HubSpot focused on creating remote-inclusive experiences and enabling performance. She has facilitated adult learner education at Michigan State University; designed, developed, and facilitated learning programs in various industries through international consulting; and contributed to corporate learning management at PepsiCo and Coca-Cola Beverages Florida. She is a member of the 2018 Learning 30 under 30 program.
Today we talk about:
👉 Meghan’s journey to becoming a business partner (not simply an order taker)
👉 The importance of talking to learners and doing a workflow analysis both for great design and also stakeholder alignment
👉 What Meghan does to help stakeholders to partner with her on projects with tips for effective training request processes
👉 The role of asking questions, educating stakeholders, and dealing with the worry of being an inconvenience
Resources:
The 5 Moments of Need
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Dr. Beth Wilkins is the founder and CEO of Foresight Collaborative, a management consulting firm that focuses on accelerating innovation and growth by helping clients envision and achieve aspirational strategies. Prior to starting Foresight, she was the Head of Organization Effectiveness at a global non-profit and the Director of Talent Development at Oracle. She was also a Principal Consultant at DecisionWise and the RBL Group. Beth holds a Ph.D. in Instructional Psychology with a focus on transformative learning.
Today we talk about:
- Dealing with Imposter Syndrome and the role of storytelling in shaping identity and learning
- How transformational leaders can leverage values and learning to inspire and energize others
- The learn, experiment, reflect model to bring about real change individually or as an organization
- How you can influence change in your organization without any formal power
- The qualities of positive deviants and their influence in transforming teams and people
Resources:
👉 Reading and resources on Beth’s website: Foresight Collaborative
👉 Moments of Greatness: Entering the Fundamental State of Leadership (HBR article)
👉 Dan Duckworth - Positive Deviance Program
👉 Shawn Quinn - Lift Consulting
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Hello everyone! Here is a brief update on some changes coming soon. Stay tuned for more great conversations in the coming weeks. Thank you for listening! Please take a second and leave a voicemail with any feedback by calling(801) 900-5970.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
With 25 years in high-tech software development—Dr. Christian Weibell provides a very passionate and informed perspective to envision, incubate, and develop new product offerings and set high standards of excellence for the overall customer experience. He is most widely known for his Principles-of-Learning Framework that articulates seven principles on which all learning is based, and provides a foundation for the development of domain-specific theories of learning.
Today we talk about:
- Christian’s journey through formal and informal learning to eLearning brothers
- The 7 principles of learning framework and applications and details for each of them
Additional Resources:
👉 Summary of principles of learning (blog posts)
👉 Principles of Learning (full dissertation text
👉 A Theory of Personality (book)
👉 Conversation with Jon Tota on the Learning Life Podcast
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Zach Atherton is the owner, founder, director, and regular main stage cast member of ImprovBroadway in Provo Utah. When not performing or directing on stage, Zach works as a writer with the Harmon Brothers viral ad agency.
Today we talk about:
- Getting past fear filters and failure
- Giving feedback that honors people and builds upon their ideas
- How to turn draining transactions into inspiring conversations with a shared purpose
- The essential role of play and asking, “what is the most fun?” to unlock trust and creativity
Resources
👉 Business Improv (website)
👉 Upright Citizen’s Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual (book)
👉 Improvising at the Speed of Life (book)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Dr. Stephen Yanchar is a professor at Brigham Young University’s Department of Instructional Psychology and Technology. Along with a book, he has authored or co-authored chapters and articles in numerous psychology, learning, and design-related publications. Dr. Yanchar’s research and teaching interests include agency and learning, instructional design in practice, and hermeneutic and phenomenological approaches to qualitative inquiry.
Today we talk about:
- What actually is practice? What is theory? and is there really a gap between them?
- The role of morals and values in design practice
- How your questions and methods of inquiry influence projects and investigations
- Intentional use of theory in practice using critical flexibility
Resources:
👉 Between Eclecticism and Orthodoxy in Instructional Design (article):
👉 The Design Way (book)
👉 The Sciences of the Artificial (book):
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Abby Covert is an information architect, writer, and community organizer. Abby served as President of IA Institute, co-chair of IA Summit, and Executive Producer of IDEA. She is a founding faculty member of the School of Visual Arts’ Products of Design program, Design Operations Summit and, Advancing Research Conference. She invented World IA Day, bringing IA education to thousands in local communities annually. Abby wrote, “How to Make Sense of Any Mess” a book teaching IA to everybody of which we talk about today.
Additionally, we discuss:
- A high-level introduction to information architecture
- Defining Good on your project
- Three deceptively simple things for creating a good structure
- And the power of creating a shared vocabulary in building solutions that scale
Resources
👉 How to Make Sense of Any Mess (book):
👉 Mental Models (book)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Bonnie is a human capital strategist and performance consultant. She is the creator of the Measurement Map which helps to illustrate the causal chain of evidence between human capital interventions and measurable business outcomes. Her goal is to help organizations create environments and build skills that truly engage and enable their employees.
Today we talk about:
- Getting to a shared definition of success with stakeholders
- Alignment with stakeholders as the critical part of Analysis
- Bonnie’s measurement map model
I tried something new in this episode by role-playing a scenario around a training request and Bonnie’s response is brilliant. I hope you find this as insightful as I did!
Resources
👉 So You Want to Measure Impact, Now What? (article - description of the measurement map)
👉 20 Things I’ve Learned from 20 Years of Learning Measurement (article)
👉 GP Strategies Podcast interview with Bonnie (podcast episode)
👉 How L&D Can Link Learning to Business Outcomes (podcast episode)
👉 33 // Evaluating to Demonstrate Evidence of Training Value for Stakeholders with Dr. Jim Kirkpatrick (LX Leader podcast episode)
👉 How to Measure Anything (book)
👉 Developing Human Capital (Bonnie's book)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Adam is a learning experience designer at Health Catalyst. His mission is to guide a systematic focus on meeting human needs within the employee experience: specifically through talent development, scalable and transparent technology, and empathetic data storytelling.
Today we talk about:
- The three pillars of self-determination theory
- Six forms of motivation
- Implications of these ideas to learning design & talent development
Resources
👉 What HR Forgot - Adam’s LinkedIn Post
👉 Adam’s visualization of Self-Determination Theory concepts (requires LucidChart sign in - you can create a free account)
👉 Literature Review of Self Determination Theory
👉 Edward Deci - Self-Determination Theory (video)
👉 Loads more SDT resources
👉 The Power of Moments (book)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Andrew has trained or spoken for Fortune 500 companies such as Delta, Marriott, Wyndham, and KPMG—on topics such as digital wellness, positive habit formation, and learning design. He co-founded the Inspired Learning Group which transformed a premier mountain resort into a 60,000 sq foot experiential facility and is currently the director of Training at Utah’s most recent Unicorn, Weave Communications. And yes, we work together. In fact, he is my boss!
Today we talk about:
👉 Why most training initiatives fail to actually change behavior
👉 Designing for behaviors that get us where we need to go, not the outcome only
👉 The critical role of habits in behavior change, and how context is everything
Resources 👉 Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything (book)
👉 Episode 21: Fully Compliant with Travis Waugh
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Colin is an Assistant Professor at Purdue University in the Department of Computer Graphics Technology and he leads the UX Pedagogy and Practice Lab, which focuses on research at the intersection of design education, practice, ethics, and critical theory. Colin has worked as an art director, contract designer, and trainer, and his continued involvement in design work informs his research on design activity and how it is learned.
Today we talk about:
- An introduction to the scholarly conversation around ethics, morals, values, and dark patterns
- The role of design judgment and character in the act of designing
- Overview and examples of the 5 dark pattern strategies that Colin’s team found in their research and how they might show themselves in learning design
- How can we ensure we are good designers without resigning responsibility and joining the dark side?
Dr. Gray Resources
👉 Research Paper: The Dark (Patterns) Side of UX Design
👉 Research Paper: Inscribing ethics and values in designs for learning - request download from Colin by sending him an email at gray42@purdue.edu
👉 Overview of Colin’s team’s Dark Patterns strategies:
👉 The Hall of Shame of Dark Patterns
👉 More about Dr. Gray
Resources
👉 Evil By Design (book)
👉 Ethical Design Handbook (book)
👉 The Conscious Creative (book)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Nihal is head of Content Marketing at Fuse universal and relishes partnering with L&D rebels to tell the world stories about how they drive passion and purpose in learning. Her background as a data analyst, educator, and marketer informs her drive to enable learning professionals with the tools and resources to make a measurable difference in the world.
Today we talk about:
- 5 Things L&D should steal from content marketing
- How L&D might talk data (or really anything) with business leaders
- The power of experimentation and curiosity
- Three of the hardest - but most important - words for our own growth
Resources
👉 How L&D Can Talk Data With The Business
👉 A Curious Mind
👉 The Three Hardest Words in the English Language (podcast episode)
👉 The Magic of Thinking Big (book)
👉 The Art of Learning (book)
👉 Alive at Work (book)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Matt is an educationalist and entrepreneur. He was the COO and Partner of RED Academy, Canada's fastest-growing Design & Technology school, and launched their Toronto campus. Matt has experience in university governance and is passionate about making quality learning accessible to everyone. He now runs a learning tech company called Benji. Benji exists to help trainers keep the magic of their in-person experiences alive as they transition to remote formats.
Today we talk about:
- Matt’s learning from years of iterating on his learning product concept to provide the needed structure and tools in remote settings for virtual facilitation to succeed.
- The barriers that make online group facilitation so painful, and suggested tactics to get around these.
- Building upon some discussion topics Dr. Hadnes and I explored last week including the role and relationship of machines and humans in facilitating learning.
- Also, how viewing learning as a process rather than an event might get us closer to rapidly reskilling the workforce of the future.
Links:
👉 Matt's post we discuss (blog)
👉 Design of Everyday Things (book)
👉 Play to Learn (book)
👉 Learning How to Learn (Coursera course)
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Myriam’s background and Ph.D. in behavioral economics have helped her to understand what it is that gets in the way of a wide variety of solutions. She has developed a toolbox to remove these obstacles through micro-interventions. She hosts the podcast "workshops work", designs and facilitates workshops and hosts live mastermind events for expert facilitators.
Today we talk about:
👉 The basic introduction to the disciplines of Facilitation and Behavioral Economics
👉 Objectives vs outcomes and the importance of the difference in how you design facilitation
👉 Overview of a few principles of Behavioral Economics and applications in the facilitation of learning
Resources
- Workshops Work (Mariam's podcast)
- Behavioral economics encyclopedia
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Seth is an award-winning author whose scholarship focuses on learning experiences designed to increase knowledge, develop skills, and improve employee performance. He has built global training programs, consulted with executive leaders for their training at scale, and is currently responsible for learning and performance strategy at Facebook.Today we talk all about driving executive stakeholder engagement.
Specifically:
👉 How Seth built trust and currency with Adobe executives while managing learning programs
👉 The importance of providing value before you ask for additional resources
👉 Steps you can take to increase partnership with other stakeholders in your organization.
Resources
- Be sure to check out Seth’s article: Driving Executive Engagement
- Learn more about Seth on his website
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
While taking master-level classes in Human Resource Development at the University of Houston, Nyla discovered the excitement of learning technologies in an e-Learning class. She made the decision, then and there, and dedicated her career to the future of learning. Nyla runs her own business designing learning experiences, and she is a co-founder and learning experience designer at Design for Humanity - a collective pairing professionals to collaborate on real-world projects advocating for equity, diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism. Nyla is passionate about mentoring new instructional designers and e-learning developers, and you’ll hear some great insights on the topic in this episode!
Additionally, today we talk about:
👉 Nyla’s approach to finding jobs in the field of LXD, whether you are jobless or restless
👉 Suggestions on packaging yourself to find a new job and the value of aligning your past skills and experiences with your explicit career goals
👉 Common barriers that people who are new to the field face and how Leaders might help break these down
👉 Discussion around the role of mentoring for new and mid-career employees, and the difference between a mentor and a sponsor
👉 Suggestions on benchmarking your skills within the industry
Resources
- Nyla’s website
- Podcast: “I’m New Here”
- The Learning Conference
- Design For Humanity
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
After losing his job in healthcare in 2015 and spending four months unemployed, Dan went back to his roots in film. He knew that film could be the most powerful way to help people discover their story and all that was missing was a platform to help people do this. He founded Stiry, a media production company on a mission to inspire people to discover their divine potential by changing the way they see their story.
Today we talk about:
👉 The unique story of how Dan built Stiry through inspiration and intelligent risk-taking
👉 How Dan is working to help people discover their stories through reflecting on perspective moments and being open to sharing genuine emotional experiences
👉 The 3 key steps people can follow to begin to own and live the story they really want
👉 Dan’s perspective on the importance of evoking emotions that move us to become great
👉 Importance of establishing psychologically safe environments for emotional sharing
👉 Dan’s invitation to discover what you are meant to do right now to share good with the world
👉 Examples of how the Stiry process has helped people change
Resources
- Be sure to check out examples of Stiry's work (YouTube playlist):
- Stiry website
- Also the ebook Dan mentioned:
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Nicole is an instructional designer and former college writing instructor. Currently, there are over 250,000 users taking courses that she has designed or overseen and her work has been recognized by Brandon Hall and Chief Learning Officer Magazine. Nicole has a Ph.D. in English from St. John's University and her academic research focuses on student engagement, transfer of learning, and writing across the curriculum.
Today we talk all about writing. Including:
👉 The misconception of bad writers vs good writers
👉 Learning how to read and then write different industry languages
👉 How getting feedback on your writing can help you make your writing more conversational
👉 Nicole’s process and tips for writing learning content, including video and storyboard scripting insights.
Learn more about Nicole at her website
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Given the current economic climate in which all expenditures are being carefully monitored, there is no better time to use the four levels to create, deliver, measure and validate training that has true organizational value. It is time to be strategic business partners. Failing to do so will likely lead to our replacement by YouTube, apps, and avatars. Using his 15 years of experience in the corporate world, including eight years as a training manager, Dr. Jim Kirkpatrick trains and consults for corporate, government, military, and humanitarian organizations around the world. He is passionate about assisting learning professionals in redefining themselves as strategic business partners to become a viable force in the workplace. Jim co-authored three books with his father, Don Kirkpatrick, who is credited with creating the Kirkpatrick Model. He also has written four books with Wendy Kirkpatrick, including Kirkpatrick's Four Levels of Training Evaluation which we’ll discuss today.
Also in this episode:
- Needed clarifications and misapplied practices of the original Kirkpatrick evaluation model along with an overview of the new world model that builds on it
- How human nature works against our learning efforts and what to do about it
- Key steps learning professionals can take to provide evidence of the value of their work
- Common Evaluation pitfalls and how to avoid them
- Stepheen Covey’s opinion of the most important habit
Learn more about Jim and his work at the Kirkpatrick Partners Website.
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Kendra Modzelewski is an experienced change management specialist and project manager having facilitated many change journeys for internal and external stakeholders alike. Kendra currently supports major transformation efforts being undertaken by the Project Management Institute (PMI) and is also embedding this capability throughout the enterprise by leading and coaching internal teams. In this episode, we discuss the basics of what the discipline of Change Management is, a common theme that can be found in most change management models, how change management is related to its cousins training and communication, and what change management can look like in practice.
Check out these resources:
- Recommended by Kendra - Webinar from PROSCI
- Kendra's webinar (referenced in the show) - Webinar on Project Management.com
- Templates and slides for Kendra's webinar: “Supporting A Change Journey to Anywhere”
If you are curious (or want to correct me!), more details on why the US won't change to the Metric system
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
What lessons for learning design and leadership are there from some of the greatest video ads on the Internet? Quite a lot actually. Creative Director James Dayton of the Harmon Brothers Ad Agency produced the wildly successful Squatty Potty, Purple, and Fiber-Fix campaigns and more. As Creative Director his credits include CubCoats, TAOS Bakes, Cuffed Up, Scooch, and BedJet. Having worked in film for over 15 years he is also a skilled Assistant Director.
James and I talk about his work as a creative director in the advertising world. We discuss:
- The 7 point video ad scripting recipe
- Killing your darlings
- Thriving under constraints
- Grabbing people with great hooks and a visual thesis
James has some great insights on the importance of setting honest expectations with your audience and the value of matrix testing and soft launching content to tweak and optimize for higher impact. Check out this youtube playlist with few of the ads mentioned in today’s episode. Learn more about the Harmon Brothers on their website.
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Megan is a passionate educator and learning designer with over 12 years of experience teaching and instructing people from 4-year-olds through 60+-year-olds, including people with disabilities. Currently, she works at the startup Practera where she oversees learning experience design projects utilizing technology, expert feedback, and experiential learning principles with the goal of providing learners awesome experiences without leaving their current system of work.
Check out the “fun fact” here
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Bastian Küntzel is co-founder and CEO of Incontro training and author of "The Learner’s Journey: Storytelling as a Design Principle to Create Powerful Learning Experiences". Bastian has been involved in the training field since 1999 and he has worked globally with clients such as the United Nations, UNESCO, Google, Ernst & Young, Hewlett Packard, IBM, and IKEA. He is also the host of a podcast by the same name as his book!
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Steve Arntz is a co-founder at a new startup called Campfire. The company is focused on helping team leaders to develop skills and culture on their team through reading. Steve has 15 years of experience building software products at companies of various sizes, the last 5 of those being at Instructure where he worked to build an employee development platform. He has spent most of his career working at the intersection of learning and connection.
Steve is passionate about building learning experiences that help people to develop in their life and in their careers. He has experience in product, marketing, sales, and strategy. Steve loves to give book recommendations and does so in this episode!
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Dr. Jason McDonald is currently an associate professor in the BYU Department of Instructional Psychology & Technology, where he teaches courses in instructional design, instructional media production, and project management. Jason has 20 years of experience producing instructional media, including instructional film. He has been the executive producer or producer of hundreds of instructional film and multimedia projects, as well as immersive simulations that incorporate film, graphics, text, and interactive elements. His work has been used to teach thousands of people in 50+ nations and languages around the world. Jason is also a curriculum developer having designed 100+ university-level courses at four different universities.
You can view the article we discuss here: The Creative Spirit of Design
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
In his role as Associate Director of International Development, Sam works to develop and execute Arbinger’s global strategy, including directing Arbinger’s international partnerships. He is also active in managing product distribution worldwide and learning resources for Arbinger’s global infrastructure. His experience spans a variety of industries including, Healthcare, Energy, Telecom, and others. Sam has also worked in education in the university space. He has delivered workshops to students and faculty and proven himself an enabler of change through shifting mindsets.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Have you wondered about how to further the systemic influence of your learning experiences? Or maybe how you might better deploy empathetic strategies in your design work? Today’s guest has some excellent insight to these and other critical questions.
Dr. Jill Stefaniak is an Assistant Professor in the Learning, Design, and Technology program in the Department of Career and Information Studies at the University of Georgia, in the United States. Her research interests focus on the professional development of instructional designers and design conjecture, designer decision-making processes, and contextual factors influencing design in situated environments.
Today we are talking about her recent publication "The Utility of Design Thinking to Promote Systemic Instructional Design Practices in the Workplace" in the journal Tech Trends. This paper introduces a conceptual framework, grounded in general systems theory, that combines design thinking principles with instructional design practices to improve performance. Learn more about Dr. Stefaniak here.
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Rex’s 40 year professional career has spanned training positions as an Instructor Pilot in the U.S. Air Force, a corporate trainer in the financial services field, and trusted performance consulting partner inside more than 50 companies in more than two dozen industries. Rex Conner is the author of "What if Common Sense Was Common Practice in Business?"He is the happily married husband of one, father of seven, and grandfather of 14+.
Rex is also the Co-Founder and Lead Partner of Mager Consortium which is entrusted to publish and teach all of the world-renowned human performance and training tools and systems developed by Dr. Robert Mager.
Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today’s guest is Michael Matthews, an instructional designer in the world of online higher education. Michael earned a master's and Ph.D. in instructional design and dreams of someday becoming a professor. A few years ago he completed his dissertation on the subject of learner agency and responsibility, and it is on this topic we explore in some detail today.
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As a Learning Experience Designer, Kyle designs interactive educational products and experiences - if you're a 90's kid, think Oregon Trail. In this role, he is responsible for defining a product vision, validating ideas through user research, and collaborating with a product team through design and delivery. He currently works at WGU Labs in support of its mission to improve quality and increase access to educational opportunities. Check out Kyle's post that we discuss in the episode: 2019 Personal Learning Report.
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Travis Waugh is an instructional designer, developer, speaker, and author with specialized interests in philosophy, psychology, technology, and law. He has spent the last 15 years creating relevant, timely learning programs for professionals in a variety of settings and as a dedicated learning professional, Travis tries, above all else, never to waste anyone’s time. He is motivated by his dogged belief that people are generally good, and always worthy of good learning and development.
Today we discuss Travis’s book Fully Compliant, Compliance Training to Change Behavior.
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Peggy has written thousands of articles first as a daily journalist and now as a training and writing consultant. Her most recent work is focused on the value of human expertise in knowledge management in an age of machine learning and artificial intelligence. Her areas of interest span across many topics including Training design and corporate knowledge management, Lean and continuous quality improvement, and more!
I recommend her book "Working with SMEs: A Guide to Gathering and Organizing Content from Subject Matter Experts". Additionally, we discussed some of her ideas from her most recent book "Retaining Expert Knowledge: What to Keep in an Age of Information Overload".
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Bear Shelton has spent 8 years in consulting or training in some capacity. He currently works as an associate manager of product and customer education at LucidChart with the goal of make learning FUN for SaaS customers and exterminating weak software training, one bad joke at a time. By focusing on the needs of adult learners and striving to deliver training that is story-driven, upbeat, humorous, and hands-on, learners have more fun and not only do they learn more, he believes learners FEEL more positively towards what they've learned. Join us in discussing facilitating product training.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Today we deviate from our regular focus to try and address the question: how have people in the past managed to thrive and innovate during times of disaster and crises? Our guest is my brother, Indiana University Professor Dr. Trent Williams. Trent is an Assistant Professor studying and teaching strategy and entrepreneurship at the Kelley School of Business at IU. His focus is on new venture and value creation under resource constraints, resilience, strategic management, overcoming obstacles in building a professional identity, and entrepreneurial decision making.
- You can view the resources discussed here: Open Resource Book
- IU Weekend Solutions Sprint
- Additional resources: Hack the Crisis
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Elizabeth is an award-winning project management writer. She is also an active professional project/program manager with more than a decade of experience in financial services and healthcare. She runs an award-winning blog A Girl's Guide to Project Management, which aims to encourage and support women in project management and provide tips to everyone.
Today we talk about a post from Elizabeth's blog titled The Definitive Guide to Project Success Criteria. Project Management is such a big part of developing and leading learning experiences and Elizabeth provides some really great insights.
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Today’s guest is Alana Schroeder. Alana helps organizations understand their users & discover actionable insights for digital products. Currently, at TaskRabbit she uses a variety of qualitative and quantitative methods across the product lifecycle to help make strategic product recommendations based on user needs, pain points, and satisfaction, triangulate findings from a variety of data sources including usability testing, surveys, analytics, customer support tickets, & other user research.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Niels is a pioneer in the field of learning experience design. As an entrepreneur, trainer, teacher, creator of the learning experience canvas and initiator of the LXDCON events he is a driving force in the global learning experience design community.
Resources
- The website discussed in the episode is Learningexperiencedesign.com.
- Another great conversation with Niels (podcast episode)
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Today’s guest is Katie Stroud. Katie is a Product Manager at IAB - an interactive advertising group. With skills in technical communication, instructional design, storytelling, and graphic design. She collaborates globally on developing, communicating, and organizing adoption efforts for technical solutions that increase growth and trust in the digital media ecosystem.
Learn more about Katie at https://incrementalsuccess.com/ or https://katiestroud.com/. Also, check out one of her manuscript chapters on backstory!
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Nick Petch is a Learning Experience Designer and current Team Leader at the global Learning company IMC. In this episode, he shares reflections and insights on creating transformational learning experiences by co-creating with learners and stakeholders. Enjoy! I'll be back with more episodes in Spring 2020.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Lynne McNamee is a leading marketing expert who also has a learning and development background. In this episode, she shares some of the most fundamental principles of marketing and we discuss what lessons can be learned from the field of marketing for learning experience leaders.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Scott is Executive Vice President of Business Development and Chief Marketing Officer for FranklinCovey. Today we talk about his newest book, with co-authors Todd Davis and Victoria Roos Olsson called "Everyone Deserves a Great Manager: The 6 Critical Practices for Leading a Team".
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Matthew Daniel is a high-energy, no-holds-barred, tell-it-like-it-is learning consultant and learner experience advocate working in and with some of the largest and most innovative companies across the country. In this episode, we explore how most L&D organizations may be more like a communist state than a free market and how that perspective can impact learners. Also, if instructional designers don't have the last say on how to transform people...what is left of their identity? Learn more about Matthew at thelearnercollective.com.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/lxleader)
Bob Bodily is a self-proclaimed learning analytics enthusiast and current employee at Lumen Learning as a Senior Data Scientist. In this episode, we talk about the what and why of learning analytics, using data to make targetted decisions on what learning content to update and keep fresh, and the role Bob's work plays in Lumen's ambitious Open Education Resource goals.
You can view resources discussed in the episode here:
- Learning Analytics handbook
- Rise Framework
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Rebecca Frost Cuevas has a new book coming out on November 21, 2019 titled "Course Design Formula: How to Teach Anything to Anyone Online". In this episode, we talk through some of the components of the formula and key insights that Rebecca has uncovered after years of teaching and developing learning programs for online audiences.
- You can pre-order the Kindle Book here
- Access free materials discussed in this episode and learn more about Rebecca on her website at THIS LINK
- Learn more about upcoming courses from Rebecca that teaches the Course Design Formula™
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Ben Miller creates content and designs experiences that help people learn. Right now he leads a team at TD Ameritrade that produces award-winning financial education to help everyday people learn to invest. They make everything from explainer videos to online courses to live workshops. Check out some of Ben's work on the TD Ameritrade YouTube Channel.
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Todd Ericksen is Director of Product at Instructure, the learning technology creators of the learning management platform Canvas and Employee Development platform Bridge. He has led a team of leaders in creating the future of learning at work, hired and mentored new product managers, and coordinated work across teams and departments. He has also created and implemented internal employee experience tools that are now being built for other companies to use.
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Pam is the founder of In case of emergency (ICE) Safety Solutions, an organization that creates a variety of safety-based training and tools to save lives. In this episode, she shares how her approach to designing safety training has evolved in an effort to fulfill her vision and goal of no deaths in the workplace. Learn more about Pam and her organization at http://getice.com/.
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Andre Plaut wears many hats including Learning Designer, Facilitator, & Ethics Consultant. Over the last seven years, Andre Plaut has been designing & delivering learning experiences for Apple, Obama for America, and General Assembly. He is now the director of L&D at Huge Inc. and is responsible for building out learning & development infrastructure and culture across the organization. In the episode, we discuss some of the content from Andre's post titled "Elements of Learning Experience Design: Its Time to Move Beyond Instructional Design".
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Rudyard Hopkins is a product manager at Pluralsight, a leading platform in technology learning, where he is working to realize the potential of users and bridge the technology skills gap. He is also the founder of PM Potential, an initiative with the goal of enabling others through curriculum design, content creation, and personal coaching to break into the professional field of product management. Rud shares his background in transitioning from marketing and advertising to instructional design and user experience, and ultimately to product management - always with the goal of delighting and building expertise for learners.
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Kim is a passionate eLearning and online learning creator with a background in organizational development, learning, training, and graphic design. She likes to inspire learning through creative training solutions that solve real business problems. Beyond her work as director of Belvista Studios, she has also co-founded the Instructional Design Academy - a home for Instructional Designers with the goal of providing instructional design workshops and coaching. I’m excited to have Kim on the show to talk about some of the projects the team at Belvista has done and to better understand how the team works to meet the company's vision of inspiring learning.
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Instructional design, learning experience design, educational technology, learning science....where did this all come from? Today we explore an awesome resource that may have the answer. Recently Dr. West and his collaborators received the Outstanding Book Award from the Association for Education Communication and Technology for his book titled "Foundations of Learning and Instructional Design Technology: The Past, Present, and Future of Learning and Instructional Design Technology".
Dr. Richard E. West is an associate professor of Instructional Psychology and Technology at Brigham Young University. He teaches courses in instructional design, academic writing, and the foundations of the field of learning and instructional design technology.
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What are the most effective ways we can reskill the workforce as technology rapidly changes? How are the best learning products built and evaluated? What are the most important skills needed for a team or individual to build amazing learning experiences? These questions and more have fueled my desire to start this show, and I hope you will join me on my trek to finding answers and insights to these questions and more. In this maiden episode, I talk through the goals of the show and what sort of content you can expect in future episodes.
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