The Learning Culture Podcast: Recent Episodes
Andrew Barry
Join your host Andrew Barry, the Founder and CEO of Curious Lion, as he interviews learning leaders practicing the cultivation of Learning Culture; experts who tease out critical theoretical components of this idea; and shares learning nuggets from real-world experiences, and our own research and writing.By following along, you’ll learn:• How a shared vision sets the tone for a Learning Culture. • How shared assumptions determine our current reality. • How shared stories foster commitment to a Learning Culture. • How shared experiences, or Cohort Learning Experiences to be specific, instill the practice of a Learning Culture.Stay curious, my friends.
What happens when everything you've worked for comes down to one moment and your body just stops working?
For Scott Landers, CEO of Achievers, that moment came on a college baseball mound, and what followed changed the trajectory of his life.
In this conversation, Scott shares the decision that turned his lowest point into a turning point: "I hold the pen. I'm going to write the story." He explains how he deliberately walked toward everything that scared him, saying yes to opportunities that terrified him, and how that hard-won sense of agency shaped him into the leader he is today.
He also gets honest about why the fear of failure never goes away, and why becoming comfortable in your own skin can trump it.
That same belief in agency sits at the heart of Scott's take on AI: only 1% of CFOs are seeing ROI from it, and he argues it's because AI is happening to people, not with them.
Press play to hear how one moment of panic became a philosophy for leading through the biggest transformation of our time.
How do you reconcile the speed of disruption with the time it takes to build human capability?
In this episode, Kahina shares why people leaders need to get comfortable being behind, why vulnerability might be the most important leadership behavior of this moment, and how Workleap is building AI capability through company-wide experimentation.
Drawing on her unique journey from law and humanitarian diplomacy into people leadership, Kahina brings a deeply human perspective to AI transformation. She explores why high performers may be more at risk of cognitive overload, how AI is turning individual contributors into mini-managers, and why critical judgment may be the defining capability of our time.
Kahina makes the case for shared language, context, and precision as the foundations for teams to work effectively with AI and each other.
If you're navigating AI transformation and looking for a refreshingly honest take from someone in the thick of it, this episode is for you.
What does AI transformation actually look like once it moves past experimentation and becomes part of how a company works every day?
Satu Salminen has been building with AI since the early ChatGPT days, and for the past year she's led AI transformation for HR at ZoomInfo, making her one of the earliest pioneers in the space.
In this practical conversation, Satu walks through her journey from building a simple manager feedback coach to designing full end-to-end HR workflows. She shares how she identifies use cases worth investing in, why documentation and workflow design matter more than the technology itself, and how bringing legal and HR into the process early saves you from costly rebuilds.
Satu also gets into the human side of adoption, explaining why critical thinking and systems thinking are the skills that matter most, why you can't outsource accountability to AI, and how ZoomInfo reached nearly 100% daily AI adoption across the company. Her advice for leaders is refreshingly direct: don't wait.
If you're trying to understand what real AI transformation looks like inside a company, this conversation gives you a practical place to start.
What does it really take to grow from a good individual contributor to a great one? In this special edition of The Learning Culture Podcast, Andrew Barry sits down with talent leaders for short, sharp conversations about the mindset shifts, hard-won lessons, and small moves that separate ICs who plateau from those who keep climbing. ICs matter more than ever as AI reshapes how work gets done, and these episodes are built for anyone navigating that path or helping others walk it.
In this episode, Scott Sylvia talks about the freedom that came with realizing he didn't have to know everything to be valued, why he sees careers as marathons of relationships rather than races to the next title, and how he helps high-potential ICs make the jump from tactical execution to strategic thinking.
If you're an IC looking to grow, or a leader responsible for developing them, this episode is for you.
What does it really take to grow from a good individual contributor to a great one? In this special edition of The Learning Culture Podcast, Andrew Barry sits down with talent leaders for short, sharp conversations about the mindset shifts, hard-won lessons, and small moves that separate ICs who plateau from those who keep climbing. ICs matter more than ever as AI reshapes how work gets done, and these episodes are built for anyone navigating that path or helping others walk it.
In this episode, Whitney Barlow traces the shift that changed everything for her, from believing flawless execution would speak for itself to realizing visibility, alignment, and stakeholder influence matter just as much. She shares what two different managers told her about why they hired her, the advice she'd give her younger self about not waiting for permission to think bigger, and how she helps high-potential ICs connect their work to revenue and outcomes.
If you're an IC looking to grow, or a leader responsible for developing them, this episode is for you.
What does it really take to grow from a good individual contributor to a great one? In this special edition of The Learning Culture Podcast, Andrew Barry sits down with talent leaders for short, sharp conversations about the mindset shifts, hard-won lessons, and small moves that separate ICs who plateau from those who keep climbing. ICs matter more than ever as AI reshapes how work gets done, and these episodes are built for anyone navigating that path or helping others walk it.
In this episode, Frank reframes what it means to be an individual contributor entirely. He walks through the deal that taught him to get the CEO and every senior leader in the building working for him, the LinkedIn post he was talked into writing that changed his career trajectory, and why he believes everyone has a to-do list but almost nobody has a people plan.
If you're an IC looking to grow, or a leader responsible for developing them, this episode is for you.
What does it really take to grow from a good individual contributor to a great one? In this special edition of The Learning Culture Podcast, Andrew Barry sits down with talent leaders for short, sharp conversations about the mindset shifts, hard-won lessons, and small moves that separate ICs who plateau from those who keep climbing. ICs matter more than ever as AI reshapes how work gets done, and these episodes are built for anyone navigating that path or helping others walk it.
In this episode, Kia Beckford shares what prioritization looked like coming out of an academic environment that just kept piling more on, why the role she didn't want turned out to be the one that shaped her most, and how supporting the people behind you on the ladder gets noticed in ways most ICs underestimate.
If you're wondering what separates the ICs who plateau from the ones who keep climbing, this episode is for you.
What does it really take to grow from a good individual contributor to a great one? In this special edition of The Learning Culture Podcast, Andrew Barry sits down with leaders for short, sharp conversations about the mindset shifts, hard-won lessons, and small moves that separate ICs who plateau from those who keep climbing. ICs matter more than ever as AI reshapes how work gets done, and these episodes are built for anyone navigating that path or helping others walk it.
In this episode, Aimee Lantzy recalls the day a COO asked for her opinion and how it shifted her from doing the work to designing it. She talks about the advice her entrepreneur father gave her about working inside someone else's dream, what it means to choose a company rather than fall into one, and why the most productive ICs sometimes need help simply looking up from their desks.
If you're an IC looking to grow, or a leader responsible for developing them, this episode is for you.
What does it really take to grow from a good individual contributor to a great one? In this special edition of The Learning Culture Podcast, Andrew Barry sits down with talent leaders for short, sharp conversations about the mindset shifts, hard-won lessons, and small moves that separate ICs who plateau from those who keep climbing. ICs matter more than ever as AI reshapes how work gets done, and these episodes are built for anyone navigating that path or helping others walk it.
In this episode, Liz Brumels makes the case for asking the questions you're a little afraid to ask, even when the answer might be no. She walks through how a rejection became a nine-month development plan, why no one is going to build your career for you, and how stepping outside your own team is one of the fastest ways to create advocates across an organization.
If you're wondering what separates the ICs who plateau from the ones who keep climbing, this episode is for you.
What does it really take to grow from a good individual contributor to a great one? In this special edition of The Learning Culture Podcast, Andrew Barry sits down with talent leaders for short, sharp conversations about the mindset shifts, hard-won lessons, and small moves that separate ICs who plateau from those who keep climbing. ICs matter more than ever as AI reshapes how work gets done, and these episodes are built for anyone navigating that path or helping others walk it.
In this episode, Dax Rich opens up about the moment he realized a paycheck alone wasn't enough, and how aligning with company values changed the work he chose and how he showed up inside it. He talks about the cost of waiting for someone else to take the wheel, and why self-talk is the first thing he works on with high-potential ICs.
If you're ready to stop waiting for someone else to advocate for your career, this episode is for you.
What does it really take to grow from a good individual contributor to a great one? In this special edition of The Learning Culture Podcast, Andrew Barry sits down with talent leaders for short, sharp conversations about the mindset shifts, hard-won lessons, and small moves that separate ICs who plateau from those who keep climbing. ICs matter more than ever as AI reshapes how work gets done, and these episodes are built for anyone navigating that path or helping others walk it.
In this episode, Meganne Brezina shares the presentation day that reshaped how she thinks about preparation, why she believes knowing when to leave an organization is one of the most underrated skills in a career, and how self-advocacy separates the ICs who get noticed from those who quietly do great work.
If you're building your career as an individual contributor or shaping the ones around you, this episode is for you.
What does it really take to grow from a good individual contributor to a great one? In this special edition of The Learning Culture Podcast, Andrew Barry sits down with leaders for short, sharp conversations about the mindset shifts, hard-won lessons, and small moves that separate ICs who plateau from those who keep climbing. ICs matter more than ever as AI reshapes how work gets done, and these episodes are built for anyone navigating that path or helping others walk it.
In this conversation, Amy reflects on what gave her the confidence to trust her own ideas early in her career, the role preparation and relationships played in helping her work carry weight, and why she believes ICs often miss the bigger picture of the business they're inside of.
If you're an IC looking to grow, or a leader responsible for developing them, this episode is for you.
Most learning programs fail at measurement because they're asking the wrong questions with the wrong tools.
Eric Grant, who leads learning and content at Figma, has cracked the code on learning analytics that actually matter. With an MS in data science and experience at LinkedIn, Coinbase, Uber, and The Trade Desk, Eric brings statistical rigor to a field that typically runs on intuition.
In this episode, he shares his proven blueprint for measuring learning impact. He explains why the question "Did this make you better at your job?" beats satisfaction scores every time, how to set up control groups when AB testing isn't possible, and when to invest in rigorous measurement versus when to trust the vibe.
From survey design that actually drives insights to avoiding the credibility-killing mistake of claiming every program worked, Eric provides the practical analytics toolkit that L&D professionals need to prove their impact.
If you've been struggling to move beyond course completions and smile sheets, this blueprint shows you exactly how to measure what actually matters.
When employees equate growth with promotion, but promotion opportunities are limited, how do you develop your best individual contributors?
In this panel discussion, Katie Hart from Faire, Sarah Jester from Lucid Software, and Krysta Kasinski from LinkedIn share their battle-tested approaches to developing ICs beyond the traditional promotion path. These three L&D leaders reveal why they've moved beyond the "growth equals promotion" myth to build leadership programs specifically for individual contributors.
You'll discover the five core capabilities that accelerate IC growth, why cohort-based learning beats one-off training, and how to measure impact without killing engagement. Katie, Sarah, and Krysta share what's actually working in their programs, including the mistakes they've made and learned from.
Whether you're at a 1,000-person company like Faire and Lucid or a LinkedIn-scale organization, this conversation provides practical frameworks for developing your IC population when traditional career ladders aren't enough.
If retaining top talent and building leadership at every level matters to your organization, this playbook shows you exactly where to start.
Most companies take their best sellers and promote them into management, expecting them to magically know how to coach a team.
It rarely works that way. Gail Behun, who leads frontline manager enablement at Zoom across 300 managers globally, learned that lesson firsthand when she made the leap from seller to manager and realized she had no template for what good looked like.
In this conversation, Gail breaks down how she builds manager capability without overwhelming people who are already stretched thin, why the best enablement comes from managers themselves rather than top-down programs, and how she uses AI, including a custom "Gail Voice" bot, to scale her impact and communicate in a way that actually lands with CROs.
If you've ever wondered how to make enablement stick beyond the training session, this one's for you.
When your people complete the mandated AI training but nothing changes, you don't have a tool problem; you have a culture problem.
As Director of L&D at Publicis Sapient, Ian Stevens watched mandates and endless emails fail to drive the engagement, adoption, or completions they needed.
The breakthrough came when they stopped teaching tools and started building mindsets. Ian reveals their secret weapon, the AI Caravan: 60-minute demos fueled by beer and pizza that brought record numbers into the office voluntarily.
He explains why people need to evolve from writers to editors, why adaptability and judgment matter more than technical skills, and how widening the guardrails unlocked momentum. Most importantly, Ian shows how transformation happens with people, not to them.
If you're tired of the "hurry up and wait" approach to AI adoption, this episode reveals how to build a culture where experimentation beats prescription every time.
What happens when the context you're preparing leaders for no longer exists by the time they get there? After seven years as Chief Learning Officer at Citibank building talent systems, Cameron Hedrick sees the cracks in how we predict potential.
In this conversation, Cameron reveals why mastery beats potential when everything is constantly emerging, why humans excel at inference with small data while AI needs millions of data points, and how self-knowing becomes the foundation for navigating what's next.
He introduces his Prompt to Polymath framework, mapping our journey from basic augmentation to a world where your digital twin pre-flights conversations while you orchestrate outcomes across humans, agents, and proxies.
From hiring people with scars to narrating learning in motion, Cameron shares why machines may calculate faster, but they don't rise stronger from failure and why that distinction matters more than ever.
If you're still running quarterly talent reviews in static nine-boxes, this conversation will fundamentally challenge how you think about developing capability that endures.
HIGH POTENTIAL (for what?!)
New MIT Sloan research suggests that AI is more likely to complement, not replace, human workers | MIT Sloan
What happens when AI agents become your direct reports?
Becky Karsh, VP of Talent and Growth at F5, believes we're approaching a fundamental shift: individual contributors won't just complete tasks, they'll manage multiple AI agents to achieve outcomes.
In this episode, Becky reveals why delegation, work design, and crystal-clear communication are becoming essential IC skills, not nice-to-have manager competencies. She explains why "if you do something more than once, that should be an agent" and makes the case that the future belongs to ICs who think like architects, not just builders. From T-shaped careers to bringing your own OKRs to development programs, Becky maps out the new playbook for IC success.
If you're wondering whether AI will replace your job, Becky has a different question: are you ready to manage the AI that will amplify your impact?
Is your team resisting AI adoption? Are they struggling to see how AI could actually help their work?
Rebecca Scales discovered the real barrier isn't reluctance to learn - it's self-efficacy, people's belief that they can actually use these tools effectively.
As Director of Capability Development at Procore Technologies, she watched initial AI training fail because pressing "enroll" meant admitting you don't know something, a psychological barrier especially high for engineers.
But Rebecca cracked the code with an unconventional approach that turned resistance into remarkable engagement: 6,000 training sessions in just four months.
In this episode, Rebecca reveals her data-driven methodology, the psychological gateway that made formal training feel less threatening, and why one engineer went from saying "no" to becoming her biggest champion.
If you're leading an AI initiative and wondering why adoption is slower than expected, this episode will show you what you're missing.
Have you ever sat at your desk, physically present but mentally checked out, your stomach in knots, calling in "sick" when you're really just depleted, feeling like you're giving 110% while running on empty? Ryan Giordano knows that feeling intimately, and his journey from the breaking point of burnout to teaching emotional intelligence at Fleetio reveals a radical truth: we massively underestimate how much control we have over our own experience.
Ryan shares why 50% of what happens to us is actually happening inside our heads, introduces the "window metaphor" that transforms how you see reality, and explains why reframing isn't just positive thinking - it's a practical tool that could save your career.
Ryan shows how emotional intelligence becomes the antidote when you're always "on" but never okay. If work feels like it's happening TO you rather than WITH you, this conversation is for you.
What happens when your company faces multiple massive changes all at once?
Allyson Carr knows exactly what that feels like. As Global HR Chief at Cyber Reason, navigating six months of hyper-change, she reveals why people understand change but struggle with the transition, and why there's a physical toll to transformation that most leaders completely miss.
Allyson shares her battle-tested approach: why she hires for human skills over technical expertise at the executive level and why trying to make employees love "the company" is a losing game.
In this episode, Allyson shares how to build trust when everything else is in flux.
If you're leading through chaos and wondering why your team seems exhausted even when they understand the strategy, this conversation is for you.
What if your next dream job came from a LinkedIn DM instead of a job application?
Rachel Bolton landed her role as Director of Global Enterprise Leadership Development at Stanley Black & Decker when a leader reached out after discovering her through her consistent LinkedIn presence.
In this episode, Rachel explores the intersection of authentic personal branding and professional growth, revealing how she maintains a vibrant online presence while juggling a demanding L&D role and raising two young children. She shares her philosophy on converting passive profile views into meaningful connections, the importance of bringing your whole self to both digital content and facilitation, and why perfectionism is the enemy of progress when building your professional brand.
Tune in to discover how consistency, authenticity, and strategic visibility can transform not just your LinkedIn presence but your entire career trajectory.
What if the best career move you ever make is the one you didn’t plan for?
In this episode, we follow the unexpected journey of Bozena Pajak, who found her way to Duolingo, not through a clear-cut plan, but by following her curiosity.
You’ll hear how an interdisciplinary background became her superpower, shaping how millions of people learn languages today. But this story goes beyond career twists; it’s about how we learn, why we stay engaged, and what actually makes learning stick.
From the science of implicit learning to the art of balancing structure with exploration, this conversation unpacks the hidden forces behind Duolingo’s success. You’ll hear what it really takes to build something effective and addictive and how AI might just personalize learning in ways we’re only beginning to imagine.
Whether you’re a designer, educator, team leader, or lifelong learner, this episode will leave you thinking differently about motivation, collaboration, and the future of learning itself.
Tune in for a story that proves passion, feedback, and a little serendipity can take you further than any plan ever could.
What does a Hollywood screenwriter know about learning design? Turns out, quite a lot.
In this episode, Andrew Barry sits down with Lindsey Caplan, founder of The Gathering Effect, whose background in organizational psychology and TV writing gives her a unique lens on how to craft transformative learning experiences.
Lindsey unpacks her go-to framework centered on motivation, structure, and storytelling, reveals the biggest mistakes L&D teams make, and introduces her two-by-two matrix for creating content that’s not just informative, but engaging and scalable.
This is a masterclass for anyone serious about designing learning that actually moves people.
Listen now to transform the way you think about training.
What if the rise of AI isn’t making us less human - but demanding that we become more human?
As AI accelerates productivity and automates expertise, a surprising truth is emerging: the most irreplaceable professionals aren't competing with machines; they're doubling down on what makes them human.
Recorded live at the ATD International Conference & Expo in Washington, D.C., and playfully dubbed the podcast in the park, this special episode brings together powerful voices across L&D and leadership to explore why human skills are quickly becoming our most valuable asset.
In a world where anyone can generate ideas and build solutions in minutes, your real advantage isn’t speed, it’s emotional intelligence. This episode is a front-row seat to a growing movement: one where influence, empathy, trust, and curiosity aren’t just soft skills, they’re power skills. If you’re navigating the intersection of AI and human connection, this conversation is your guide.
Tune in to join the human skills renaissance.
What if your company’s biggest performance problem isn’t skill but disconnection?
In this episode, we follow Elena Agaragimova’s journey from global leadership coach to founder of ShiftWell.ai, a tool born out of deep frustration with the corporate training status quo. After years of running workshops across continents, Elena began asking a simple but radical question: What if the reason people aren’t engaged isn’t because they’re unmotivated, but because no one’s ever asked what they really need?
You’ll hear why middle managers are burning out, why most leadership training comes too late, and why companies keep throwing money at wellness perks that don’t work. Elena doesn’t just challenge the system—she’s building a smarter one.
This conversation is about more than performance. It’s about rethinking motivation, growth, and what people actually need to thrive on their terms. From personalized coaching to system-level culture change, Elena shares how to stop the burnout cycle and build something that lasts.
If you’re a manager, HR leader, or just someone tired of the same old solutions, this episode will change how you think about development.
In this special episode, Andrew Barry takes us to Workhuman Live in Denver, where he engaged with six forward-thinking leaders across HR, consulting, and academia. Together, they explore how AI is transforming not just the way we create, but also how we influence action.
From first-draft generation and rapid prototyping to stress-testing ideas and influencing without authority, these leaders reveal how AI is collapsing the time from idea to execution. Yet, the real game-changer isn't speed - it's empathy, clarity, and the ability to make others care.
Featuring insights from voices like Tracy Graff, KeyAnna Schmiedl, Fatema Rizwana, Jacob Morgan, Nicole Eisdorfer, and Candice Mitchell, this episode delivers a powerful message: AI may accelerate our work, but human judgment, storytelling, and influence are still what drive change.
Leah Caseley and Mark Turner never set out to rewrite the rules of leadership development - but that’s exactly what happened when they noticed a dangerous pattern.
At LinkedIn, they saw top performers getting promoted into management only to regret it, brilliant individual contributors struggling to lead, and organizations losing talent to poor fits.
So they flipped the script. Now, their emerging leaders don’t just train for management - they test it firsthand by guiding new hires, discovering through experience whether leadership truly suits them before the promotion becomes permanent.
Along the way, they’ve uncovered the surprising human skills that matter more than results, the delicate balance between AI and authentic connection, and why the best leaders aren’t born - they’re revealed through real challenges. This isn’t leadership theory. It’s a working blueprint for building managers who don’t just direct teams - who amplify them.
What if the biggest threat to your career isn't AI taking your job, but you preparing for the wrong future?
In this special episode, Andrew Barry dives into conversations with eight visionary people leaders who are witnessing the AI revolution unfold in real-time. Recorded live at the Transform Conference in Las Vegas, these aren't your typical "AI will change everything" predictions. These are raw, honest discussions from leaders making tough decisions right now about which skills to invest in and how to lead teams through unprecedented uncertainty.
Here's the uncomfortable truth they're grappling with: Yes, AI will replace jobs. But while everyone's focused on the technology, these leaders discovered something unexpected about which organizations will actually survive – and it's not what you think.
From Vidyard's VP of People talking about the "scary excitement" of this moment, to EPAM's Chief Learning Scientist challenging companies to imagine their "AI-native" competitors, one startling consensus emerges: We're not just adapting to change – we're racing against organizations that don't exist yet
Ready to discover what skills will actually matter when AI can do almost everything else? This episode will change how you see the future of work – and your place in it.
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Today, we’re joined by Matt Conrad, a sales leader and storyteller who isn’t afraid to take off the armor. In this powerful conversation, Matt opens up about the career setbacks, challenges, and moments of clarity that shaped his leadership journey.
In this episode, Matt shares how vulnerability became his superpower and why leading with heart can transform not only teams, but entire cultures.
We talk about the importance of curiosity, investing in personal growth, and creating space for others to show up authentically.
Whether you’re in sales, leadership, or simply trying to lead a little more bravely in your own life, Matt’s story will remind you that trust starts with being real, and growth starts with letting go of perfection.
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Today, we’re joined by Tami Rosen, a trailblazer in talent and transformation, who brings a sharp perspective on how AI is reshaping the workplace and what that means for leaders, teams, and culture.
In this episode, Tami dives into the human edge: the adaptability, learning agility, and values-driven mindset that will define successful organizations in an AI-powered world.
She explores how companies can foster a culture that embraces experimentation, clarity, and continuous learning and why that’s essential as traditional roles evolve into more flexible, skills-based models.
We also talk about the importance of communication during change, the shifting definition of expertise, and how individuals can use moments of uncertainty as a launchpad for growth.
Whether you're thinking about the future of work, leading transformation, or simply trying to stay grounded amid rapid change, Tami’s insights offer a clear, human-centered path forward.
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Today, we’re joined by Liz Moran, a forward-thinking talent and learning leader with deep experience in building cultures that help people grow, especially in times of change.
In this episode, Liz explores how leaders can create space for experimentation, build trust through transparency, and rethink what it means to be “ready” in today’s world of work. We talk about navigating risk and readiness, the mindset shift needed to work alongside AI, and why curiosity and sound judgment are essential leadership tools.
Liz also reflects on the personal side of growth, the discomfort that often comes with it, the role of optimism, and the surprising parallels between parenting and leadership.
If you’re leading through uncertainty, investing in your people, or simply looking to build a more resilient learning culture, Liz’s perspective will leave you thinking differently about what it really means to lead.
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Today, we’re joined by Robyn Ginese, a leadership development expert who’s spent nearly two decades helping people not just show up, but level up. From her early career in higher education to scaling impactful programs in the corporate world, Robyn brings a fresh, people-first perspective on what it really takes to lead.
In this episode, Robyn unpacks how metaphor-based, experiential learning programs can unlock confidence, shift mindsets, and create lasting impact. She explores the transition from campus to corporate, the power of feedback as a form of belonging, and why accountability is key to building trust and performance.
We’ll dive into how leaders can see and unleash potential in others, the ripple effect of great leadership, and what it means to lead in a world where AI handles the tasks, but humans drive the transformation.
If you care about building strong teams, scaling learning with meaning, or showing up as the kind of leader who empowers others to grow, Robyn’s insights will leave you inspired and ready to take action.
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Today, we’re joined by Stephen Ivany, a former professional trombonist turned leadership development expert at Marriott, who brings a unique lens to the evolving world of leadership.
In this episode, Stephen shares how his background in music shapes his approach to leadership. He explores the parallels between mastering an instrument and mastering human connection, emphasizing curiosity, mentorship, and the importance of balancing structure with spontaneity.
We dive into his belief that emotional presence matters more than executive presence, how micro-learning can build lasting leadership habits, and why joy and optimism should be central to any team culture. Stephen also speaks to the power of genuine connection and self-awareness in creating environments where people are inspired to take risks and grow.
Whether you're a creative thinker, a people leader, or just someone navigating change, Stephen's perspective offers a fresh take on what it means to lead with heart in a fast-paced, AI-driven world.
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Welcome to another thought-provoking episode of The Learning Culture Podcast! Today we’re diving deep into the transformative power of self-compassion in leadership with our special guest, Massimo Backus.
Massimo, a pioneer in advocating for more human-centric leadership, shares insights from his upcoming book, "Human First, Leader Second." Together, we explore the radical shift away from the myth of perfection and control, toward embracing vulnerability and kindness in both personal and professional realms.
Join us as we discuss the value of self-compassion, the misconceptions of traditional leadership, and how acknowledging our critical inner voices can lead to profound personal growth.
This episode is a heartfelt exploration of how embracing our humanity can lead to stronger, more resilient leadership. So, tune in, get inspired, and discover how self-compassion can revolutionize not only your leadership approach but your entire perspective on life.
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Welcome to another enlightening episode of The Learning Culture Podcast! Today, we're thrilled to have Stefani Okamoto, a veteran in global learning and development with over 23 years of experience at Microsoft, joining us. Stefani has made waves in transforming corporate cultures, particularly with her work under the "Model Coach Care" framework emphasizing inclusive leadership, empathy, and care.
In this episode, Stefani delves into her current role at ServiceNow, where she implements a growth strategy centered around "Grow Self, Grow Team, and Grow Business." She talks about the critical role of managers, the importance of self-awareness, and fostering a collaborative, trust-based environment aligned with company goals.
We explore her journey battling imposter syndrome, her advocacy for intellectual humility, and her mantra, "Don't let anybody dull your sparkle." Additionally, we discuss how humor and psychological safety contribute to a positive and creative work culture.
Whether you're a leader striving to enhance your team's performance or someone seeking personal growth, Stephani's insights will leave you inspired.
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Welcome to another enlightening episode of The Learning Culture Podcast! In today's episode, we sit down with the inspirational Ingrid Hu Dahl, a founder, CEO, and expert in leadership and inclusion. Ingrid delves deep into her unique framework for listening, highlighting the importance of empathetic, non-judgmental engagement to foster creativity and growth. Together, we explore the intricate connections between ego, fear, and early judgment, and how these elements can stifle idea development and leadership effectiveness.
Ingrid shares her wisdom on behavior change, emphasizing the necessity of adopting a beginner's mindset and the power of play in the learning process. She stresses the importance of storytelling, particularly personal narratives, as a tool for understanding and growth in both personal and professional contexts. From the challenges of writing her forthcoming memoir to navigating her multicultural identity, Ingrid's journey is full of insights for leaders striving to build inclusive and empathetic teams.
Tune in as we dive into the world of leadership, identity, and the transformative power of listening and storytelling.
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Welcome to another insightful episode of The Learning Culture Podcast! In today’s episode, we sit down with Jennifer Butler, a passionate advocate for leadership growth and human development.
Throughout the conversation, we explore the importance of creating impactful learning environments, whether through dramatic initiatives or practical, everyday experiences. Jennifer emphasizes breaking traditional expertise boundaries, fostering internal networks, and balancing the pursuit of perfection with the embrace of vulnerability.
This episode is rich with real-world examples, from innovative approaches to leadership development to overcoming challenges of exclusion and political baggage in professional settings. Jennifer’s unique insights on integrating storytelling with data, celebrating achievements, and crafting personalized development journeys make this a must-listen for anyone passionate about leadership and personal growth.
Join us as we uncover the keys to building a learning culture that drives both individual and organizational transformation. Tune in for a conversation that promises to inspire and uplift, providing actionable takeaways to implement in your own leadership journey.
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In today's episode, we sit down with Lisa Hammack for an insightful conversation that delves deep into the pivotal role of frontline managers and the dynamics of supporting team success.
Lisa reflects on her pioneering work at Oracle, where she developed the Global Sales Leader Academy amidst a significant shift from on-premises to cloud-based solutions. The conversation explores leadership forums, town halls, and how involving everyone in strategic decisions fosters a robust learning culture. From innovative sales training and skill development to creating a culture that values growth and transparency, Lisa emphasizes practical strategies to enhance employee engagement and retention.
We dive into the challenges and triumphs of building leadership training programs, managing upward expectations, offering genuine career growth, and the importance of continuous learning.
Tune in as we unpack these themes, offering valuable lessons for leaders and managers alike.
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In today's episode, we speak with Courtney Nall, a distinguished leader with profound insights into organizational change, leadership, and learning theory. Together, they explore the transformative power of feedback, the importance of self-efficacy, and the value of genuine collaboration in both professional and personal domains.
Additionally, Courtney delves into her passion for ultra marathon running and its surprising parallels to the work environment, highlighting the importance of community and perseverance.
Join us as we uncover valuable strategies for fostering personal and professional growth, leveraging feedback for realistic self-assessment, and cultivating a supportive, inclusive, and authentic leadership culture. Whether you're an aspiring leader or a seasoned professional, this episode promises to offer practical insights and inspiration for your own journey.
Sit back and enjoy!
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Today I have the pleasure of sitting down with the dynamic Al Dea. Al is a seasoned expert in leadership development and the founder of his own consultancy, The Edge of Work. In this episode, we dive deep into Al's journey from attending conferences with his father at a young age to becoming a thought leader in the corporate and consulting world.
We explore the essence of leadership, the importance of fostering a collective mindset, and the challenges of aligning individual and organizational values. Al shares his unique insights on creating environments that encourage team-based behaviors, the pitfalls that can stifle effective leadership, and the significance of maintaining a sense of agency within teams.
We'll also get personal as Al reflects on pivotal moments that shaped his career, the power of kindness, and the mentors who have influenced his path. Whether you're an aspiring leader or an experienced executive, this episode is packed with valuable takeaways on how to lead with empathy, curiosity, and a commitment to growth.
Relax, sit back and enjoy!
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Today, we are joined by Tekeisha Zimmerman, who leads Professional Development for the People Team at Expedia. In this episode, Tekeisha shares her journey in a role intentionally created to foster growth among talent development professionals.
Tekeisha also reflects on her transformative experience at Amazon, where she honed her skills in a high-pressure, customer-centric environment, learning valuable lessons in resilience, innovation, and leadership. We discuss the importance of stability during times of organizational change, the emotional impact of leadership transitions, and how empathy and communication play crucial roles in navigating these shifts.
Additionally, Tekeisha opens up about her personal journey, emphasizing the need for intentionality and empathy in leadership, inspired by her experiences and passions.
Don't miss this episode filled with practical insights and inspiring stories that will leave you eager to foster a learning culture within your own organization.
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Today we're joined by a special guest, Micheal Boulter. In this enlightening conversation, we delve into the innovative approaches transforming the landscape of training and development in the workplace. We explore the concept of Embedded Trainers, where trainers work hand-in-hand with frontline operators to enhance job performance and provide real-time feedback.
Our discussion also ventures into the realm of game-based learning, sharing insights from Micheal's experience with designing educational games that mirror real-world challenges and enhance problem-solving skills. We'll learn about the iterative process behind these games, the necessity of simplicity, and the powerful lessons derived from post-game debriefs.
Together, we'll examine the balance between developing leaders and retaining top talent and discuss innovative methods to integrate social and facilitated learning within organizations.
Sit back and enjoy!
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We have the pleasure of diving into a compelling conversation with Lizzy Kizer, an expert in Workforce Development and Change Management. We'll explore the innovative strategies her organization employs, from partnerships with educational institutions to hands-on training programs that cater to a diverse, global audience.
Lizzy offers a nuanced look at how cultural and educational shifts are broadening career narratives, emphasizing the significance of trade schools alongside traditional college paths. We'll also delve into her personal learning philosophy, the challenges of delivering timely and relevant training in a fast-paced industry, and the importance of creating strong partnerships with stakeholders.
Whether you're intrigued by workforce development, passionate about continuous learning, or just looking to gain deeper insights into effective change management, this episode promises to offer valuable perspectives.
Stay tuned for an engaging discussion that underscores the power of patience, persistence, and practical problem-solving in fostering a dynamic and resilient workforce!
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Join us in this episode as we uncover new pathways to illuminate ignorance and lead with purpose in an ever-evolving workplace. Today, we sit down with Rebecca Stern, an enthusiastic leader at Udemy who is breaking new ground in AI-driven learning and talent development. Together, we delve into the ever-constant nature of change, the importance of stepping outside one's comfort zone, and the powerful concept of agency in leadership.
Rebecca shares her experiences from her early days in organizational psychology to her current role at Udemy, emphasizing data-driven practices, leadership humility, and continuous learning.
Tune in to explore how Rebecca navigates the challenges of embracing change, leveraging AI in innovative ways, and fostering growth through personal and professional reflection. Plus, get insights on how fostering agency and genuine relationships can transform leadership and development programs.
Sit back and enjoy!
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In this enlightening episode, we sit down with Tami Rosen, an influential figure at Pagaya, where she now thrives in an externally focused role, bridging internal strategies with external stakeholders. Join us as Tami delves into her unique approach to performance standards, networking, and the evolving demands of leadership.
We explore the revolutionary shift from traditional performance reviews to a continuous learning cycle that fosters reflection, collaboration, and honest feedback. Tami also shares personal insights into her journey of learning agility, adapting to new roles, and the importance of patience and connection in leadership. Plus, discover how a lesson from "My Octopus Teacher" documentary can transform our understanding of management and growth.
Tune in for a conversation packed with valuable lessons on evolving leadership, navigating change, and building impactful relationships.
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In today's episode, we delve into the fascinating world of learning and innovation with our brilliant guest, Julie McGovern. Julie shares deep insights into the transformation from traditional education methods to the self-driven inquiry essential in today's workplace. We'll explore the power of curiosity, the role of AI in enhancing productivity, and how an open mind can unlock incredible opportunities.
Julie reveals her journey through the Digital Learning Institute and her strategic implementation of AI tools to revolutionize the learning process. From the nuanced roles of AI in instructional design to real-world applications like Quantified AI and Sauna Labs, she brings a wealth of knowledge on transforming tedious tasks and enhancing learner experience with adaptive technologies.
We'll also dive into Julie's personal philosophy on learning zones, striking the perfect balance between comfort, growth, and stress to maximize development. Along the way, we’ll uncover the importance of refining AI prompts, the iterative nature of working with AI, and the value of collective learning and experience sharing.
Stay tuned as we discuss the future of AI in learning, practical strategies for AI integration, and how to maintain the essential human touch in an increasingly automated world.
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In today's episode, we sit down with Anna Tilley to dive deep into the complexities of navigating change in the corporate environment. Anna shares her insights on the emotional toll that 'doing more with less' takes on employees and the importance of giving them space to process changes.
We'll explore the disconnect between senior leadership and employees during transitions, Anna's efforts to launch a "Women in Technology" program, and her vision for evolving the learning and development department into a strategic partner. Anna also emphasizes the importance of resilience over traditional change management and discusses the concept of anti-fragility—a mindset aimed at growing stronger through adversity.
This episode is packed with valuable insights for leaders and employees alike, as Andrew and Anna discuss everything from fostering continuous improvement mindsets to addressing leaders' pain points and creating environments that encourage vulnerability and reflection. Tune in to learn how to navigate change with empathy, patience, and a focus on personal growth.
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We're thrilled to dive deep into the worlds of leadership, empathy, and career transitions with our esteemed guests, Jennifer Brush and Callan Swaim..
We'll explore their shared experiences in travel and hospitality, emphasizing the significance of understanding diverse customer needs and creating memorable guest experiences. The episode also touches upon the challenging effects of COVID-19 on organizations, highlighting innovative strategies and cultural awareness crucial for navigating these unprecedented times. With references to influential works such as "The Power of Moments" by the Heath Brothers, and Erin Meyer’s "Culture Map," our discussion promises to inspire and inform.
Join us as we uncover the power of human-centered leadership, the importance of showing rather than telling, and the delicate balance of maintaining community and collaboration in professional development.
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In this episode, we sit down with leadership expert Michael Brick to explore the transformative power of learning within companies and educational settings.
Micheal sheds light on the distinction between formal and informal learning, the critical role of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) in fostering authentic leadership, and his experiences teaching leadership studies at the University of Maryland.
We'll delve into the profound impact of ERGs on workplace culture, the benefits of cohort-based learning, and the necessity of executive sponsorship in driving effective learning initiatives. Michael also shares valuable insights on the importance of self-awareness, the challenges of discussing identity, and the role of failure in leadership development.
Join us for a deep dive into building adaptable, resilient leaders and creating supportive, inclusive environments at work and beyond.
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We are joined by Laurel Schulert, a dynamic leader at SAP Concur with a rich background in education and performance consulting.
In this episode, we delve into the crucial role of personal agency in career advancement and the unique skills educators bring to corporate roles.
Throughout our conversation, we explore the intricacies of leadership, the significance of providing autonomy and choice in learning, and the importance of humanity in the workplace. Laurel also offers invaluable insights on team dynamics, effective hiring practices, and the strategic role of L&D as a business partner.
Tune in for actionable advice on fostering engagement, enhancing productivity, and driving meaningful change within your organization. Don’t miss this compelling discussion that promises to inspire and equip emerging leaders in the Learning and Development space.
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In today's episode, we dive deep with Kara Skorepa, a national account manager at Bullhorn.
Kara's journey is nothing short of inspiring—faced with managing a diverse array of 60 customers post-acquisition, she turned challenging situations into success stories with sheer perseverance and compassion. From dealing with upset clients due to previous overselling to leveraging CRM systems like Bullhorn and Salesforce, Kara's adaptive approach and human touch transformed customer relationships.
Join us as Kara shares her strategies for turning negative experiences into positive ones, the value of storytelling in customer management, and the importance of continual learning and self-kindness in the workplace.
We'll also explore how she balances meticulous organization with personal touches, and how she has harnessed the unique strengths of her team to achieve remarkable outcomes.
Sit back and enjoy.
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Today, we have a special guest, the renowned "Team Whisperer" Lia Garvin, who brings her extensive experience from tech giants like Microsoft, Apple, and Google to the table.
In this episode, we dive into Lia's groundbreaking three-part ops playbook designed to revolutionize team dynamics and business operations. She shares invaluable insights on the importance of implementing this playbook, ensuring team support versus simply focusing on outputs, and fostering an ownership mindset across organizations.
Lia also sheds light on her transition from Google to launching her own business, driven by a mission to support smaller enterprises. Additionally, we'll discuss the critical role of managers as coaches and the power of open-ended questions in driving team success.
Tune in for a conversation packed with practical strategies, real-world examples, and a look at the evolving cultures within tech companies as we navigate the challenges and opportunities in creating a thriving, cohesive team environment.
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In today's episode, Andrew sits down with Keith Weightman, RVP of Sales at Bullhorn, to dive into the essence of authentic engagement in both social media and sales.
Keith shares his insights on the detrimental effects of robotic responses and highlights the importance of genuine conversations. Together, they explore the concept of "reps getting reps" – gaining as many experiences as possible to excel in sales – and discuss the challenges of training managers, especially underinvestment in this critical area.
With a focus on active listening and problem-solving, this episode is packed with valuable lessons for sales professionals and leaders alike. So, tune in, as Andrew and Keith unpack the secrets to creating meaningful engagement and driving success.
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Today, we dive deep with David Hurwitt, founder of Troove, into the evolving landscape of career paths, the pressing need for individualized guidance in educational environments, and the pivotal role of adaptive intelligence in today's workplace.
With a 30-year career that transitioned from traditional roles in large companies to impactful positions in startups focused on renewable energy and now education, David shares his expansive insights on finding meaningful work, the importance of agility, and the power of a mission-oriented approach in business and personal growth.
Today, we’re exploring how David's innovative platform, Troove, aims to radically transform how students connect with their ideal educational and career paths by emphasizing a good social and academic fit, and how these strategies can also inform smarter hiring practices in any field.
Join us as we discuss the necessity of resilience, curiosity, and adaptability in overcoming professional challenges and making visionary decisions that pave the way to success.
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In today's inspiring conversation, we sit down with Emmy Sobieski, a Wealth & Career Coach with a powerful message about the transformative power of a beginner's mindset. Raised with contrasting views on scarcity, Emmy learned to navigate through life with resilience and an abundance perspective that has significantly influenced her success story.
We'll explore the impact of mental frameworks on everything from everyday decisions to professional portfolio management on Wall Street, where Emmie champions the amalgamation of extensive research and high-risk strategies that led her to run one of the most successful funds globally.
We'll touch on the important factors that contributed to Emmy's success, including her risk-taking nature, her unique investing strategies, and her unwavering belief in always learning how to learn. We'll also discuss the three B's of making money in any career venture: Break In, Build Equity, and Break Out.
So, stay with us for this dynamic episode as we uncover the truth about success, the importance of setting monumental goals, and why every challenge is an opportunity in disguise.
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Today's episode features an enlightening conversation with our distinguished guest, Adriana Romero. Together, we dive deep into the intricacies of Sales Enablement, the journey from understanding a product to illuminating its real-world impact on customers and the team behind it.
In this rich discussion, Adriana shares her wealth of knowledge, from the critical role of communication in enabling sales teams, to her personal mantra of letting go of full control and encouraging trust within organizations. We also explore her transformative advice to her younger self, urging an openness to mistakes and new experiences.
With anecdotes on her own shift from Salesforce to OpenText, Adriana brings to light the common principles of productivity irrespective of audience differences. You'll gain insights into fostering a learning culture, not only for individuals but also for front-line managers—a crucial yet often overlooked aspect of sales organizations.
Join us for a session that's as much about embracing our human elements in sales as it is about the systematic approaches to enablement.
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In today's enriching episode, we have the pleasure of sitting down with the insightful Alex Zikakis, an Enablement Leader at Seismic. Alex brings to the table a fascinating comparison between nurturing skills in our children through Lego building and fostering strategic thinking within the competitive corporate landscape. We'll unpack the idea of coaching, whether it's for parents, guardians, or frontline leaders, delving into the art of enabling individuals for success both in the playroom and the boardroom.
Alex and I will explore the challenges posed by remote work, market conditions, and the constant need for adaptability. We discuss the importance of shifting from short-term achievements to embracing a mindset tailored for long-term growth, and we'll tackle the practicalities of developing a competency model that hones key skills for remarkable performance.
So whether you're a parent teaching resilience through colorful bricks, a manager guiding a team, or simply an avid learner looking for your next insight—you're in the right place.
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In this gripping second part of our conversation with Brandon Fluharty, we dive deeper into the journey of self-mastery and the high stakes of performance.
If you tuned in last time, you know Brandon is not just an expert in transforming professional performance; he's a beacon for those seeking to harmonize their work with their deeper purpose. Today, we'll continue to explore the essential practices that Brandon attributes to his incredible success, including the disciplined protection of time, energy, and attention, and how these contribute to daily wins.
With valuable insights into his upcoming book, "Purposeful Performance," Brandon isn’t just theorizing; he’s living proof that a good personal operating system can make all the difference.
So buckle up for a thought-provoking ride—and remember, if you're looking to make sustainable changes in your life, start by being patient with yourself and celebrating those small, purposeful victories.
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In this episode, we have a special guest, Brandon Fluharty, a former Revenue Generator with years of experience in sales and the Founder of Be Focused. Live Great. This captivating conversation with Brandon is split into two parts because of the wealth of insights he shares.
In part one, Brandon talks about his journey into sales and the valuable lessons he learned along the way. He discusses the importance of embracing natural human interaction over traditional sales tactics and the shift from a labor-based to a knowledge-based economy. We learn about his perspective on creating value and the concept of being a revenue creator beyond just sales professionals.
Join us in part one of this insightful conversation with Brandon Fluharty as we uncover the transformational lessons and experiences that have shaped his approach to sales, learning, and personal development.
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Ladies and gentlemen, hold onto your headphones, because the Learning Culture Podcast is back in action for Season 2! 🌟✨
Decisions that impact your success are often made without you. Having a personal brand means owning the narrative of what others say about you when you're not around.
This week's Learning Nugget comes from a conversation about owning and honing personal brands with Andrea Wojnicki.
Andrea is a communication coach, Consumer Psychology expert, and self-proclaimed obsessive over understanding "why you said what you just said."
This obsession has driven her career. She worked in marketing at Kraft Foods before earning a Doctorate of Business Administration in Marketing at Harvard Business School (her dissertation was on word-of-mouth!).
Fueled by deliberate practice and her insatiable desire to understand, Andrea created Talk about Talk, a learning platform to help executives boost their confidence and improve their communication skills.
Whether you run your own business or play a vital role on a team, it's important to be in control of your narrative.
Please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Andrea Wojnicki.
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Welcome back to the Learning Culture Podcast!
This week’s Learning Nugget comes from a conversation with Karthik Puvvada. KP is a no-code builder, community leader, writer, podcast host, angel investor, and growth advisor for startups.
He has become the famed “Build In Public” expert across the internet, publishing resource after incredible resource on the topic to help founders and creators leverage this framework and build an audience on the internet.
- The Build In Public Podcast features ambitious founders and creators chatting with KP about all things build-in-public.
- The Build In Public Hub is his media site to inspire and teach founders and creators to join the movement.
Our conversation gets to the heart of KP's inspiration and expertise.
There isn’t anybody out there that I’ve met who understands and can talk about these ideas so eloquently. KP packages his years of experience into digestible lessons for those exploring the world of building in public.
Please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with KP.
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Andrew LinkedIn
Welcome back to the Learning Culture Podcast!
This week’s Learning Nugget comes from a conversation with Jeff Gothelf. This is a memorable snippet that captures the importance of storytelling as an essential leadership trait.
Jeff is the co-creator of the methodology for Lean UX, and he’s the author of the award-winning book of the same name (among many others). His work has informed the way thousands of companies approach software and product design.
Our conversation revolved around his book, Forever Employable, which chronicles Jeff’s transition from employee → agency owner → independent operator.
Jeff applied his storytelling skills at every step of his journey toward thought leadership and the lessons from our conversation show how we can do the same. Sit back, relax, and enjoy this Learning Nugget with Jeff Gothelf.
Jeff LinkedIn
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Welcome back to the Learning Culture Podcast! This week's Learning Nugget comes from a conversation with Scott Jeffrey Miller.
Scott is an entrepreneur and a Senior Advisor of Thought Leadership for Franklin Covey, a world leader in consulting and training.
His recent years have been dedicated to defining what it means to be recognized as a Thought Leader (hint: it takes more than just declaring yourself one).
He's also a best-selling author and the host of the Franklin Covey-sponsored podcast called On Leadership with Scott Miller - a place from which Scott has been able to mine the wisdom of renowned business titans, authors, and thought leaders.
Master Mentors is Scott's book detailing 30 of those conversations, a key insight for each of them, and prompts to apply them in your own pursuit of mastery.
This conversation is an exploration of how Scott refined all the different transformational insights he has heard in his years interviewing these incredible personalities.
Tune in to learn about:
- How to earn the title of Thought Leader
- Why you should focus on your Smallest Viable Market
- The importance of tough questions
- Distilling transformational insights and sharing them
I guarantee there is something in this episode for you. Sit back, relax, and enjoy this Learning Nugget episode with Scott Jeffrey Miller.
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Scott’s Website
Andrew Barry LinkedIn
This week's Learning Nugget comes from an episode with Stephanie Dua.
It's all about developing a bias toward action, nurturing latent passions for learning, and creating professional environments for humans to thrive.
Stephanie is the Co-Founder and President of Begin, an early-learning company with products like HOMER, the only learning program proven to increase reading scores with just 15 minutes a day.
Beyond her expertise in learning, education, and entrepreneurship, she has an extensive background in public service:
- Former CEO of NYC Dept. of Education's fund for public schools
- Worked in various non-profit roles with the Carnegie Corporation, Robin Hood Foundation
- Senior advisor to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
She’s also a wife and a mother. So much of our conversation (and her inspiration for HOMER) draws on Stephanie’s career experiences, her upbringing, and her everyday life.
Tune in to learn about:
- Stephanie's decision-making confidence and how to hone your own.
- How to use headwinds and obstacles as inspiration.
- Effective time management and the unsustainability of sprinting.
- The qualities of a successful public servant
- Integrating "work" and "life," not "balancing."
Sit back, relax, and enjoy this Learning Nugget episode with Stephanie Dua!
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Drumroll please 🥁🥁🥁 Welcome to the final episode of Season 1!
I’m joined by none other than Amy Volas to put the cherry on top — in a very special way.
Amy is the founder of Avenue Talent Partners, a business that helps early-stage SaaS startups hire executive sales and CS leaders. She’s an incredible follow on LinkedIn and a dear friend of mine.
Amy also tells it like it is. Unprompted, this episode evolved into a hot-seat… for me.
It’s a vulnerable and constructive conversation about positioning, clarity, and the idea that what you know doesn’t earn trust; how you show up does.
Together, Amy and I Windex-ed the window through which I’ve been looking at my company. You’ll have to tune in to learn more about that reference!
Without further ado, sit back, relax, and enjoy this last episode of Season 1 with Amy Volas!
[P.S. The long-time listeners among us will have realized this podcast season has been 74 episodes long! We’ll move into an exciting and more singularly focused season two after a short break.]
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This episode from the vault is with Nat Eliason -- a writer, founder of Growth Machine, and an all-around, self-described internet thinkboi.
He’s also a massive proponent of self-directed, or non-traditional learning.
His career, while starting from a traditional perspective, took a non-traditional and self-directed turn. He and I explore some of the key components of that journey, such as:
- the far transfer of skills,
- constructing your own curriculum,
- learning out loud, and
- proof of work.
Nat is a popular guy; lots of people that are familiar with his work bring up writing, running an online business, or growing his SEO agency. But not many people have picked his brain on the topic of education. And boy, is he a wellspring of knowledge when it comes to education.
Tune in for an in-depth, unfiltered episode on self-directed learning and the future of education. Topics covered:
- The challenges of change and non-attachment
- The innate human desire for certainty and security
- Embracing uncertainty and self-directed learning
- The importance of creating guardrails
- The value of practical experience versus certifications
- Much, much more.
Without further ado, please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Nat Eliason.
Guest Links
- Nat’s Twitter
- Nat’s Website
- Nat’s Youtube
- Growth Machine
- Nat's LinkedIn
Andrew Barry LinkedIn
Today’s episode is about the mental friction that holds back a sale, why sellers struggle with it, and Sean Adams’ approach to overcoming it.
Sean is the Head of Sales and Partnerships at Iorad, a platform that helps you create tutorials quickly and easily. He’s also a big part of the enablement and sales community on LinkedIn.
Selling through Sean’s eyes is about understanding circumstances, not features. For sellers who have never truly been in their customers’ shoes, that’s a tall order.
He and his team at Iorad approach that challenge with the Jobs To Be Done framework. This conversation became a practical discussion of how to apply the framework to the sales process.
This is a Learning Culture Podcast bread-and-butter kind of episode.
It’s filled with stories and tactical insights that you can bring into the fold of your work today.
With that, sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode with Sean Adams.
Sean’s Adams LinkedIn
Andrew Barry LinkedIn
Last week, Paul Slack of Vende Digital walked us through a masterclass on marketing in 2023. Here’s the link to that episode if you missed it.
Today we’re back for part 2, breaking down the barriers between sales and marketing — a challenge that I know hits home for lots of our listeners.
Paul is a former sales guy that now runs a digital marketing and demand generation company, so he is well-informed from both perspectives.
We agree that enablement plays a valuable role in bringing these two functions together for the greater good of the company, and Paul gets incredibly tactical in this episode about how to set up sales and marketing for success.
Please sit back, relax, and enjoy this week’s episode with Paul Slack.
Paul Slack joins the Learning Culture Podcast this week for an episode on how to succeed in B2B marketing in 2023.
Paul is the CEO of Vende Digital, a digital marketing and demand generation company that works with B2B companies.
For the last several months Paul and I have gone back and forth on LinkedIn. I finally got him on the podcast to share his clear and fresh view on marketing.
Here’s a quick glimpse. There is a correct mindset to adopt when creating content for and interacting with buyers:
- The buyer has access to perfect information
- They are able to learn what they need on their own
- They can make rational decisions
Part 1 of this conversation is about deeply exploring this somewhat counterintuitive approach, as well as exploring the spaces where marketing and sales overlap.
Part 2 (tune in next week) will be all about breaking down the barriers between marketing and sales.
Make sure your pen is full of ink — I furiously took notes during this chat, so I’m sure you’ll find lots of practical takeaways, too.
With that, enjoy this Learning Culture Podcast episode with Paul Slack!
Paul Slack LinkedIn
Andrew Barry LinkedIn
Jon Selig is a sales trainer who uses the comedy writing process to help clients deliver memorable messages in sales conversations.
He teaches not a sales methodology … but a way for sellers to more deeply understand prospects and the problems they solve for them, then come up with pattern-interrupting, creative (and funny) ways to get their attention.
This is an invaluable skill for anyone in skills to have.
This episode is about demystifying what Jon does and learning tons from him in an unorthodox way.
It goes without saying that this was a fun one. Sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode with Jon Selig.
Jon Selig LinkedIn
Jon Selig Website
Andrew Barry LinkedIn
This week’s guest is Sheryl Buscheck, the new Director of Global Revenue Enablement at Juniper Networks.
We reflect on Sheryl’s career and the lessons she has learned leading up to this new role – she’s responsible for onboarding and Juniper’s Ramp to Productivity Programs.
Today’s topic is the human challenges of changing your go-to-market strategy. A relevant problem for you listeners, I’m sure.
These are all things that come to mind when I talk about learning culture, so it was thrilling to unpack all of this alongside Sheryl and to hear her perspective as a change management professional.
For new and returning listeners alike, if you’re enthusiastic about helping people navigate change, you’re going to get plenty of actionable insights from this episode.
Please sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode with Sheryl Buscheck.
And if we’re not connected already, head down the page to find links to Sheryl’s and my LinkedIn so we can keep the conversation going.
Sheryl Buscheck LinkedIn
Andrew Barry LinkedIn
This week’s guest is Sheryl Buscheck, the new Director of Global Revenue Enablement at Juniper Networks. She’s responsible for onboarding and Juniper’s Ramp to Productivity Programs.
The topic of our full upcoming episode is the human challenges of changing your go-to-market strategy. A relevant problem for you listening, I’m sure.
These are all things that come to mind when I talk about learning culture, so it was thrilling to unpack all of this alongside Sheryl and to hear her perspective as a change management professional.
But in this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Sheryl Buscheck LinkedIn
This week's episode features Katie Pariseau, the Head of Enablement at TrustRadius. She landed in that role a year and a half ago and brings to it lessons from a career that began in social marketing.
If you've ever heard Don't Mess with Texas, that's social marketing.
Katie worked at an agency whose job is to come up with those kinds of campaigns - advertising that changes behavior for social causes.
She and I spent our conversation exploring the lessons she extracted from her fascinating career. As an intern, she interviewed smokers and litterers, uncovered and addressed unconscious behaviors, and fed her insights to the copywriting and creative teams to devise powerful ad campaigns.
Tune in for a template- and example-filled episode. Katie and I used our time together to apply her career insights to coaching and enabling people.
This was a really fun one for me and I know you'll enjoy it, too. So please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Katie Pariseau.
Katie Pariseau LinkedIn
Joining me this week is Katie Pariseau.
Katie is the Head of Enablement at TrustRadius. She's been in that role for a year and a half and brings to it lessons from a career that started in social marketing, which is advertising that changes behavior for social causes. Things like anti-litter campaigns, stopping smoking, and water conservation.
Our full upcoming episode is packed with examples, practical things that you can use, and almost templates, with some specific questions that Katie uses as go-to questions.
But in this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Katie Pariseau LinkedIn
Welcome to another first-of-its-kind episode! This is a remixed and edited version of a live virtual event I co-hosted with Nikki Schanzer in April. Nikki is a Senior Leadership Development Sales Performance Consultant at LinkedIn, and a dear friend of mine and the show.
As enablers, we need to know what it’s like to be in the shoes of managers and sales leaders. We need to actually walk a mile in their shoes before we throw just another framework at them.
This wasn’t just another webinar to chop your vegetables to or scroll along on Twitter while you’re listening. This was a nitty-gritty, hands-on experience in which the people who joined left experiencing true transformation.
If you weren’t there with us, this podcast episode is a perfect way to:
- Experience the power of the GROW Model
- Learn how to structure and implement coaching and mentoring
- Learn how to provide managers with the tools they need to create an environment of accountability.
Get your headphones and your notepad ready — we’re going to learn how to scale a culture of coaching at your company together.
I highly recommend you share this episode with a friend or a colleague and work through the recording together, making it as interactive as possible.
It doesn’t have to be a colleague; it can be your partner, your child, your best friend … anybody that wants to learn and grow, and help you do the same.
The last thing to do is to check the Selected Links from the Episode below. You’ll find:
- A link to the presentation slide deck
- A public Google Doc complete with a cheat sheet and our live session attendees’ takeaways (feel free to add to it!)
Please sit back, relax, and enjoy this special GROW Workshop in Sales Coaching with Nikki Schanzer.
Nikki Schanzer’s LinkedIn
Joining me this week for the first-ever combined panel episode are Kunal Pandya and John Williamson.
- Kunal is a Senior Director of Global Revenue Enablement at UserZoom and the Founder + CEO of Sales Velocity Labs.
- John is a Sales and Revenue Enablement Change Agent with an extensive background in sales, most recently working as a Sales Enablement Leader at Analog Devices.
Treat this episode as a mastermind - these two gentlemen expertly weave their way through this spiky topic from different angles. Ultimately, we all converge on the same vision and strive to work toward the same goal.
This episode went over so well that we're planning to host a live-discussion version of this topic. If that's enticing to you, hop on to my newsletter at curiouslionlearning.com/newsletter.
As soon as you get the first email from me, reply and say I'm interested in a workshop with John and Kunal!
I had the privilege of sitting back a bit and letting John and Kunal do their thing, and it made for a stellar episode with an interesting and open-ended conclusion.
After you listen, head to our newsletter, get that first email from me, and let me know if you're interested in a workshop with these guys.
With that, sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Kunal and John.
Kunal’s LinkedIn
John’s LinkedIn
Welcome to part two of Elite Human Performance with Brittany Loney. I urge you to go back and watch if you missed part one.
In it, I spoke with Brittany, Director of Elite Cognition and Human Optimization for Core One (a company that works with the US Military Special Forces) about her remarkable journey into the world of performance psychology and cognitive neuroscience.
We chatted about her origin story and how she ended up working with soldiers that operate in high-consequence arenas to help them develop their potential and work towards elite performance.
In this episode, we explore more deeply the psychology and neuroscience that Brittany brings to her work, namely in her framework, ECHO – Elite Cognition and Human Optimization.
ECHO is an outstanding training model that progressively builds a soldier (or athlete, or any human) to a level of enduring excellence.
- It balances high performance with sustainable practices that manage burnout.
- It considers the underlying physical things (nutrition, habits, productivity, cognitive dominance, integrating with the mission, etc.) we have set as our goal.
- It is designed to help forge elite teams to keep raising the bar of performance.
It's thrilling for me to bring this to you and play a small part in Brittany's expanding influence.
Once again, go check out the first episode before you dive in!
It's time to sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode with Brittany Loney.
Brittany Loney joins me this week for part one of a special two-part episode! We were on such a roll, we recorded for almost two hours! Brittany is the Director of Elite Cognition and Human Optimization at Core One.
She works with the US Military, specifically, soldiers in very high-risk combat situations. She works with them as groups and individuals to develop their:
- brain capacity,
- physical capacity,
- and emotional capacity
to operate at peak performance within those high-risk arenas.
In part one we explore Brittany’s traumatic college basketball background and how it led her along a learning journey about performance psychology and brain science.
She applied her knowledge to other athletes and other sports and eventually found herself working in the US military (where she has been for the past 13 years) and designing an incredible program of packaged expertise called ECHO – Elite Cognition and Human Optimization.
In part two (tune in next week!), we’ll explore the finer details of the ECHO program and how its foundations align with lots of things we talk about on this show.
I recommend getting out a pen and paper or taking notes on your phone, because you’ll come across some practical stuff in here to apply at work for the teams that you’re responsible for developing and for your own work.
This whole episode is about high performance — elite human performance.
Sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode with Brittany Loney.
Brittaney Loney LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brittany-loney
On this episode of The Learning Culture Podcast, Meganne Brezina, Senior Director of Field Enablement at Seismic, shares her insights on change management.
Seismic prioritizes one big initiative every year, focusing on cutting through the noise and being proactive in rolling out new initiatives, achieving messaging alignment, cascading information, and all that good stuff.
As a former seller and now an enablement leader, Meganne shares her journey to uncovering the framework for a proper change management approach in enablement and the importance of investing in quality content.
Join us as we dive into the importance of coaching as a frontline management aspect, flexibility and adaptability in fast-paced environments, and the need for a common language to scale businesses.
Please sit back and relax and enjoy my episode with Meganne Brezina.
Meganne Brezina LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/meganne-brezina
On this episode of The Learning Culture Podcast, Meganne Brezina, Senior Director of Field Enablement at Seismic, shares her insights on change management.
Seismic prioritizes one big initiative every year, focusing on cutting through the noise and being proactive in rolling out new initiatives, achieving messaging alignment, cascading information, and all that good stuff.
As a former seller and now an enablement leader, Meganne shares her journey to uncovering the framework for a proper change management approach in enablement and the importance of investing in quality content.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Meganne Brezina LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/meganne-brezina
My guest this week is Allison Sword.
Allison is the Senior Manager of Revenue Enablement at Restaurant365. She has an incredible track record in the industry in sales enablement and has been around since the beginning.
She was a sales leader herself before that, bringing tons of experience to her role.
She's also very involved in the WiSE community in Chicago and learned a lot from meeting and networking with people in the space.
We sat down and unpacked her experiences and reassembled them into a practical format for all of you listening.
Specifically, we talked about onboarding and Alison's take on what she calls “Leader-First Onboarding.”
This conversation had been a long time coming with Allison, and I'm glad we got the chance to record it for all of you.
So please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Allison Sword.
Allison Sword LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/allison-sword
Joining me this week is Allison Sword, the senior manager of revenue enablement at Restaurant365.
She has an incredible track record within sales enablement, and has been been around basically since the beginning. She was a sales leader herself before that and brings so much unique perspective and experience to the role. She's also very involved with the WiSE community in Chicago and has connected and grown a lot through networking with other women in the space.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Allison Sword LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/allison-sword/
This week, we have a special episode.
Today, I want to share with you an article that I wrote from a review that I did of my first quarter in 2023. I spent the first quarter doing a lot of journaling; it is a new practice that I have taken a lot more seriously this year. And at the end of the quarter, I go away and lock myself up—in this case, in a farm—for 48 hours. And I review all of my notes from the previous quarter and write a synthesis of that.
What came out of this particular one was identifying five main themes or pathways that I have found, am walking, and will constantly walk for the rest of my life. I think you'll find them valuable. Well, I hope you do, because I think maybe some of them you'll find valuable, and maybe others you won't. But these five were really essential and will continue to be essential for me to continue walking this path.
In the second part of the episode, I talk about how I applied the lessons that I've learned from walking those five pathways to my business. And I share a little bit about our point of view, our purpose, our vision, and a little bit about our strategy too.
If you're interested in how we are building this Revenue Enablement as a Service thing, you're really going to enjoy this episode. If you want to read this article, it's up on our blog.
Go to https://curiouslionlearning.com/criticalpath. You can check out the full piece of what you're going to hear next, as well as some really cool AI generated images and a lot of other good stuff.
With that, it is time for you to sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode with me.
In this special episode, I've invited one of my team members to join me. You're about to hear from Theshel Govender. Theshel is a Senior Learning Architect on our team at Curious Lion and the recent author of a post on our blog that went viral in our corner of the world.
We started a project this year in which everybody on the Learning Architect team started to write articles and publish them on our blog.
Our goal is for the world and our clients to hear from our team and for us to expand our own understanding of our expertise. Theshel has stepped up as a leader of this project.
The article that you'll hear came, at least for me, out of the blue. I didn't even know she was writing it. I hadn't seen an early outline for it; I didn't know anything about it.
And I will never forget this - I was at a brewery with my wife and son. I got a notification on my phone from Slack, saying that an article had gone up on our website. Whenever I see that, I’m immediately drawn to reading them.
So, I quickly asked my wife, who said it was okay, and I just started reading this article while sipping a beer. My jaw just started to drop as I was reading.
I don't want to give too much away, but a big theme of the piece is loyalty. It's an incredibly vulnerable piece in which Theshel shares a difficult period for her creatively and personally that she overcame, and that she feels like she's overcome by working at Curious Lion with the incredible team we have.
It made me think about my style of leadership, which I can best describe as inclusive leadership. I've realized from reading Theshel’s article that inclusive leadership is what inspires loyalty, and loyalty creates massive leverage.
That's ultimately my goal - to create a workplace in which everyone feels like they can bring their best selves to do their best work.
I'll hand over the microphone to Theshel, who's going to read her amazing article. Please sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode with Theshel Govender.
Joining me this week is Stephanie Middaugh, who is the founder of Phoenix GTM Consulting. Stephanie also has an incredible track record and career in enablement. She, as she says in the show, was a victim of the layoffs but had been building Phoenix in the background for a while. So she clearly always had the intention and passion to go out on her own, and that's what she did. We talk a little bit about what that's been like, which is a fun way to start this conversation.
The main episode is about Hackathons. Stephanie has been running these Hackathons with the Sales Enablement Squad that she runs with her partner. It is an incredible format for coming together, and it's in person. Participants fly in and get together for an afternoon of workshopping actual problems that these people want to focus on, that will be super useful. No slides, no presentations - this is just stickies, notebooks, pens, papers, and whiteboards, and off you go. And it's been a really good run that they had last year. They're now running six or seven of these next year.
If you want to find out more about those workshops, you'll learn all about them, how they work, and how to set them up. And then we talk about how you can use Hackathons for sales team training or sales enablement. And this was really cool. It definitely came up with a really helpful, cool, six step framework to help you think about how to do this. And this was not prepared, we didn't plan to come up with that, a testament to how much fun it was to have this conversation.
Please, sit back, relax, and enjoy this long-awaited episode with the meme queen, Stephanie Middaugh.
Stephanie Middaugh LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sjmiddaugh/
Joining me this week is Stephanie Middaugh, who is the founder of Phoenix GTM Consulting.
Stephanie has been running sensational Hackathons with the Sales Enablement Squad that she runs with her partner. It's an incredible format for coming together, and it's in person. Participants fly in and get together for an afternoon of workshopping actual problems that these people want to focus on, that will be super useful. No slides, no presentations - this is just stickies, notebooks, pens, papers, and whiteboards, and off you go. And it's been a really good run that they had last year. They're now running six or seven of these next year.
If you want to find out more about those workshops, you'll learn all about them, how they work, and how to set them up in the full episode.
But in this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Stephanie Middaugh LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sjmiddaugh/
Nate Nasralla joins me this week for a deep dive with SME episode.
Nate is the founder of Fluint.io. He teaches sellers how to sell with buyers, not to them.
His whole thesis is built on the idea that the sale actually happens when you’re not in the room.
And he has built a product around facilitating the how-to of his thesis: finding and framing a high-priority problem, creating internal consensus to move in a new direction, and then quantifying and clarifying a visual of the promised land (the business impact and the personal impact to come).
A lot of puzzle pieces came together during this episode. Nate’s a super smart guy.
I definitely have to go back to my pipeline now and tweak some things because I learned a lot from this conversation, and I hope you do, too.
Please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Nate Nasralla.
Nate Nasralla LinkedIn - (https://www.linkedin.com/in/natenasralla/)
Joining me this week for part two of our conversation is David Carter.
As I mentioned in part one, David became known as one of the world's top CEO mentors. In building and exiting a company, he found that character underpinned every single thing he did.
If he could help his CEOs develop character or become certain characteristics, they transformed. They started to grow.
There are a lot of interesting lessons here that we can take into our work in developing managers and leaders within companies.
This half of the two-part episode focuses on how David has come to make his entire life about character, and how his legacy project (his current company Entelechy Academy) seeks to develop character in people.
Be sure to explore the Character Matrix that Entelechy and David and his team created under Guest Links!
Sit back, relax, and enjoy part two of my conversation with David Carter.
David Carter LinkedIn - https://uk.linkedin.com/in/davidcmcarter
I have a really fun new episode format to share with you today.
We're calling it the Learning Nugget.
The idea is to share some quick, super-practical, super-tactical lessons with all of you. After this episode, you'll have something specific that you want to try right away in your current role.
My first guest for this is Jonathan Mahan, co-founder of The Practice Lab. He's also a former account executive who became disillusioned with how role plays were run.
Obviously, role plays are a key part of practicing the sales conversation. But Jonathan, like many of us, believed that they just weren't working.
They suck, to be honest. Right?
So he spent a lot of time thinking about how to make them better.
And I think he's actually done it; he's received great results from people that have gone through what I like to call “literal transformations," of who they are as a person.
They're better sellers because they've deliberately practiced. That's what this episode is about.
In this episode, you'll hear Jonathan's four lessons, along with practical tips for each that you can implement right away.
Let's dive in and discover how to make roleplays not suck.
Jonathan Mahan LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jtmahan/
Joining me this week is David CM Carter.
David is known as the world's leading CEO mentor. He started to build his reputation by taking a small FTSE (or Fortune 5000 for Americans) company to IPO. But then he expanded, going on to help other CEOs take much larger companies public and beyond.
The things David spoke about in this conversation resonated deeply with things that I think about all the time.
We have decided to release it as two episodes.
In this first episode, you're going to hear David explain what it was like constructing the world's leading CEO mentoring company.
You'll get tons of value out of this episode on the topic of mentorship, which, as David describes in the beginning, is different from coaching.
This is applicable in sales enablement and lots of manager-to-individual-contributor relationships because, in most cases, the senior person is the one who has the experience and really can be the mentor for new hires.
If you want to learn more about how mentoring works from one of the world's best CEO mentors, tune in now.
Sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with David Carter.
David Carter LinkedIn - https://uk.linkedin.com/in/davidcmcarter
Joining me this week is you.
This episode is a special one. I’m going to break down a recent experience I had for your benefit. I’m recording this on March 1st, 2023. We conducted a Creativity and Innovation training workshop for a client in San Francisco last week.
It was an incredible experience.
We partnered up with Sarah Lagrotteria, who is the wife of a previous guest on the show, and the creator of the methodology that we were teaching, Dr. Angus Fletcher.
In this episode, I share my experience teaching this stuff, and we’ll weave in parts of my conversation with Angus to help solidify this view.
I want to make this episode as practical as possible. For that purpose, we’re going to have a goal.
Our goal together is going to be to unpack training and creativity.
More accurately, training innovation in a way that’s practical.
I want you to take this episode and listen to it multiple times, then put these ideas into practice yourself.
I really encourage you to do it. I’ve done it.
I promise you: by the end of this episode, we’ll have actionable tools to take into our work to allow us to do just that — turn creativity into innovation.
So please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with you.
Joining me this week is Nick Lawrence.
For new listeners, the Learning Culture podcast is a space to explore the art and science of what I call “Total Enablement.”
Total Enablement entails creating the conditions for learning to happen - creating an ecosystem where learning is the default state at your company.
And joining me this week was a guest who really gets it, who thinks deeply and writes about this idea himself.
I've really enjoyed following Nick's LinkedIn posts; he really gets it.
This episode is an instance of two people arriving at the same conclusions from different angles and having a good time doing it.
You'll enjoy it, too.
So please sit back, relax, and tune in to my episode with Nick Lawrence.
Joining me this week is Nick Lawrence.
For new listeners, the Learning Culture podcast is a space to explore the art and science of what I call “Total Enablement.”
Total Enablement entails creating the conditions for learning to happen - creating an ecosystem where learning is the default state at your company.
And joining me this week was a guest who really gets it, who thinks deeply and writes about this idea himself.
I've really enjoyed following Nick's LinkedIn posts and talking to him felt like an instance of two people arriving at the same conclusions, from different angles, and having a good time doing it.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather his first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Dr. Ken Long.
Ken is a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army.
He spent 25 years on active duty and continues to serve with the Army as a Professor of Change Management at the Fort Leavenworth, Kansas training facility. He works with a staff of over 7,000 faculty and is responsible for teaching over 200,000 students.
Boy, oh boy, was this a good conversation. I asked Dr. Long to come on to the podcast to talk about his side of the story in working with Dr. Angus Fletcher. Dr. Fletcher is a previous guest on the show, and he's responsible for devising a methodology for teaching creativity.
You'll realize this is unlike any method for teaching creativity that you have ever seen before. Still, both of these episodes only scratched the surface of the power and potential of that method.
There's so much more to this episode. It was an absolute joy to record, and I know you'll enjoy this conversation as well.
So please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Dr. Ken Long.
Joining me this week is Sarah Filipiak.
Sarah is the new Head of Revenue Enablement at Bamboo Rose. Before that, she worked at companies like Wayfair and Coupa.
The thing that stands out the most for me is Sarah’s passionate and unique perspective on enablement. I’ve said this a lot on the show: it’s an exciting field and space to be in because it is so new and so open to being molded.
And Sarah is one of the people out there sharing her ideas, putting thoughts into the public domain, and really helping to evolve enablement.
It was a really enjoyable conversation to be part of. And I think you’ll feel the same way if you join us in thought.
Please sit back, relax and enjoy my episode with Sarah Filipiak.
Joining me this week is Sarah Filipiak.
Sarah is the new Head of Revenue Enablement at Bamboo Rose. Before that, she worked at companies like Wayfair and Coupa.
The thing that stands out the most for me is Sarah’s passionate and unique perspective on enablement. I’ve said this a lot on the show: it’s an exciting field and space to be in because it is so new and so open to being molded.
And Sarah is one of the people out there sharing her ideas, putting thoughts into the public domain, and really helping to evolve enablement.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
This is a show about how to create cultures of continuous learning at companies. Joining me this week is Samantha Strom.
Sam is an Enablement Consultant, formerly an enablement leader at companies like Salesforce, Unity, Autodesk, and Gem.
She's one of the many who have suffered through the layoffs. Her last role at Gem was cut, and she has landed on her feet as an Enablement Consultant working with various companies in different consulting gigs.
This conversation was a lot of fun if you are thinking about the current state of enablement. And let's be honest, who isn't?
We explore the goings-on of the market, we share our theses for what we're seeing, and then chat about what role enablement can play in all this.
This was a great episode, and I had a lot of fun recording with Sam. I think you'll have fun listening, too.
So please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Sam Strom.
This is a show about how to create cultures of continuous learning at companies. Joining me this week is Samantha Strom.
Sam is an Enablement Consultant, formerly an enablement leader at companies like Salesforce, Unity, Autodesk, and Gem.
She's one of the many who have suffered through the layoffs. Her last role at Gem was cut, and she has landed on her feet as an Enablement Consultant working with various companies in different consulting gigs.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Shannon Hempel.
Shannon is the founder of EnableUp and the co-founder of Women in Sales Enablement, or WiSE.
In this conversation, I got a chance to ask Shannon about every last detail of the origin story of WiSE. For me, it was a story rich with lessons that we can apply toward enabling people.
I think you'll find double the value in learning what this space for women in enablement is, how it started, and what its values are, then also the several lessons and takeaways that you can apply in your professional work ....it'll be a ton of fun.
If you're in enablement and you're worried right now about the state of the economy, the market, and/or the security of your job, take it from someone like Shannon that you're not alone.
We're in this together, and we can build something incredible together.
So sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Shannon Hempel.
Joining me this week is Shannon Hempel.
Shannon is the founder of EnableUp and the co-founder of Women in Sales Enablement, or WiSE.
I think you'll find double the value in learning what this space for women in enablement is, how it started, and what its values are; then also the several lessons and takeaways that you can apply in your professional work ...it'll be a ton of fun!
If you're in enablement and you're worried right now about the state of the economy, the market, and/or the security of your job, take it from someone like Shannon that you're not alone.
We're in this together, and we can build something incredible together.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
This is a show about building cultures of continuous learning for companies.
In today's episode, we're going to do something a little different, something I haven't done in a while on this podcast.
I'm going to tell you a story. I'm going to read from an essay that I wrote, and I'm going to tell you how I came up with the Learning Culture Lotus.
On August 12, 2019, I received a text message that turned my stomach.
“Andrew, I’m leaving.”
I founded my business, Curious Lion, to help companies develop and retain their best talent, but I couldn’t even keep my own people on board.
Without us all working on our projects, we’d lose clients. I was in my own version of a Great Resignation crisis, which propelled me to flip everything I thought I knew about corporate learning on its head.
Our model for helping great companies learn was causing our own company to fail. Yet I still tolerated the old model.
That was about to change.
In this podcast, I’ll share how turnover at my own company led me to rethink corporate learning and help top companies like Pinterest, Bolt, and Brex completely transform how they develop their talent.
I hope this episode will gift you with new meaning and perspective. Thank you for listening. Stay curious.
Joining me this week is Mike Macchiarelli.
Mike is the Head of Revenue Enablement at Modus. Before that, he was a seller at Equinox and at Modus. He hasn't officially been in the enablement role for too long but has been doing enablement for pretty much his whole career.
That's something I think many of you listening can relate to.
This was a really fun episode for me; I got to geek out about sports with Mike, who is as obsessed as I am. We use sport as an analogy for building a sales team. One of the things you'll realize from listening to this conversation is that Mike has a romantic view of sales, which was unexpected and really interesting. I dug a lot deeper into that, and we pulled out some fascinating and useful ideas.
We also dive into Mike's top priorities and challenges for the year. There are tons here for you to take into your role and into developing people in your organization.
So please, sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Mike Macchiarelli.
Joining me this week is Mike Macchiarelli.
Mike is the Head of Revenue Enablement at Modus.
Before that, he was a seller at Equinox and at Modus. He hasn't officially been in the enablement role for too long but has been doing enablement for pretty much his whole career.
That's something I think many of you listening can relate to.
This was a really fun episode for me; I got to geek out about sports with Mike, who is as obsessed as I am. We use sport as an analogy for building a sales team. One of the things you'll realize from listening to this conversation is that Mike has a romantic view of sales, which was unexpected and really interesting. I dug a lot deeper into that, and we pulled out some fascinating and useful ideas.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather his first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Crystal Nikosey.
Crystal is the Director of Global Revenue Enablement at UserZoom. She's also the Phoenix Chapter Lead for Women in Sales Enablement, and the co-host of the Sales and Enablement Podcast.
I was lucky enough to be a guest on the podcast and it was so much fun talking to Crystal that I just knew I had to get her onto my show.
She did not disappoint.
For those of you who know Crystal, she is also a brilliant content creator on LinkedIn who always brightens up feeds with some rather hilarious and often hot takes on enablement.
Crystal has intuitively figured out a way to apply a theory of motivation known as the “Self Determination Theory.” Make sure to listen out for that, where we compare what the theory says to what Crystal told me to tie it all together and reveal why she's doing such a great job of enabling the sales reps at UserZoom.
To find out more about why it's important to stay close to your sales reps - sit back, relax, and enjoy my conversation with Crystal Nikosey.
Joining me this week is Crystal Nikosey.
Crystal is the Director of Global Revenue Enablement at UserZoom. She's also the Phoenix Chapter Lead for Women in Sales Enablement, and the co-host of the Sales and Enablement Podcast.
I was lucky enough to be a guest on the podcast and it was so much fun talking to Crystal that I just knew I had to get her onto my show.
For those of you who know Crystal, she is also a brilliant content creator on LinkedIn who always brightens up feeds with some rather hilarious and often hot takes on enablement.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Stephanie Benavidez.
Stephanie is the Head of Sales Enablement at Loadsmart. She is an enabler of sales, a process junkie, a community connector, and an L&D advocate.
Of the things that really struck me about this conversation was the passion. You could literally see it in her eyes when she talked about the coaching culture that she's building at Loadsmart.
She has a team of five enablers, and they have 400 people in their salesforce. One of her challenges going forward is being able to scale the incredible coaching culture that they've built there.
Listen in to learn how she started that coaching culture and the creative ways she's thinking about scaling it.
This was a ton of fun to record, and I know you're going to love it, too.
So please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Stephanie Benavidez.
Joining me this week is Stephanie Benavidez.
Stephanie is the Head of Sales Enablement at Loadsmart. She is an enabler of sales, a process junkie, a community connector, and an L&D advocate.
Of the things that really struck me about this conversation was the passion. You could literally see it in her eyes when she talked about the coaching culture that she's building at Loadsmart.
She has a team of five enablers, and they have 400 people in their salesforce. One of her challenges going forward is being able to scale the incredible coaching culture that they've built there.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week, in an episode we pulled from the Vault, is Tanya Geisler. Tanya is a coach, writer, TED speaker, and expert on the Imposter Complex (or Syndrome). Her expertise lies in helping leaders understand what the Imposter Complex or Imposter Syndrome is, and understand some of the lies we tell ourselves and the behavior traits we demonstrate which alert us to the fact that we’re suffering from Imposter Syndrome.
If you’re wondering whether you might suffer from Imposter Syndrome – you may have had feelings of feeling out of action, or you doubt your capacity to do something, or feel alone or isolated, or ‘why should the world want to hear from me or read about what I have to say?’ – that’s all the Imposter Phenomenon, as this was originally coined..
In this conversation, we break down what it is, how to go about overcoming it, and how different cultures view Imposter Syndrome.
Please enjoy!
Joining me this week, in an episode pulled from The Vault, is the five-time author, Bo Burlingham. Bo is best known for his book Small Giants: Companies That Choose to Be Great Instead of Big which was published in 2005 and was a finalist for the Financial Times Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year Award.
He went on to build a career in journalism where he joined Inc. Magazine. He was there as the publication started covering companies that were new and curious at the time. Companies like Apple and Microsoft led by these strange, brilliant founders Steve Jobs and Bill Gates and Bo cut his teeth interviewing them and writing about them for the magazine.
His writing has spawned communities and his life has spanned 50 years of marriage which has spawned two children and four grandchildren.
This was a fascinating conversation with someone who had a first-row seat to the birth of the new economy in the United States.
Please enjoy!
Joining me this week is Sam Lau.
Sam is the Head of Sales Enablement at Forethought. He was a former bag carrier and is now an enabler of sales reps and sales organizations, and he's fast becoming an expert at peer-to-peer learning.
He speaks at many of the leading industry conferences and has tons of interesting lived experience and earned wisdom around the topic of peer-to-peer learning.
As many of you who are regular listeners will know, that's one of my favorite topics and something that we take a lot of pride in at Curious Lion.
This was a very tactical episode, and I think if you take some notes, you'll be able to implement some of these ideas right away. It was very accessible, and it speaks to Sam's ability and understanding of these concepts. I really enjoyed this, and I know you will, too.
Please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Sam Lau.
Joining me this week is Sam Lau.
Sam is the Head of Sales Enablement at Forethought. He was a former bag carrier and is now an enabler of sales reps and sales organizations, and he's fast becoming an expert at peer-to-peer learning.
He speaks at many of the leading industry conferences and has tons of interesting lived experience and earned wisdom around the topic of peer-to-peer learning.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather his first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Roderick Jefferson.
Roderick is a keynote speaker, author, and inventor of the name “Sales Enablement.” It was something I didn't know going into the conversation, and it really speaks to the experience that he has had in this industry since it began, essentially giving it its name.
He has a book out right now called Sales Enablement 3.0, and we explore the key points in the book as well as my curiosity regarding his background.
I found it an honor and a privilege to host a podcast with and really pick the brain of someone who's "been there and done that" in the trenches for so long. I know you're going to enjoy this one too.
Please sit back, relax, and enjoy my conversation with Roderick Jefferson.
Joining me this week is Roderick Jefferson.
Roderick is a keynote speaker, author, and inventor of the name “Sales Enablement.” It was something I didn't know going into the conversation. And it really does speak to the experience that Roderick has had in this industry since it began and really gave it its name. He has a book out right now called Sales Enablement 3.0.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather his first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Jen Collins.
Jen is the Director of Academy Enablement at Learn In, a talent academy platform that was recently acquired by Degreed, one of the largest players in the ed tech space.
Jen and I connected on LinkedIn a while back, kept in touch through the platform, and found a common passion for all things continuous learning.
It really did play out into a fantastic episode, focused on one particular topic. It was also inspired by a LinkedIn post of hers about a concept I talk a lot about: that training is not only an event - it is learning as a continuous process.
Jen posted something that followed a model of reflect, practice, and apply, and it really resonated with my Circle of Learning. We went into that deeply and unpacked practical, tactical habits and rituals that Jen set up at a previous company.
As an example: when people go to conferences, how can they get the most out of them and attain the holy grail for learning teams—user-generated content?
If this sounds interesting, please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Jen Collins.
Joining me this week is Jen Collins.
Jen is the Director of Academy Enablement at Learn In, a talent academy platform that was recently acquired by Degreed, one of the largest players in the ed tech space.
Jen and I connected on LinkedIn a while back, kept in touch through the platform, and found a common passion for all things continuous learning.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Raquel Ferrari.
Raquel is the Revenue Enablement Manager at Spekit. She is an enabler, but in a good way!
She is also in a unique role in that she leads enablement for a company that serves people in enablement. And that made for a very interesting episode. We explored the benefits that she brings to her go-to-market team - from reps to customer success and everything in between.
In this episode, we talk about all things Just-in-Time Learning. It was really fun to pull out a framework that Raquel uses for deciding how to create content and communicate with her sales team. She ended up sharing a three step framework (which I think you'll find incredibly useful) that we spent the bulk of this episode unpacking.
So with that, please sit back, relax, and enjoy my episode with Raquel Ferrari.
Raquel Ferrari is the Revenue Enablement Manager at Spekit, a "just-in-time" learning platform that enables your team to find the information they need in the flow of work.
She is an Enabler, but in a good way, and she is also in a unique role, in that she leads enablement for a company that serves people in enablement.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Brooke Coletti.
Brooke is the Senior Partner Enablement Manager at AWS, a fairly new role for her. She has worked in various enablement roles, and this was the first time in her career that she has specialized in partner enablement.
As a result, this is the first episode I've done on this show that is focused specifically on partner enablement.
We go into all things channel partner-related, and we also bring in quite a big dose of microlearning (another topic that Brooke is very much an expert in and has leveraged a lot in her career).
If all that sounds interesting to you, sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode with Brooke Coletti.
Brooke is the Senior Partner Enablement Manager at AWS. It's a fairly new role for her as we recorded this episode.
She has worked in various enablement roles, and this was the first time in her career that she has specialized in partner enablement. And as a result, this is the first episode I've done on this show that is focused specifically on partner enablement.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week was Kristen McCrae McMullan.
Kristen is the Global Enablement Leader for Amazon Web Services ProServe.
She first appeared on my radar at the beginning of this year when she released a three-part "new year's resolution" series on topics that were top-of-mind for her in enablement.
The first part of that series was a topic called “Micro-KPIs” - and it's something that I have not been able to stop thinking about since I read it. I found myself explaining it to others as if it were my own idea.
For the uninitiated among us, micro-KPIs are a potential solution for measuring and showing the impact of enablement efforts.
We explore all things micro-KPI in terms of how to set them up, what some of the top challenges people face are, and what Kristen’s go-to micro-KPIs are. We also break down for you a very simple step-by-step approach so that you can go and set up your own KPIs right now.
Please sit back, relax and enjoy my episode with Kristen McCrae McMullan.
Kristen is the Global Enablement Leader for Amazon Web Services ProServe.
She first came on my radar at the beginning of this year, when she released a three part kind of new year's resolution series on topics that were top of mind for her in enablement. The first one of that series was on a topic called “Micro KPIs” - and it's something that I have not been able to stop thinking about since I read that.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Del Nakhi.
Del is the Senior Director of Global Revenue Enablement at MariaDB, and a frequent speaker on the sales enablement circuit.
It was fantastic to be able to sit down one on one with her, to pick her brain on her background, her experience, and her philosophies for the strategies and tactics of the sales enablement profession.
I really, really enjoyed this conversation. I think there are so many great nuggets of wisdom in here.
So, please sit back, relax and enjoy my episode with Del Nakhi.
Joining me this week is Del Nakhi
Del is the Senior Director of Global Revenue Enablement at MariaDB. She's a frequent speaker on the sales enablement circuit. It was fantastic to be able to sit down one on one with her to pick her brain on her background, her experience, and her philosophies for the strategies and tactics of the sales enablement profession. .
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Jay Clouse.
Jay is the mind responsible for Creative Science, a phenomenal newsletter for entrepreneurs in the creative space, and he's the host of Creative Elements and Narrative Interview Podcast, exploring how today's top creators make a living with their art and creativity.
He previously led the community experience team for Pat Flynn and Smart Passive Income, which is a multimillion-dollar online course and community. He designed their paid membership community and cohort-based programs and has gone on to have much success with his own versions of those since then.
I consider Jay one of the foremost experts on building communities. I think this is an incredibly important topic and a growing one in the space of corporate learning, enablement, and education. And I think you're going to learn a lot from his experiences in the creator economy.
So, without further ado, sit back, relax, and enjoy my conversation with Jay Clouse.
Joining me this week is Chad Trabucco.
Chad is the Director of Revenue Enablement at Guru, a knowledge management software. I thought that was so fascinating considering the question that I ask at the end of every Rapid Fire Five, that is: how do you capture and distill ideas in people's heads for future use? That's exactly what Guru does, and what Chad is so passionate about.
At the risk of this becoming an episode entirely about Guru, we really dug deep into knowledge management - I think it's such an important issue for anybody developing people and enabling people.
You can get the tacit knowledge out of your sales team's heads and be explicit in your ways of helping others benefit from it. As I said, this is a topic that has been on the minds of every single enablement person I've spoken to. So, I know you will enjoy what Chad has to share.
Please, sit back and enjoy this episode with Chad Trabucco.
Joining me this week is Chad Trabucco.
Chad is the Director of Revenue Enablement at Guru. Guru is a knowledge management software, which I thought was so fascinating because of the question that I asked at the end of every Rapid Fire Five. And that is - how do you capture and distill ideas in people's heads for future use? And that's exactly what Guru does, and what Chad is so passionate about.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather his first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Steph White.
Steph is the Director of Revenue Enablement at Loopio. She started her career in Account Management and has translated that experience into a role enabling others. She's uniquely equipped to do so because of her focus on people.
What I found in this episode, talking to Steph and getting to know her in this conversation, is that we think very similarly about how people are your greatest asset. We also agree about the importance of developing the skills of empathy, the ability to meet people where they are, finding what makes them tick, and enabling their potential. These are the keys to unlocking business growth.
This was a fascinating conversation on the people side of people enablement. And I think you will learn a lot from Steph just as I did.
So, please sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode.
Joining me this week is Steph White.
Steph is the Director of Revenue Enablement at Loopio. She started her career in Account Management and has translated that experience into a role enabling others and is especially equipped to do that because of her focus on people.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week for today's special learning nuggets episode is super-facilitator Gwyn Wansbrough.
Gwyn is an independent Facilitator, Learning Experience Designer, and Course Creator. She focuses on empowering educators and team leaders with the skills to make learning and facilitating meetings more creative. Her focus is on human-centered learning, with an emphasis on group learning. She specializes in crafting group experiences that lead to deep, significant breakthroughs.
I can't emphasize enough how important it is to have expert facilitation of the live experiences. These are the make-or-break components of any cohort learning experience. And we have learned so much from working with Gwyn in making these high-impact, highly engaging, and highly transformational experiences.
In this learning nugget episode, Gwyn is going to lead us through how to craft these truly transformational facilitated experiences. She offers deep insight gleaned from her years of field experience, and directly answers the burning questions that I know many of you have.
So, without further ado, please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Gwyn Wansbrough.
This week, we have a special one-on-one episode with yours truly. I hope you enjoy the sound of my voice because together we'll be exploring some of the lessons that I've learned from a book called The Living Company by Arie de Geus.
Arie de Geus was a Dutch business executive who did an incredible amount of research with his team on companies that have been around for longer than his (he worked at Shell), particularly ones 100 years old and older. These are companies that have displayed incredible longevity and sustainability. de Geus wanted to know why, and that's what we'll be exploring in this episode.
We'll also discuss the concept of stewardship and how that was one of the findings from their research. It also ties into our work on shared Vision, shared Assumptions, shared Stories, and shared Experiences, all captured within this idea of shared values, and how important those are in creating a sense of belonging.
And finally, we'll touch on a topic that is very much top-of-mind for me these days: tacit knowledge and converting that into explicit knowledge, which is something that I think a lot of companies currently struggle with. I'll start to touch on that topic, and I'll probably do another whole episode on that one as well because it's definitely deserving of it.
With that said, let us dive into the research, the lessons, and the stories behind The Living Company.
This week will feature 13 different guests of ours, all speaking and sharing their wisdom on the topic of mentorship.
I'm thrilled to present this mashup episode as a way to give thanks to our growing community. My incredible team has pulled together clips and categorized them in a way that allows me to go in and start looking for patterns and commonalities between the different guest conversations. And today, I want to present to you the very first of those on mentorship. I'm super excited to dive in here.
So, without further ado, let's learn about the incredibly important topic of mentors.
Joining me this week is Sheevaun Thatcher.
Sheevaun is somewhat of a legend in the sales enablement space. She created the role before it was actually even a role. About 15 years ago, she started performing the role of “Player Coach," as she mentions in the episode, for a company she worked for. She's been there from the beginning and has seen the sales enablement profession develop into what it is now.
In this episode, we dive into her wisdom accumulated over those years, especially from her time at RingCentral, where she grew an incredible team and the company from a $20 stock to an almost $500 stock in five years.
I loved recording this episode with Sheevaun and I'm convinced you'll enjoy listening to it. Please sit back and enjoy my episode with Sheevaun Thatcher.
Joining me this week is Sheevaun Thatcher.
Sheevaun is somewhat of a legend in the sales enablement space. She created the role before it was actually even a role. About 15 years ago, she started performing the role of “Player Coach", for a company that she was at. So she's been there from the beginning and has seen the sales enablement profession develop into what it is right now.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Petek Hawkins.
This is a special episode because Petek and I are using it to make a very exciting announcement about Curious Lion. I'll cut this intro very short and let you dive right into the conversation.
Our conversation starts by looking at Petek’s journey and the lessons she's learned. And then we get right into our exciting announcement, what it means for us, and what it could mean for you.
So please sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode with Petek Hawkins.
Joining me this week is Andrew Gibbons.
Andrew is a Management Development Consultant from the UK. He has been helping people learn for the last 40 years. That’s right, 40 years of experience, and during that time, he’s been building a “Learning Log”.
This "Learning Log" now consists of 1.3 million handwritten words about all things learning, leadership, management, learning culture – all the great topics that we talk about on the show. It was an absolute pleasure to sit down with Andrew and pick his brain and talk about theories and ideas that have been around for decades that are still not being embraced today.
This conversation was like wandering through a library of all the topics that are most interesting and exciting to me. If you’ve been a longtime listener of this podcast, or if you’re just stumbling upon this for the first time and the topic interests you, this is the perfect place to start.
So, please sit back and enjoy my episode with Andrew Gibbons.
Joining me this week is Nikki Schanzer.
Nikki has just started a role as Senior Manager of Revenue Enablement at Outreach.
Before that, she headed the Go to Market Enablement at Hopin, and before that, the Revenue Enablement Lead for North America at Dropbox.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Nikki Schanzer.
Nikki has just started a role as Senior Manager of Revenue Enablement at Outreach. Before that, she headed the Go to Market Enablement at Hopin, and before that, the Revenue Enablement Lead for North America at Dropbox.
Meeting Nikki for the first time felt like we were long-lost friends. And I think this is true for a lot of people who share a common passion with each other - in this case, enabling people to be their best. Nikki is definitely a prototypical enabler of others.
We start our conversation by drawing lessons learned from her various roles over the years and focus not just on things that have worked well, but also on things that haven't. That was a theme that came through a lot in this episode.
This was a fun episode to record. I think you'll get a lot out of listening to it, so please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Nikki Schanzer.
Joining me this week is Paul Butterfield.
Scott is the Head of Sales Enablement at Clozd. It's a win-loss analysis platform for sales teams.
Paul's the VP of Global Revenue Enablement for Instructure. Those of you who are regular listeners of the show, remember when we had Brett Childs from the Revenue Enablement team at Instructure? Today, we have Brett's boss.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather his first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Paul Butterfield.
Paul's the VP of Global Revenue Enablement for Instructure. Those of you who are regular listeners of the show, remember when we had Brett Childs from the Revenue Enablement team at Instructure? Today, we have Brett's boss.
This was a really interesting episode for me because Paul is one of the OGs of the space and is one of the original gangsters of Sales Enablement. He understands and has seen the evolution of the function.
One of the coolest things I think you'll learn here is how you can use stories in the form of videos or internal podcasts to transfer tacit knowledge between people on the sales team. There's so much more in this episode, and I really enjoyed picking Paul's brain on all things sales enablement.
Please sit back and enjoy this episode with Paul Butterfield.
Joining me this week is Scott Knudson.
Scott is the Head of Sales Enablement at Clozd. It's a win-loss analysis platform for sales teams.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather his first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
Joining me this week is Scott Knudson.
Scott is the Head of Sales Enablement at Clozd. It's a win-loss analysis platform for sales teams. As you will find out later in the episode a product that their team uses religiously. But this episode isn't about the product Clozd - this is about the lessons that Scott has learned in sales and later in his current role in sales enablement, which he's done at various companies.
This was a fun episode to record, it's packed with a lot of good ideas.
Please sit back and enjoy my episode with Scott Knudson.
Joining me this week is Anthony Altieri.
Anthony is a self-professed IDIoT. He is the Instructional Developer of Internet of Things for his own business, Omnes Solutions. And he's a bit of an expert on LMS Operations and all the technology that underpins how we learn in organizations.
I wanted to get Anthony on the show to talk about the potential for the Internet of Things.
I think you'll find this episode very useful from a possibilities perspective, helping you think about how we can really tailor the learning experience, how we can deeply understand what people are doing, and personalize the experience for them. Anthony has been in the e-learning industry since 2004, so he brings a lot of experience to this discussion.
I'm sure you're going to enjoy this nugget of useful information from my guest, Anthony Altieri.
My guest today is Steffaney Zohrabyan.
Steffaney is the Sales Enablement, Innovation, and Insights Leader for Cisco. She specializes in microlearning in the flow of work. This was an education for me around the role technology can play to nudge, prompt and enable people to make the right decisions in specific moments.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather her first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and enablement.
My guest today is Steffaney Zohrabyan.
Steffaney is the Sales Enablement, Innovation, and Insights Leader for Cisco where she specializes in microlearning in the flow of work. This was an education for me around the role technology can play to nudge, prompt and enable people to make the right decisions in specific moments. I think the impact of this work when combined with the power of cohort-based learning, which is obviously near and dear to our hearts at Curious Lion, is a potent combination.
If you are in Sales Enablement or you're looking to break into the field, you'll find something for you in this episode. Steffaney is also a ton of fun to talk with, so this was a really enjoyable episode, and I have no doubt you'll find deep value peppered throughout.
So please sit back and enjoy my episode with Steffaney Zohrabyan.
Brett is the Director of Revenue Enablement at Instructure. He got into enablement on the back of a successful career in sales. Before that, he spent time as a missionary in Japan - so he is really able to blend that passion for teaching and coaching in this role, making an impact with the people on his team.
In this "Rapid Fire 5" segment, I gather his first thoughts on five key questions related to learning and development.
Brett is the Director of Revenue Enablement at Instructure. He got into enablement on the back of a successful career in sales. Before that, he spent time as a missionary in Japan - gifting him a unique ability to blend that passion for teaching and coaching to make an impact with the people on his team.
Brett is the first guest I've had on the show where it felt like at times that I was talking to myself. It was almost uncanny how similar we think about enabling people and developing potential. So if you've been a fan of the show, I know you're going to enjoy this conversation with a kindred spirit.
So please sit back and enjoy this discussion with Brett Childs.
Joining me this week is Will Mannon.
Will is the Chief Product Officer for Write of Passage, an online cohort-based course to teach people how to become digital writers. They've taught over 1,000 people how to do this through eight cohorts, and I took this course in cohort two. I've been following their journey ever since, and I even became involved as a mentor in cohort five. It's been incredible to watch them push the boundaries of online education, cohort-based education, and how people really learn.
I'm excited to share this conversation with Will, someone I consider a good friend. Will and I have regular catch-ups on all things online education. As you'll find in this episode, it always ends up being an in-depth, far-ranging, and very enjoyable conversation.
We finish our conversation with a discussion about differences between 1990 and 2020 mindsets. I know you're going to love this one.
Please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Will Mannon.
Joining me this week is Al Dea.
Al is the founder of Betterwork Labs, a research, advisory, and training organization that helps other companies create better workplace cultures. I met Al after finding his research on LinkedIn, which really caught my eye. He identified six trends in how people develop themselves and their careers at work. He made an incredible graphic to go along and wrote up a post on the research. I knew as soon as I saw it that I had to get Al on the show to talk through these six trends.
All of them push the boundaries of the future of Learning and Talent Development companies — and your people can leverage them. As someone responsible for developing or enabling people, learning to spot and act upon these trends is crucial.
In our conversation, we unpack each of these and talk through examples of companies he's seen in the space that are offering solutions. We also discuss how to approach and navigate the landscape of these companies. There is a ton of deep insight within Al's research, and it was a pleasure to unpack it with him on the show.
Please sit back and enjoy my episode with Al Dea.
Joining me this week is Kristen Hartley.
Kristen is the Head of Learning and Development for Pinterest. She's a former Deloitte Consultant with a background in Change Management, who has been doing Learning and Development as a function for only two and a half years - but she's been able to bring all that prior experience today in moving into this Head of L&D role at Pinterest. She also does some coaching as a side hustle and brings a lot of those skills to the function that she's responsible for at Pinterest.
I know you're going to pull a lot of great ideas from this conversation with someone out there practicing at an organization with such scale.
So please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Kristen Hartley.
Joining me this week is Jo Wright.
Jo is the firecracker CEO of Coaching Culture. It's a UK-based firm that specializes in the content and platforms to enable cultures of coaching, or as Jo puts it - to scale up coaching conversations.
I initially approached Jo on LinkedIn because I saw something on her website that I thought I disagreed with. And I thought it'd be fun to get into a conversation about the sort of battle between our two viewpoints. But the more I read what she was posting, and the more I dug into the website, the more I realized that we're actually on exactly the same page - that of learning culture and coaching culture. These are all just different names for the same thing, and I think that's the most exciting part of this for me. It's about enabling authentic leaders to have effective conversations by giving each other honest feedback, and building cultures of trust.
I took so many notes from this conversation. I'm sure you will, too.
So please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Jo Wright.
Joining me this week is Paul Millerd.
Paul is the author of a new book called the Pathless Path, as well as a freelance consultant and a Content Advisor to Curious Lion. He has been an indispensable help on a few client projects, assisting in assessing client’s existing Learning Cultures. This is the topic of today’s episode.
Paul spent more than a decade at companies like GE, McKinsey, and BCG as an organizational consultant, assessing, shaping, and cultivating strong organizational cultures.
Much of our conversation in this episode draws upon the work of Edgar Schein, one of the most impressive thinkers on organizational culture from the late 80s and early 90s.
You'll leave this episode knowing what role you can play in establishing and cultivating the culture you want to see at your company.
So please sit back and enjoy my episode with Paul Millerd.
Joining me this week is Ajay Pangarkar.
Ajay is an award-winning Performance and Cost Strategist. He's an expert on training in the workplace, as well as on finance and accounting. He's also an author, and his books bring together his wealth of experience and insight across these various fields. His most recent book, The Trainer's Balanced Scorecard , which he wrote with his co-author Teresa Kirkwood is the starting point for a lot of our conversation.
We explore the often tricky topic of measuring training ROI, and with Ajay having authored and published multiple courses on these very topics, it was a real privilege to be able to pick his brain and map new insights. .
I know you're going to get a lot of value from this episode, so feel free to share any takeaways or moments that stand out to you.
For now, please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Ajay Pangarkar.
👉Continue the conversation with me: https://twitter.com/Bazzaruto
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience. Learn more at https://curiouslion.cloud/experience ~
Joining me this week is Steve Bousquet.
Steve is the President of American Landscape and Lawn Science, a lawn care and landscape business based in Connecticut. Reading that, many of you are probably thinking, "That's an interesting guest for a podcast about Learning Culture". I had the same thought when I first met Steve, a self professed learning nerd who never hesitates to hire a coach or to get a certification in something that he thinks could help him in what he sets out to do.
In this episode, we unpack important lessons about the learner path mindset that Steve has installed for his team of 30 people. It covers communication styles, leveraging strengths, the growth mindset, and of course, purpose. Steve shares some very practical tools that you could use to enhance these four areas of your business to promote and enable your people.
Sometimes you have to look at a business entirely different from your own, to learn a new approach that resonates and can be applied to the situation you face. I left my conversation with Steve energized by his fresh perspective, and with a new set of practical ideas that I want to apply at Curious Lion. I have no doubt that you will find gems of your own hidden within this conversation.
So please sit back and enjoy this episode with Steve Bousquet.
Joining me this week is Daniel Quick.
Daniel is the SVP for Learning Strategies at Thought Industries, a platform for customer education. He is also the author of a new book called The Customer Education Playbook, and most of our conversation revolves around the ideas that Daniel and his co-author share in the book.
I went into this conversation prepared, but still with massive blind spots on what customer education truly is. What I learned from speaking to Daniel is that this is to be expected, because the field of customer education is fresh and newly emerging. It's a bit of a mixture of instructional design, marketing, entrepreneurship and research.
I think of Daniel as an SME for customer education. His book is an incredible resource for anybody who wants to get into the space, whether you are responsible for people development internally or for people development through customers. If you do anything in the field of education or learning, there are deep insights to be gleaned from Daniel's work.
So please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Daniel Quick.
Mark is the founder of Tech Learning Network, one of the leading video-based educational platforms around web development, mobile applications, programming, digital design, and a lot of skills that companies are going through digital transformations need more and more of.
Mark's background in the space goes back to the OG level era. This was a fun, interesting, engaging conversation where we pushed some spiky points of view.
So if you're looking for ideas and inspiration on how to make your learning more engaging, more effective, if you're looking for inspiration on what skills you should be thinking about as you start to build the skills architecture within your company, this conversation will give you a lot of great ideas.
So please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Mark Lassoff.
Joining me this week is Angus Fletcher.
Angus is a Professor of Story Science at Ohio State's Project Narrative. Project Narrative is the world's leading think tank for studying the nature of stories and how they work. He's also the author of Wonderworks, a book that explores the rich generational history of authors who laid out narrative and plot techniques that can help us understand how to overcome grief, stimulate joy or increase creativity.
Ultimately, creativity is about tapping into the potential within. Unleashing hidden creativity is how we transform great companies into unbeatable learning machines. The work that Angus and his team does really pushes the envelope, and hones in on one of the cornerstone skills that we need to make a culture of learning a reality. Teaching creativity.
So if you're ready to join me on this journey, please sit back and enjoy this great conversation with Angus Fletcher.
Joining me this week is Anna Petosa.
Anna is the VP of People Operations at Pelmorex, a Canadian media company. She is responsible for the entire people function at a company of around 500 people. I met Anna through the work that we’re doing around Learning Culture. Anna thinks holistically about people within organizations, from the Operations, to the People Development, to Performance Management, and really everything in between.
Please sit back, relax and enjoy my episode with Anna Petosa.
👉 Continue the conversation with me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience~
Joining me this week is Andy Storch.
Andy is an author, consultant, coach, speaker, and facilitator - best known for helping clients turn strategy into action and getting people to do the best work of their lives.
Andy and I explore careers. Our conversation focusses on what you can do to get the most fulfillment and enjoyment out of your career.
Andy shared some incredibly valuable tips to build a network and cement a personal brand. So if you're looking to get ownership of your career, definitely give this a listen and see what you can apply right away.
Please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Andy Storch.
👉 Continue the conversation with me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience~
Joining me this week is the Senior Director of People Development at PagerDuty, Phylicia Jones.
What PJ brings to the table as a learning professional is a deep understanding of the potential of others, and an incredible passion for the development of that potential. She has incredibly insightful and interesting ideas around releasing that potential. The way she's applied her unique skills at PagerDuty has been visibly effective.
In this conversation, we break down and give some really practical examples of how a lot of these ideas have taken shape among many others.
So please sit back and enjoy my episode with Phylicia Jones.
👉Continue the conversation with me: https://twitter.com/Bazzaruto
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience. Learn more at https://curiouslion.cloud/experience ~
Joining me this week is Maya Huber, the CEO of Skillset.
Skillset is a job simulation and AI analysis platform that is seeking to solve the problem of skills-based hiring. In this episode, we unpack the problem of applicant tracking systems that have degree-based filters that have the unintended consequence of rolling out potentially strong candidates from the recruiting pool.
No matter what part of the talent process you focus on, the ideas and principles that Maya brings out in this conversation are applicable to the entire employee life cycle. So there is definitely something in here for everybody.
So please sit back and enjoy my episode with Maya Huber.
👉 Continue the conversation with me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience~
Welcome back to another special bonus episode - It's part two of the Fifth Discipline by Peter Senge summary which we started last week!
In the previous episode, we looked at what is crumbling and decaying in our education and management systems. We explored what the future might look like in the form of five learning disciplines, and we ended off part one by discussing the first - Personal Mastery.
In today's episode, we're going to break down the final four pieces of the puzzle, in our pursuit of truly transformational learning organizations.
Please sit back and enjoy my Part 2 summary of The Fifth Discipline by Peter Senge.
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~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience ~
Today's episode is a special one - I'm going to share with you a review of a book that I've spent the better part of the last two years with, The Fifth Discipline by Peter Senge.
This process, of applying The Fifth Discipline, rocked my world and turned my whole perspective on learning and work upside down. It reveals the path for us to navigate from a mindset of “crumbling and decaying” to truly seeing the “power that derives from the people.”
I’ve prepared a deep summary of its chapters and ideas, as a concise entry point to the rich wisdom it shares so that you can begin your own journey of applying these insights and experiencing their rewards.
Please sit back and enjoy my summary of The Fifth Discipline by Peter Senge.
Continue the conversation with me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience ~
In this episode, Robbie Crabtree will teach us how to be a fantastic facilitator and deliver memorable live sessions.
The success of rolling out a Transformational Learning Experience greatly relies on you being a confident and inspiring facilitator for the people that come through the program. Main topics covered:
- Starting strong.
- Do I need to memorize lines?
- Simplifying and making things memorable.
- Don’t overdo it - less is more.
- Embrace mistakes.
- Encouraging all questions.
- Eye contact.
- Finish big.
Continue the conversation with me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience ~
Kason is the Head of Learning Experience Design at Salesforce. It's a fairly new role that has seen him work at a number of blue-chip companies throughout the career path that he intentionally designed.
He brings a deep understanding of design thinking to the work that he does in designing a learning experience.
We start off our conversation talking about the role that agency plays and how to develop that in an employee population. We unpack what Kason calls “timeless skills” - skills that are both durable and in demand.
Please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Kason Morris.
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~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience ~
Shaunak is the Founder and CEO of a learning platform called Yellowdig which engages hundreds and thousands of students around the world using an approach that they call Gameful Learning. It's kind of like a cross between social learning or collaborative learning and gamified learning.
It's nothing like the sort of icky associations that come with the word gamified, there's actually a lot of intentionality built into the point-scoring and game elements of the system.
I’m sure you'll find a lot of really good advice and practical tips from this episode.
Please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Shaunak Roy.
Continue the conversation with me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience ~
My guest for this episode is Christopher Lind.
Christopher is the Chief Learning Officer for ChenMed, a primary care provider that serves moderate-to-low-income seniors with complex chronic diseases. He's also known for being the LinkedIn Learning Tech Guy under the brand Learning Sharks.
We go into his current role as a Learning Professional, something that Christopher doesn't talk about often.
In this fascinating conversation, you're going to learn about how to navigate the sometimes tricky terrain of being a new person with big ideas in a new company, how to approach getting leadership buy-in, and much more!
Please enjoy my conversation with Christopher Lind.
Continue the conversation with me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience ~
Joining me today is Tameka Harris, a Senior Instructional Systems Designer at Blue Cross Blue Shield. She is also a part-time lecturer at the University of San Diego and an all-around passionate expert in the field of Instructional Design.
We uncover and explore things I believe are the essence of what makes us unique as learning professionals.
And you absolutely have to hear Tameka's answer to the question, "why do you do what you do?"
So please sit back and enjoy my conversation with Tameka Harris.
Continue the conversation with me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience ~
In this episode, I talk about a vision I had that we are starting to manifest at Curious Lion. This is the vision for a brand new role in learning, a vision to build a new team for the future.
Join me to unravel what learning should and could look like if we embrace a Learning Culture and the ability to create a learning organization as a central function of a company.
This is a learning organization that shouldn't sit under HR, but rather with its own leader at the table next to the CEO and the rest of the c-suite. That leader? The Learning Culture Officer.
Continue the conversation with me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience ~
This podcast explores and pushes the boundaries of what it means to cultivate a Learning Culture.
By following along, you’ll learn:
- How a shared vision sets the tone for a Learning Culture.
- How shared assumptions determine our current reality.
- How shared stories foster commitment to a Learning Culture.
- How shared experiences, or Cohort Learning Experiences to be specific, instill the practice of a Learning Culture.
Join your host Andrew Barry, the Founder and CEO of Curious Lion, as he interviews learning leaders practicing the cultivation of Learning Culture; experts who tease out critical theoretical components of this idea; and shares learning nuggets from real-world experiences, and our own research and writing.
Stay curious, my friends.
Continue the conversation with me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
~ This episode is brought to you by The Learning Culture Experience ~