Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for today is Dr. Ayelet Zur-Nayberg. She is the Director of Adult Student Success at the Colorado Community College System (CCCS), where he has been working for two years. She is responsible for developing and implementing policies, programs, and initiatives that support the academic and career goals of adult learners across 13 colleges and 40 campuses. Ayelet is passionate about enhancing the quality and accessibility of higher education for all...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for today is Ann Herrmann-Nehdi, who is the Chief Thought Leader and Chair of Herrmann International. She is an Author, researcher and keynoter, whose work is specialized on the practical application of neuroscience and cognitive diversity to human and organization development and improvement. Ann has several widely viewed TEDx talks and is the co-author of The Whole Brain Business Book, now in its second edition. Her current research includes...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for today is James Robilotta. James is a leadership author, motivational speaker, MC and trained improv comedian. After years of building, training, and leading teams, James followed an entrepreneurial dream and built two successful businesses. The first is an organization that incorporates freestyle rap into improv comedy—a success story for another day. The second, his speaking and coaching business, the success story we’re talking about...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for today is Charlotte Evans. Charlotte is Senior Solutions Consultant at Coursera, and advises North American companies on their upskilling and reskilling learning solutions. She worked in Asia for five years in student services, where she also pursued a fellowship through the World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) Learners’ Voice program. In this ‘data driven’ conversation Charlotte and I talk about 00:00 › Start 01:12 › Her journey and...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for today is Devin Hughes. Devin founded a boutique training and development firm to help established and emerging leaders grow to reach their potential and their teams’. Devin is a speaker, author, and culture expert. He is the author of 21 books and has spoken in over 15 countries. His approach draws from the science of positive psychology, positive organizational research, appreciative inquiry, neuroscience, mindset, and mindfulness. In...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for today is Bridgett McGowen. Bridgett is an award-winning author, publisher, and international speaker who is known to be both comical and memorable.  She will not only energize you, but she will inspire you to not let anyone or anything get in the way of you being the most unforgettable person in the room.  In this ‘very presentable’ conversation Bridgett and I talk about 00:00 › Start 03:39 › The Art Of Engaging an audience...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for today is James McKenna, the author of Upskill, Reskill, Thrive! Optimizing Learning & Development in the Workplace (2023). He serves as Assistant Director of Professional Learning and Leadership Development at the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence. He also runs a consulting firm, McKenna Learning, where he helps organizations take a human-centered approach to learning and improvement.  In this ‘very expert’ conversation...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for today is JD Dillon, an L&D expert who helps frontline employees do their best work every day. JD is currently the VP of Strategic Alignment at Axonify, founder of LearnGeek, and he’s recently published his second book: The Modern Learning Ecosystem In this ‘very influential’ conversation JD and I talk about 00:00 › Start 01:45 › JD’s Current Endeavors, why he’s located close to Disney World, and how it influences his work 03:04 › Insights...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guests for today are Dave Kerschbaum and Alejandro Ruelas, Learning Experience Designers at SAP with more than 20 years of combined experience. In this ‘bridged’ conversation we talk about 00:00 › Start 02:22 › A Learning Sap—The roles Alejandro and David have at SAP Concur and how they partner with others in the organization to create learning experiences 10:00 › Bridging—Alejandro and David discuss the start of building the “bridge” in their learning...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for today is Josh Kamrath, the CEO of Bongo, a start-up whose mission and vision is to change the way people are evaluated in the workplace, the classroom, and beyond. In this ‘very personalized’ conversation we talk about 00:00 › Start 01:24 › Enter Josh—The unusual way Josh entered the eLearning space 06:07 › Mind, Bridge The Gap—How Josh defines the gap between Higher Education and corporate learning in terms of real-world...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Dr. Conrad Gottfredson. Conrad is a founding partner and the Chief Learning Strategist at APPLY Synergies, an organization that specializes in helping learning professionals design, develop, maintain, and measure effective learning and performance support through the “5 Moments of Need” design methodology. His consulting firm specializes in helping learning organizations design, develop and measure effective learning and...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Jared Stein. In the first half of his career, Jared led the development of new, fully online programs at colleges and universities and helped faculty adopt new ways of teaching with technology to increase student access and success. After more than a decade of heading up product strategy and research at Instructure (makers of Canvas), Jared started Rarebird, an EdTech consultancy that helps startups and institutions maximize...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Crystal Kadakia. Crystal is the co-creator of the Learning Cluster Design model. She also leads her own independent organizational development consulting practice at Kadakia Consulting. Crystal is also the author of The Millennial Myth: Transforming Misunderstanding into Workplace Breakthroughs, and the co-author of Your Career: How to Make It Happen with Lisa Owens. In this ‘strategic’ conversation Crystal and I discuss 00:00...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Greg Rider. Greg is the Director of Corporate Compliance for the EmblemHealth family of companies. He has more than 20 years experience in employee training and development, with much of that time spent in healthcare-related organizations. In his role at EmblemHealth, Greg directs compliance communication, training, and other compliance governance functions.  In this ‘meditative’ conversation Greg and I discuss 00:00 ›...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Alexandra Suchman. Alex is the cofounder and CEO of Barometer, a company that drives real behavior and culture change through games and play. After a decade of experience working in operations and organizational development, Alex realized that building stronger emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills are key to organizational success. She noticed a gap in the industry for solutions that bridge the knowledge-to-action...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Bobbi Macdonald. Bobbi is an education innovator and pioneer. Her work focuses on catalyzing transformation and building capacity. She co-creates with high performing communities dedicated to equity, liberation, and love. In this ‘community-focused’ conversation, Bobbi and I discuss 00:00 › Start 4:50 › What Exactly Is A Global Perspective—and what does that look like right now, in terms of different cultures and countries...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Cammy Bean. Cammy started as a Junior Instructional Designer in 1996 and has since collaborated with hundreds of organizations to design and deliver training. In 2009, she helped start up US operations for Kineo, a global provider of learning solutions. She currently leads the North American sales team, supports clients through the initial discovery process and manages a portfolio of custom client accounts to help organizations...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guests for this episode are Andy Morgan and Steve Van Der Westhuizen. Andy is EVP, Head of edX Enterprise and Corporate Development with an expertise in corporate finance and strategic business development, with a particular focus on EdTech and Media. Steve is Senior Vice President, Strategy & Product Marketing for Enterprise at 2U. In this ‘enterprise-level’ conversation, Andy, Steve and I discuss 00:00 › Start 5:13 › What Exactly Is edX Enterprise...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Ginger Dewey. Ginger taught for 38 years in K-12 and Higher Ed, with most of her experience in the latter. When she retired, she started working for ReadSpeaker doing what she loves: faculty training. In this ‘leave-no-one-out’ conversation, Ginger and I discuss 00:00 › Start 3:51 › The Real Problem—What the real problem was that Ginger identified during her career and why modifying your teaching to reach all students is so...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Clark Quinn. Clark is the Executive Director of Quinnovation, an independent learning experience design strategy consultancy that assists organizations to “work smarter” by aligning how we think, work, and learn. He’s also the Chief Learning Strategist for Upside Learning Solutions. But for anyone who has been in the learning space for any amount of time, you’ll also know Clark is a celebrated expert that has been applying...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Diane Elkins. Diane has been in the training and development field for 20 years as a trainer, instructional designer, and eLearning project manager. As Co-Owner of Artisan E-Learning, she helps companies get up and running with eLearning initiatives, and specializes in the use of rapid development tools. She has gained national recognition as a trainer and eLearning expert, serving as a judge for the Brandon Hall awards. She’s...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Lisa Avery. Lisa is the President of Linn-Benton Community College in Western Oregon. In this ‘mechatronic’ conversation, Lisa and I talk about 00:00 › Start 4:29 › Welcome to Linn-Benton—Lisa introduces us to Linn–Benton Community College, what it means to be a community college today, and what a typical student is like and is looking for 8:00 › Community College Matters—We talk about the reality of community college today,...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is Andrew Pass, Founder and chief “Visionary” of A Pass Education. Andy has led the company since its founding in 2009 and was named a top EdTech influencer in 2023. In this ‘futuristic’ talk, Andy and I talk about What might a personalized AI device look like for a learner? (PS. It's not a tablet or phone)What would an AI device know about a learner? How would the material and instructions from such a device be verified and...

Hello everyone! My name is Ladek and my guest for this episode is learning designer and journey mapper Sam DeGeus. She has developed a learning design methodology that is adaptable, scalable, and gets everyone engaged in the design process. Her strong facilitation skills and ability to wrangle and synthesize large amounts of information are critical components to delivering effective journey mapping and alignment workshops for clients around the world. In this ‘conversational journey’, Sam...