Learning Technologies is one of the biggest industry conferences in the L&D calendar. But what did we learn from attending? This week on The Good Practice Podcast, Nicola Boyle, James McLuckie and Gemma Towersey discuss their highlights and key takeaways from the conference. In the episode we discuss: Personalisation The ethics of AI Getting back to the basics of learning design Show notes The Good Practice podcast episode that James referenced, featuring Nick Robinson, was episode 89 'Introduci...
Feb 18, 2020•24 min•Ep. 182
For many organisations, the workplace is no longer local. Technology has helped create a global talent market, where the primary job requirements are a computer and a stable internet connection. There are obvious benefits to this, but what does it mean for L&D? How do you deliver a consistent experience to a multilingual, multicultural workforce, spread across different regions? This week on the Good Practice Podcast, Ross Dickie and Gemma Towersey are joined by Emily Decker from Comtec Translat...
Feb 11, 2020•30 min•Ep. 181
What are some of the L&D challenges faced by the not-for-profit sector? And how do they overcome these challenges on restricted budgets? This week on The Good Practice Podcast, Nicola Boyle and James McLuckie are joined by Cat Kernohan, Head of L&D at Oxfam, and Kate Kellaway Moore, Head of Talent and Resourcing at Oxfam to discuss. In this episode you'll find out: How Oxfam deliver their L&D initiatives on restricted budgets How not-for-profit organisations can attract and retain talent in the ...
Feb 04, 2020•41 min•Ep. 180
This week, we're taking a break from our usual format to bring you some exciting news! Tune in to hear CEO Peter Casebow speak to regular hosts Ross Garner, Nicola Boyle and Ross Dickie about what's changing. You can also check out our new website at emeraldworks.com Or get in touch on Twitter @Emerald_Works .
Jan 28, 2020•4 min•Ep. 179
The LPI recently surveyed learning leaders, asking them to name their toughest workplace challenges. The results? Creating a learning culture, developing the workforce of the future, digital transformation and digital learning, leadership and management development, and self-directed learning. This week on The GoodPractice Podcast, Owen and Ross G are joined by LPI CEO Ed Monk to discuss what these findings mean for learning organisations. We discuss: increased confidence among learning professi...
Jan 21, 2020•41 min
Can learning and development ever adopt the same rigour as clinical research? And how should we judge the usefulness of existing research? This week on The GoodPractice Podcast, Ross G and Owen welcome return guest Mirjam Neelen to discuss her new book (co-written with Paul A. Kirschner): Evidence-informed learning design We discuss: the problems with research into learning the mis-use of terms like 'neuroscience' to justify beliefs the difference between corporate learning and academia. If you'...
Jan 14, 2020•37 min•Ep. 177
This week on The GoodPractice Podcast, it's the return of our much beloved Christmas episode! This year, GoodPractice guardian angels Nicola, Owen, Ross G and Ross D share their favourite clips from the past year in an effort to help Bedford Falls' own George Bailey rediscover his love of learning and development. We discuss: the L&D community behaviour change remote working learning analytics and women in learning. The episodes we referenced were: Podcast 150 — Live from London: The past, prese...
Dec 16, 2019•45 min•Ep. 176
What do the Ancient Greeks, Viking warriors and World War II munition factories have to tell us about modern learning and development? More than you might think! On this week's episode of The GoodPractice Podcast, Michelle Parry-Slater joins Ross G and Owen to explore lessons from the history of L&D. We discuss: how modern L&D developed the benefits of exploring our history evolution vs revolution in L&D. If you'd like to get in touch with us about any of the things we've said on this show, you ...
Dec 09, 2019•40 min•Ep. 175
What should we know about the people we don't? Through a series of thematically related anecdotes, this is the question Malcolm Gladwell sets out to answer in his latest book, Talking to Strangers. On this week's episode of the GoodPractice Podcast, Ross D is joined by Owen, Ross G and Nicola for the first in a series of bimonthly 'bookclub' episodes. We discuss: our general impressions of the book whether it has changed the way we interact with strangers key takeaways for L&D professionals If y...
Dec 03, 2019•32 min•Ep. 174
In this special video episode of The GoodPractice Podcast, we're at eLN Connect 2019, the annual e-Learning Network conference for developers and instructional designers. We discuss: our instructional design mistakes relationships between clients and vendors good and bad applications for virtual reality problems with the traditional conference format. As well as the usual 30-minute audio cut, we've also released a 7-minute video version on our YouTube channel. You can see that here: bit.ly/GPPod...
Nov 26, 2019•30 min•Ep. 173
At face value, FC Barcelona look like any other top-tier football club. They've got an army of devoted fans, deep pockets and a roster of world-class players. So what sets them apart from the competition? According to Damian Hughes, the answer is culture. This week on the podcast, Damian joins Ross D, Owen and Stewart to discuss his latest book, The Barcelona Way. They cover: how FC Barcelona created a culture of high performance how these lessons can be applied in different contexts the role L&...
Nov 19, 2019•38 min•Ep. 172
How do we achieve work-life balance? Is there even such a thing? And should we treat 'work' and 'life' as two separate entities or are they more integrated than we would like to believe? This week return guest Stephanie Hubka, world traveller and managing partner at Protos Learning, joins Nicola Boyle and James McLuckie to discuss. We talk about: How taking time off can improve our performance at work How we can integrate 'work' and 'life' effectively How organisations can foster a work-life bal...
Nov 12, 2019•43 min•Ep. 171
Back in Episode 150, the CIPD's Andy Lancaster told us he was writing a book. Now that he's written that book, Driving Performance Through Learning , we thought we'd invite him back to chat about it. This week on the podcast, Andy joins Ross D and Owen to discuss everything you always wanted to know about learning* (*but were afraid to ask). We cover: the changing role of L&D professionals the impact of technology as an approach to supporting workplace performance the factors required to support...
Nov 05, 2019•43 min•Ep. 170
How do you challenge your colleagues and clients to think deeply about the problems they bring to you, and how can you gain the credibility to help solve those problems? This week on The GoodPractice Podcast, Ross G and Owen are joined by author and performance consultant Nigel Harrison to find out. We discuss: what performance consulting is how it differs from traditional approaches to HR and L&D how to act as a performance consultant without being confrontational. If you'd like to get in touch...
Oct 29, 2019•32 min•Ep. 169
How effective are we at separating the 'messenger' from the 'message'? Do we truly listen to what people have to say, or are we overly focused on how they say it and who they are? These are the questions up for discussion on this week's GoodPractice Podcast, as Nicola, Ross G and Cat are joined by Joseph Marks, co-author of Messengers . In this episode, we discuss: the difference between 'hard' and 'soft' messengers who we trust and why we trust them how gender affects how messages are received ...
Oct 22, 2019•39 min•Ep. 168
The humble course was once the go-to solution for learning and development teams across the world, but in recent years it has suffered from a damaged reputation. This week on The GoodPractice Podcast, we discuss whether traditional formal learning has a role in the modern workplace. And, if so, when? To dig into this topic, Ross G and James are joined by author and learning designer Patti Shank. In this episode we discuss: why courses are so unpopular when a course is a good solution the charact...
Oct 15, 2019•35 min•Ep. 167
For many of us, working life is based around five days of energy depletion, followed by two days of recharging. But does it have to be this way? This week on the podcast, Ross D, Nicola and Peter are joined by guest Perry Timms to discuss: what the title 'Chief Energy Officer' means how to manage our own energy levels how we can design more energy-giving jobs If you'd like to get in touch with us about any of the things we've said on this show, you can tweet @ross__dickie , @NicolaBoyle_GP , @pe...
Oct 08, 2019•36 min•Ep. 166
Not quite L&D, not quite HR, OD sits somewhere in between (or perhaps above?) the two. But what does 'organisation development' actually mean, and what skills do you need to do the job effectively? This week on the podcast, Ross D and Ross G are joined by return guests Julie Drybrough and David D'Souza to discuss: how OD differs from L&D and HR the skills of a successful OD practitioner the extent to which the name 'organisation development' is about internal branding If you'd like to get in tou...
Oct 01, 2019•37 min•Ep. 165
We know that in a lot of organisations, learning and development still means training, and training still means classroom. How do we overcome resistance to the alternatives? Should we overcome that resistance? On this week's episode of The GoodPractice Podcast, Ross G and Owen are joined by Camden Council's Tom Spencer and Sarah Sedley. We discuss: the challenges of delivering learning for a diverse audience historic approaches to learning new opportunities created by technology and a changing m...
Sep 24, 2019•39 min•Ep. 164
We all like to think our decisions are based on a methodical appraisal of the available evidence. But how do we know what 'good evidence' looks like in the context of L&D? This week on the podcast, Ross D, Nicola and Owen are joined by Rob Briner, Professor of Organizational Psychology at Queen Mary University of London, to discuss evidence-based practice. In this episode, we cover: the meaning of 'evidence-based practice' how 'EBP' can be applied to learning and development how to identify 'goo...
Sep 17, 2019•44 min•Ep. 163
We've often talked on this show about how few people actively seek out a career in learning and development. So, how exactly did we end up here? This week on the podcast, Ross D, Ross G and James are joined by Richard Dawson of Virgin Trains and Jilly Julian of Horwich Farrelly to share their origin stories. We discuss: our professional backgrounds the challenges of getting started in L&D the qualities that make someone suited to a role in L&D If you'd like to get in touch with us about any of t...
Sep 10, 2019•39 min•Ep. 162
This week the GoodPractice team visited Turing Fest 2019, one of Europe's top tech conferences, to learn about product development, leadership, marketing - and skateboards. Ross G, Ross D and Owen are joined by podcast newcomers Jade Stewart and Tracey McDonald to share their reflections. We discuss: how marketing techniques can optimise your L&D output the importance of seeking user feedback the tech sector's approach to diversity and inclusion If you'd like to get in touch with us about any of...
Sep 03, 2019•35 min•Ep. 161
This week on The GoodPractice Podcast, it's the return of our L&D book bag. Nicola Boyle and Ross G are joined by Owen and James to share insights from the books that we think are a must-read for L&D professionals. We discuss: Adapt: Why Success Always Starts with Failure by Tim Harford An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth by Chris Hadfield The Accidental Instructional Designer by Cammy Bean How to Have a Good Day: Harness the Power of Behavioral Science to Transform Your Working Life by Caroli...
Aug 27, 2019•41 min•Ep. 160
The modern office, based largely on a 'factory' model, is constantly being re-organised in a bid to optimise output. But how far have cubicles, hot desks and pods been effective? What principles should guide these design choices? On this week's GoodPractice Podcast, Ross G, Ross D and Owen are joined by author and workplace designer Neil Usher. We discuss: factors to consider when designing an effective office space the relationship between spaces and the meanings we attach to them the pros and ...
Aug 20, 2019•40 min•Ep. 159
You may have seen headlines claiming that the average human attention span has dropped below that of a goldfish. But what does the evidence actually tell us, and how should we apply it to learning design? This week on the podcast, Ross D is joined by Owen and Jonathan Marshall, Head of Learning at the UK's Diplomatic Academy, to discuss: what we mean when we talk about 'average attention spans' how environment affects our ability to focus how L&D can win (or at least not lose) the battle for att...
Aug 13, 2019•34 min•Ep. 158
Many learning interventions start out from the position that people would perform much better in their roles if they just did what we told them. But what if this approach is misguided? What if the mistakes that people make aren't due to a lack of awareness, but because of a host of environmental factors that incentive the wrong behaviour? On this week's episode of The GoodPractice Podcast, instructional designer and author Julie Dirksen joins Ross G and Owen to ask why behaviour change matters -...
Aug 06, 2019•39 min
The range of emotions we are allowed to show in the workplace is fairly limited. We can be happy, we can be passionate, we can be enthusiastic. But anything beyond that is often seen as unprofessional or inappropriate. Is it time we rethink the role of emotion at work? This week on the podcast, Ross D and Ross G are joined by Emotion at Work's Phil Willcox to discuss: how emotion manifests itself in the workplace the range of emotions that are acceptable at work the role HR/L&D can play in creat...
Jul 30, 2019•39 min•Ep. 156
As a function, HR has a role to play in developing talent and protecting employees. But it's also responsible for disciplining and dismissing staff, as well as implementing and enforcing top-down policies. Does this put it in an ethically precarious position? This week on the podcast, Ross D is joined by James and guest Gary Cookson of EPIC HR to discuss: what 'ethics' mean in the workplace the role of HR as the moral heart of organisations the ability of HR to foster ethical behaviour If you'd ...
Jul 23, 2019•34 min•Ep. 155
Learning interventions are typically evaluated based on metrics like attendance and completion. But how much does this actually tell you? How do you know if your interventions are effective? This week on The GoodPractice Podcast, Dr Will Thalheimer joins Ross G and Owen to discuss: what 'evaluation' means why it matters common evaluation mistakes alternatives to 'happy sheets' If you'd like to share your thoughts on the show, you can find us on Twitter @RossGarnerGP , @OwenFerguson and @WillWork...
Jul 16, 2019•39 min•Ep. 154
When we talk about diversity and inclusion, we often frame it in terms of gender, ethnicity, age or social class. But what about diverse ways of thinking? Where does neurodiversity fit into the equation? This week on The GoodPractice Podcast, Ross G is joined by Mike Shaw from Emerald Publishing and Jill Miller from the CIPD to discuss: what 'neurodiversity' and 'neurodivergent' mean the benefits of neurodiversity for organisations practical steps leaders can take to promote neurodiversity in th...
Jul 09, 2019•37 min•Ep. 153
