In some ways, sales enablement has the ultimate success metric - increased sales! So why is sales training so often a 'hard sell' for L&D? In this week's episode of The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Ross D and Owen are joined by Anderson Hirst, Consulting Director at Kojo Academy, to discuss: the difference between sales training and sales enablement why sales training is so often seen as distinct from other training efforts how to measure the impact of sales training what good sales training looks li...
Oct 26, 2021•38 min•Ep. 268
As a concept, spaced repetition has been around for decades. Yet in many organisations, learning is seen in terms of one-off interventions, delivered through a classroom or an LMS. In this week's episode of The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Ross D and Gemma are joined by Sarah Mercier, CEO of Learning Ninjas, to discuss: what spaced learning is, and how to design for it what good spaced practice looks like the technological boundaries to implementing spaced learning Show notes When speaking about her ...
Oct 18, 2021•37 min•Ep. 267
New business models, an increasingly hybrid workforce and the need for constant adaptability are changing what it means to be a learning professional. In this week's episode of The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Ross G meets the eLearning Network's Joan Keevil and Dr Hannah Gore to explore their research into the skills we need to professionalise. We discuss: how the world of work is changing personal and professional impact evidence-based practice. Show notes To find out more about the research Joan a...
Oct 12, 2021•40 min•Ep. 266
Why are boundaries important? How do you set them? And what impact does hybird working have on how we interact with one another? This week on The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Ross G meets Executive Coach Emma Langton to discuss: what 'boundaries' are how to set boundaries at work why the pandemic has made boundaries more important than ever. Show notes Ross referenced Erving Goffman's theory of the performed self. There's an excellent animated introduction to this concept, narrated by Stephen Fry, at...
Oct 05, 2021•36 min•Ep. 265
This week on the podcast, Ross D, Owen and Ross G are taking another rummage through their L&D book bag. They discuss: Nudge by Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein Naked Statistics by Charles Wheelan Think Again by Adam Grant The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins 13 Minutes to the Moon, a podcast presented by Kevin Fong How to Write One Song by Jeff Tweedy These books are available from all good booksellers, and 13 Minutes to the Moon can be found wherever you get your podcasts. Show notes Ross...
Sep 28, 2021•49 min•Ep. 264
Published in 2003, Michael Lewis' Moneyball charts efforts by the Oakland Athletics baseball team to use analytics and statistical methods to assemble a competitive team on a comparatively small budget. This week on The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Ross G, Owen, Ross D and Nahdia share their thoughts on the book and it's relevance to L&D and HR professionals. We discuss: how General Manager Billy Beane transformed his team's approach to scouting talent the impact of statistics and subjective judgemen...
Sep 20, 2021•39 min•Ep. 263
Creativity in online learning, agile learning frameworks, the role of HR, and business ethics are just some of the topics we tackle on this week's show as we answer questions from the audience. Mark Baker asked: Do you think as face-to-face trainers move into more virtual learning, is there a risk that they lose creativity in their learning experiences? Shilpa Nimbalkar asked: How can L&D experts build an Agile Learning framework that supports business requirements (at scale and speed) and ensur...
Sep 14, 2021•42 min•Ep. 262
Creating videos for training purposes is easy; launch a smartphone camera app and hit record. Creating effective pieces of drama that allow viewers to make their own meaning through compelling storylines and characters is not so easy. However, it is a skill that learning designers can study and put into practice. This week on The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Gemma T and Ross G are joined by Tom Hickmore, to discuss: why drama is an effective learning delivery mechanism when to use drama scripting tec...
Sep 06, 2021•40 min•Ep. 261
The pandemic has been both a trigger and an opportunity for reflection and ultimately, change. We've had to forget, or "unlearn" our old ways. This week on the The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Gemma T and Ross D are joined by Mark Gilroy to discuss: what 'unlearning' is the link between unlearning and curiosity how we can help each other to "unlearn" effectively. Show notes Mark recommended the following resources: "How organisations Learn and Unlearn (Hedberg, 1981)" http://johnljerz.com/superduper/...
Aug 30, 2021•37 min•Ep. 260
What is organisational learning? Is it the same thing as people in organisations learning? And how does it overlap with learning culture? This week on the The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Ross D and Nahdia are joined by Nigel Paine to discuss: what 'organisational learning' actually means the difference between organisations that learn and individuals that learn the role L&D can play in supporting organisational learning the distinction between 'learning cultures' and 'cultures of learning'. Show not...
Aug 24, 2021•37 min•Ep. 259
'What did you think of the trainer' and 'How was the lunch?' These are two questions we won't be asking today, as we get stuck into effective learner surveys. Ross G and Owen are joined by Gent Ahmetaj, Head of Research at Mind Tools for Business, to discuss: the problem with traditional learner surveys the features of an academically robust survey issues with this approach and how to resolve them. Show notes For more details on our Insights team, and a delightful photo of Gent, see: https://eme...
Aug 13, 2021•35 min•Ep. 258
Over the last two years, L&D has been forced to adapt to rapid, unprecedented change. As learning leaders find new ways of supporting their organizations, is now the perfect time for them to rethink their learning strategy? This week on the The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, the two Rosses are joined by Michelle Ockers to discuss: what we mean when we talk about 'organizational learning strategy' what a good strategy looks like in practice how to develop a strategy that accounts for uncertainty the com...
Aug 10, 2021•35 min•Ep. 257
'Jobs To Be Done' (JTBD) is a framework that can be used to define consumer needs and identify how to meet them. In this week's Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Ross G and Owen are joined by aNewSpring's Ger Driesen to explore how this can be applied to learning design. We discuss: what 'Jobs To Be Done' is examples of Jobs To Be Done how to apply this framework to your learning design challenges. Show notes Jobs to be Done , by Anthony W. Ulwick, is available as a free e-book at: jobs-to-be-done-book.co...
Aug 03, 2021•35 min•Ep. 256
We tend to assume that, faced with the same problem on separate occasions, professionals will typically arrive at the same judgements — doctors will make the same diagnoses, mortgage lenders will set the same rates, judges will hand down the same sentences. But is professional judgement really as reliable as we think it is? This week on the The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, the team discuss Noise: A Flaw in Human Judgement , the new book from Daniel Kahneman, Olivier Sibony and Cass R. Sunstein. We co...
Jul 27, 2021•37 min•Ep. 255
It's been 17 months since we last spoke to authors Mark Britz and James Tyer. Since then, the world has shut down - on multiple occasions - and many of us have been working from home on a long-term basis. In this context, how do we make organizations 'social by design'? Ross G and Owen are joined once again by Mark and James to debate. We discuss: the impact that Covid-19 has had on their earlier predictions whether widespread 'working from home' has made organizations more (or less?) social the...
Jul 20, 2021•54 min•Ep. 254
Covid-19 has had a dramatic impact on L&D, super-charging existing trends and forcing learning leaders to re-evaluate pre-pandemic practices. More than a year into 'the new normal', how have perceptions changed within the profession? This week on the The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Ross D is joined by Gent Ahmetaj and Nahdia Khan to discuss our 2021 L&D Benchmark Report. We discuss: the history of the annual benchmark report, and what it tells us about the state of the profession the top-line takeaw...
Jul 13, 2021•44 min•Ep. 253
Lots of organisations use survey tools to listen to employees, or capture 'employee voice'. But then we hear that no action is taken, or leadership teams don't know what to do with the results. Is there a better approach? On this episode of The Mind Tools L&D Podcast, Ross G and Owen speak to James Anderson and Donna Hamilton from employee listening platform Peachy Mondays. We discuss: why employee engagement surveys often fail to have an impact where employee listening offers value strategies f...
Jul 06, 2021•37 min•Ep. 252
Animations can be beautiful and mesmerising pieces of art. This week on the Mind Tools L&D podcast, Gemma talks to Selina Wagner, Creative Director at Ping Creates, and Ross Garner about how we can use this art form to create impactful learning experiences. We discuss: when and where animations can become an effective part of a learning solution the process of designing and creating animations how to think through and overcome challenges Show notes Gemma refers to 'Fantasmagorie' - the first ani...
Jun 30, 2021•44 min•Ep. 251
In the final of three bonus episodes to celebrate our 250th show, Ross G talks to Gemma Paterson and Danny Seals about product management. This interview was recorded for the episode: 250 — Documentary Special: What can L&D learn from product management? Find the full episode in your podcast feed. Show notes Danny commented that Spotify don't use the Spotify Model. He was referencing this post: agility11.com/blog/2020/6/22/spotify-doesnt-use-the-spotify-model Connect with our speakers If you'd l...
Jun 24, 2021•16 min
In the second of three bonus episodes to celebrate our 250th show, Ross G talks to Sukh Pabial about product management. This interview was recorded for the episode: 250 — Documentary Special: What can L&D learn from product management? Find the full episode in your podcast feed. Show notes Sukh wrote about the role of a product manager in L&D at: pabial.wordpress.com/2020/01/30/the-role-of-a-product-manager-in-ld/ Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, y...
Jun 24, 2021•16 min
In the first of three bonus episodes to celebrate our 250th show, Ross G talks to Myles Runham about product management. This interview was recorded for the episode: 250 — Documentary Special: What can L&D learn from product management? Find the full episode in your podcast feed. Show notes Myles has written extensively on product management on his blog, at: mylesrunham.com/tag/product-management/ Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, you can chat to us ...
Jun 24, 2021•21 min
We're trying something new! For five years, The Mind Tools L&D Podcast (formerly The Good Practice Podcast) has enjoyed a conversational format. Today, for this anniversary special, we thought we'd try emulating the documentary-style podcasts we love: This American Life , Freakonomics and Radiolab . So this week we're asking: What can L&D learn from product management? We're speaking to independent consultants Myles Runham and Sukh Pabial, as well as Venndorly founder Danny Seals and Legal & Gen...
Jun 22, 2021•35 min•Ep. 250
Back in mid-March we spoke to Emerald Works' CEO John Yates and Frontline Pedagogy Lead, Laura Watkin, about their experience of starting senior roles remotely. This week on the Mind Tools L&D podcast, Gemma talks to freshly recruited team members from the same organisations - Emerald Works team member, David Sharkey and People Coordinator at Front, Simi Manik - on their remote onboard experiences. We discuss: what remote onboarding involves - the positives and negatives how it's different to jo...
Jun 15, 2021•34 min•Ep. 249
As there's no set or prescribed route into or through a career in L&D, no two career journeys are the same. This week on the Mind Tools L&D podcast, Gemma and her guests, Zahra Clarke-Johnney, Digital L&D Manager at English Institute of Sport, and Mind Tools' very own Sami Chan and Nahdia Khan, consider how to best plot one's way in, and through our evolving profession. We discuss: routes into the profession where to find support what the profession might hold in the future. Show notes In 'What ...
Jun 07, 2021•46 min•Ep. 248
In this 1-minute announcement, Ross G, Ross D and Gemma reveal some exciting changes taking place at Emerald Works. To check out our new-look website, visit: emeraldworks.com We'll be back next Tuesday as normal!
Jun 04, 2021•1 min
In this special episode, the regular Good Practice Podcast team have given up the microphone to Frontline's Laura Watkin, who returns to the show as guest host. Laura last appeared on episode 236, 'Working with strangers', and wanted an opportunity to reflect on her experience by leading a conversation with Ross G and Ross D. This episode includes some material we would normally cut, in order to provide a behind-the-scenes look at podcast production. We discuss: what makes a great podcast tips f...
Jun 01, 2021•42 min•Ep. 247
When we think of 'innovation', we tend to picture the bright ideas that people have in the bath. In reality, innovation is the product of hard work, collaborative effort and repeated failures. In this week's episode of The Good Practice Podcast, Ross G and Owen explore innovation with Alan Cabello, Senior Research Fellow and Innovation Lecturer at ETH Zurich, and founder of SparkWorks and Sparkademy. We discuss: the environmental factors required for innovation to happen how organizations can in...
May 25, 2021•45 min•Ep. 246
The menopause might seem like a strange topic for a show about work, performance and learning - but half of the world's population will experience the menopause, and it does not take place around working hours. So, this week, Ross G is joined by Emerald Work's Katie Danes and Jamie Thomas, as well as Emerald Publishing's Erika Valenti, to share their experiences. We discuss: what the menopause is the impact on the workplace what organisations can do to support women. Show notes Katie wrote about...
May 14, 2021•43 min•Ep. 245
How do you accurately measure the effectiveness of your learning and development function? Can you provide clear evidence that your team are delivering value for your organisation? And how do you compare to other L&D teams? If your answer to any of these questions is: 'I have no idea', then benchmarking might be a good place to start. This week on The Good Practice Podcast, Owen and Ross G are joined by Carrie Horvath and Gent Ahmetaj - the team behind the Learning Performance Benchmark - to exp...
May 11, 2021•32 min•Ep. 244
If you work in L&D or HR and are looking to procure any kind of service, how do you know who to trust? If you work for a vendor or supplier, what approach do you take? On this week's episode of The Good Practice Podcast, Ross G is joined by L&D buyer Gemma Paterson and L&D seller Danny Seals to explore vendor relationships. We discuss: the characteristics of great supplier relationships making the most of conference exhibitions the importance of recommendations. Show notes Some of the stats Dann...
May 04, 2021•38 min•Ep. 243
