{"id":30944,"date":"2025-10-20T01:01:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T05:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.learningguild.com\/?p=30944"},"modified":"2025-10-22T13:00:24","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T17:00:24","slug":"hot-mic-high-stakes-securing-c-suite-influence-live-from-orlando","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.learningguild.com\/articles\/hot-mic-high-stakes-securing-c-suite-influence-live-from-orlando","title":{"rendered":"Hot Mic, High Stakes: Securing C-Suite Influence Live from Orlando"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Jess Almlie<\/strong><\/p>

Advertise Here<\/a><\/div>\"Earn<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

For the first time ever, the “L&D Must Change Podcast<\/strong>” hit record in front of a live audience at the Learning Leadership Conference in Orlando. Here\u2019s what happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

October in Orlando gave us palm trees, conference buzz, and a little extra adrenaline while we recorded the “L&D Must Change Podcast” live<\/em> at the Learning Leadership Conference 2025. No editing. No retakes. Just a room full of leaders, a few mics, and two powerhouse guests: Dr. Alaina Szlachta<\/strong> (proud data nerd) and David \u201cDJ3\u201d Jackson III<\/strong> (strategy-and-governance whisperer), to unpack how L&D earns real influence and credibility in the C-suite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And yes, we got actual audience noise on the track. Proof of life. Proof of live<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The vibe: Conference energy meets C-suite real talk<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s something electric about watching heads nod in unison when a point lands or hearing that low rumble of \u201cmm-hmm\u201d when someone says the thing everyone\u2019s been thinking. Influence was the topic and the directive with an audience ready to engage as we discussed what really moves the needle in the boardroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We kicked off with a fast reality check: L&D gets ignored when we speak our language instead of the business\u2019s<\/a><\/strong>. Yes, our nerdy L&D hearts soar when we talk about learning outcomes, the ADDIE model, engaging learning experiences, and more. Truth is executives don\u2019t really care about the specifics of the learning profession. They\u2019re focused on keeping the company moving forward. If we want to demonstrate that we care about that too (which we do, right?), then we need to start by speaking in business terms. Words like customer satisfaction, revenue, risk, and retention <\/strong>are the language of the C-Suite that we best adopt as our own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biggest ideas that stuck (& got applause)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1. \u00a0Speak business. Full stop.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

DJ3\u2019s take was refreshingly simple: leaders care about goals, risk, efficiency, and outcomes. Translate learning into those terms. Talk quarters and pipelines, not delivery cycles and objectives. Use your organization\u2019s industry acronyms and metrics. In other words, their<\/em> vernacular is your door code.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Find (& align to) your organization\u2019s core metric<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Alaina framed it brilliantly: every org has a core metric<\/strong><\/a>. That\u2019s the thing that \u201ckeeps the C-suite up at night\u201d and signals whether the mission is being fulfilled. It might be customer satisfaction, clinical quality, on-time delivery, safety, etc. Whatever it is for your organization, you\u2019ll earn credibility by connecting every initiative to that core metric<\/a><\/strong>, not just to learning activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. We are enablers of people, processes & systems<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Alaina encouraged us to stop obsessing over \u201cdirect\u201d ROI. Everyone in the organization contributes to ROI which means nobody owns the outcomes alone. L&D\u2019s superpower is enabling the people, processes, and systems<\/strong> that collectively<\/em> drive revenue, retention, and the core metric. It\u2019s a story of dominoes that starts with intervention, leads to a change in behavior\/process, impact KPIs, and then leads to a business result. That\u2019s the story she encourages us to share.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. For small\/solo teams: Live by the \u201cBig 3\u201d<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

DJ3\u2019s playbook for teams of one (or close): Strategy. Governance. Infrastructure.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n