There’s a shift happening quietly in the background of every meeting, every dashboard, every “quick sync” that’s supposed to move work forward. You can feel it. Learning and Development (L&D) is no longer the department people come to when they need training—it’s the discipline organizations turn to when they need to reinvent.

As we step into 2026, L&D leaders face a paradox: We’re being asked to move faster than ever before while thinking more deeply about what it means to be human in the workplace. AI is changing how work gets done, but also who does the work, how people learn, and why they stay. The best L&D leaders won’t be those who simply keep up with technology; they’ll be the ones who help their organizations make sense of it.

Below are five priorities that will define the next era of Learning and Development—an era where adaptability, discernment, and empathy will matter as much as data and design.

1. From learning delivery to capability ecosystems

The term “training” is fading away. Employees want competence, not just a course. This competence must be built in real time, matching the speed of business.

The next frontier is not the learning management system (LMS), but the ecosystem—a dynamic network of learning experiences, data insights, AI-driven nudges, and communities of practice. The role of the L&D leader is no longer to create everything but to connect the pieces.

Ask yourself:

• Does your learning setup feel like a library or a vibrant network?
• Are employees wasting time searching for content, or are they finding what they need?
• Most importantly, do you know which skills your organization truly needs to compete in 2026, not just the ones you’ve always trained for?

Building capabilities must bridge strategy and execution. If your learning ecosystem doesn’t match your future operating model, you’re training people for the past.

2. AI is not the answer; it’s the amplifier

The buzz around AI can be overwhelming, but the reality is that AI isn’t taking over L&D; it’s coming through it. The leaders who succeed in 2026 won’t be the ones who gather the most tools; they’ll be the ones who ask tough questions.

AI can tailor learning paths, create adaptive simulations, and summarize insights quickly. But it can also increase bias, oversimplify complexities, and damage trust if misused. The real difference won’t be technical skill; it will be ethical awareness.

Consider:

• How are we using AI to support human judgment, not replace it?
• What hidden tradeoffs exist in our automation choices?
• Who is being excluded from the AI conversation because they don’t understand the technology yet?

AI can provide speed and scale, but meaning still comes from humans. The future L&D leader will be part technologist and part anthropologist, bridging machine intelligence and human experience.

3. Change management becomes culture management

In 2026, every organization is a change organization. Transformation isn’t an initiative, it’s a condition.

We’ve spent years teaching leaders how to “manage change,” but the term itself feels outdated. Change doesn’t need to be managed; people need to be guided through it.

This is where L&D becomes the cultural backbone of the enterprise. The best programs in 2026 will move beyond “coping with change” to cultivating change agility as a muscle, a practiced capability that helps teams adapt, learn, and reorient quickly.

The question shifts from “How do we train for change?” to “How do we normalize evolution?”

L&D should lead with practices that reinforce learning as identity, not event. Coaching, storytelling, reflection, and peer learning must sit alongside formal programs. When people see themselves as learners, not just employees, change stops feeling like something done to them and starts feeling like something done through them.

4. Rebuilding trust & belonging in hybrid cultures

The quiet crisis in today’s workplace is disconnection. Employees may work from anywhere, but they often feel they are learning from nowhere.

In hybrid settings, culture isn’t confined to buildings; it comes from behaviors. L&D is in a prime position to observe how people experience belonging, or lack thereof.

In 2026, L&D leaders must view engagement as an ecosystem built on trust. Learning experiences that foster psychological safety, shared language, and mutual understanding are essential for retention.

When employees feel ignored, they disengage. When they feel unappreciated, they leave. The future of learning will be measured more by connection rates than completion rates.

Ask:

• Are we designing learning that helps people feel recognized?
• Are we creating environments where questions are welcomed, not shamed?
• Are we valuing vulnerability as much as performance?

Learning can’t just be about transactions. It must be a conversation that reconnects people to purpose in this digital age.

5. Redefining talent: From roles to potential

Job descriptions are becoming outdated. Rapid changes mean roles shift faster than organizational charts. The smartest companies are now mapping skills rather than titles and focusing on potential instead of background.

In 2026, L&D leaders must become curators of potential. This means identifying hidden skills, promoting them through meaningful work, and removing obstacles that hinder personal growth.

Upskilling and reskilling will continue to be crucial, but the key differentiator will be building resilience. Technical skills help you land a job. Human skills; like empathy, curiosity, and adaptability—keep you relevant when roles change.

Learning leaders need to think long-term: designing programs that develop not just tasks but future-ready identities.

Examine:

• Do your programs promote adaptability, or just expertise?
• Do your managers know how to identify and nurture potential?
• Are your learning investments building skills or developing people?

The competition for talent isn’t just about hiring anymore. It’s about unlocking the potential already present in your organization.

The meta-skill for 2026: Sense-making

The most crucial skill for any L&D leader in 2026 won’t be instructional design, data analysis, or even AI literacy, it will be sense-making.

We have plenty of information, but we lack meaning. Leaders need to help interpret noise, find clarity, and create coherence in contradiction. That’s the real role of L&D today, to aid people in navigating complexity so they can act with confidence.

This means:

• Turning insights into compelling stories people can rally around.
• Translating organizational strategy into actions people can take.
• Positioning technology as a resource to enhance our humanity, not as a threat.

In a world driven by optimization, learning leaders have the courage to ask a different question: What is worth preserving?

A final thought: The human dividend

As AI takes over routine tasks and the pace of change quickens, the human dividend, our ability to connect, empathize, and adapt, becomes the unique factor that no machine can replicate.

The irony of 2026 is that the more digital we become, the more human we need to be. L&D exists at this crossroads. As you plan for the year ahead, keep this in mind: Technology will continue to progress. Roles will keep changing. But people; their fears, hopes, and desire to grow, will stay the same.

The leaders who thrive in 2026 won’t be the ones who master every new tool. They’ll be the ones who remind their organizations of what it means to learn, grow, and be human.

Image credit: Parradee Kietsirikul

The post 2026 Priorities for L&D Leaders: Navigating Change, Tech & Talent appeared first on Learning Guild.

“Complacency is like the water a fish swims in—it’s everywhere, but we don’t see it.” — John Kotter

Change management is having its moment again—but perhaps for the wrong reasons. In an era now defined by generative AI, hybrid work, and relentless transformation, learning and development (L&D) teams are being asked not only to help others adapt, but to reinvent themselves at the same time.

For more than 25 years, I’ve conducted in-depth interviews with leading thinkers on leadership and organizational change—Harvard Professor John Kotter among them. Over time, I’ve distilled the essence of their ideas into insights for learning professionals who are increasingly being called to serve as catalysts for enterprise change. Across all these conversations, one message is consistent:

Technology doesn’t drive transformation—people do. It’s fueled by their urgency to move, their readiness to challenge what’s outdated, and their courage to create what’s next.

In this, the first of a two-part series based on an interview with Kotter, I draw two enduring lessons that stand out for L&D leaders seeking to lead meaningful change in their companies: confront complacency and ignite urgency.

1. Confront complacency: Recognize the invisible enemy

Kotter once said that complacency is “like a fish not seeing the water it swims in.” In 2025, that metaphor feels painfully accurate for L&D. Many organizations appear in motion—launching learning campaigns, publishing micro-courses, tracking dashboards—but few are moving forward. Kotter called this ‘false urgency’: frantic activity driven by anxiety, not insight.

In learning organizations, false urgency often looks like:

• Chasing course completions instead of capability growth
• Mistaking content production for culture change
• Confusing ‘being busy’ with ‘being useful’

The deeper danger is that busyness masks complacency. As Kotter observed, “It’s almost impossible to find a person who sees themselves as complacent.” The same applies to departments. An L&D function can look productive—publishing hundreds of modules—while avoiding the tougher work of confronting outdated strategies, systems, or habits that no longer serve the organization’s goals.

What to do

Build reflective mechanisms into your practice. Instead of measuring learning activity, focus on how quickly people perform better—Kotter’s go-to benchmark for true learning. Use after-action reviews, performance analytics, or learner narratives to see whether knowledge is actually turning into change.

L&D insight

Build a culture that values reflection as an antidote to Kotter’s ‘false urgency.’

2. Ignite urgency: Keep the spark alive

Kotter argued that “a true sense of urgency is rare, much rarer than most people think.” It’s a focused energy built on opportunity, not fear. For L&D leaders, urgency is the spark that transforms learning from an HR service into a strategic driver of growth.

But maintaining that spark requires deliberate attention. In my interview, Kotter linked the problem to how people learn and evolve over time. “We level off in our forties,” he said, “and when that happens, we don’t see what’s newly important.” His point wasn’t about age—it was about habit. As careers advance, learning often narrows. We become experts in what worked yesterday, not explorers of what might work tomorrow.

This is especially true for senior managers who still equate training with compliance rather than curiosity. They see learning as something employees have to do, not something leaders get to do. The result is an undercurrent of complacency at the very level where urgency should live.

L&D professionals must therefore ignite urgency through connection, not crisis—by linking learning to real performance, customer impact, and organizational purpose. Kotter pointed to leaders like Andy Grove at Intel and Jack Welch at GE, who often created short-term tension (“If there isn’t a crisis, make one”) but then redirected it toward opportunity.

What to do

Frame learning as an enterprise-level advantage, not a departmental expense. Launch visible engaging ‘learning experiments’ tied to strategic outcomes. Communicate wins quickly and vividly—Kotter emphasized short, emotionally charged videos that show success stories rather than explain them.

L&D insight

Urgency is emotional before it is operational. Make people feel the need to grow.

Applying Kotter’s ideas in practice: The Amtrak experience

Years ago, while serving as part of a national Six Sigma initiative at Amtrak, I had the opportunity to put Kotter’s principles into action. I was dedicated to developing a 35-member cross-functional team led by a Six Sigma Black Belt. We used Our Iceberg Is Melting as the foundation for our change management training, translating its fable-based lessons into real-world practice.

The workshop was so engaging that the team adopted a stuffed penguin—just like the one in Kotter’s story—as its mascot. It appeared in team photos, newsletters, and project milestones for years after the seminar, becoming a playful yet powerful reminder of shared purpose.

Over a five-year period, I built a series of developmental challenges for the team that grew to include not only change management, but also communication, persuasion, and collaborative problem-solving. The penguin became a symbol of progress, showing that transformation wasn’t abstract—it was lived.

That experience confirmed what Kotter had long asserted: Lasting transformation depends not on process or technology, but on the human stories we use to make meaning of change.

In Part 2, we’ll turn to the tougher side of Kotter’s message—how to disarm resistance, sustain ‘urgent patience,’ and help teams move from false urgency to real momentum.

References

• Kotter, J. P. (1996). Leading Change. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
• Kotter, J. P. (2008). A Sense of Urgency. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Press.
• Kotter, J. P. (2014). Accelerate: Building Strategic Agility for a Faster-Moving World. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review Press.
• Kotter, J. P., & Rathgeber, H. (2006). Our Iceberg Is Melting: Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions. New York, NY: St. Martin’s Press.
• Weick, K. E. (1984). Small wins: Redefining the scale of social problems. American Psychologist, 39(1), 40–49.

Image credit: undefined undefined

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If you’ve ever felt like a course catalog manager, taking orders for training without question, designing solutions before understanding problems, or struggling to prove your value beyond attendance numbers, you’re not alone. Many learning professionals find themselves trapped in an order-taking role, responding to stakeholder requests with “Sure, we can build that training” before asking the most critical question: “Why?”

There’s a roadmap to break free from this reactive pattern. Here’s how you can do that:

1. Build business acumen skills

The foundation of strategic partnership is understanding the business deeply enough to challenge assumptions and propose alternatives. Business acumen isn’t about becoming a finance expert; it’s about building four key capabilities:

1. Strategic alignment & impact: When you understand how learning initiatives connect to organizational goals, you can design solutions that move real business metrics, not just completion rates.
   Start by understanding your business context. Study your company’s strategic goals and map how L&D can genuinely support them. Take time to understand different business functions: What does marketing do? What challenges does operations face? This knowledge transforms how you approach learning solutions.
   Build financial literacy incrementally. You don’t need an MBA, but you should understand cost-benefit analysis, resource allocation, and how to demonstrate ROI through data. Learn to speak in terms of business value.
2. Stakeholder credibility & buy-in: Speaking the language of business builds trust and positions you as someone who understands the bigger picture, increasing your competitive advantage within the organization.
   Increase your visibility by asking thoughtful questions rather than simply accepting requirements. Make recommendations backed by data and research. Demonstrate the value of your expertise to your stakeholders.
3. Performance-driven design decisions: When you make data-informed decisions grounded in business realities, your recommendations carry weight.
   Think strategically by connecting every learning initiative to organizational performance goals. Before designing a solution, ask: Is this scalable? Is it sustainable? Does it address a real performance gap or just a perceived training need?
4. Develop market awareness: Follow industry trends through resources, such as McKinsey, Deloitte, the World Economic Forum, and Boston Consulting Group reports. Use tools like Lightcast or similar ones to analyze growing skills in your industry and the Bureau of Labor Statistics to anticipate future skills needs. When you can speak to where the market is headed, you become invaluable.

2. Master evaluation beyond smile sheets

Nothing combats order-taking faster than being able to prove, or disprove, that training is the right solution. Yet most organizations and L&D professionals stop at satisfaction surveys (smile sheets) and attendance tracking, the lowest levels of measurement. Some may even measure learning and change of behavior by asking learners in learner surveys.

These data do not generate actionable insights. Explore the research on “illusions of knowledge,” meaning learners assume they have learned and are competent, whereas if assessed rigorously, it would prove against this assumption. “Dunning-Kruger effect” is another phenomenon proving that learners are not the best sources to verify the effectiveness of training.

Learn by doing: Start small with pilot evaluations. Propose a single project where you’ll track actual on-the-job behavior change, not just completion rates. Show results through regular status updates at key intervals, then use an iterative cycle to gradually expand your evaluation practices. The key is demonstrating value through data, which shifts conversations from “Can you build this training?” to “Should we build training at all?”

Iterative Design & Evaluation Cycle

Choose an evaluation model based on evidence, not popularity: While there are many evaluation models, such as Katzell-Kirkpatrick, Phillips’ ROI, Holton’s HRD, Brinkerhoff’s Success Case Method, Stufflebeam’s CIPP (Context, Input, Process, Product), select one that research shows is effective for your context. I use Thalheimer’s LTEM (Learning-Transfer Evaluation Model) because it bridges the gap between learning and workplace performance by measuring knowledge, decision-making, and task performance during training, then measures transfer to work performance and effects of transfer after training on the job.

My key recommendation is developing criterion-referenced tests—assessments that measure whether learners can perform specific job tasks to a defined standard—rather than simple knowledge checks. Use scenario-based questions aligned with actual work context, then repeat these same tests 2-3 months after training in addition to using observation checklists on the job to measure actual transfer and determine whether skills stuck and are being used in the workplace, not just whether people could demonstrate them in a training environment.

Plan the evaluation from the start, not as an afterthought: Use a logic model to map out what and how you’ll evaluate, and work backwards from impact to activities:

• Start with impact: What does success look like at the organizational or community level? This is your ultimate destination.
• Define long-term outcomes: What workplace performance changes (transfer) do you need to see to achieve that impact? These are your training goals.
• Identify short-term outcomes: What immediate changes in knowledge, skills, or confidence are necessary stepping stones?
• Map your activities and resources: What coaching and support (budget, tools, time, people) need to be in place to make this happen?

An example of a logic model

3. Use results-driven design to connect training to real-world performance

When training is the right solution, design it with the end in mind. Use a results-driven design approach:

• Identify the specific skills that drive performance outcomes
• Define performance objectives in measurable terms
• Create during-training assessments using scenario-based questions, skills checklists, and raters
• Develop learning materials and resources aligned to those specific objectives
• Conduct after-training, on-the-job assessment using observation checklists, repeated assessments, and surveys
• Measure actual task performance through focus groups, document reviews, and end-user feedback

This approach ensures every design decision traces back to workplace performance, not just knowledge acquisition.

4. Become an organizational consultant, not just a course builder

Most performance problems aren’t training problems. They’re caused by unclear expectations, missing tools, poor processes, lack of feedback, or misaligned incentives. Yet stakeholders often come to L&D with a training request because that’s the tool they know.

You should take a holistic approach and understand the root cause of performance gaps:

• Resist the urge to immediately discuss training solutions. This is the defining moment that separates order takers from strategic partners.
• Shift the conversation from solution mode to problem definition mode. Instead of asking “What kind of training do you want?” ask “Help me understand the performance challenge we’re trying to solve.”
• Guide stakeholders through the analysis process rather than doing it to them. Make them partners in diagnosing the real issue.

Sample consultation questions

• “What specific behaviors or outcomes aren’t happening that should be?”
• “Why isn’t the behavior change happening now?”
• “What would success look like in measurable terms?”
• “What other factors affect the target learners’ performance?”
• “What have you tried before, and what were the results?”
• “Does learning solve this problem, or do we need to think of other ways to address it?”

These questions position you as a consultant focused on performance improvement, not a vendor taking orders for courses.

5. Master stakeholder management

You can’t be a strategic partner if you’re isolated in the L&D department. Stakeholder management is about building the relationships and credibility that give you influence.

• Listen actively and demonstrate genuine understanding of stakeholders’ challenges. Don’t just hear their training request—understand the business pressure behind it.
• Partner collaboratively by establishing credibility through joint problem-solving. Schedule regular check-ins and have informal conversations that aren’t tied to specific project requests. This builds trust over time.
• Gain operational knowledge about who holds influence (high and low) and interest (high and low) in learning initiatives. Partner directly with front-line managers and staff who understand day-to-day performance challenges.
• Become a go-to resource by sharing relevant research, benchmark data, and trend analysis even when not asked. Position yourself as someone who brings value beyond course development.

6. Communicate like a partner, not a training expert

Finally, how you communicate determines whether you’re seen as strategic or tactical.

Eliminate jargon: Instead of talking about “learning objectives,” “instructional design models,” or technical training terms, translate what you do into simple language. Talk about performance improvement, behavior change, and measurable results—concepts that resonate with stakeholders and clearly connect your work to what they care about. I once got into a heated discussion with stakeholders when I used the term “learning outcomes” instead of “learning objectives”—they wanted to know the difference! Now, I use “performance objectives” to shift their mindset toward performance improvement, not just knowledge acquisition.

Use open-ended questions that invite dialogue: “What would success look like?” “What other factors affect performance?” These questions position you as a consultant, not a vendor.

Approach every conversation with confident humility: Be confident in your expertise while remaining genuinely curious about their challenges. Seek feedback continuously and apply research to practice, demonstrating mastery of learning sciences without being preachy about it.

Your action plan

Don’t try to transform overnight. Start with these small steps:

1. This week: The next time someone requests training, pause and ask three diagnostic questions before discussing solutions.
2. This month: Pilot one evaluation that measures on-the-job behavior change, not just satisfaction. Share the results with stakeholders.
3. This quarter: Schedule informal coffee chats with three stakeholders to understand their challenges—without pitching any learning solutions.
4. This year: Build one business acumen skill (financial literacy, market awareness, or strategic thinking) through deliberate study and application.

The shift from order taker to strategic advisor doesn’t require permission from your leadership. It starts with how you show up in the next stakeholder conversation. Will you accept the training request at face value, or will you ask “Why?” and guide them toward the real solution—whether that’s training or something else entirely?

Image credit:

• Top image: EtiAmmos
• Remaining graphics: Elham Arabi

The post From Order Takers to Strategic Advisors in 6 Steps appeared first on Learning Guild.

Here’s a look at some of the projects that were shared during DevLearn last month: 

Immersive 

• An Instructional Designer from Houston Methodist Hospital showcased a course that uses pictures and video to explore the hospital’s new crash cart. The course culminates in an immersive quiz designed to simulate urgency in locating items on a crash cart in a real-world situation. 

• The Tech Curriculum Designer at Boston Scientific presented a virtual reality experience for a stent and electric cautery delivery system designed to enhance procedural awareness and clinical decision-making.  

• At Ninja Tropic eLearning they built immersive cities using Storyline 360 and shared with attendees how tools like 360-degree image function could be used for virtual exploration in e-learning. 

• Developers at Bluewater Learning built a retract simulation for a car wash company, teaching new employees how to set the computer to avoid vehicle damage  

Games and Gamification 

• eLearning Design Developers from The Nature Conservancy presented their Walk of Life game to demonstrate equity vs. equality in conservation activities. In this unique activity, learners receive a character and are presented with conservation opportunities and obstacles based on the character they choose.    

• L&D professionals from Delta Airlines showcased two instructor-led classroom games that they created using Storyline. 

• Artha Learning Inc. shared “Outbreak,” a gamified learning experience for nurse practitioners to triage patients in high-pressure situations  

AI 

• A graduate student at Commonwealth University presented “The Agency Algorithm,” a project on artificial intelligence and moral decision-making in medical triage, algorithmic warfare, and surveillance  

• Third Term Learning turned an in-person training on SWOT analyses usually done with partners into a gamified solution where the learner works with AI agents instead of partners to practice creating a SWOT analysis.  

• By incorporating AI and custom code in Storyline, The Learning Camel & EngageTrainBrain built a course for their client on “relationship fitness” based on Harvard’s happiness study. 

Personalized Learning 

• Two managers from IHG’s learning team showcased their luxury and lifestyle loyalty course, which was developed in HTML and wrapped in Storyline to track completion. This exciting course features 104 personalized pathways and 13 different languages.  

Video 

• The Compliance Training Associate at Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey showcased the hybrid live-action and animated musical video they made to deliver training content through songs. 

If you’re interested in seeing the presentations from some of the DemoFest winners, join the Best of DemoFest webinar on December 9, 2025.  

The post 12 Learning and Development Projects That Actually Moved the Needle  appeared first on Learning Guild.

In “D&D for Learning: Take Training from Forgettable to Formative,” we looked at why immersive training matters and why your team needs more than just information to make good calls under pressure. In this follow-up, we dive into the how: the tools, tactics, and trade-offs involved in designing immersive training that’s practical, affordable, and effective.

Whether you’re starting from scratch or looking to level up your current approach, this guide will help you evaluate your options and make smart, human-centered choices.

Dungeon master optional: Training in the age of AI

One of the most powerful—and newly feasible—approaches to immersive training is roleplay. When done well, it creates the conditions for people to practice difficult conversations, test judgment under pressure, and build confidence in gray areas where there’s no script to follow.

Until recently, this kind of training was expensive, inconsistent, and hard to scale. But that’s changing. Modern AI-driven roleplay platforms, such as Attensi, blend adaptive scenarios, emotional realism, and performance feedback to help people practice high-stakes conversations before they happen.

Whether delivered through mobile apps, avatars, or natural language AI, these tools simulate real-world dynamics—giving learners the chance to build confidence, empathy, and fluency through experience, not just instruction.

Reemerging every decade or so with better fidelity and new bells and whistles, virtual reality (VR) has increasingly practical applications for training and intervention. Modern VR training platforms create fully immersive environments where learners don’t just see the scenario, they inhabit it. By replicating physical presence and social cues, VR enables deeper emotional engagement, muscle memory, and context-sensitive learning. From managing a conflict to repairing equipment, trainees practice in high-fidelity simulations where failure is safe but the stakes feel real.

COVID provided an opportunity for many organizations to experiment with virtual workplaces, leveraging Metaverse and other platforms for formerly in-person functions including training. These experiments yielded promising results.  According to PwC’s 2022 U.S. Metaverse Survey, employees who trained in immersive simulations were:

• 275% more confident applying what they learned
• 4x faster completing training than in a classroom
• 3.75x more emotionally connected to the material

Simulations, the cornerstone of immersive training, are also becoming more economically and logistically feasible for learners across scale and role. Next generation platforms are expanding what simulation-based learning can do, and who can do it.

Forge, for example, leverages AI to streamline the design process, reducing the time, complexity, and resources typically required to build immersive learning experiences. That efficiency makes it possible to design high-quality simulations for a much wider range of roles, industries, and organizational sizes, without compromising on depth or realism.

Advances in intuitive UI make it easier for learners to engage and for people leaders to facilitate. No-code editing tools allow L&D teams to adjust and evolve their simulations over time.

These advances evolve the simulation value proposition in two important ways:

• Easier facilitating and editing mean L&D leaders get to run the show instead of outsourcing expertise
• Simulations become living tools instead of one-off experiences

The idea of meeting people where they are at is integral to immersive training. Simulation experiences or role-play platforms that tailor to the needs and strengths of teams, that understand, rather than ignore, their unique context and capabilities, and that adapt as circumstances change is the kind of dynamic learning and development critical in a world where business as usual is increasingly unusual.

Evaluating immersive learning

As cost and access barriers fall, the next challenge is making sure what we build actually works.

Immersion is the foundation. But intelligence is what makes the training believable and, ultimately, transformational.

In Dungeons & Dragons, the world isn’t rigidly programmed. It’s co-created in real time through player choices and the asymmetric intelligence of the Dungeon Master. The DM isn’t just enforcing rules. They’re responding, adapting, and reshaping the game based on the party’s decisions.

That’s what makes D&D so powerful as a learning model: Players can prepare, but they can’t prepare for everything. They have to stay sharp. Stay flexible. Think on their feet. They aren’t just playing through the story; they’re shaping it.

Most corporate training doesn’t come close to this level of realism. They’re linear. Predictable. Often reduced to branching paths and canned responses. Learners quickly see the seams. They game the system. The immersion breaks.

In this way, D&D also serves to underscore what we should look for in an effective immersive learning experience. Whether a simulation, a virtual platform, or even an AI roleplay partner, consider whether the solution mimic real-world complexity. In other words, does the experience behave like the real world?

If you’re unsure, here are some things to look for:

Does the experience include unpredictable variability?

Test whether the experience behaves like real life, i.e., with enough complexity and fluidity that a learner can’t just memorize an obvious “right path.” If your participant can memorize the script (or worse, if they’ve already heard it all before), they’re going to disengage.

Twists and turns make a good mystery (and a good campaign). Consider:

• Can someone game the experience just by choosing the most positive or corporate-friendly responses?
• Do different choices lead to different outcomes?
• Are there moments that surprise you?

If none of the above, your experience will struggle to be immersive.

Does the experience display asymmetric intelligence?

For learning experiences that involve interacting with a fictitious customer or colleague, consider whether this non-human collaborator is adaptive.

• Can the non-player characters (NPCs) deviate from the script?
• Do NPCs react in real time based on emotional tone, body language, and phrasing nuance?
• Are there scenarios in which the NPC can shut down, be uncooperative, or be antagonist (like a human)? 

If the experience doesn’t feel like a real conversation, why would a learner put their heart into it?

Does the experience incorporate responsive feedback?

Decisions should have consequences, and those consequences should be logical. Test:

• Do learner decisions have realistic outcomes in the scenario, and are these outcomes carried forward in a way that shapes the scenario?
• Do learner decisions lead to feedback that explores the impact of that decision, not just whether the decision was right or wrong?
• Can the learner fail?

This last question is critical. The potential for failure gives an experience emotional stake, depth, and resonance. And teaching your employees how to fail can as important, if not more, than teaching them how to succeed.

The best way to answer all these questions: Take the product for a real test drive, not a canned demo. Get hands-on. Try to break it. Any product worth the money should jump at the opportunity to show off its capabilities. Any product that doesn’t should be an immediate red flag.

Immersion matters because training matters

The fact is that most people don’t remember the policy manual. We remember moments that felt real, because we were in them, not just learning about them.

That’s what immersion does. It doesn’t just build knowledge. It builds stories. And when the stakes are real, or real enough, those stories shape how we think, how we feel, and how we act when the pressure is on.

If we want training to matter, it has to mean something in the moment. If we want people to grow, we have to give them the space, and the stakes, to practice.

That means investing in immersive learning not as a novelty, but as a necessity. Not because it’s flashy (even if it is!), but because it’s closer to the real work, and therefore closer to the heart.

Image credit: Gearstd

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There’s a generational shift taking place in the workforce. Just consider retired professionals of previous generations. From parents to grandparents, family friends to neighbors, there’s a pattern in older generations—such as the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, and even Gen X—whose members have spent the majority of their careers at one or two companies.

Younger professionals are not buying into this lifestyle. Take, for instance, teachers, entry-level employees, even middle management who appear happy in their roles. They are often high performers who work well with their colleagues, and yet they leave after a few years of employment.

There are many reasons why employees leave companies. The most notable and archaic reasons stem from dissatisfaction with work culture and colleagues. There’s even an old saying that people don’t leave bad companies, but rather bad bosses. These reasons are valid and still exist today, but there are more prominent reasons beyond simply being dissatisfied.

An age of job-hopping?

The pursuit of new skills, yearning for higher titles and salaries, establishing a more flexible work-life balance, and even searching for organizations with aligning missions and ideologies is not new. But the pursuit of these opportunities is becoming more prominent for younger professionals who witness the array of possibilities through social media, online job ads, and professional websites like LinkedIn. The last 20 years of technological advancements has unveiled and encouraged an age of job-hopping.  

High retention cannot solely rest on a team of transformational leaders. Of course, leaders should always work to improve their organizations by asking for feedback when their high performers leave, but they should not automatically assume their employees leave due to ill intentions.

Leaders must instead adapt to the growing need for opportunity by maintaining relationships and encouraging reemployment for future roles within the company that better align to departing employees’ growth needs. This entails prioritizing the offboarding experience as meticulously as the onboarding experience. Employees who seek new opportunities elsewhere and later return to their prior company are considered boomerang employees, much like the boomerang tool, or toy that keeps coming back when thrown.

Instead of viewing departed employees as betrayers of a corporate cause, leaders should view departed employees as potential assets of future innovation and change. Whether an organization changes a technology, policy, procedure, or hierarchy structure, most employees require time to adjust, yet boomerang employees are built for rapid change and may serve as an organization’s greatest resource.

Here’s why.

Boomerang employees are natural change agents

Employees who leave organizations for growth opportunities elsewhere are natural change agents. These individuals aren’t afraid of seeking change in order to achieve their goals in life. They don’t cower from instability or the unknown as long as their path aligns with new and healthy challenges.

Anyone can sit at a desk or work in an assembly line for years, performing the same task. But instead of viewing this work as x-amount of years in the industry, it’s actually more like one year in the industry performed for x-amount of years. Employees who leave for new experiences do not want to get caught in the crosshairs of redundancy. They need change, and an opportunity elsewhere may offer a fresh perspective of possibilities.

Boomerang employees understand possibilities

Employees who leave organizations and return years later have a greater understanding of possibilities. They experience firsthand what works and what doesn’t work at other organizations. They may also have opportunities to explore ideas that were met with skepticism by their prior leaders. Being able to test hypotheses elsewhere offers valuable learning opportunities for employees who seek development.

Employees who remain in the same industry further gain experience learning how other organizations operate. This is not for the purpose of acquiring proprietary information, but rather for acquiring new approaches to operating efficiently and effectively. When an employee remains stagnant at one place, they limit their perspective and often struggle to see new possibilities. Only when one radicalizes their environment will they open up to challenges outside their comfort zone.

Boomerang employees know the history

Disgruntled leaders who refuse to rehire boomerang employees often do so out of an egotistical feeling of betrayal and disloyalty. However, high-performing boomerang employees know what the job entails. They know how the organization strategizes and implements change. Upon reinstatement, they typically onboard much quicker than employees who are entirely new to an organization. And, more importantly, they have a historical perspective of how the company operates.

How often do we hear long-tenured employees say “we’ve done this before, it won’t work” or “we don’t have the bandwidth for change” immediately after a new idea is proposed by a newer employee? Boomerang employees know the history behind strategy talks and why prior implementations failed in the past. But their fresh perspective elsewhere may offer insight on how to successfully approach change in a way not thought of by those with limited perspectives. They are truly the best change agents who know how to persuade leaders who are reluctant to take innovative risk.

Boomerang employees are here to stay

The workforce is changing, and the possibility of growth, development, work-life balance, and matching values is becoming increasingly alluring to younger generations fearful of stagnation. Many employees must learn firsthand if the grass is truly greener on the other side, and leaders must understand that their transformational approaches to leadership may not guarantee employee retention. When high performers leave, leaders must treat their departed employees as assets who may reunite with future employment opportunities.

Image credit: mathisworks

The post Boomerangs Are Our Greatest Change Agents appeared first on Learning Guild.

While companies pour money into lengthy courses that demand full attention and perfect conditions, employees are multitasking, moving, and simply too busy for bloated content. The solution isn’t more “hyper-engaging videos” or “interactive workflow simulations”; it’s audio-first podcast-style eLearning that fits into real life.

Evidence shows that people want to learn during their commute, 94% prefer audio learning formats, and around 600 million people globally already listen to podcasts. Meanwhile, screen fatigue affects more than half of us, and countless employees in hands-on jobs can’t access computer-based training during work hours.

Podcast-style training solves these problems by delivering focused, practical lessons that people can consume while walking, commuting, or working. It’s accessible, private, convenient, and proven effective. Best of all, you can create professional podcast training in minutes using AI tools like Google’s NotebookLM.

Traditional training doesn’t fit real life

Your employees aren’t sitting in quiet rooms waiting for the next corporate training video. They’re juggling emails while listening to webinars, scrolling phones during presentations, and frankly struggling to find 30 uninterrupted minutes for that mandatory course.

Traditional eLearning assumes people have screens, silence, and undivided attention. But many Gen Z and Millennials want to learn on their commute, and most workers are constantly multitasking. When your training demands perfect conditions, it simply doesn’t happen.

The numbers tell the story. Companies invest millions in learning programs with engagement rates that would embarrass a YouTube channel about paint drying. Meanwhile, on average people consume 9 podcasts per week, proving they’re hungry for audio content that fits their lifestyle.

Screen fatigue is crushing your training ROI

More than 50% of us suffer from screen fatigue, and research shows vision problems are higher among online learners due to increased screen time. After eight hours staring at monitors, the last thing employees want is more screen-based learning.

Podcasts offer a break from digital eye strain while keeping productivity high. Instead of adding screen time, audio learning removes it entirely. Your workforce can rest their eyes while strengthening their skills.

Audio learning reaches more people

Traditional training excludes huge portions of your workforce. Construction workers, nurses, drivers, and warehouse staff don’t have constant computer access. Millions of people live with sight loss, making screen-based content challenging or impossible. Neurodivergent employees often find audio helps reduce over-stimulation and sensory challenges.

Podcast-style training works for so many more people and situations. It requires only a mobile device and headphones—technology that a huge majority of the working population already carries. No special software, no perfect lighting, no quiet conference rooms required.

There’s love for podcast-style eLearning

The global podcast audience is estimated to be 600 million people in 2025, and they’re not just listening for entertainment. Shows like Diary of a CEO, HBR’s Ideacast, and even light-hearted programs like No Such Thing As a Fish prove people actively seek knowledge through audio.

This habit reveals something crucial: people don’t resist learning—they resist inconvenient learning. When education fits seamlessly into daily routines, consumption skyrockets.

People don’t resist learning—they resist inconvenient learning.

Create podcast-style training content in 4 simple steps

Creating professional podcast-style training based on your content used to require expensive script-writing, recording equipment, eLearning voice-over experts, and editing skills. Now, AI tools like NotebookLM generate educational audio content in minutes from your existing training materials.

Step 1: Go to NotebookLM

Navigate to NotebookLM and sign in with your Google account. The platform is free and requires no special setup.

Step 2: Click create new

Look for the “Create New” button, typically in the top right corner of your screen. This opens your workspace for the new podcast project.

Step 3: Add Your sources

Upload your training materials through the pop-up box. NotebookLM accepts multiple formats:

• PDF files and text documents
• Google Workspace content
• Website links
• YouTube videos
• Pasted written content
• Audio files like MP3s

Step 4: Generate audio overview

After adding sources, click “Audio Overview” to create your podcast. The AI will also offer study guides, mind maps, and flashcards if needed. Generation takes just a couple of minutes, then you can download the finished audio file.

Top Tip: If you click the edit pencil on the tile, you can tweak the settings and add some guidance for the AI, e.g., What should the hosts focus on in this episode?

The result sounds like two professional hosts discussing your content in an engaging, conversational style. No recording studios, no script writing, no editing required.

The learning styles myth (& why audio still wins)

Despite popular belief, research shows that learning style preferences don’t translate to effectiveness. You’re not a “visual learner” who needs pictures to understand concepts.

However, this false belief doesn’t eliminate the case for audio. Some people simply enjoy podcasts more than videos. Enjoyment drives engagement, and engagement drives results. If your learners prefer audio, that preference alone makes it more effective than formats they avoid.

Audio + everything else: The blended approach that actually works

The argument for podcast-style learning isn’t about replacing your entire training library with podcasts. It’s about using each format where it excels most. Think of audio as your training foundation: It dominates at delivering the “why”—the context, motivation, and behavioral foundations that make everything else stick.

A seven-minute podcast episode can explain why a new safety protocol matters, how it connects to company values, and what success looks like in practice. That understanding and motivation becomes the scaffold for everything else. Then supplement with focused visual materials where they add genuine value.

This blended approach fixes the core problem with monolithic training modules: They try to be everything at once and end up being effective at nothing. Instead of cramming context, procedures, and motivation into one overwhelming package, separate them strategically. Use audio for high-level concepts and behavioral change, then layer in visual elements for specific, procedural needs.

The result? Employees understand why before they learn how, making retention dramatically higher when they do encounter visual or written materials.

Microlearning meets podcasts: A perfect match

Microlearning—delivering educational content in short, focused bursts—improves knowledge retention and prevents cognitive overload. Most effective podcast episodes for learning run under 10 minutes, hitting the sweet spot for attention spans and busy schedules.

Pilot feedback by Assemble You (a leader in audio-only learning content) from 18 organizations across retail, healthcare, and logistics showed remarkable results: 94% of users wanted more audio learning, and 85% said it changed how they think or act at work. These aren’t just satisfaction scores; they’re behavior change metrics.

Convenience beats perfection every time

Josh Bersin advocates for learning in the flow of work—removing friction and delivering training when and where it’s most convenient. Podcasts take this further by fitting into the flow of life itself.

Audio learning doesn’t demand a 25th hour or 8th day. It dovetails into existing schedules. Employees can upskill while commuting, exercising, doing chores, or even during certain types of work. Studies show that even car drivers and cyclists want to learn during commutes, not just those using public transport, proving the appetite for commute-based learning (CBL) exists.

Privacy problems you haven’t considered

Consider the employee researching harassment policies, or the new manager seeking guidance on sensitive team conflicts. Screen-based training broadcasts these topics to any roaming eyes that pass their desk. Audio learning offers privacy that screens can’t match.

Podcasts create psychological safety by removing visible barriers to accessing sensitive content. Employees feel comfortable exploring difficult topics without judgment or unwanted attention from colleagues.

The ROI of podcast-style eLearning

Smart companies align training methods with strategic objectives like employee development and talent retention. When 85% of audio learners change their workplace behavior, you’re not just checking compliance boxes—you’re driving real performance improvements.

Using the method above, podcast-style educational content costs far less to produce. Audio training reaches more employees and generates higher engagement than traditional methods. Most importantly, people actually complete it. That’s ROI you can measure.

Turn learning into listening

Your employees are already listening to podcasts, learning from audio content, and craving convenient education that fits their lives. The infrastructure exists, the appetite is proven, and the latest technology makes creation simple.

Stop fighting against how people actually consume information. Instead of demanding they adapt to your training methods, adapt your methods to their preferences. Turn learning into listening, and watch completion rates soar while training costs plummet.

If you’re still not convinced, or you’re curious, check out some samples; new examples will be added regularly!

Image credit: Liubomyr Vorona

The post Death by PowerPoint? Create Podcast-Style eLearning in 4 Simple Steps appeared first on Learning Guild.

We’ve all been there: You’ve spent months designing a major learning rollout or change initiative. You’ve aligned with leaders, planned communications, built content, and prepped managers. Then the program goes live, and things don’t go quite as planned. Engagement is lower than expected, adoption lags, or unexpected resistance surfaces from corners you hadn’t considered. Sometimes, team members struggle because of insufficient training, unclear processes, or competing priorities that weren’t visible during planning.

What if you could uncover those blind spots before your initiative went live?

Enter red teaming, a strategic process borrowed from the military and intelligence fields that helps teams pressure-test their plans, challenge assumptions, and strengthen their approach. While it’s a familiar concept in cybersecurity and strategic planning, it’s still largely untapped in learning and development (L&D) and change management, two fields that would benefit tremendously from its mindset.

I’ve used red teaming on several large-scale projects, and the outcomes have been consistently powerful: better stakeholder alignment, smarter implementation strategies, and stronger confidence from both leaders and team members. Red teaming didn’t just make the plans better; it made the teams better.

What is red teaming?

At its core, red teaming is about thinking like an adversary—not to defeat your own plan, but to improve it.

The approach originated in military strategy, where “red teams” simulate enemy tactics to expose weaknesses in operations or decision-making. Over time, industries such as cybersecurity, finance, and business strategy adopted it to test resilience before launching critical initiatives.

In a red teaming exercise, a designated group called the red team challenges the assumptions, strategies, and blind spots of the main project team, often called the blue team. The goal isn’t to criticize, but to illuminate—to uncover what the core team might have missed because of overconfidence, groupthink, or simply being too close to the work.

Applied to learning and change management, red teaming becomes a powerful tool for anticipating resistance, improving clarity, and building adaptability into your plans before going live.

Why red teaming matters in learning & change

Learning and change professionals are already in the business of influence. We design experiences that shift mindsets, behaviors, and culture. But even the best-planned initiatives can fail when they collide with the messy reality of organizational life.

Here are a few common challenges where red teaming makes a difference:

• Assumptions about readiness: We assume team members are motivated, leaders are aligned, or technology will work smoothly until we discover otherwise.
• Hidden resistance: Some team members may quietly question the “why” behind a change, but their concerns never reach the project team.
• Communication gaps: Messages that sound clear to us may not resonate across levels, regions, or roles.
• Blind spots in culture: A plan that fits the organizational chart might not fit the organizational climate.

Red teaming helps expose these realities before they derail your initiative. It gives voice to the skeptics, the quiet resistors, and the “what if” thinkers. When you build this challenge process into your project cycle, you’re not inviting conflict, you’re building resilience.

One of my most successful projects involved introducing red teaming during a compliance rollout. The initiative aimed to correct long-misinterpreted system issues that had caused team members to collect inaccurate data for years. Because the change would significantly impact how both sales and operations teams worked, we formed a red team of 20 people—16 team members from sales and operations, and 4 leaders from those same functions.

Their diverse perspectives were invaluable. The red team surfaced issues we hadn’t fully considered: communication gaps between field and corporate teams, training content that didn’t reflect real-world workflows, and dependencies that could have delayed adoption. They also helped refine the messaging so it resonated more effectively with frontline teams.

By addressing those insights before going live, we achieved faster adoption, higher accuracy in data collection, and stronger confidence among leaders and team members. The process didn’t just improve the plan—it deepened ownership across the organization.

How to apply red teaming in your work

Red teaming doesn’t have to be complicated or formal. You can adapt it to fit any project, from a new learning curriculum to a multi-phase change initiative. Here’s a simple five-step framework you can start using right away:

1. Frame the challenge

Define what you want to test. It could be your change communication plan, training design, or implementation roadmap. The key question: “What do we most need to get right, and what could go wrong?”

Example: We want to ensure our rollout plan for new performance tools will be understood, adopted, and supported by managers.

2. Assemble a red team

Select a small, diverse group of people who can think critically and aren’t afraid to ask tough questions. They might include internal skeptics, frontline team members, or even external partners. Diversity of perspective is what makes the red team valuable.

 Tip: Choose members who represent the people most affected by your initiative, not just senior voices.

3. Set the ground rules

Psychological safety is essential. The red team must understand that their role is to challenge ideas, not individuals. Clarify that this process is about learning, not judgment.

Sample ground rule: Assume positive intent. Our goal is to make the plan stronger, not to win an argument.

4. Run the simulation

Give the red team access to your plan, then ask them to stress test it. Encourage them to look for gaps, unrealistic assumptions, or unintended consequences.

This can take many forms:

• Scenario testing: What happens if adoption is 30% lower than projected?
• Role-playing resistant stakeholders
• Reviewing communications for clarity and tone
• Identifying risks or dependencies that might derail timelines

5. Debrief & integrate insights

After the red team exercise, capture key findings and discuss how to adjust your approach. Often, the most valuable outcome isn’t just the fixes, it’s the conversation that happens when people see their plan through a different lens.

Be sure to share what you learned with stakeholders and document how the red team’s input strengthened your plan. This builds credibility and shows that your process values critical thinking.

The benefits go beyond the plan

When you integrate red teaming into learning and change work, the value extends far beyond problem detection. You also cultivate:

• Stronger stakeholder buy-in, because your plan has already been tested from multiple perspectives.
• Higher team confidence, because you’ve proactively explored potential risks.
• Greater agility, because red teaming teaches teams to pivot faster when real challenges arise.
• A learning culture, because you model curiosity, humility, and openness to feedback.

In one organization I worked with, leaders initially viewed red teaming as an unnecessary step until they saw how it exposed critical misalignment between the change narrative and team-member sentiment. Adjusting those narratives early saved time, money, and credibility later.

Making red teaming a habit

Red teaming works best when it becomes part of your regular project rhythm, not a one-time event. Consider building it into:

• Major initiative checkpoints, such as before going live
• Learning design reviews for large programs
• Change readiness assessments
• Stakeholder communication planning

Even a short, two-hour red team session can yield insights that reshape your approach. Over time, your teams become more comfortable inviting challenge, and that’s when innovation really thrives.

Final thoughts

Red teaming doesn’t replace traditional project reviews or stakeholder feedback, it enhances them. It injects a level of rigor, curiosity, and humility that helps learning and change professionals avoid blind spots and make smarter decisions.

At its heart, red teaming is about practicing what we preach: continuous learning, perspective-taking, and growth through constructive challenge.

So, the next time you’re preparing to take a major learning or change initiative live, pause and ask yourself: Who’s testing our plan before the world does?

Because when you think like an adversary, you become your project’s best ally.

Dig deeper

Explore the trends and challenges that the new year will bring to L&D in our 2026 Strategies & Trends online conference, December 3‒4, 2025. Learn to ‘Red Team’ your training with Kelly Shambaugh! You’ll also:

• Uncover strategies for elevating your virtual training
• Gain insights into why and how to transform your organization to a skills focus
• Learn the value of critical thinking and curiosity
• Dig into agentic AI
• Highlight the benefits of moving at the ‘speed of business’
• And learn from a panel of dynamic leaders what else to expect in 2026!  

Register today!

Image credit: z_wei

The post Think Like an Adversary: Using Red Teaming to Strengthen Learning & Change Strategies appeared first on Learning Guild.

A long time ago in an organization far, far away, the space of corporate learning entered a turbulent time of change. For as long as we can remember, Learning and Development (L&D) teams acted like Jedi Temples, guardians of wisdom that were called upon during times of disturbance or chaos. Business leaders would send their distress call of “We need learning,” and the teams would react.

But in today’s ever-changing landscape of transformations, hybrid work, AI, and much more, this organization needs more than just order-takers; it needs a strategist, someone who can sense needs and shifts before they happen. Those who can use this “force” to align people, purpose and processes will be instrumental in crafting a talent strategy that leads organizations into the future at light speed.

For decades, the L&D galaxy revolved around programs rather than partnerships. Teams created courses and tracked completion with hopes that results would follow. However, today the Force has awoken and leaders across the business have begun to ask the fundamental question: Why?

• Why are we doing this training?
• Why are my employees not developing fast enough?
• Why am I not seeing business results?

This shift moved L&D from simply content to capability and change because a learning strategist understands that learning is not a singular event or training; it’s a continuous and evolving ecosystem. The mindset shift from one-off requested initiatives to becoming connectors of business goals and talent development allows them to recognize capability gaps and needs long before a formal request comes along.

What is a learning strategist?

So, who is this modern Learning Jedi?

The learning strategist is a unique hybrid of coach, consultant, and change architect who starts with the end goal in mind. By starting with where we need to be, they can craft a journey that seamlessly weaves best-in-class training solutions with an understanding that they may need to influence business processes, leader mindset, and learning conditions.

You can think of our Star Wars counterparts and how they influence using their unique forces:

• Yoda: The coach and mentor who sees potential before others do, often helping individuals come to the right conclusions without explicitly stating them
• Luke: The consultant who influences without authority, uniting teams through emotional intelligence and a unified goal
• Leia: The change architect who realizes we can do things differently and understands that greatness isn’t given, it’s built.

And just as these Jedis mastered the Force through discipline, practice, and intuition, learning strategists can master the art of influence by aligning stakeholders, connecting insights, and guiding organizations toward talent transformation.

Become a Master Jedi of Change

Across the Star Wars universe, the Force connects all living things. In our organizations, influence connects all business outcomes. But you don’t need your own lightsaber to wield influence. You need key skills of listening, empathy, understanding, and alignment to drive connections. With three easy steps, you too can be a Master Jedi of Change:

• Feel the force: Listen for the unspoken using organizational awareness. This is your opportunity, through needs analysis and leadership conversation, to determine what is truly needed. And remember, not everything is a training problem.
• Expand the universe: Reimagine what learning can be. This is your opportunity to be inventive and move away from standard eLearning or classroom-style training.
• Activate the galaxy: Implement with purpose and confidence. This is your opportunity to scale your strategy and ideas across the organization to drive lasting change.

In practice, this can look like reframing a sales team gap analysis from a simple sales training into a talent ecosystem that aligns enablement, feedback, and coaching that empowers employees to continue to grow through a variety of modalities.

Unfortunately, even the strongest strategists can be tempted by the Dark Side of Learning. It whispers using deadlines and dashboards that say things like:

• “Just build the course”
• “If everyone completes the course, it’s going to work”
• “We’ve always done training like this”
• “We don’t have time to re-invent”

The Dark Side of Learning is the reactive nature, where we focus on a single deliverable as opposed to direction, and lose sight of the learning experience to chase the wrong KPIs.

To help them keep their focus, every great Jedi has their mentor and Council: Luke had Yoda. Anakin had Obi-Wan.

Who is yours? Building influence in learning means cultivating alliances between HR, business leaders, tech teams, and culture & change champions. As a strategist, you are operating as a convener of perspectives, bringing together everyone who can shape a shared vision for learning.

Just as the Jedi Temple had pillars, your council should have a few, too:

• Build Common Language: Translate your learning goals into business conversations by speaking ROI, retention, and readiness for the future.
• Start Small: Pilot programs that demonstrate value and show results. Your influence will grow through quick wins that turn into scalable and organizational wins.
• Invest in Each Other: You must continue to develop in yourself, each other, and your tool kits to continue to be inventive and agile.

Your council isn’t a formal department but rather a coalition of allies that all believe that learning is not a simple function but a force multiplier for the good of the organization.

Every organization has it’s awakening, and for corporate learning, this is ours. The age of order-taking is gone, and the age of influence is on the rise. So now, in organizations far, far away, the Force of Influence is calling all of us. It’s calling to us to see patterns others miss, to use empathy as power and curiosity as our weapon, and be the forward thinkers that drive the business forward.

So rise up, learning strategists. Feel the Force. Expand your universe. Activate the galaxy. The rebellion for meaningful learning has just begun, and your influence is the light that guides it.

May the Force of learning, leadership, and lasting impact be with you.

Forge new frontiers

Prepare to use the Force to influence in the coming year with our 2026 Strategies & Trends online conference, December 3‒4, 2025. Explore how emerging leaders are reshaping L&D as Mercedez Jones and fellow panelists Harry Tong and Ashley Cooks share how L&D roles are evolving, what’s changing in their work, and what skills leaders must develop to thrive heading into 2026!

During the 2-day online event, you’ll also:

• Uncover strategies for elevating your virtual training
• Gain insights into why and how to transform your organization to a skills focus
• Discover how ‘red teaming’ can elevate your impact
• Learn the value of critical thinking and curiosity
• Dig into agentic AI
• And more!

Register today!

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Wintrust Financial Corporation or its subsidiaries.

Image credit: BrendanHunter

The post The Rise of the Learning Strategist: Using the Force to Influence appeared first on Learning Guild.

A comprehensive analysis of research in neuroscience, organizational psychology, and business strategy reveals that play, joy, and laughter are not ancillary to professional success but are critical drivers of high performance, innovation, and profitability. The long-held belief that seriousness is a prerequisite for productivity is counterproductive; in ever-changing work environments, the capacity for joy is essential infrastructure.

Core findings indicate that the opposite of play is not work—it’s depression. Integrating playful states into the work environment yields significant, measurable returns. Neuroscientific evidence suggests that laughter and play can reduce stress hormones such as cortisol by up to 39%, while also enhancing executive function, creative problem-solving, and cognitive flexibility. This creates a foundation for superior performance.

Furthermore, Google’s extensive “Project Aristotle“ research identified psychological safety— the ability to take risks without fear of humiliation—as the most critical determinant of team success (Poyton). Play is a primary path to building this safety, with playful interactions shown to improve collaboration metrics by 28%.

Significantly, organizations that foster a “joy-capable” culture report up to 23% higher profitability (Liu) and 125% lower burnout rates. Actionable frameworks, such as a “5-Minute Daily Joy Protocol,” can be implemented by leaders to operationalize these benefits, transforming abstract concepts into tangible strategic advantages.

The scientific & psychological foundations of play

The argument for integrating play into the workplace is grounded in robust scientific evidence detailing its profound effects on the human brain and psychological well-being.

The neuroscience of joy & laughter

Research from institutions such as Stanford Medicine, UC Berkeley, and the University of Lethbridge confirms that positive emotional states physically rewire the brain for enhanced performance.

• Stress reduction and hormonal regulation: Genuine laughter provides an immediate physiological benefit by decreasing stress hormones. Cortisol levels can drop by 39% within 20 minutes of laughter. Laughter also suppresses epinephrine and triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers (Savage, 341).
• Cognitive Enhancement: Playful states activate the prefrontal cortex, enhancing executive function by 23% and creative problem-solving by 41%. Laughter specifically increases cognitive flexibility by 20% and stimulates both brain hemispheres simultaneously. This “mental uptick” can last for 15-45 minutes post-laughter.
• The dopamine-performance loop: Joy-inducing activities increase the production of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that directly improves focus, memory consolidation, and learning speed.
• Immune system boost: Positive thoughts can release neuropeptides that help fight stress and potentially more serious illnesses. Laughter has been shown to boost Natural Killer (NK) cell activity, strengthening the immune response for hours.

The psychological nature of play

Psychiatrist Dr. Stuart Brown, founder of the National Institute for Play, posits that play is a fundamental human need, as critical as sleep or digestion (Maguire). Rather than defining play, which can diminish its essence, Brown identifies seven core properties that can characterize a state of play:

1. Purposelessness: The activity is done for its own sake, without a focus on practical, material outcomes.
2. Voluntary nature: It is freely chosen and not an obligation. Once compelled, an activity loses its play component.
3. Inherent attraction: The activity is fun and makes us feel good, providing a cure for boredom.
4. Freedom from time: During play, one often loses track of time, escaping from the world of demands and commitments.
5. Diminished self-consciousness: The need to “look good” disappears, and individuals become lost in the activity, a state similar to Maslow’s “peak experience” or Csikszentmihalyi’s “flow.”
6. Improvisational potential: There is no rigid system; participants are open to chance and serendipity, which can lead to discoveries and creativity.
7. Continuation of desire: The experience is so pleasurable that the participant desires for it to continue, often inventing new ways to prolong the activity.

This framework is supported by foundational works such as Johan Huizinga’s Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element in Culture.

The antithesis of play: A misunderstood dichotomy

A critical insight from Dr. Stuart Brown, echoed throughout the research, is that “The opposite of play is not work…it is depression.” Modern work culture often creates an adversarial relationship with play, viewing it as a sign of disorganization or lack of focus. This perspective fosters a transactional and soulless environment, leading to burnout and disengagement. Life without play, which includes art, jokes, stories, and comedy, becomes dull and monochromatic.

Play as a strategic business advantage

Framing play as a core business strategy shifts it from being a morale booster to a competitive advantage. The data demonstrates a clear and compelling return on investment (ROI).

The ROI of a joy-capable culture

Quantitative business outcomes are directly linked to the presence of joy and engagement in the workplace. Research from Gallup and Harvard Business Review shows that companies with joy-capable employees exhibit significantly better performance.

• Profitability: 23% higher profitability.
• Productivity: 18% higher productivity and 31% higher productivity for teams led by joy-capable leaders.
• Sales: 37% better sales performance.
• Retention: 125% lower burnout rates.
• Decision Making: Leaders in positive emotional states make decisions with 19% better long-term outcomes.

As stated in one analysis, “Joy is not just a feeling. It is a powerful business strategy with a clear ROI.” In times of crisis, this capacity becomes critical infrastructure, providing the resilience and creative problem-solving necessary to navigate uncertainty.

The link to high-performing teams: Google’s Project Aristotle

Between 2012 and 2014, Google conducted a two-year study of 180 teams, known as Project Aristotle, to identify the key dynamics of successful teams. The project’s most significant finding was that psychological safety was the most critical factor.

• Defining psychological safety: Team members feel safe to share ideas, questions, concerns, and mistakes “without fear of embarrassment or humiliation.”
• The five factors of effective teams:
  • Psychological safety: The foundational element.
  • Dependability: Team members can rely on one another to deliver high-quality work on time.
  • Structure and clarity: Goals, roles, and execution plans are clear.
  • Meaning: The work is personally important to team members.
  • Impact: Team members believe their work matters and creates change.

Project Aristotle’s research also found that high-performing teams exhibited equality in conversational turn-taking and high “social sensitivity,” an attunement to others’ emotions and needs. Play is a direct and effective method for building these dynamics, with research showing that brief, playful interactions lead to 28% better collaboration metrics.

Play in practice: Real-world examples

Leading innovative companies have extended integrated play into their core processes:

• Google’s Innovation Time: Historically, it has allowed employees to spend a portion of their time on passion projects. (Leading to wins such as Gmail)
• Pixar’s “Plussing“: A technique for providing constructive feedback that builds on ideas rather than shutting them down.
• IDEO’s Prototyping Culture: Embracing rapid, low-stakes experimentation and iteration as a form of play.

Frameworks for practical implementation

To operationalize the benefits of play, leaders can adopt specific, structured protocols for themselves and their teams.

The leader’s personal toolkit: A daily protocol

We propose a “5-Minute Daily Joy Protocol“ as a method for leaders to build personal resilience and cognitive capacity through three specific “neuro-hacks.”

1. The Cortisol Crusher (39% Stress Reduction): A specific action designed to induce laughter and reduce stress.
2. Example: Watching a 30-second funny video before a high-stakes meeting.
3. The Prefrontal Power-Up (23% Executive Function Boost): A specific action to foster a “beginner’s mind” and improve focus.
4. Example: Deliberately approaching a routine task, like reviewing a budget, with fresh curiosity.
5. The Collaboration Catalyst (28% Psychological Safety Boost): A specific action to build team trust through intentional, lighthearted interaction.

Example: Starting a weekly check-in with a one-minute, silly “Play-Storming” activity.

This protocol can be anchored by a physical “desk reminder,” such as a LEGO minifigure, that serves as a visually disruptive cue to follow through on these commitments.

Scaling play across the organization

To move from personal practice to organizational culture, we suggest a “3-Point Play Action Plan”:

1. Infrastructure intervention: A scalable program to reduce team stress (e.g., creating a “Joy Channel” for sharing humor, implementing scheduled “power-down” blocks).
2. Collaboration initiative: A purposeful play activity designed to increase psychological safety in a specific team setting (e.g., using a building challenge to kick off a new project).
3. Measurement & review strategy: A clear plan for measuring the success of play initiatives (e.g., tracking innovation scores, analyzing burnout data from employee surveys).

Experiential learning: The Towers Challenge

A practical exercise we call the “Creative Towers Challenge” demonstrates the strategic value of collaborative play. Teams first build towers in isolation and then are instructed to combine their siloed creations. The resulting chaotic and unstable structure serves as a powerful metaphor for forced integration, illustrating that actual productivity and stability come from intentionally building the foundation together from the start.

Key insights & quotations

• On the nature of play: “The opposite of play is not work…it is depression” — Dr. Stuart Brown, MD.
• On the value of joy: “Joy is not just a feeling. It is a powerful business strategy with a clear ROI.” — Sam Thomas.
• On psychological safety: “Play happens when risk is fun” — Dr. Esther Prell.
• On human connection: “It is the quality of our relationships that determines the quality of our lives” — Dr. Esther Prell.
• On play as a solution: “Once people understand what play does for them, they can learn to bring a sense of excitement and adventure back into their lives, make work an extension of their play lives, and engage fully with the world” — Dr. Stuart Brown, MD

References

Huizinga, Johan. Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element in Culture. United States, Beacon Press, 1971.

Liu, Alex. “Making Joy a Priority at Work.” Harvard Business Review, 17 July 2019, Making Joy a Priority at Work. Accessed 8/13/2025.

Maguire, Larry. “Dr. Stuart Brown on The 7 Properties of Play.” Accessed 8/13/2025.

Poyton, Bea. “Google’s Project Aristotle.” Psych Safety, 28 March 2024. Accessed 10/20/2025.

Savage, Brandon. “Humor, laughter, learning, and health! A brief review.” Advances in Physiology Education, vol. 41, no. 3, 2017, pp. 321-491.

Image credit: LuckyBusiness

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