Strategy

Unleash the Inner CEO – book review 

Gaëlle Delmas-Watson

An insightful read that encourages embracing change and harnessing the power of leadership for success – reviewed by Gaëlle Watson  Book: Unleash the Inner CEO – Make distributed leadership a reality Author: Jeremy Blain Beyond the title of leadership, this book is about reinventing the workplace for the digital age. It clearly addresses the C-Suite of organisations, focusing on the most strategic elements of leadership transformation. The tone, vocabulary and examples are tailored to appeal to senior leadership teams. Bain passionately…

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Make learning count: How a clear aspiration drives business impact 

Houra Amin

Too often, L&D operates reactively, delivering training without clear business impact. You can change that when you anchor learning to strategic aspirations. Houra Amin explains how to drive measurable success Business leaders are increasingly recognising learning as a strategic driver of outcomes like retention, internal mobility and leadership development. Yet, many L&D teams struggle to translate this recognition into aligned, impactful initiatives. This article explores how anchoring your strategy to a clear aspiration can turn L&D into a powerful engine…

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Scaling skill adoption with AI and a human-centric approach 

James Swift

Take a phased approach and keep people at the heart of strategy, advises James Swift Leyton, like many businesses, prioritises client retention as a crucial driver of sustainable growth. Recognising that their consultants’ skills directly impacted client relationships and retention rates, Leyton’s talent development team sought innovative solutions to improve skill adoption and consistency across their workforce. The business challenge was to boost client retention.   AI provided unprecedented visibility into employee skill usage… replacing subjective observations with objective data  …

Global Sentiment Survey 2025 front cover showing Donald H Taylor (C) Don Taylor

L&D professionals question if AI really is a hot topic for 2025

Donald H Taylor launches his L&D Global Sentiment Survey and TJ digs into the results At the launch event for the of the L&D Global Sentiment Survey 2025, the 12th annual check of the pulse of L&D worldwide, Donald H Taylor has analysed answers from 3,339 people covering 93 countries. Don asks “What will be hot in workplace L&D?” for the coming year and people make a selection from 16 options, including AI, reskilling, learning analytics and others. Don highlights…

People in an office wearing VR googles.

Revolutionising corporate training with Virtual Reality: A bold new era for workforce learning

Partner Content

Are budget and safety issues with your training? This partner article explores the VR solution to make your learning experience next level Imagine stepping into a world where employees can perfect their skills without the fear of making costly mistakes. Picture new hires confidently operating complex machinery on day one—without even touching a real piece of equipment. This is the magic of VR in corporate training. It’s not just a trend; it’s here to stay, and adoption is growing. Learning…

3D rendering artificial intelligence AI research of robot and cyborg development for future of people living. Digital data mining and machine learning technology design for computer brain.

Shaping the future: How the UK’s AI action plan transforms learning and development

Jo Cook

The UK Government’s announcement to be an AI superpower will impact every L&D professional’s future Today to the UK government announced it’s AI Opportunities Action Plan, which has three key goals: These goals are interconnected and aim to position the UK as a leader in AI development and adoption. The goals explored Laying the foundations to enable AI: This goal focuses on creating the necessary infrastructure and conditions for AI to thrive. It involves: Changing lives by embracing AI: This…

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How to showcase the value of L&D to C-suite leaders 

Collin Poage

Savvy learning leaders align L&D with strategic business objectives to maximise its impact on organisations – Collin Poage explores how to effectively demonstrate L&D’s value to leadership  The role of L&D is changing. According to Gartner: “Learning and development functions face growing pressure to deliver critical skills in an environment of fast-changing skills needs, heightened employee expectations, and economic uncertainty.”  Learning leaders need to answer the question: “How does learning help advance our entire organisation?”  How can your company cope?…

Ger Driesen - white male with grey hair, wearing a suit, smiling.

TJ interviews: L&D Trend Catcher, Ger Driesen 

A trend what? Trend watching is easy, it’s what you do that makes the difference and Ger Driesen explains to Jo just what is involves Training Journal: What is a trend catcher and what does it involve?  Ger Driesen: Trend-watching is easy, you watch and then…? I introduced the term ‘trend catcher’; grabbing a trend, trying to understand it well and then translate it to what it could mean for your own profession – in my case, learning and development. …

The inscription diversity equity and inclusion is surrounded by colored cubes.

Navigating DEI trends: A strategic opportunity for UK companies  

Reshma Sheikh

By enhancing DEI strategies, UK firms can set themselves apart, fostering inclusivity that drives growth – Reshma Sheikh explains  As major US firms like Harley Davidson, Brown-Forman and Molson Coors Beverage Co scale back their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts due to financial pressures and shifting political climates, UK businesses face a pivotal moment.   UK firms can not only drive innovation and attract top talent, but also strengthen their brand reputation and stakeholder trust  This evolving landscape presents…

Laughing work colleagues brainstorming together in an office

Why your brainstorming sessions fail: How to unlock your team’s true creative potential

Chris Griffiths

Discover how strategies like daydreaming breaks, eliminating groupthink, and BrainSprinting can boost your team’s creativity with Chris Griffiths and Caragh Medlicott  In an ideal world, brainstorming sessions would always be fruitful. Everyone would come together, ideas would fly, and you’d leave with ideas aplenty and clear plans for implementation. Sadly, an ideal world isn’t quite where we live. Still, do not despair! As with anything in life, the strategy we bring to a task can have a huge impact on…