Voices of the Learning Network

The Learning Network
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Get ready for "Voices of the Learning Network", from The Learning Network! Tune in to hear straight from our members, and industry partners, and keep up with what happening in the Network and the wider Learning and Development industry! Voices of the Learning Network is the official podcast of The Learning Network. We are a Community Interest Company (CIC) and exist solely to support you as a learning professional – so whether you are a seasoned professional or have just entered the field, the Learning Network exists to help you no matter what stage of your career you’re in. We like to think we have something for everyone – our community includes instructional designers, trainers, developers, technologists, consultants, strategists, freelancers and industry leaders.

  1. Lowering the Barriers to High-Impact Video Learning

    5D AGO

    Lowering the Barriers to High-Impact Video Learning

    What if your most effective learning video could be filmed today — with the phone in your pocket? In this episode of Voices of the Learning Network, host Bill Banham is joined by Niki Hobson, Learning Specialist at the BBC, and a smartphone videographer and trainer on a mission to make video learning accessible to everyone - not just teams with big budgets and production crews. Niki believes that if you’ve got a smartphone, you’ve already got what you need to create meaningful learning experiences. At the Learning Network’s Connect Conference, she introduced her practical V.I.D.E.O. Framework - a five-step approach that helps teams plan, create, and publish learning videos with clarity, speed, and confidence. In this conversation, we dig into what really stops people from using video (hint: it’s rarely the tech), how to get teams comfortable on camera, and what “good enough” looks like when learning needs to move fast. Niki also shares how to reduce cognitive load, hook attention without gimmicks, and design video that actually leads to action. We explore the cultural side too: building psychological safety for experimentation, keeping momentum despite approvals and stakeholder pressure, and why video creation is becoming a core workplace capability — far beyond L&D and Marketing. This episode is packed with practical advice you can apply immediately. In this episode, we explore: Why smartphone video is powerful for learningThe real blockers to video adoptionNiki’s V.I.D.E.O. Framework explainedReducing cognitive load and designing for actionResearch on video length and attentionBuilding psychological safety for experimentationKeeping momentum in approval-heavy environmentsVideo skills as a future workplace capabilityIf this episode helps you rethink learning video, follow the show, share it with a colleague who needs a nudge, and leave a quick review so others can find us. Then try a one-minute video this week and see what changes. Connect with Niki: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikihobson/ Voices of the Learning Network is the Learning Network podcast connecting the learning and development community. https://thelearning-network.org/

    16 min
  2. When Training Connects To Feelings, Behavior Follows

    11/27/2025

    When Training Connects To Feelings, Behavior Follows

    Emotional connection, not more content, might be the real accelerator of learning. In this episode, Bill Banham talks with Caleb Foster, a hospitality veteran turned learning experience innovator, about why feelings drive behaviour change and how to design digital learning people genuinely care about. Caleb breaks down how story, tone, and visual language spark curiosity, build empathy, and create commitment. He shares hospitality-driven lessons for L&D, a powerful inclusion and belonging case study, and simple tactics teams can use right away - from micro-videos to intention tracking—to make learning relevant and measurable. If you’re ready to move beyond information dumps and build learning that sticks, this conversation offers clear principles, practical approaches, and a rethink of analytics that puts human sentiment at the centre. Connect with Caleb Foster: https://www.linkedin.com/in/calebafoster/ Connect with Bill Banham: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-banham-a932a0b/ Voices of the Learning Network is the Learning Network podcast connecting the learning and development community. https://thelearning-network.org/

    16 min
  3. What Happens When You Treat Stories Like Operating Systems?

    11/20/2025

    What Happens When You Treat Stories Like Operating Systems?

    What if learning design is standing at a real crossroads - one path toward a golden age of human impact, the other toward machine-paced irrelevance? That’s the provocative question Jonathan Hill, award-winning learning designer and evidence-first practitioner, helped Bill Banham tackle as they dug into how to make digital learning change behavior. Bill and Jonathan get specific about strategic storytelling and why it’s more than a pretty wrapper. Jonathan explains the difference between illustration and demonstration, showing how multi-perspective scenarios move learners from visceral first-person decisions to reflective third-person analysis. The litmus test is sharp and usable: if you can remove the story and nothing breaks, it wasn’t strategic. From compliance to performance, those stakes matter. We pair that creative rigor with practical production: PowerPoint as a vector engine, Pixabay and Unsplash for visuals, Free Sound for audio, Pixlr for edits, and Camtasia for fast, polished outputs. Budget constraints stop being blockers when every asset points at a clear operational goal. Working across time zones and cultures, Jonathan shares how to build trust and quality in distributed teams. He sets up virtual spaces for water cooler moments and learning clubs anchored in books by Julie Dirksen and Karl Kapp, using those shared anchors to surface different interpretations and sharpen decisions. Then we tie it all to outcomes that leaders care about: error rates, audits, rework, call waits, CSAT trends, and the qualitative signals inside complaints. Jonathan walks through A/B testing strategies that compare trained teams with control groups and highlights the valuable secondary effects—better morale, lower turnover, cleaner handoffs—that show up when friction drops on the front line. If you want learning that earns its seat at the performance table, this conversation offers a usable playbook: craft stories that do real work, ship with scrappy tools, and prove the change on the dashboard. Enjoyed the episode? Follow the show, share it with a colleague, and leave a quick review to help more learning pros find us. Connect with Jonathan Hill: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonhill123/ Connect with Bill Banham: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-banham-a932a0b/ Voices of the Learning Network is the Learning Network podcast connecting the learning and development community. https://thelearning-network.org/

    19 min
  4. From Learning Activity to Real Impact

    11/13/2025

    From Learning Activity to Real Impact

    What if L&D stopped counting completions and started multiplying impact? In this episode, Bill Banham chats with Paul Matthews, renowned author, speaker, and long-time L&D practitioner about how learning teams can move beyond activity metrics and drive real behavior change that moves the business. Paul unpacks the real leverage in learning: defining key behaviors, designing for application, and involving managers before and after training to ensure learning transfer sticks.  They also explore how AI and technology can amplify - or derail - impact in learning, from AI copilots and job-embedded nudges to the risk of producing low-value outputs when design discipline is skipped.  Key takeaways: Focus on behavior change, not completion ratesEngage managers to reinforce learning transferUse AI to scale what already works—spaced prompts, job aids, feedbackPilot small, measure what matters, and codify winsPaul also shares insights on cultural differences in learning, why some AI projects fail, and how L&D leaders can stay credible in a rapidly changing world. Connect with Paul Matthews: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulmatthews100/ Connect with Bill Banham: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-banham-a932a0b/ Voices of the Learning Network is the Learning Network podcast connecting the learning and development community. https://thelearning-network.org/

    17 min
  5. Marketing Your Learning: Hooks, Trust, and Real Impact at Work

    11/06/2025

    Marketing Your Learning: Hooks, Trust, and Real Impact at Work

    What if your next “course” wasn’t a course at all - but a sharp hook, a simple habit, and a message delivered exactly where work happens?  In this episode Bill Banham sits down with Bianca Baumann, VP of Learning Solutions and Innovation at Ardent Learning, to rethink how L&D earns attention, builds trust, and drives performance with the precision of great marketing. Bianca digs into the learner-before-content mindset and why it changes everything from scoping to scale. Bianca lays out practical moves any team can make this quarter: write like a marketer, lead with the “what’s in it for me,” and end every asset with a clear call to action. Instead of chasing new platforms, meet people in channels they already use - email, Slack, Teams, or even tooltips in your CRM - so guidance shows up at the exact moment of need. We also talk trust as a strategy: crowdsourcing institutional knowledge, opening creation to the business, and earning credibility by tying learning to real outcomes. Then we go upstream. Should L&D sit inside business lines rather than HR? Bianca explains how proximity turns reactive training orders into proactive performance consulting, where many “training requests” become communication or habit challenges. We explore AI’s near-term value - faster drafting, item writing, and analysis - with the necessary human oversight, and the longer horizon of agentic systems that deliver help in the flow of work. If you’re ready to pilot change, you’ll leave with concrete steps: rewrite course titles with hooks, run a six-part email drip from an existing module, and bring back results leaders care about. If this conversation sparks ideas, follow the show, share it with a colleague who wrangles “noisy” learning requests, and leave a quick review. Your feedback helps us reach more L&D pros who want to make learning simpler, smarter, and closer to the work. Connect with Bianca Baumann: https://www.linkedin.com/in/biancabaumann/ Connect with Bill Banham: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-banham-a932a0b/ Voices of the Learning Network is the Learning Network podcast connecting the learning and development community. https://thelearning-network.org/

    18 min
  6. Building Accessible Digital Learning That Works for All

    10/30/2025

    Building Accessible Digital Learning That Works for All

    Many learning teams still treat accessibility like a checklist. In this episode, we take a different path with Susi Miller, internationally recognized expert, author of Designing Accessible Learning Content, and  LPI Learning Professional of the Year 2025 who shows how inclusive design raises the bar for every learner and every program.  The conversation starts with a simple moment of truth: a screen reader user couldn’t navigate a course because of broken heading levels. From there, we unpack the habits that turn obstacles into better outcomes, including plain language, accurate captions, thoughtful color contrast, and predictable, keyboard-accessible interactions. Susi and host, Bill Banham dig into the blueberry muffin analogy - why accessibility must be mixed into the design from the start - and map practical steps across four access domains: vision, hearing, motor, and cognitive. Susi shares small, repeatable wins that compound over time: crafting strong alt text, building descriptive transcripts, and setting a consistent heading structure that helps humans and assistive tech. We also reframe the business case with new data from BCG suggesting roughly 25% of people report a disability or health condition that affects a major life activity. If a quarter of your workforce can’t fully access learning, excellence is off the table. AI enters as a force multiplier and a caution sign. Susi explains how generative tools can draft alt text and descriptive transcripts that save hours, especially for complex visuals, while reminding us that human review is non-negotiable to catch context, bias, and tone.  Finally, we focus on leadership: how to move beyond compliance to a mindset where accessibility equals quality. Share stories, set standards, and celebrate progress—because when teams feel that “accessibility spark,” inclusion becomes a reflex, not a retrofit. If you found this helpful, follow the show, share it with a colleague, and leave a quick review to help more learning pros find us. Connect with Susi Miller: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susimiller1/ Connect with Bill Banham: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-banham-a932a0b/ Learn more about Connect Conference: https://thelearning-network.org/event/connect-2025/ Voices of the Learning Network is the Learning Network podcast connecting the learning and development community. https://thelearning-network.org/

    21 min
  7. The Social Age at Work: Rethinking Learning, Trust, and Belonging

    10/23/2025

    The Social Age at Work: Rethinking Learning, Trust, and Belonging

    Certainty can be a comfort and a trap. In this episode, host Bill Banham sits down with Julian Stodd, author and founder of Seesaw Learning, to explore how the Social Age is reshaping learning, leadership, and power. From radical connectivity to the fracturing social contract and the rise of AI’s dialogic potential, Julian maps the landscape where old organizational structures fail to hold and new practices must emerge. Key discussion points include: The paradox of personalization: Generative AI enables on-demand support but undermines the ownership and control L&D once held over programs and platforms.Scaffolding social learning: Creating lightweight, peer-driven spaces for sensemaking, divergent outcomes, and performance embedded in practice.Erosion timelines: Why structural change may appear slow but can surface dramatically within 3–5 years—and why the next 18 months are critical for deep thinking.Performance management as cultural litmus: How AI makes feedback continuous and authority more transparent.Hybrid work and belonging: Research-backed strategies to build trust, agency, and connection beyond the “back to office” tug-of-war.Early-career development: Reverse mentoring, diagonal connections, and dialogic cohorts that privilege judgment and evidence over tenure.Second-level analysis: How organizations can hold multiple interpretations of events without rushing to closure.If you’re ready to rethink learning design, capability building, and the ethics of AI adoption, this conversation offers both a map and a mindset. Listen now, subscribe, and share with a colleague. Where should your organization loosen control and where must it hold the line? Connect with Julian Stodd: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julian-stodd-6774377/ Connect with Bill Banham: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-banham-a932a0b/ Learn more about Connect Conference: https://thelearning-network.org/event/connect-2025/ Voices of the Learning Network is the Learning Network podcast connecting the learning and development community. https://thelearning-network.org/

    25 min
  8. From Brain Science to Better Learning

    10/16/2025

    From Brain Science to Better Learning

    Why do some trainings transform behavior while others disappear by Monday morning? In this episode, host Bill Banham sits down with neuroscientist and Synaptic Potential founder and Connect 2025 Keynote Amy Brann to explore how brain science translates into better learning, leadership, and performance. From hot vs. cold networks to psychological safety and reward systems, Amy explains how emotions direct attention, why stress can shut down higher-order thinking, and how techniques like spacing and retrieval build long-term habits. Key discussion points include: The hidden cost of cognitive overload and how shorter, multimodal sessions improve learning.Why defaulting to “build a course” often misses the true goal - behavior change.The role of experience-based triggers and social reinforcement in habit formation.Guardrails for using AI in learning: avoiding overload, supporting critical thinking, and ensuring early-career learners get foundational reps.Real-world case studies, from C-suite culture shifts to smarter feedback practices in finance.If you care about designing learning that sticks, creating expansive teams, and leading with respect for how the brain changes, this episode is your field guide. Connect with Amy Brann: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybrann/ Connect with Bill Banham: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-banham-a932a0b/ Learn more about Connect Conference: https://thelearning-network.org/event/connect-2025/ Voices of the Learning Network is the Learning Network podcast connecting the learning and development community. https://thelearning-network.org/

    19 min
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About

Get ready for "Voices of the Learning Network", from The Learning Network! Tune in to hear straight from our members, and industry partners, and keep up with what happening in the Network and the wider Learning and Development industry! Voices of the Learning Network is the official podcast of The Learning Network. We are a Community Interest Company (CIC) and exist solely to support you as a learning professional – so whether you are a seasoned professional or have just entered the field, the Learning Network exists to help you no matter what stage of your career you’re in. We like to think we have something for everyone – our community includes instructional designers, trainers, developers, technologists, consultants, strategists, freelancers and industry leaders.

Information

  • Creator
    The Learning Network
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    20
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Learning Network
  • Show Website
    Voices of the Learning Network