IDTX Podcast

Tom McDowall
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Hosted by Tom McDowall, The IDTX Podcast explores what’s really happening in the L&D world right now. From evidence-informed practice and instructional design decisions to the realities of using learning technology inside complex organisations, this is a space for honest conversations rather than polished sales narratives. You'll hear from all the IDTX speakers ahead of their conference appearances throughout the year, allowing you to learn from their years of collective expertise and get a taste of what it's like to attend an IDTX event.

Episodes

  1. FEB 17

    A New Framework for Measuring Impact and A Safe Place to Practice

    In this episode, I chat with Dr Heidi Kirby and Helen Routledge about their sessions at IDTX Online 2026. Heidi shares FUSE, her framework for useful learning evaluation, built to scale from small assets to big programmes, and designed to slot into whatever design process you already use. Helen explores the conditions for real world capability, grounded in psychology and behavioural science, and how to design learning that helps people practise, own decisions, and apply skills when it matters. IDTX Online is free to attend, and sessions will be available as recordings afterwards. If you have not already, head over to the IDTX website to book your ticket. If you would like to join us in person in May for the Evidence Informed Practice Conference, tickets are available but strictly limited. Creators & Guests Tom McDowall - Host Dr. Heidi Kirby - Guest Helen Routledge - Guest Sessions featured (IDTX Online 2026)FUSE: A framework for useful learning evaluation (Dr Heidi Kirby)Day 1, 18 February, 6:00pm UK time (closing keynote)What makes skills stick: The conditions for real world capability (Helen Routledge)Day 2, 19 February, 11:00am UK timeWhat we talk about Why many evaluation frameworks struggle to reflect today’s workplace reality, including scale, modern working patterns, and the pressure to demonstrate organisational impactWhat Heidi wanted to fix with FUSE, including avoiding implied hierarchy, and making evaluation workable for both small and large learning workThe common blockers to demonstrating impact, including the myth that L&D has to be the sole cause of results, and the temptation to look for one measurement approach that fits everythingThe conditions that help skills transfer into real work, and why practice, ownership, and safe failure matterHow lessons from psychology and the games world can translate into practical design choices, even if you are not building simulations or VROne thing to try after listening For your next project, plan how you will measure beyond completions and “did they like it”, and aim to triangulate evidence rather than hunting for a single perfect metricLook for one way to create a safer practice moment, where people make choices and learn from the consequences, instead of only being told what to doTickets, recordings, and what’s nextIDTX Online (18 and 19 February) is free to attend, and sessions will also be available as recordings afterwards. Book your ticket on the IDTX website. If you would like to join us in person on 29 May in Birmingham for the Evidence Informed Practice Conference, tickets are £100 and limited to 100 attendees, so now is the time to book. You can also find details on the Virtual Summit on the IDTX site. Sponsors and supportersThis week’s IDTX Online event is sponsored by L&D Free Spirits and supported by The CPD Group and Learning News. (00:00) - Intro (00:34) - Episode overview and IDTX Online reminder (01:20) - Heidi Kirby interview begins (09:37) - Helen Routledge interview begins (15:00) - Closing and event reminders Click here to view the episode transcript.

    15 min

  2. FEB 17

    Becoming a Strategic Learning Partner and The 12 Levers of Learning Transfer

    In this episode, I chat with Linnéa Sjögren and Melanie Martinelli about their sessions at IDTX Online 2026, both live on 19 February. Linnéa is speaking to anyone in L&D who’s tired of waiting for “a seat at the table”, and wants to operate as a strategic learning partner, focused on business outcomes, not just training requests. Melanie is tackling one of the biggest gaps in workplace learning: transfer. Her session uses a practical card game to surface common transfer barriers, create shared language with stakeholders, and plan for application before a programme even rolls out. Whether you’re joining live or catching the recordings afterwards, it’s worth listening to what they have to say. IDTX Online is free to attend, so if you haven’t already, head over to the IDTX website and book your ticket. If you’d like to join us in person in May for the Evidence Informed Practice Conference, tickets are available but strictly limited. Creators & Guests Tom McDowall - Host Linnéa Sjögren - Guest Melanie Martinelli - Guest Sessions featured (IDTX Online 2026)Stop waiting for permission. Become a strategic learning partner (Linnéa Sjögren)Day 2, 19 February, 12:00pm UK time Let’s play cards and make transfer a hot topic, exploring the 12 levers of learning transfer (Melanie Martinelli)Day 2, 19 February, 5:30pm UK timeWhat we talk about Why “waiting for a seat at the table” has kept L&D stuck for years, and what it looks like to move anywayShifting from “deliver the training we were asked for” to “solve for the business outcome”, including saying no to training when it isn’t the answerDesigning for reality as it is, messy, complex, and full of constraints, rather than oversimplifying problems into neat course shaped boxesWhy transfer should never be an afterthought, and how to surface barriers before you launch a programmeUsing a card game to make transfer discussions safer, more concrete, and easier to run with stakeholders who would otherwise push backOne thing to try after listening Linnéa: stop oversimplifying. Assume the problem is complicated, and let your approach reflect that.Melanie: take a first step into transfer by learning what the 12 levers of transfer effectiveness are, then use them as a lens to spot blind spots and prioritise what to improve.Tickets and what’s nextIDTX Online (18 and 19 February) is free to attend, and sessions will be available as recordings afterwards. Book your ticket on the IDTX website. If you’d like to join us in person on 29 May for the Evidence Informed Practice Conference in Birmingham, tickets are available but strictly limited. Learn more on the website. (00:00) - Intro (00:35) - Episode overview and IDTX Online reminder (01:20) - Linnéa interview begins (11:07) - Melanie interview begins (19:09) - Closing and event reminders Click here to view the episode transcript.

    20 min

  3. FEB 16

    LMS Speed Launches and Serious Play for Serious Learning

    In this episode, I chat with Clea Mahoney and Sheetal Revis about their sessions at IDTX Online 2026. Clea shares what it really looks like to select and ship a customer education LMS fast, including what she would do differently next time. Sheetal shares how she designed employee relations learning that still takes the topic seriously, without drowning people in policy, and what it takes to build organisational trust to deliver learning in a more creative way. IDTX Online is free to attend, and every session will also be recorded and shared for free afterwards. If you have not already, head over to the IDTX website to book your ticket. If you would like to join us in person in May for the Evidence-Informed Practice Conference, tickets are available but strictly limited. Creators & Guests Tom McDowall - Host Clea Mahoney - Guest Sheetal Revis - Guest (00:00) - Intro (00:35) - Episode overview and ticket reminder (01:09) - Clea interview begins (12:54) - Sheetal interview begins (21:06) - Closing and event reminders Click here to view the episode transcript.

    22 min

  4. FEB 10

    Marketing Techniques for L&D and One Question Scenario Design

    In this episode, Tom McDowall is joined by Bianca Bowman, Mike Taylor, and Christy Tucker for a practical preview of their upcoming sessions at IDTX Online 2026. Bianca and Mike share how to borrow useful marketing principles without turning your job into “content marketer plus everything else”, starting with content strategy, then moving into SURE content principles: Simple, Useful, Resonant, and Easy to skim. Christy breaks down a simple way to improve assessment quality quickly: one question mini scenarios that help people practise real decisions, even if your reality is still “slides plus a knowledge check”. To book tickets and see upcoming events, head over to the IDTX website. What this episode is about Making L&D content more compelling and more useful, and making assessments better at testing judgment, not just recall. What you’ll take away A simple way to think about content strategy before you build anything newHow the SURE approach helps you create content people will actually read and useWhy “easy to skim” is not dumbing down, it’s designing for real humansHow mini scenarios can upgrade assessments without needing new tools or approvalsCreators & Guests Bianca Baumann - Guest Christy Tucker - Guest Mike Taylor - Guest Tom McDowall - Host Sessions mentioned (IDTX Online 2026) Mini is More: Create One Question Scenarios for Better Assessment (Christy Tucker)19 February, 2:45pm UK timeFrom Zero to Hero: Marketing Techniques for Captivating L&D Content (Bianca Bowman and Mike Taylor)19 February, 4:35pm UK timeOne thing to try after listeningPick one existing learning asset or module and do just one upgrade: Run it through SURE (Simple, Useful, Resonant, Easy to skim), orTurn one knowledge check into a mini scenario that asks for a decision, then give feedback that teachesTickets IDTX Online runs 18–19 February and is free to attend.For tickets and event details, head over to the IDTX website. (00:00) - Intro and what the podcast is about (00:34) - Episode overview and IDTX Online reminder (01:10) - Bianca and Mike, content strategy and SURE (11:56) - Christy Tucker, mini scenarios for assessment

    20 min

  5. EPISODE 1

    IDTX 2026 Trailer

    Introducing the IDTX Podcast Learning and development is a noisy space. There’s no shortage of confident opinions, shiny tools, or bold claims about what will “fix” learning at work. The reality, as most practitioners know, is that improving practice is usually slower, messier, and far more interesting than the headlines suggest. This episode introduces the IDTX Podcast, a short, practical show for people working in learning and development, instructional design, and related roles who care about doing the work well, not just talking about it. Hosted by Tom McDowall, the podcast focuses on clear thinking, evidence informed practice, and real world experience. Episodes are deliberately concise, usually around twenty to twenty five minutes, and feature two focused conversations with practitioners, researchers, speakers, and contributors from across the IDTX community and the wider L&D industry. In this introductory episode, Tom explains: What the IDTX Podcast is and who it’s forWhy the focus is on practical insight rather than hype or sales narrativesHow each episode is structured, and what listeners can expectHow the podcast connects to the three IDTX events running this yearThose events include: IDTX Online, a virtual conference inFebruary, pay what you wantThe Evidence Informed Practice Conference, an in-person, one-day event in Birmingham on 29 May, focused on the science of learning in practiceThe IDTX Virtual Summit, a one-day online event on 22 October, reflecting on the technologies and practices that shaped the yearAlongside these events, the IDTX Podcast will also feature conversations with speakers, sponsors, and other industry experts, as well as regular webinars throughout the year. While sponsors support the work, IDTX remains a sales-free environment and is not run as a money-making enterprise. Above all else, this podcast exists to give you short, focused, highly practical insights that help you improve your practice as an L&D professional. Useful Links Tickets for all IDTX events are available nowIDTX Online and the IDTX Virtual Summit are pay-what-you-likeThe Evidence Informed Practise Conference is £100 including VAT, covering the venue, catering, and the full day experienceIf you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast or one of the IDTX events, you’re welcome to get in touch.

    2 min

Trailer

About

Hosted by Tom McDowall, The IDTX Podcast explores what’s really happening in the L&D world right now. From evidence-informed practice and instructional design decisions to the realities of using learning technology inside complex organisations, this is a space for honest conversations rather than polished sales narratives. You'll hear from all the IDTX speakers ahead of their conference appearances throughout the year, allowing you to learn from their years of collective expertise and get a taste of what it's like to attend an IDTX event.

Information

  • Creator
    Tom McDowall
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    5
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Evolve Learning Design T/A IDTX