The Lounge with Yolanda Fraction (On Leadership, Professional Development, and Life)

They say, "the only thing constant is change." But, how do we operate a world filled with consistent change that never seems to end? How do we lead ourselves and sometimes, a team of people or organization through change? We must foster change champions, become change leaders ourselves and continue to find resilience while acknowledging, change is often immensely uncomfortable. In my new podcast episode, I focus on "Change Management and Digital Transformation with Change Consultant, Bukky Sodunke, MHA, PSM.

About Bukky Sodunke:

Bukky Sodunke is a Change Management and Organizational Development Professional with over 8 years of proven record and experience in organizational development, learning and development, training and facilitation, process improvement, technology implementation, operations, and program management. Current member of She Leads She Speaks Toastmasters club (PR Committee member/LinkedIn Manager and Team Lead for the upcoming She Summit, Production and Technology Committee). As a woman with multiple interests, outside of work, Bukky is a writer, blogger, and lover of brunch meals and event planning. Bukky enjoys a good Netflix binge, but she can also be found on long walks or a workout in the gym. Bukky also enjoys encouraging women to become their best selves, in their personal and professional lives, as she also continues to invest in herself. Check out her blog: The Evolving Woman

It seems like everywhere you look, people are talking about artificial intelligence or AI. Kirk Perry has been teaching people how to implement innovation and technology in infrastructures for the last 20 years. Kirk has worked in advertising, marketing, and product development.

How might we learn to leverage AI as a tool or resource? If you use Siri or Alexa, you've already been using generative AI. In this episode, I talk with Kirk Perry about generative artificial intelligence (AI) and the role that it is currently having in the world of work, and how it's especially impacted those in the creative industry. In this episode, I talk with Kirk Perry about his recent work that has led him to embark upon his new venture, Make Believe LLC. Want to learn how to use AI as a resource or tool? Kirk is creating an online course that helps others learn to leverage AI. His favorite AI is Midjourney.

To discover more about Kirk's innovative approach and MakeBelieve LLC's transformative projects, visit ⁠https://hiandai.com⁠ or ⁠https://karmageddon.wtf⁠.

About Kirk Perry:

Kirk Perry is not just a strategist and entrepreneur; he's a creative force dedicated to reimagining the intersection of AI, storytelling, and entertainment. His journey began in a family brimming with artists, where he absorbed a fervor for creativity and a vision for innovation that would define his career. With a diverse background in advertising, tech, production, and design, Kirk leveraged his extensive experience to launch his creative agency, renowned for its groundbreaking campaigns that captivate a broad clientele. His entrepreneurial spirit didn't stop there; he is now taking on his next mission, MakeBelieve LLC, a creation and business powerhouse at the forefront of integrating AI into compelling narratives and products. At MakeBelieve, Kirk is known for an unorthodox approach that fuses emotion, culture, and technology, creating experiences that do more than entertain—they resonate and reflect the diversity of human stories. His leadership has steered the company to new heights and set a benchmark in the industry for innovation and inclusivity. Kirk's guiding philosophy is boundless creation and openness to new possibilities, a principle underpinning every project at MakeBelieve. His aspiration is to shape a future where technology amplifies equity and diversity, ensuring every generation has a voice.

This Fall, Kevin has been a keynote speaker at the Chief Learning Officer (CLO) Symposium and LTEN Learning Executive Series, a DevLearn panelist and more, and now, he's gracing us with his presence in this episode! He's a "Learning Detective" and he solves measurement mysteries. But, he's not only measuring impact, he's making an impact (in our global community)!

Do you need to measure the impact of learning? He has 25+ years of experience doing this work! Check out this episode that talks about measuring the impact of learning, and making an impact in the community.

About Kevin M. Yates:

Kevin M. Yates is known in the global learning and development community as the “L&D Detective”. He solves measurement mysteries and investigates the impact of training and learning. Having worked with world renown brands like Grant Thornton, Kantar, McDonald’s, and most recently, Meta (Facebook), Kevin leverages his experience and expertise for revealing effectiveness and impact for training and learning. The core of his L&D Detective work is using facts, clues, evidence, and data to show the extent to which training and learning measurably contributes to human and business performance. He is also president and founder of Meals in the Meantime, a nonprofit helping people who need food with pop-up food pantries.

Are you in the midst of a career transition or career disruption? Career disruptions include everything from an organizational reorganization to a job layoff. How are you managing this time?

In this episode, Amy Petrecick will encourage you to trust yourself and the professional expertise that you bring to the spaces where you show up. We also chat about developing and leveraging your consultative skills as a professional and getting stakeholder buy-in.

Want to learn more about Amy? Amy is a seasoned learning leader who lives in Seattle, WA. She's passionate about making the world of work better for humans through enablement. She is also the host of the Share Whatcha Learned podcast - a podcast for learning professionals to share what they've learned in the field. If you're interested in receiving career coaching services check out: apcareerstrategist.com.

Right now, do you feel like your best self, personally and professionally? What's holding you back from becoming your best self yet? What are the barriers to being well? In this episode, we celebrate World Mental Health Day by bringing on a corporate wellness expert and therapist who will discuss some of her personal and professional tips for achieving success. Whether you are a senior leader, individual contributor or people manager, your role requires that you be "well". Let's not just survive, but thrive! We chat about becoming more aware of your needs, redefining your identity and how you view success as well as your expectations of yourself, and others.

*This episode is sponsored by Neon One, check out Neon One's upcoming event for non profit and impact professionals, Generosity Xchange. Generosity Xchange will take place on October 11th and 12th, 2023.

Guest Speaker Bio: Sabriya Charles is the award-winning Founder of Project Passport, LLC., a preventative mental wellness company focused on empowering individuals and organizational teams to take control of their mental health through interactive retreat and workshop experiences hosted on-site and remotely. Sabriya is also the Founder and Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern of the mental health practice Fruits of Freedom Counseling, where she provides therapeutic services to working professionals, teens, and emerging young adults to address mental health challenges. With her Master's degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Master Life Coaching certifications, she has innovated a methodology of practicality and hands-on experimentalism in corporate mental wellness training initiatives by incorporating existing and novel wellness approaches into new application styles via virtual and hybrid platforms. As a Certified Professional Trainer, Speaker, and Author, Sabriya has designed curriculums, facilitated, and coordinated multiple wellness experiences for thousands of attendees over the past few years. Sabriya is currently a Doctoral Student in Counselor Education and Supervision at the University of the Cumberlands.

In this episode with Life Coach, Tanya Jaklis, ACC, CPC, ELI-MP, we discuss:
- Women in transition, and aligning our core values to each season
- Redefining what success means to us in each season of our lives
- Going after dream opportunities WITHOUT experiencing burnout (overworking, saying yes when we want to say no, incorporating rest and play into our lives)
- The mind and body connection
- Work/life integration VS work/life balance

Learn more about Tanya Jaklis and her work:

In this episode, we sit down with Kate Udalova, co-founder of 7Taps. 7 Taps is a microlearning tool that may be used to design and develop microlearning. We also peek into Kate's journey as an entrepreneur and ed-tech startup co-founder. 

In this episode, I talk with career development expert and learning leader, Kason Morris. He's been in the learning field for over 15 years now, and is passionate about helping fellow learning professionals to drive their own career development journey. We talk about practical ways to get in the driver's seat and find career success.

About Kason Morris:

Kason [kay-sawn] Morris is a seasoned culture-driven, Learning, Talent, Organizational Development (L&OD) strategist and executor with an entrepreneurial spirit. He spends his days partnering with executives to make sure talent has the skills, support and drive they need to be the best in the industry - currently helping transform a hyper-growth SMB SaaS company with a $75MM ARR into an agile learning organization. He takes a practical approach to help companies optimize leadership and employee talent with relevant skills, using the latest in science & design, technology, storytelling and pure common sense to enable people at every career and business level to improve performance and drive business results. Over the past fifteen years, he has successfully trained tens of thousands and executed learning solutions for fortune 500 global organizations, including Accenture.

Contact Kason Morris on LinkedIn

In this episode, Jonathan Carbin and I sit down to discuss the news and information that we absorb, and how it influences our thinking about learning and development, and our overall, worldview. Do you feel like you're in a L&D (learning and development) bubble? Are you only taking in news and information about learning and development? How do we expand our thinking, so that we cultivate diversity of thought in our personal and professional lives? Do you feel like it's a bit "noisy" on social media and in the news, with content coming at you from all different places? How do we cut through the noise to focus on what's really important in our field, in business, and in our world? 

Jonathan Carbin, author of Learning, Developedsays, "90% of the articles and blog posts in this space are sponsored garbage without much value." We have to not rely just on social media algorithms to help us figure out what's most important, we have to create an "information diet".

And, stick around for a fun discussion topic at the end of this episode, I talk with Jonathan about an eLearning (microlearning) that he designed and developed about bats using 7Taps. He reminds us that eLearning isn't just a tool to be used in the workplace, in the traditional sense.

About Jonathan:

Jonathan Carbin is the author of Learning, Developed, a weekly newsletter for learning and development professionals. He's a Manager of Training at Realtor.com. He's a former music educator and loves playing the cello. 

In this episode, I sit down to talk with a Futurist, Rita J. King. We talk about the return to the office, the importance of designing effective meetings and the Imagination Age. Rita created The Imagination Age, a framework to transition from the Industrial Era to the Intelligence Era.

About Rita:Rita has been featured in The New York Times, Psychology Today, TIME, CNN, NPR, and many more mediums. She’s the Executive Vice President for Business Development at Science House, Co-founder of Model Meetings and a Resident Research Fellow at the Center for Engineered Natural Intelligence at UC San Diego. She’s also served as a Futurist at NASA Langley's think tank, The National Institute of Aerospace. 

This episode is straight from my heart to yours. After Hours is a new branch of The L&D Lounge podcast that I'll be running, to talk about whatever is on my mind related to learning and development, my career insights, and life itself. This particular episode is for anyone out there who's in transition. I share my story with you of how I've transitioned from being an elementary teacher to being a learning and development professional. I also share my thoughts on ways that you might find that next step in your career journey.

In this fun episode, I sit down with one of my favorite people to talk to, Shannon Tipton, owner of Learning Rebels. She's headed to ATD ICE 2021 and I'm thrilled to be able to give you, the listener, a sneak peek from her upcoming conference session, "Drips, Bots and Blogs". If you're wondering what that unique title is all about, be sure to press that play button! This episode is power-packed with gems on how to move from traditional to non-traditional training.

About Shannon Tipton and Learning Rebels: 

As Owner of Learning Rebels, Shannon is a skilled learning coach and strategist with over 20 years of leadership experience developing successful learning strategies and infrastructures for training departments within organizations in North America and Europe. As the author of “Disruptive Learning,” Shannon frequently speaks at conferences across North America and Europe. Shannon’s blog “Learning Rebels” is in the top 100 e-learning blogs.

Shannon has a new book out, Disruptive Learning: Bringing new thoughts, tips, and resources to the learning professional. 

This episode is for anybody out there who is a leader. A leader is simply anyone who influences people, anyone who has followers. We're going to mix things up and give you a fresh, new way to rethink leadership. We're talking about the importance of love in leadership. You might be saying, "Huh, love in leadership?" That's right, love is needed in our workplaces, now more than ever! We're in the midst of a global pandemic, racial injustice, natural disasters all over the world, and we all need folk to show a bit more love not just at home, but in our workplaces. Let's start inward with self-leadership, then we'll look outward, to people leadership.

In this episode, I'll be joined by a professional friend that I've known for a few years now, Jennifer McDowell. Jennifer has over 15 years of experience in the non-profit and education sector. She's recently made a career shift and started Common Good Coaching and Consulting. She is on a mission to help leaders reclaim their lives and make the difference they dreamed of by releasing their attachment to perfectionism, urgency, and individualism and centering compassion, dignity, and justice at work and at home.

Want to Learn More About Jennifer & Common Good Coaching: 

Visit Common Good Coaching and Consulting for more information about Jennifer's "Love in Leadership" Workshop or personal coaching offerings.

I'm a former elementary teacher. Sara Stevick, founder of TEACHING: A Path to Learning and Development is a former high school teacher. The community that she founded provides FREE support to teachers, to help them transition into learning and development (L&D). In this podcast episode, we talk about how teachers can successfully transition into learning and development. Sara provides practical advice based on her personal and professional experience making the leap! This episode is also for folk who are not teachers, but are looking for tips on how to transition into the field.

A Bit About Sara Stevick:

After 9 years of teaching high school, Sara left the classroom in 2020 and landed an amazing job doing corporate training. She leads a volunteer-based team of learning and development professionals who provide free, ongoing services to transitioning teachers. She has a generous heart and is passionate about helping others to successfully transition into learning and development.

Visit TEACHING: A Path to Learning and Development to learn more about the free services and resources that are available to teachers looking to make the transition. Know that you're not alone, and good luck!

In this episode, I talk with Dr. Britt Andreatta about the Hybrid Workplace report that she recently released with Voodle. Our conversation leads us to talk about how we've had to navigate workplace changes due to the pandemic and now, how we successfully return to the workplace.

Visit TEACHING: A Path to Learning and Development to learn more about the free services and resources that are available to teachers looking to make the transition. Know that you're not alone, and good luck!

About Dr. Britt & 7th Mind: 

As the CEO of 7th Mind, Inc., Dr. Britt is an internationally recognized thought leader who uses her unique background in leadership, neuroscience, psychology, and learning, to create groundbreaking solutions for today’s workplace challenges. Dr. Britt is the former Chief Learning Officer for Lynda.com (now LinkedIn Learning) and she has over 10 million views worldwide of her courses. She’s the author of Wired to Connect and most recently, Wired to Resist.

Download a free chapter of Wired to Connect. 

Download the Hybrid Workplace report by Voodle.

Join me in celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! But, let's remember that we should consider ways to support Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC's) year-round, not just during certain months, or on holidays. What's your role in supporting BIPOC's? What's your organization's role? Join me as I welcome Cynthia Pong, an award-winning career strategist, author, and coach to discuss practical ways that you and your organization can make this a conscious, year-round effort. Let's go beyond just requiring folk to attend DEI or Unconscious Bias training! No more check the box training!

About Cynthia:

Cynthia Pong, JD, is a feminist career strategist, speaker, and author ofDon’t Stay in Your Lane: The Career Change Guide for Women of Color. An NYU-trained lawyer turnedcareer coach, she is on a mission to embolden women of color to get the money, power, and respect that they deserve. Her career advice has been featured in NPR, HuffPost, FastCompany, and more. She also stands as a LinkedIn Top Voice for Job Search and Career.

Show Notes/Resources:

Wow, y'all, it's been a year and a half since the pandemic started! Many of us have been facilitating virtual training throughout the pandemic, the work has not slowed down, if anything, it's ramped up as we looked to find creative, meaningful and effective ways to continue to deliver best in class learning experiences. In this episode of the L&D Lounge, I sit down with virtual training expert, Cindy Huggett to discuss virtual training burnout. Join us as she gives us tips, tools and strategies for preventing and managing virtual training burnout for you, and your learners

About Cindy:

You can learn more about Cindy Huggett and access virtual training resources by visiting her website here.

Cindy Huggett, CPTD, is an independent consultant, speaker, instructional designer, classroom facilitator, and author who specializes in technology, leadership, and learning. She’s written several books on virtual training, presents frequently at industry conferences, and her online webcasts have been attended by thousands of people around the globe. She helps organizations and training professionals move to the virtual classroom. Cindy is also a past member of the ATD National Board of Directors and was one of the first to earn the Certified Professional in Learning and Performance (CPLP) designation.

Need help dealing with a mental health illness or issue, visit theNational Institute of Mental Health's resource page.

What is virtual production? How do you know when you should have a virtual producer? Should you be your own virtual producer if you're a learning team of one? In this episode, I sit down with Kassy LaBorie to answer these questions and chat about her new book, "Producing Virtual Trainings, Meetings and Webinars" that focuses solely on virtual production. Whether you choose to be your own virtual producer, or to hire one to support you, this conversation will leave you with lots to think about and work on. 

About Our Kassy:

Kassy LaBorie is an live online facilitator, producer, instructional designer, and virtual training platform expert. She is also a frequent and popular speaker at ATD, Training Magazine and other learning and development conferences and events. In her role as director of virtual training services for Dale Carnegie Training, Kassy leads the development of the live online training events focusing on program design, trainer and producer development, and overall participant experience. Prior to joining Dale Carnegie, Kassy held positions as a master trainer for InSync Training, where she delivered online programs using the many platforms available, and as a senior trainer at WebEx helping to build the WebEx University. She started her training career as a software trainer for which allowed her to develop the necessary technical agility to effortlessly run online events.

Want to purchase Kassy's new book, "Producing Virtual Training, Meetings, and Webinars?" You can find it here.

To learn more about Kassy LaBorie, you can find her on LinkedIn or visit her website, Kassy LaBorie Consulting. And, don't forget to check out her page of awesome free resources for virtual training.

What does it look like to be a Black or Brown learning and development professional in this day and age? Why do so few of us have a platform or voice in this field? In this episode, I reconnect with an old, familiar face, Deadra Welcome. I met Deadra while serving as the Director of Events with the Association for Talent Development's (ATD) Maryland chapter. Deadra is now on the board of directors with ATD Metro Washington D.C., where I'm currently a member.  

About Deadra:

Deadra Welcome is the Founder and Principal Consultant of Concerning Learning, LLC. She brings over 25 years of experience as a learning strategis and business partner to help you and your organization achieve higher levels of performance and reach your desired learning goals. Deadra spent 27 years working in the federal government as a training program manager. She is a Certified Professional in Talent Development (CPTD) and has many other credentials behind her name. 

To learn more about Deadra Welcome, visit her LinkedIn profile or business website, Concerning Learning.

Based in the United Kingdom, the award-winning, John Hinchliffe joins me in our virtual lounge to talk about how he's used this devastating pandemic to uplift learning and development professionals. Have you ever wondered why you take to binge watching Netflix shows so much? Perhaps, it's the user experience, and what can learning and development professionals do to create meaningful and engaging, binge-worthy learning experiences?

About John:

Nominated for a COVID Champion Learning Award for his efforts during the pandemic, silver Learning Professional of the Year awardee by the Learning and Performance Institute and former board director of the eLearning network, John's currently the Head of Talent at Jam Pan.

To contact or learn more about John, visit his LinkedIn profile page:https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-hinchliffe-yourskillshub/

In this episode, Yolanda Fraction, M.Ed. talks with Nicole Papaioannou, PhD about the importance of a strong needs analysis, reflects on overcoming virtual training hurdles at the beginning of the pandemic and discusses the importance of partnering with your internal and external client to create an engaging learning product. 

About Nicole: 

Nicole Papaioannou, PhD is an instructional designer and performance-focused, training consultant. Her entire professional career has been focused on empowering others to achieve their personal and professional goals. Over 250,000 users have taken courses that she designed or were designed under her leadership. Her work has been recognized by Brandon Hall and Chief Learning Officer Magazine. 

You can learn more about her work by visiting https://www.yourinstructionaldesigner.com/.

"Empathy is a recognition that the person in front of you has an experience that may be quite different from yours. It's not about a basic skill, it's not about a PowerPoint and it doesn't fit on a module. Let's take that E in e-Learning and include it to be empathic and to have empathy in that." - Elliott Masie 

About Elliot:

This high-profile, special guest really doesn't need an introduction! He is a true GOAT (greatest of all time) in my book, he coined the term "e-Learning" in the 1990's. And, I'm astonished just how far the field has come since then, most of us are now doing 100% virtual training and e-Learning has never been more important! Elliott is a Broadway producer, the founder and CEO of The Learning Consortium and The MASIE Center, among other roles. Join us for this special episode as we sit at the feet of this expert and develop our skills as learning professionals who value and honor the experiences of our learners.

About Mike: 

Mike Taylor is more than your average, run of the mill learning consultant, he is someone who’s constantly scanning the horizons for what’s best in class in L&D. He’s a learning nerd who specializes in the intersection of learning, design, and technology. This episode will give you lots of learning and development “gold nuggets” in such little time. Mike possesses a wealth of knowledge in this field and generously gives away his knowledge and advice during this show.

Join me on my virtual couch as I talk with my learning and development peer, Tamara Kravitz. She's applying inclusive design to her e-learning and live, virtual learning projects as she works as a government contractor with her clients to accommodate the needs of all learners.

I met Tamara a few years ago, when I was a member of the Maryland chapter of the Association for Talent Development (ATD). We've co-authored an article in ATD's Chief Talent Development Officer (CTDO) on Unconcious Bias. Tamara is someone that I consider to be my "iron" and I'm certain that I "iron sharpens iron".

About Tamara: 

Tamara Kravitz is an experienced learning director, instructional designer, adult learning specialist, learning strategist, and trainer. An expert at developing online training, instructional videos, human-centered UX/UI, podcast, animations, posters, course catalogs, marketing, and training campaigns. Key strengths include implementing game-based new hire training, LMS implementation and administration, engaging with SMEs, business leaders, and C-suite on training and education, mentoring new designers, managing learning teams, and leading training organizations by performance-driven results.

What do your learners need right now? What do "you" need right now? Is it human connection in this new normal, and mostly virtual environment? This episode is all about tapping into the power of human connection. Dr. Marisa Franco, Ph.D. will help you to think about ways to navigate this virtual environment, though you may be physically apart, you don't have to be socially apart. You'll also be able to use these "golden nuggets" to help your learners stay connected, while building successful professional relationships in the virtual space.

About Marisa:

Marisa Franco, Ph.D.,has a doctorate in Counseling Psychology from The University of Maryland. She was previously a professor at Georgia State University, where she became an academic expert on friendship. The research has taught her that being the type of person that others want as a friend has nothing to do with being accomplished or charismatic, but is all about loving and celebrating others. She currently works as a policy fellow at Millenium Challenge Corporation. There, she uses research to develop best-practices for building schools, hospitals, wells, and other projects that target international poverty.

Ever meet someone for the first time and feel like you've known them all your life? Yep! That's how I felt when I met Kassy LaBorie. She's a virtual training expert for many reasons. With over 20 years of experience designing, developing and delivering virtual training, she has a wealth of knowledge in her toolbox that she's happy to share with me, her new L&D (learning and development) friend and with all of you! Come join us as we sit on our virtual couch and talk about what's on our minds. 

About Kassy:

Kassy LaBorie is an live online facilitator, producer, instructional designer, and virtual training platform expert. She is also a frequent and popular speaker at ATD, Training Magazine and other learning and development conferences and events. In her role as director of virtual training services for Dale Carnegie Training, Kassy leads the development of the live online training events focusing on program design, trainer and producer development, and overall participant experience. Prior to joining Dale Carnegie, Kassy held positions as a master trainer for InSync Training, where she delivered online programs using the many platforms available, and as a senior trainer at WebEx helping to build the WebEx University. She started her training career as a software trainer for which allowed her to develop the necessary technical agility to effortlessly run online events.

To learn more about Kassy LaBorie, you can find her on LinkedIn or visit her website, Kassy LaBorie Consulting. And, don't forget to check out her page of awesome free resources for virtual training.