The L&D Explorers Podcast

Analyzing Learning Effectiveness with Amanda Abraham

In this episode of the L&D Explorers Podcast, we’re joined by Amanda Abraham, Senior Learning Manager at CPA Ontario, who brings years of experience in instructional design and curriculum development.
Amanda shares her insights on evaluating the true impact of training, aligning L&D strategies with business goals, and the importance of tailoring learning for diverse skill levels—including the C-suite.
Whether you’re an L&D professional or just starting out, this episode is packed with actionable strategies to elevate your learning programs.
🎬 The highlights:
00:00 Introduction
01:42 Initial reactions vs. long-term impact of training
04:05 What matters to senior stakeholders / The metrics that matter
05:14 Bridging training with business goals
08:09 How to assess training outcomes through organizational objectives
14:14 Why initial reactions still matter
18:44 On building an L&D strategy
23:30 L&D for the C-Suite
29:45 The future of learning evaluation
33:32 Final thoughts
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Managing Remote Teams | Alicia Hughes | E11

Welcome back to the L&D Explorers podcast from GoSkills! 🎙️ In today’s episode, we speak with Alicia Hughes, founder of Sparking Up Leadership.
She joins us to discuss the essential skills remote leaders need, how L&D teams can provide the right training, and the importance of building a remote culture – even if you have to schedule the fun.
🎬 The highlights:
00:00 Introduction
01:39 Key skills for remote teams
5:50 Virtual workplace best practices
7:32 Building organizational culture remotely
10:09 Scheduling in fun
11:40 Seeing your team virtually and in person
16:08 Leadership training programs for remote companies
18:49 Future trends
🚀 Discover how our LMS and course builder can transform your remote team’s learning journey: ⁠https://www.goskills.com/lms⁠
🤝 Join our L&D Explorers Club — your hub for insights, community, and growth: ⁠https://www.goskills.com/l-and-d-community-explorers⁠
About Alicia Hughes:Alicia is the founder of Sparking Up Leadership, designed to help organizations thrive in the virtual realm. She has over 20 years of experience in the world of education, including Middle & High School teaching experience, Assistant Principal & Principal roles, & time spent as the School Leader at the largest school in the state of SC. Alicia brings her enthusiasm for creating strong cultures to her work.
Alicia is also a published author on leadership best practices, having just released the book Sparking up Leadership ~ Igniting your Influence with Sparkle & Shine — a book that puts emphasis on relationships, positivity, joy, and FUN at the core of leadership. Through anecdotes and insights, Alicia reveals the transformative power of treating others as you wish to be treated — a timeless truth at the heart of effective leadership.
👉 Connect with her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alicia-victoria-hughes/
👉 Visit her website: https://sparkingupleadership.com/
Subscribe to ⁠ @GoSkillsCourses ⁠ for the latest podcast episodes!
🔔 Follow us on social media for more L&D advice:
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#RemoteTeams #RemoteTraining #LeadershipDevelopment #LearningAndDevelopment #CorporateTraining #Elearning #LDExplorersPodcast #GoSkills

The Science of Learner Engagement | Clark Quinn | E10

Welcome to the L&D Explorers podcast from GoSkills! 🎙️ In today’s episode, we talk to Dr. Clark Quinn, founder of Quinnovation.com and a renowned expert in Learning Experience Design and Development.He joins us to discuss the importance of learner engagement, how to keep learners engaged, the role of feedback, and what we can learn from game design to inform our L&D efforts.🎬
The highlights:
00:00 Introduction
00:21 What is learner engagement?
03:54 The trilogy of mind: cognition, affect, and conation
04:30 How to make people want to learn
06:08 How to engage learners from the start
10:00 How to maintain engagement
13:09 How to avoid overwhelming learners
16:18 The role of feedback in learning
21:15 What games can teach us about learning
26:02 How to assess learning effectiveness
28:36 Conclusion
📚 Get the key takeaways from this episode here: ⁠https://www.goskills.com/Resources/learner-engagement-podcast⁠
👨‍🏫 Simplify course creation with the GoSkills course builder, our AI-powered authoring tool. Try it for free: ⁠https://www.goskills.com/course-builder⁠
🚀 Discover how our LMS and course builder can transform your team’s learning journey: ⁠https://www.goskills.com/lms⁠
🤝 Join our L&D Explorers Club — your hub for insights, community, and growth: ⁠https://www.goskills.com/l-and-d-community-explorers⁠
About Dr. Clark Quinn:
Clark Quinn, Ph.D., is a recognized leader in learning technology strategy, helping organizations leverage information systems to meet learning, knowledge, and performance needs. His approach, learning experience design, combines what we know about how people think and learn with an understanding of technology’s capabilities to address real needs.
In addition to leading Quinnovation, he currently serves as Co-Director of the evidence-based L&D society The Learning Development Accelerator and as Science Advisor to the learning-extending platform Elevator 9.
👉 Visit his website: https://quinnovation.com/
👉 Visit his accelerator: https://ldaccelerator.com/
👉 Visit Elevator 9: https://www.elevator9.com/
Subscribe to ⁠ @GoSkillsCourses ⁠ for the latest podcast episodes!
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#LearnerEngagement #InstructionalDesign #InstructionalDesigner #LearningAndDevelopment #CorporateTraining #LearningDesign #Elearning #LDExplorersPodcast #GoSkills

Mastering Visual Design for Learning | Connie Malamed | E9

Welcome to another episode of the L&D Explorers Podcast! 🎙️ In this episode, we’re joined by Connie Malamed, the founder and Chief Mentor at Mastering Instructional Design, for a masterclass in visual design for elearning.
Connie shares the importance of visual design in all it's different forms, actionable ways to hone your visual design skills, and why feedback holds can hold the secret to improving knowledge transfer.
👨‍🏫 Simplify course creation with the GoSkills course builder, our AI-powered authoring tool. Try it for free: https://www.goskills.com/course-builder
🚀 Discover how our LMS and course builder can transform your team’s learning journey: https://www.goskills.com/lms
🤝 Join our L&D Explorers Club — your hub for insights, community, and growth: https://www.goskills.com/l-and-d-community-explorers
About Connie Malamed:
Connie Malamed helps people learn and build instructional design skills at Mastering Instructional Design. She is a consultant, author and international speaker in the fields of online learning and visual communication. Connie is the author of Visual Design Solutions and Visual Language for Designers. She also publishes The eLearning Coach website and podcast. She was honored with the Guild Master award in 2018 for contributions to the learning technologies industry.
👉 Visit her Instructional Design community: https://masteringid.com
👉 Visit her website: https://conniemalamed.com/
👉 Read her blog: https://theelearningcoach.com/
👉 Listen to her podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-elearning-coach-podcast/id592110281
👉 Connect with Connie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conniemalamed/
Subscribe to @GoSkillsCourses for the latest podcast episodes!
🔔 Follow us on social media for more L&D advice:
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☑️ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goskills/
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#InstructionalDesign #InstructionalDesigner #VisualDesign #LearningAndDevelopment #CorporateTraining #LearningDesign #Elearning #LDExplorersPodcast #GoSkills

How to Become an Instructional Designer | Holly Owens | E8

Welcome to another episode of the L&D Explorers Podcast! 🎙️ In this episode, we’re joined by the inspiring Holly Owens to dive into the exciting—and sometimes challenging—world of instructional design.
Holly shares her journey into ID roles, the challenges she overcame, the skills that helped her thrive, and the essential tools and communities that can help new instructional designers succeed.

How to Fix a Broken Learning Culture | Andrew Barry | E7

Welcome to Season 2 of the L&D Explorers Podcast! 🎙️ In this episode, we’re joined by the brilliant ‪Andrew Barry‬, founder of Curious Lion and host of The Learning Culture Podcast.
Andrew unpacks the essentials of building a thriving learning culture in your organization. From practical strategies to the transformative role of AI in shaping the future of work, Andrew shares actionable insights that will inspire you to rethink how your organization learns and grows.

Social Learning | Robin Sargent | E6

We're thrilled to chat with Dr. Robin Sargent, founder of @idolcourses, about social learning. We'll be diving into its four key elements, how it operates within organizations, and practical ways L&D teams can integrate it into formal training. Plus, we'll discuss the impact of social learning on workplace culture and the vital role of learning artifacts.

AI Literacy and Data Ethics | Stella Lee | E5

In today's episode, we're thrilled to chat with Dr. Stella Lee, founder of Paradox Learning and a leading expert in digital learning and AI strategy. We're diving into AI literacy and data ethics. 🌐
Join us as we explore how L&D teams can better understand AI, recommend steps for adoption and communication, and discuss the importance of data ethics in building a culture of responsible AI use.

How to Create a Successful E-Learning Course | Marina Arshavskiy | E4

Welcome to another episode of our L&D Explorers podcast! 👋
Today, we're talking with Marina Arshavskiy, an award-winning instructional design and e-learning expert, about how to design a successful e-learning course. We'll discuss each step in the course-building process, from needs assessment to creating learning objectives, understanding your audience, and ensuring the content of your course resonates with your learners.

AI in Learning and Development | Alexander Salas | E3

We're joined by Alexander Salas, a renowned learning experience designer and e-learning expert. Together, we explore how AI automation can revolutionize your L&D by enhancing efficiency and streamlining course creation.
01:00 Impact of AI in L&D and Instructional Design08:28 Leveraging AI Tools 15:44 How to Integrate AI Into Your Strategy20:28 AI's Ethical Implications in L&D24:11 What's next for L&D and Instructional Designers