Another 5 podcasts every L&D professional should listen to

When I wrote 5 podcasts every e-learning professional should listen to in 2019, little did I know that our profession was on the cusp of an existential challenge via a compulsory experiment in remote working.

Back then I used the term “e-learning” in its broadest sense; including, for example, virtual classes – which one may be forgiven for forgetting weren’t de rigueur at the time. Presciently (in hindsight) my team had introduced them as part of our pedagogical mix, so we were relatively well placed to adapt to the new conditions and insulate ourselves from the state of emergency that so many of our peers found themselves in.

Since then, all but one of the podcasts on my list are still going strong. (Chris Pirie’s is the exception, but his back catalogue is still worth a listen.)

And while I was between gigs recently, I seized the opportunity to appear on several other podcasts that launched post Covid. This in turn prompted me to follow up my original list with another 5 recommendations.

This time around I swapped out the term “e-learning” for “L&D”, as we’re all e-learning professionals now…

6. Pursuing Performance

Despite retiring after a rich and varied career, Guy Wallace is still sharing his wisdom via resources such as The Pursuing Performance Podcast.

I admire Guy’s laser-sharp focus on outcomes over activity, and I enjoyed appearing in Episode 91 to talk about the measurement of learning, the end-to-end development effort, and the impact of AI on L&D.

7. The Learning+ Podcast

Srividya Kumar is a co-founder of the award-winning Learnnovators group, and The Learning+ Podcast showcases her intellectual curiosity and drive for excellence.

I admire how she shines a light on the many aspects of L&D, all of which add up to make a difference. Her playlist reminds me of Al Pacino’s speech in Any Given Sunday: “It’s a game of inches. The inches we need are everywhere around us.”

I was honoured to be Vidya’s inaugural guest on Episode 1: Embracing Human-Centered Design in L&D and then again on Episode 42: Putting Skills to Work.

8. The Indian ID

Purnima Valiathan is a co-founder of ID Mentors, and she uses The Indian ID as a platform to socialise her deep instructional design expertise.

I was pleased to join Purnima on a Conversations about LXD episode to discuss the impact of Human Centered Design and artificial intelligence on the role of the instructional designer.

9. The Dark Money Files

Financial crime experts Graham Barrow and Ray Blake host The Dark Money Files in which they provide expert commentary on hot topics in compliance and regulation.

Season 11’s Episode 12: Financial Crime Training – Mind the gap! is a must-hear for L&D professionals.

10. Damn Interesting

As per Hardcore History last time, this listing is a public service announcement to remind whoever needs to hear it that we’re not all TikTok obsessives with the attention span of a gnat.

Alan Bellows and his team prove the point with Damn Interesting via which they unearth fascinating stories that might otherwise remain buried in the annals of time.

The duration of each episode ranges from less than 10 minutes to well over an hour, letting the argument for engaging content speak for itself.