Diary of a CLO (Thrive)

Sally Gunnell is a household name in athletics after an illustrious career on the track. No other woman has held Commonwealth, European, World, and Olympic track titles concurrently and although her world record has since been broken, Sally Gunnell is firmly planted as one of the greatest female athletes of all time. Now the founder of Sally Gunnell Health and Wellbeing, Sally is using the knowledge and skills she established during her athletics career, to help guide others to make better and more informed lifestyle choices. In the episode Sally shares how she got close to burnout before she realised she needed help, how confidence doesn’t always come naturally and why focusing on your mental and physical health is so important. It’s a great conversation. Enjoy.

Sally Gunnell health and wellbeing

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In this episode I’m joined by Adam Horne, Co-founder of OpenOrg and People Metrics. Adam is pushing for more open and transparent working, particularly across people teams in the start-up space. As a new Dad for the third time, and a business founder by trade, Adam is no stranger to hard work and graft, but he also knows how important it is to get the people stuff right in order to impact business performance. We chat about all of this and more. Enjoy.

Adam Horne

OpenOrg

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Dan Murray-Serter is host of one of the UK's top podcasts, Secret Leaders, an entrepreneur, and founder of Heights, a brain healthcare supplement. Join us for this conversation where Dan takes us on his journey, talks about how he balances his mental and physical health, and also prepares himself to learn. It's a good one. Enjoy.

Heights braincare

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In this episode I’m joined by Pauline Rebourgeon, Head of Learning Technology and Innovation at Ericsson. If you can imagine someone who epitomises what a successful L&D professional should look like, Pauline is your lady. With a role that intersects across innovation, technology and community-building, the work Pauline is doing - particularly in the AI coaching and skills space - is so inspiring. If you’re looking to hear from a forward-thinking learning leader, this episode is for you. Enjoy.

Pauline's LinkedIn

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In this episode, I’m joined by Henry Coutinho-Mason, a trend-watcher and a 'reluctant' futurist (his words, not mine!). Henry is the co-author of two books Trend-Driven Innovation and The Future Normal, and has spent his career identifying and analysing trends. Our conversation centres on Ai, future skills and what a new normal might look like for us. Enjoy.

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Henry Coutinho Mason

In this episode, I’m joined by ex-Olympian Jack Green, who specialised in the 400m hurdles and represented Team GB in the 2012 and 2016 games. Jack retired at 28 and now spends his time involved in workplace wellbeing, mental health and coaching. After being diagnosed with depression, anxiety, bipolar tendencies and at one point being considered a risk to his own life, Jack has faced not only the physical battle of high-performance sport, but the mental impact too. In this conversation, we dig into all of that, and also uncover why goal setting should be hard and the cost involved in achieving your ambitions. Enjoy.

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Jack Green

Listen in to Catherine Nicholson, Founder and Creative Director at The Virtual Training Team, as she shares some of the challenges people face with facilitating online training and discover her top tips for how to combat them. Plus we take a quick look forward to the future of learning and where the industry could be headed over the next few years. Enjoy.

Connect with Catherine

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In this episode, I’m joined by Nick Holmes who is the VP of employee experience at Fishawack Health. If you’re interested in how to create meaningful, well-connected workplaces then listen up, as Nick shares what you need to be thinking about with some really practical, thought-provoking and valuable insights. Enjoy.

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In this episode I’m joined by Dean Leak, Performance consultant and coach who has previously worked with team GB as a talent development manager, and now spends his time helping organisations to adopt a healthy high performance mindset. Dean is focused on improving decision-making, trust, belonging, and empathy amongst the teams he works with. This conversation is really insightful, and will help you to formulate how you think about high performance and empathy at work. Enjoy.

Accelerate

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In this episode I’m joined by Dr Charlotte Rae, a psychologist at the University of Sussex, who specialises in the biology of wellbeing. In particular, she studies how our working lives interact with our physical and mental health. Charlotte created the Sussex 4 Day Week project to study the effects that a 4 day working week has on staff, from brain function to sleep, and how these underpin performance at work. Charlotte uses her research insights to help employers trial a 4 day week, supporting early questions through to implementing a new working schedule and assessing success. We delve into all of this and more. Enjoy.

 Sussex 4 Day Week 

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Alex Bailey, who is the co-founder and CEO of Bailey & French a global consultancy firm, joins us on this week's episode to talk about how we can all contribute to humanising the world of work by putting people first and allowing our teams to show up as their authentic selves. We dig into people's strengths, what went into founding a business, and how leaders are now embracing the focus on being human at work. Enjoy. 

Bailey & French

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In this episode I’m joined by Margie Meacham, otherwise known as “the brain lady”. Margie effectively bridges the gaps between neuroscience, AI and instructional design to help people think more holistically about how and why they are designing learning. We cover all of that in this episode, and look at what the future might hold for learning experience design. Enjoy.

Margie Meacham

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In this episode I’m joined by Michael Ioffe, co-founder and CEO of Arist and a kindred spirit when it comes to trying to meet people where they are, and focusing on learning in the flow of life. We delve into why Arist was founded and the types of problems it solves for, as well as taking a look at the future of L&D more broadly. Enjoy.

Arist

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In this episode I’m joined by James Swift, Head of Talent Development at Leyton, an international consulting firm. James is the type of learning leader we all aspire to be: focused on human-centric organisational performance and consistently showcasing impact through his innovative application of AI. James has developed a model to help people put this into practise themselves, which is focused on organisational performance, what your people need to do, what technology underpins this, the infrastructures in place to support it, and the data or information needed to inform your stakeholders. Otherwise known as the ‘Swift model’. As James says:  People are your greatest cost and therefore need to be your greatest asset. We talk about all this and more. Enjoy.

James Swift

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Lavinia Mehedințu is everything good there is about L&D and she’s on a mission to provide access to useful information and research for L&Ders across the world. As the founder of Offbeat, a platform for L&D professionals to accelerate their career growth, Lavinia is really helping the industry upskill and practice what they preach. We chat about why creating Offbeat was important, learning and the importance of reflection as part of practice. Enjoy.

Offbeat

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Danny Seals is king of all things employee experience and founder of innovation agency Knot who specialise in transforming work environments and cultures. In this conversation Danny shares how his own experiences led him to where he is today, why employee listening is so important to instigate change, and why it's essential to bring an outside pair of eyes and ears into a business to observe and experiment. Danny runs an awesome newsletter Get Knotted, a down-to-earth podcast Mindchimp, and he's author of The Insightful Innovator: How to level up your employee experience. Enjoy.

Get Knotted

The Insightful Innovator

Knot

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If you're interested in how we can leverage AI for better content creation and how it might impact our future worlds, you should listen to what Rob has to share in this episode. Rob is the founder and CEO of Vulse which is really pushing us forward in terms of how we utilise AI in our everyday lives. In this episode, we chat about Vulse, AI, how to lead teams effectively and what being a good leader looks like.

Vulse

Rob Illidge

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Lee Chambers is an inspiration to many. As a black, autistic, disabled person he has faced his fair share of prejudice and discrimination and has oftentimes throughout his life been told that he won’t succeed. Determined to prove people wrong he became a successful entrepreneur. But whilst he was recovering from an unexpected hospitalisation due to a debilitating autoimmune condition, he moved from successful entrepreneur to stay-at-home-dad to active ally as his eyes opened to the hardships faced by women. We dig into all of that in this episode. Enjoy.

In this episode, I’m talking to England cricketer Alex Hales, who has bought his career back from breaking point in 2019, when he was dropped from the England World Cup squad for failing a recreational drugs test. We chat about that, how he’s fought back from it, where he’s at now and hear his advice for anyone experiencing setbacks in their life. Enjoy!

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In this episode I’m joined by Craig Hamill who has been in the L&D industry for over 20 years and has been in both vendor side and in-house roles. We cover what’s going on in the industry right now, but also dive deeper into what can be a taboo subject for some people and organisations: male mental health. Craig is a great advocate of talking, building connections and sharing, and we talk about the benefits each of these can bring. Enjoy.

Craig Hamill

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In this episode I’m joined by Dr Adrienne Milner, who is an expert in all things culture and policy change in the DE&I space. Her colleagues at UNTHINK affectionately call Adrienne the ‘DEI doc’ and she uses advanced statistics and qualitative methodology to help organisations and individuals show true impact in this space - something that is so needed right now. We dig into all of that and more. Enjoy.

UNTHINK

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Erica is co-founder of Quantum Rise and you’ll often find her keynote speaking at learning and education conferences and events. Erica’s area of specialism is the future of work and skills, digital learning and challenging the quality of our education systems. In this episode, we dig into AI, as Erica is passionate about driving innovation and creating spaces for communities to learn together. As host of ‘AI for the Average Joe’ podcast, Erica is trying to demystify AI for L&D. We chat about all of that and more. Enjoy.

Quantum Rise

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In this episode I’m joined by award-winning social justice activist and a seasoned leader in diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism - Hannah Litt. Hannah’s purpose-driven journey has been fuelled by a commitment to creating positive change, and Hannah now helps guide organisations to create cultures that value and celebrate diversity, unity, and collective healing. As a South Asian, Muslim woman from the East African diaspora with ADHD, OCD, and hidden disabilities, Hannah combines lived experiences with strategic knowledge in people-led functions and employee experience. We explore Hannah’s journey and hopes for the future in this episode. Enjoy.

Hannah Litt

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You may know Lauren Waldman as the Learning Pirate. She's pushing the industry in the right direction to help us focus on how people learn before we consider what they should be learning. Lauren de-bunks myths left right and centre, and puts the focus back on research and translating science into action. She is qualified in multiple areas, with foundations or certificates in a range of subjects mostly centred on neuroscience and adult learning, so she's an all-round guru. In this episode, we discuss all of that but also consider how we can all contribute to pushing the L&D industry in the right direction. Enjoy!

Joining forces with your brain

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In this episode I’m joined by Radhika Dutt, author of Radical Product Thinking and co-creator of the radical product thinking framework which is a free downloadable toolkit which helps organisations systematically build world-changing products. We talk about the intersection of product and learning, and how learning teams could always do well to think like product developers. Enjoy.

Radical product

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Frank Smith is the CEO of Matchroom, a global sporting event promotions company founded by English entrepreneur Barry Hearn and run by him and his son Eddie Hearn, who you may have heard of. Smith joined the business at 16 and has grafted his way to CEO. In this episode, he shares how his grit and attention to detail got him to where he is today, and how he leads with care and trust. Enjoy.

Matchroom

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In this episode of Diary of a CLO I’m joined by Dr Keith Keiting, who has had a rich and varied career in learning and talent development. Keith is currently a lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania - one of the only universities in the world to offer a doctorate in learning leadership, and is also the Chief Learning and Talent Officer at Archwell. Keith is currently pushing for greater change in the industry through his book: The Trusted Learning Advisor and strongly believes that L&D should be thinking more strategically. In this episode, we cover all of that and more and we put the learning world to rights at times, too. Enjoy.

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The Trusted Learning Advisor

Jayne is the Senior Vice President of Global Field Enablement at Salesforce and such a fabulous human being. Focused on a people-first approach and creating ‘playgrounds for growth’ Jayne shares how she encourages people to reflect on what they’ve learnt about themselves as opposed to about what they’ve learnt more generally, and creates safe environments for failure and resilience building. Enjoy.

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Salesforce

In this episode I’m joined by Dean Jackson, Director of Global People & Culture (Digital Experience) at Coca-Cola Europacific. Dean has built a career in digital workplace technology, with a focus on people and culture. With a huge depth of experience and enthusiasm for people experience, Dean is a really forward-thinking leader, and recognises the nuances of the range of audiences he serves in his role. Myth busting. Desire for change. Culture creation. We cover it all. Enjoy.

Dean Jackson

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In this episode, I’m joined by Anamaria Dorgo, an L&D practitioner with a community-first attitude. As founder of L&D Shakers, and Head of Community at Butter, Anamaria epitomises giving back to the circles in which she operates. We uncover the thinking behind the communities, why it's important now more than ever to share openly with them, as well as some of the best practices for anyone wanting to set up a learning community themselves. Enjoy.

L&D Shakers

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In this episode of Diary of a CLO, we went live with Stuart Broad at THRIVE's Level Up LIVE event. Stuart shares an honest account of how he's evolved as a cricketer, how he sets his sight on his next goal, and how utilising positive psychology can vastly improve your leadership skills. It's a truly inspiring conversation. Enjoy. 

Watch the LIVE video here.

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In this episode, I’m joined by Jenny Muhlwa, a Leadership Consultant and Coach, and the creator of the world's first open programme for women to understand how they can lean into their strengths and show up effectively depending on what stage of their hormone cycle they are in. Being able to communicate effectively about what will work best for you, and planning your work life around your hormonal cycle is still a surprisingly novel conversation in today’s workplace. Listen in to hear us chat about how Jenny is changing this, and gain insight into how she is on a mission to empower all women at work. Enjoy.

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Jenny is the founder of Bright Trainers, a leadership and coaching consultancy and creator of Empowered Energy, a programme which focuses on optimising impact by providing individuals with an understanding of their hormone cycle and how it links to leadership, productivity and overall well-being.  Website: www.bright-trainers.co.uk

The world of L&D can sometimes feel ruthless. Yet the more vendors are open with each other and positively challenge the industry, the better we will all be for it. In this episode, I'm joined by Nelson, co-founder and CEO of How Now and author of Learning at Speed. We chat about the current state of L&D, some of our shared gripes with the industry, and where we might be headed in the future. Enjoy.

Learning at speed

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In this episode, I’m joined by Iliana Montauk, Co-founder and CEO of Manara, who are revolutionising the way companies hire diverse tech talent, specifically from the Middle East and North Africa, and who promote communities of connection for individuals looking for a new or next role. They really are paving the way as the only company doing what they do in this space. Absolutely one to pay attention to. Enjoy.

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Manara

In this episode, I’m joined by Ben Williams an ex-Royal Marine Commando, author of ‘Commando Mindset’, and co-founder of Loopin and Omni. Ben brings a fresh perspective to how we develop ourselves and those we lead, by thinking like a commando and being trained - in certain ways - like one too. And of course in this conversation, we dig into Ai, its impact and opportunities because Loopin has been ahead of the game for a while on this front so there are some interesting perspectives shared. Enjoy.

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In this episode I'm joined by Cathy Hoy who is the co-founder and CEO of CLO100, a learning programme that is dedicated to upskilling future learning leaders. It's something that is drastically needed across the industry and it's so exciting to watch this program evolve. I can’t wait to see the impact that is going to have on our community. Cathy is one of those people who you could talk to for hours as she has such a depth of passion and experience from leading learning and development teams at places like Soho House and Coca-Cola to Expedia and Tesco. She’s hugely curious about how we, as L&D professionals, can continually better ourselves. It’s a great conversation. Enjoy.

CLO100

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It's here - it's the launch episode of Diary of a CLO and I'm so excited you're here.

In this episode, we kick off with an International Women's Day special which focuses on #WomenIn, a community which I set up to create a space for women from L&D, HR and beyond, to connect. Listen in as I talk about why groups like this are so important and hear from some of the group's wonderful members as they talk about what it means to them. 

Being vulnerable, creating safe spaces, accessing knowledge, building connections and bringing women into the conversation - IWD celebrates all of these routes towards embracing equity.

Sign up to WomenIn

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In this episode I’m joined by Tobias Balling, co-founder of Blinkist, a learning app that provides you bitesize explainers of a range of books. We chat about what led Tobi to founder life, some of the magic and pitfalls of working with other founders, and how you can construct meaningful learning experiences through microlearning. It’s a considered and humble discussion. Enjoy.

Blinkist

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In this episode, I’m joined by Monique Carayol who is a leadership coach and motivational speaker, who cofounded Bravey in the Boardroom just over a year ago to turn the dial on inclusive leadership and talent development. She also set up Your New Avenue a leadership and talent development consultancy. Monique’s energy is infectious, and she’s pushing authentic and brave leadership forward for everyone. We chat about all that and more in this episode. Enjoy.

Be yourself, back yourself, and make it happen

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