Leslie Mizerak - Executive Coach

The future of L&D is here, and it's powered by AI. The Association for Talent Development (ATD) just dropped an insightful report: "AI in Instructional Design: Transforming Workflows and Content Creation." I had the honor of serving as a subject matter expert alongside Danielle Wallace, and the findings are a must-read for every L&D professional. Here are the key takeaways you need to know: 𝗪𝗶𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 & 𝗥𝗮𝗽𝗶𝗱 𝗔𝗱𝗼𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 A massive 80% of instructional designers are already using AI tools. What's more, nearly two-thirds of them just started within the last year. The shift is happening fast. 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗜 𝗗𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 It's no surprise that 96% of IDs using AI are leveraging generative AI. Tools like ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot are becoming standard for content creation. 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗚𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀 The results speak for themselves: ▪️92% say AI reduces the time it takes to design a course. ▪️90% report their ability to design courses has improved. ▪️70% state the quality of their courses is now better. 𝗧𝗼𝗽 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝘀 & 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿𝗻𝘀 Instructional designers are most frequently using AI for: ▪️Outlining courses and storyboarding. ▪️Writing learning objectives. ▪️Creating voice-overs and narration. However, valid concerns remain about the accuracy of AI-generated content and copyright/IP issues. This is where a human-in-the-loop is critical. Want to dive deeper into these findings? I'm joining a webinar next week with one of the report's lead authors, Tessa Guiv, to break down the data and discuss what it means for the future of our industry. I've dropped the link to the full ATD report in the comments below. Grab your copy and come ready with questions for the webinar!

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Search any HR blog or inclusion strategy guide today and you’ll find the same language: Create psychological safety Foster a sense of belonging Build inclusive leadership competencies These are good intentions. But in practice, they often translate into soft actions: A training session. An ERG. A calendar post during Black History Month. None of that rewires the system. Continue (https://lnkd.in/eqdCFcpS)

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Today is the day for the SHRM BLUEPRINT 2025 conference in Louisville — yet I’m faced with a deep concern that cannot go unspoken. As HR professionals who care about building inclusive, equitable, and high-performing workplaces, we trust SHRM to uphold the standards of our profession. So when SHRM invites Robby Starbuck — a man publicly aligned with dismantling DEI initiatives — to speak on the main stage, one must ask: what principles is this organization prioritizing? Robby Starbuck is not a credentialed HR practitioner. His public work is rooted in activism aimed at rolling back corporate diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Meanwhile, many of us have witnessed firsthand the cost of devaluing DEI work — lost jobs, stalled careers, broken trust in organizations that said they valued belonging. And yet, SHRM presents this as “listening across lines of difference,” as if there is a neutral ground here. The problem is: this isn’t a mere exchange of ideas between equally qualified voices. It’s a choice to give legitimacy to an agenda that many HR leaders believe erodes — not advances — the very foundations of inclusive workplace culture. If SHRM truly stands for our profession — stands for advancing workforces and organizational cultures that honor everyone — why platform someone whose stated mission is to undo those efforts? Why ask dues-paying members to invest in a conference that elevates voices contradicting foundational HR values without clear accountability for what that elevation means? To my fellow HR, DEI and talent-leaders: we must speak up. • If you believe our profession must hold its trusted institutions to account, share this post. • If you believe HR organizations have a responsibility to defend — not dilute — the value of inclusion, tag your networks. • If you believe we cannot sit quietly while our governing body shifts away from credible expertise and toward spectacle, raise your voice today. SHRM’s decision today isn’t just a misstep for one event — it signals a turning point for how our profession will define legitimacy, expertise and inclusion moving forward. Let’s be clear: inclusion, fairness and belonging are not optional marketing add-ons. They are central to business performance, ethical leadership and sustainable workplaces. If SHRM won’t defend that, then we must. #HR #DEI #SHRM #Blueprint2025 #Leadership #Inclusion #Accountability

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The ICF Portfolio Path is an alternative credentialing route for coaches whose learning and practice haven’t followed a single, formally accredited program. Because mastery rarely comes from one institution alone. It emerges through reflection. Through years of practice. And refining how you listen, respond, and trust yourself in the work. The Portfolio Path asks for ownership. Ownership of how you curate your learning. Ownership of how you refine your coaching presence. Ownership of submitting recordings that genuinely reflect MCC-level mastery. In my experience, this is where mentorship matters most. The Portfolio Path isn’t for everyone. It’s for coaches who’ve grown organically, who value depth over formality, and who want their credential to reflect how they actually practise, it can be a deeply aligned route. The Portfolio Path is less about proving something and more about inhabiting the craft more fully. If you’re exploring the MCC Portfolio Path, our next MCC Mentor Coaching Cohort begins in February 2026. DM me “MCC” and I’ll send you the details.

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Here are the insights I gleaned from ATD25 that are shaping how smart L&D leaders approach measurement! The most powerful shift happening in L&D measurement isn't about better data collection—it's about changing when we use it. A clear theme emerged among measurement and evaluation presentations at ATD25 this year... Recommendations and best practices suggest that instead of measuring if we WERE effective, the future of measurement lies in predicting if we WILL BE effective. Here are a few strategies that can predictably improve our effectiveness! 👥 Manager involvement = your secret weapon. Jack Phillips, PhD shared that a simple manager check-in ("How are you applying what you learned?") dramatically boosts learning transfer. If you're doing "more with less," this is your highest-impact investment. 📊 Capabilities are the sweet spot. Lynette Gillis Ph.D., CTDP, Fellow of I4PL and Allan Bailey from the Center for Learning Impact proved that measuring capability changes immediately after training is the best predictor of job performance improvements. Skip the reaction surveys—focus on capability indicators instead. 📖 Data needs a storyteller. Karin Rex reminded us that "data cannot speak for itself." Information becomes insight only when combined with experience and context. Your measurement efforts are only as powerful as your ability to translate data into compelling narratives. The bottom line? We can actually control and predict learning transfer success. It starts with designing programs around proven success factors rather than hoping for the best. Ready to shift from reactive to predictive measurement? Get more frameworks and tools here: https://lnkd.in/d7KnmesX. What's your experience with predictive vs. reactive measurement? Drop a comment below! #ATD25 #learninganddevelopment #datastorytelling

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Guild started with Lightcast. A talent development company that connects employees to education and skilling programs, Guild works with businesses that want to invest in learning and development for their people. Guild makes sure that those outcomes are connected to overall organizational success. And they use Lightcast skills data to make that possible. Matthew J. Daniel discusses how those outcomes can also be intensely personal for the individuals whose lives are positively impacted by the new skills they gain and the opportunities that opens up to them.

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