436 — Content libraries: Less is more

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

#Learninganddevelopment #Performance #Work #MBA #Careers #Human Resources #Business #Business Disciplines #Ross Garner #Mind Tools #Learn

30:14

"It is a scientific fact that these macaques, like all other primates, including humans, are communicating. They communicate in much the same way we do - facial expressions, vocalizations, body postures, those kinds of things." - Jeff Kerr Jeff Kerr is PETA foundations Chief Legal Officer. I asked him to come on the show to talk about one of PETA’s current lawsuits against the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Nathional Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). PETA is arguing that the monkeys being tested on in a government run facility are capable of communication (or “are communicating”). And that we have a constitutional right under the First Amendment to receive their communications. This could be a game changer in allowing us to see what’s really going on in labs that are funded by taxpayer money, and which have so far been censored from public view. PETA’s lawsuit follows years of NIH’s attempts to deny Freedom of Information requests banning PETA executives from its campus and illegally censoring animal advocates’ speech on NIH’s public social media pages. Through the lawsuit, PETA is seeking a live audio-visual feed to see and hear real-time communications from the macaques who have been kept isolated, used in fear experiments, and had posts cemented into their heads. Anthropologists and other scientists have studied macaque and other primate communications for decades and know that the monkeys communicate effectively and intentionally through lip smacking, fear grimaces, body language, and various cries and sounds—all of which constitute speech under the law. Primatologists can analyze that speech on a deeper level to share their stories with the world.…

about a year ago 38:21

MP3•Episode home

Most organizations offer some kind of content library to help their people develop. But how much content is too much? How do you give your people choice, without overloading them?

In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Ross G and Ross D are joined by Rosemary Hoskins (formerly of AstraZeneca), to discuss:

Why are extensive content libraries a problem (as well as a solution) for organizations?
What mechanisms help people find the right content, at the right time?
Does it matter if people like the content we provide?

The article Rosemary wrote with Marc Zao-Sanders was 'A framework for discoverability'.

In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross D recommended the Supercommunicators podcast, from Slate.

G discussed the rise of 'zero-click search'.

For more from us, visit mindtools.com. There, you'll also find details of our award-winning performance support toolkit, our Manager Skill Builder, and our custom work. 

Connect with our speakers 

If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn:

453 episodes

436 — Content libraries: Less is more

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

94 subscribers

published about a year ago

MP3•Episode home

Most organizations offer some kind of content library to help their people develop. But how much content is too much? How do you give your people choice, without overloading them?

In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Ross G and Ross D are joined by Rosemary Hoskins (formerly of AstraZeneca), to discuss:

Why are extensive content libraries a problem (as well as a solution) for organizations?
What mechanisms help people find the right content, at the right time?
Does it matter if people like the content we provide?

The article Rosemary wrote with Marc Zao-Sanders was 'A framework for discoverability'.

In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross D recommended the Supercommunicators podcast, from Slate.

G discussed the rise of 'zero-click search'.

For more from us, visit mindtools.com. There, you'll also find details of our award-winning performance support toolkit, our Manager Skill Builder, and our custom work. 

Connect with our speakers 

If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn:

453 episodes

#Learninganddevelopment #Performance #Work #MBA #Careers #Human Resources #Business #Business Disciplines #Ross Garner #Mind Tools #Learn

All episodes

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
448 — Encouraging teams to adopt AI 35:43

13 hours ago35:43

35:43

Should we be adopting AI more into our day to day lives? How can L&D professionals move beyond reactive training on specific tools to cultivate a continuous learning mindset in team members? In this week’s episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Gemma and Dr Anna are joined by to Head of L&D at Newsquest Media Group, Mel Cooley to explore L&D’s relationship with AI. We discuss: how L&D is thinking and talking about AI; what L&D can do to support AI integration; how to measure the impact of AI. In ‘What I Learned This Week’, Dr Anna told us about the extraordinary relationship between wasps and figs. Listen to the Short Stuff: Figs @& Wasps podcast to find out more. Gemma spoke about journalling and the work of Nichole Sachs. More on this on her JournalSpeak: BreakAwake website. For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning performance support toolkit, our off-the-shelf e-learning, and our custom work. Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Gemma Towersey Dr Anna Barnett Mel Cooley…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

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447 — Hard science, soft skills: L&D in the space sector 43:52

7 days ago43:52

43:52

Armed with a STEM qualification or two, you might think technical brilliance is all one needs to succeed in the space sector. Is this the case though? In this week’s episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast , Ross D and Anna are joined by Victoria Craig to discuss: the importance of ‘soft’ skills in a ‘hard’ science environment; sector-specific skills gaps; how L&D can bridge these gaps. In ‘What I Learned This Week’, Ross reminisced about playing a Sega game called Mickey Mania . Take a look at the game’s Wikipedia page . For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning performance support toolkit, our off-the-shelf e-learning, and our custom work. Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Garner Dr Anna Barnett Victoria Craig…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

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446 — Think Like a Marketer, Train Like an L&D Pro 35:44

14 days ago35:44

35:44

Effective marketers have an uncanny way of knowing what we want and convincing us to click ‘Like’, add to Checkout and in under 20 seconds, buy their thing. Clever. Meanwhile, over in L&D, we find it more difficult to motivate someone to take action or change their behaviour. So, what does marketing do that we don’t? In this week’s episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Ross G is joined by Bianca Baumann and Mike Taylor, authors of Think Like a Marketer, Train Like an L&D Pro: Strategies to Ignite Learning. They discuss: The intersection of marketing and learning principles The techniques marketing professionals use to grab attention and nudge action How L&D can bring these strategies into their work You can find out more about Bianca and Mike on their website: trainlikeamarketer.com/ For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning performance support toolkit, our off-the-shelf e-learning, and our custom work. Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Garner Bianca Baumann Mike Taylor…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
445 — Setting up a L&D team 33:35

20 days ago33:35

33:35

Having the opportunity to set up a new team can be both exciting and daunting. Where would you start when it’s an L&D team? In this week's episode of The Mind Tools L&D Podcast , Head of People Development Daneille Ware speaks to Gemma and Ross about her approach to creating an L&D team from scratch. We discuss: · The triggers for creating a new or evolved L&D department · How to get started with quick wins · Using data to support decisions In ‘What I Learnt This Week’, Ross mentioned the two-part Star Wars related episodes of the Rewatchables called ‘Star Wars: A New Hope’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan.' Gemma also talks about a podcast, but one with a very different tone. She listened to Dr Chatterjee speak to Erling Kagge about solitude on ' Feel better, Live more' . For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning Content Hub, our Manager Skills Assessment, our Manager Skill Builder and our custom work. You can also subscribe to our newsletter . Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with our speakers on LinkedIn. Danielle Ware Ross Garner Gemma Towersey…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
444 — This game will make you a better collaborator 36:49

29 days ago36:49

36:49

Collaboration is a vital skill across many fields and disciplines. But effective collaboration is about much more than just working together. In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast , Ross D and Paula are joined by Fraser Mcdonald, Head of Collaboration at Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI) and Deputy Director of the Data for Children Collaborative, to discuss: why collaboration is important when it comes to solving 'wicked problems'; how Mindtools worked with the EFI to develop a game that's designed to build collaboration skills; why a game was the right solution to this problem, and how it's being deployed within the EFI. To find out more about the work Fraser does, check out the Edinburgh Futures Institute and Data for Children Collaborative 's websites. In 'What I Learned This Week', Paula mentioned that she'd been digging into the surprisingly wild history of papal conclaves . Fraser recommended the website ToS;DR , which provides an eye-opening breakdown of what we're agreeing to when we use different websites and platforms. And Ross D talked about a recent episode of the 99% Invisible podcast, focusing on the relationship between architecture and tax codes. For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning Content Hub, our Manager Skills Assessment, our Manager Skill Builder and our custom work. You can also subscribe to our newsletter . Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Dickie Paula Hughes Fraser Mcdonald…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
443 — So, you've decided to be creative... 34:36

5 weeks ago34:36

34:36

Whether it comes to facilitating workshops, designing learning experiences, or developing campaign assets, L&D practitioners are increasingly expected to bring creativity to their roles. But how do you do this if you don't have a creative background, or if you don't think of yourself as a 'creative person'? In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast , Ross D and Gemma are joined by Kenny Temowo, Senior Director of Talent Acceleration at SharkNinja and host of the Inside the Art of Making podcast, to discuss: Kenny's career journey through the creative industries, into workplace learning, and back again; what it means to be 'creative', and how this applies in L&D; how to meet consumer-level creative expectations with L&D budgets; how to earn the permission to be creative at work. You can listen to Kenny's podcast, Inside the Art of Making , on Spotify . (Or wherever you get your podcasts.) In 'What I Learned This Week', Gemma mentioned The Cloudspotter's Guide by Gavin Pretor-Pinney. Ross D gave a lukewarm review of the movie Field of Dreams . For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning Content Hub, our Manager Skills Assessment, our Manager Skill Builder and our custom work. You can also subscribe to our newsletter . Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Dickie Gemma Towersey Kenny Temowo…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
442 — Is AI making us dumber? 40:11

6 weeks ago40:11

40:11

Often on this podcast we've spoken about how AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini are enhancing our capabilities. But do they also come at a cost? In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast , Ross Stevenson from Steal These Thoughts joins Ross G and Dr Gent to discuss: the relationship between tasks and skills; whether we are over-relying on AI; the long-term impact of AI use on critical thinking. During the discussion, Ross S discussed the recent robot race in Beijing and the concept of vibe coding, via Lovable . He also mentioned Apple's sometimes-hilarious AI summaries . Gent discussed cognitive offloading . The paper Gent discussed was: Gerlich, M. (2025). AI Tools in Society: Impacts on Cognitive Offloading and the Future of Critical Thinking . Societies , 15 (1), 6. In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross G shared how you can use a sausage to interact with your smartphone screen. For more from Ross S, visit Steal These Thoughts . For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning Content Hub, our Manager Skills Assessment, our Manager Skill Builder and our custom work. You can also subscribe to our newsletter . Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Garner Dr Gent Ahmetaj Ross Stevenson…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
441 — Podcasts for learning and the end of email 42:19

7 weeks ago42:19

42:19

What are the benefits of podcasts for learning? How does L&D respond to people leaving the profession? Should we get rid of email? In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast , Ross G is joined by Anna and Ross D to answer your questions! During the discussion, Ross D referenced our post ' If your podcast isn't available on mobile, does it make a sound? ', and Cal Newport's Deep Work . Ross G referenced the AI 2027 forecast. He also discussed (and wrote about ) Shopify CEO Tobi Lütke's recent edict on the use of AI. In 'What I Learned This Week', Anna discussed PowerPoint transitions, from Luis Urrutia . Ross D discussed his new (tidier) LinkedIn URL. Find out how to edit your own . Ross G discussed the former residents of London Bridge . For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning Content Hub, our Manager Skills Assessment, our Manager Skill Builder and our custom work. You can also subscribe to our newsletter . Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Garner Dr Anna Barnett Ross Dickie…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
440 — Terrible task? Just delegate it! 37:01

8 weeks ago37:01

37:01

What drives your delegation decisions? Is it what's best for the business? Is it what's best for your team member? Is it what's best for you? In this week's edition of The Mindtools L&D Podcast , Ross G, Ross D and Dr Anna discuss: Why managers sometimes delegate tasks that they know are too difficult How the organization's culture shapes those decisions How to help managers delegate better. The paper we discussed throughout this podcast was: Maas, V. S., & Shi, B. (2023). The effects of target difficulty and relative ability on managers’ delegation decisions . Management Accounting Research , 60 , 100851. Ross G also referenced: Crossley, C. D., Cooper, C. D., & Wernsing, T. S. (2013). Making things happen through challenging goals: Leader proactivity, trust, and business-unit performance . Journal of Applied Psychology , 98 (3), 540. In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross D discussed the concept of ' moving day ', as reported on by The Atlantic . For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning Content Hub, our Manager Skills Assessment, our Manager Skill Builder and our custom work. Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Garner Dr Anna Barnett Ross Dickie…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
439 — Leveraging data for inclusion and wellbeing 44:54

9 weeks ago44:54

44:54

Many organizations treat 'inclusion' and 'wellbeing' as separate issues, but Dr Serena Huang - author of The Inclusion Equation - argues that the two are intrinsically linked. And, that data is how you can make better decisions about how to make a positive impact on both. In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast , Serena joins Ross G and Dr Anna to discuss: Why these two areas are inseparable Why data in this space isn't as 'unmeasurable' as it seems Two approaches to data gathering that you can start using today. During the discussion, Dr Anna referenced ProPublica's reporting on the bias they discovered in software used to predict future criminals. Ross referenced the work Mindtools did with Burberry , around 'allyship'. In ‘What I Learned This Week’, Ross discussed the origin of the term ' Bluetooth ', which he learned from The Rest is History podcast. Dr Serena's book, The Inclusion Equation , is available now. For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning performance support toolkit, our off-the-shelf e-learning, and our custom work. And to speak to our Insights team (including Dr Anna) about your learning measurement needs, just send her a note on LinkedIn or email custom@mindtools.com Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Garner Dr Anna Barnett Dr Serena Huang…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
438 — Where culture and learning collide 40:23

10 weeks ago40:23

40:23

We might think that what makes our team culture great (or awful) is different from what supports our learning and development. Are they so different, though? In this week’s episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast , Ross D and Gemma are joined by L&D professional turned Culture Manager, Lois Ratcliffe to discuss: what ‘culture’ is and how it gets measured; what it takes to have a good feedback culture; the features of a learning culture. Lois refers to the three layers of organisational culture proposed by Shein. To find out more about Shein, here’s one of our articles on Achieving Culture Change. In ‘What I Learned This Week’, Lois recommended The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells for a thought-provoking read with an AI theme. If you’re feeling time-poor, Gemma recommended the book 4000 Weeks by Oliver Burkeman. For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning performance support toolkit, our off-the-shelf e-learning, and our custom work. Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Dickie Lois Ratcliffe Gemma Towersey…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
437 — How to build engagement with your content libraries (Rebroadcast) 40:03

11 weeks ago40:03

40:03

Digital learning content offers a scalable, always-on option to help your people build their skills and overcome workplace challenges. But often these libraries get dusty, bogged down by out-of-date content with little relevance, or hidden away in a dark corner of the intranet where no one can find them. So in this episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast , Virgin Money’s Martin Ritchie, Digital Learning Manager, joins Ross Garner and Lara to share: How Virgin Money raise awareness of their Mind Tools content library; Techniques for promoting a proactive learning mindset; ‘Push’ vs ‘pull’ learning. During the discussion, Ross referenced a recent academic paper: Albarracín, D., Fayaz-Farkhad, B., & Granados Samayoa, J. A. (2024). Determinants of behaviour and their efficacy as targets of behavioural change interventions . Nature Reviews Psychology, 1-16. In ‘What I Learned This Week’, Ross discussed ‘pebbling’, as covered by The Guardian . For more from us, including access to our back catalogue of podcasts, visit mindtools.com/business . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning performance support toolkit, our off-the-shelf e-learning, and our custom work. Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Garner Lara Kidd Martin Ritchie…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
436 — Content libraries: Less is more 38:21

12 weeks ago38:21

38:21

Most organizations offer some kind of content library to help their people develop. But how much content is too much? How do you give your people choice, without overloading them? In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast , Ross G and Ross D are joined by Rosemary Hoskins (formerly of AstraZeneca), to discuss: Why are extensive content libraries a problem (as well as a solution) for organizations? What mechanisms help people find the right content, at the right time? Does it matter if people like the content we provide? The article Rosemary wrote with Marc Zao-Sanders was ' A framework for discoverability '. In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross D recommended the Supercommunicators podcast, from Slate. G discussed the rise of ' zero-click search '. For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning performance support toolkit, our Manager Skill Builder , and our custom work. Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Garner Ross Dickie Rosemary Hoskins…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
435 — What will be hot in workplace L&D in 2025? 41:21

13 weeks ago41:21

41:21

Unsurprisingly, artificial intelligence once again topped the results of Donald Taylor’s Global Sentiment Survey. Almost every other option on the survey lost vote-share this year, with the exception of the ‘value trio’. So, what do these findings tell us about the state of L&D, and how the profession is evolving? In this week’s episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Don joined Ross D and Ross G for our annual breakdown of the survey’s results. We discuss: what the Global Sentiment Survey is (and what it isn’t); AI's unprecedented dominance of the survey, and the conclusions we can draw from this; the return of the ‘value trio’; the extent to which L&D’s perceived challenges align with perceived ‘hot’ topics. To read the full Global Sentiment Survey 2025 report, head to Don’s website . In ‘What I Learned This Week’, Ross G recommended the ' Tab limit ’ extension for Google Chrome. Ross D referenced Jared Cooney Horvath’s video ‘CheatGPT | A textbook case of bad research’ . And Don mentioned the paper ‘ A systematic literature review of artificial intelligence (AI) in coaching: insights for future research and product development ’, from The Journal of Work-Applied Management . For more from us, visit mindtools.com . There, you'll also find details of our award-winning performance support toolkit, our off-the-shelf e-learning, and our custom work. Connect with our speakers If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn: Ross Dickie Ross Garner Donald Taylor…

The Mindtools L&D Podcast

1
434 — Cyborgs, centaurs and the role of choice infrastructure 43:54

14 weeks ago43:54