701 Maximize Your Growth as a Learning Leader
1:30 PM - 2:30 PM ET
Wednesday, December 6
Developing and maintaining a leadership pipeline is a struggle for many organizations, especially with large numbers of Baby Boomer employees retiring. As organizations struggle to future-proof and diversify their leadership, who better to turn to than up-and-coming employees who have demonstrated their leadership ability—and who represent a diverse, highly skilled talent pool?
The Learning Guild recognizes exemplary young leaders in the L&D space each year at the Learning Conference through our Thirty Under 30 program. In this interactive panel session, you will hear from alumni of this program. Our speakers will share their strategies and lessons learned as they leveraged their passion, skills, and knowledge of L&D to rise through the ranks. We’ll address how to recognize and benefit from growth opportunities, how they’ve overcome barriers and exploded stereotypes that could have held them back, and their proven practices for fostering and maintaining strategic relationships, both inside their organizations and across L&D networks.
David Kelly (Host)
CEO
The Learning Guild
David Kelly is the CEO of the Learning Guild. David has been a learning and performance consultant and training director for over 20 years. He is a leading voice exploring how technology can be used to enhance training, education, learning, and organizational performance. David is an active member of the learning community, and can frequently be found speaking at industry events. He has previously contributed to organizations including ATD, eLearn Magazine, LINGOs, and more. He can be found online at his website, davidkelly.me, or on Twitter @LnDDave.
Jennifer Demchar-Graves
Learning & Development Manager
Boston Consulting Group
Jennifer R. Demchar-Graves is a learning & development manager for Boston Consulting Group within IT Service Management. She previously worked for Kroger, Morgan & Morgan, and Chewy.com within Organizational Change Management, Business Operations, and Learning & Development teams. Jennifer is a 2021 alumna of the Learning Guild’s Thirty Under 30 program. Jennifer graduated from Nova Southeastern University with a bachelor’s degree in secondary English education with an ESOL Endorsement. Jennifer completed her executive certification program for Project Management at Florida Atlantic University and earned her Project Management Professional (PMP) certification.
Keiko Takeshita
Training Program Manager
Department of Homeland Security, Office of the Chief Financial Officer
Keiko Takeshita is the training program manager for the Department of Homeland Security, Office of the Chief Financial Officer. She is responsible for managing learning and development opportunities for the third largest federal agency. Her team provides trainings that the CFO-enterprise can use to improve their day-to-day skills and advance their careers. To address the needs of a hybrid workforce, she has made it a priority to make training more accessible and enjoyable.
She received her bachelor’s degrees in psychology and criminology from the University of Idaho, and her master’s degree in terrorism and homeland security policy from American University.
Megan Underwood
Expert, Learning Design
McKinsey & Company
Megan Underwood (she/her) is a passionate educator and learning designer with over 14 years of experience teaching and instructing everyone from children to older adults, including people with disabilities. She has a keen interest in how people learn and how it can better be supported by technology.