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503 Putting Innovation into Practice: A Guild Master Panel

9:45 AM - 10:45 AM ET
Wednesday, December 6

Organizations regarded as innovative and creative outperform their competitors. But what does that look like?

Ideation is just a start. An effective leader not only has the vision and creativity to develop groundbreaking ideas but also the ability to move those ideas forward, create an implementation plan, get buy-in, influence decision-makers—and, ultimately, see those innovations put into practice.

Each year, the Learning Guild selects learning leaders—people whose fresh, original ideas for products, strategies, and approaches to learning & development have shaped our industry—and names them Guild Masters. In this panel, we call on several Guild Masters to share their experience and advice for moving your most creative ideas forward and putting innovation into practice.

Frank Nguyen (Host)

Executive Director

Genentech

Dr. Frank Nguyen is a learning executive who specializes in transforming learning organizations through strategy and technology. He has led enterprise learning for Fortune companies including AIG, Amazon, American Express, Intel, MicroAge, and Sears. Frank has published extensively on the intersection of eLearning, instructional design, and performance support. He is a recipient of the Learning Guild Master and the ISPI Distinguished Dissertation awards. His work on compliance training, learning strategy, business transformation, and technology has been recognized by Brandon Hall and Chief Learning Officer. Frank has served on a variety of learning industry committees for Adobe, ATD, BJET, Brandon Hall, eLearning Guild, and ISPI.

Jane Bozarth

Director of Research

Learning Guild

Jane Bozarth, the director of research for the Learning Guild, is a veteran classroom trainer who transitioned to eLearning in the late 1990s and has never looked back. In her previous job as leader of the State of North Carolina’s award-winning eLearning program, Jane specialized in finding low-cost ways of providing online training solutions. She is the author of several books, including eLearning Solutions on a Shoestring, Social Media for Trainers, and Show Your Work: The Payoffs and How-To’s of Working Out Loud. Jane holds a doctorate in training and development and was awarded the Guild Master Award in 2013 for her accomplishments and contributions to the eLearning community.

Bob Mosher

CEO/Chief Learning Evangelist

APPLY Synergies

Bob Mosher, the chief learning evangelist at APPLY Synergies, has been an active and influential leader in the learning and training industry for over 30 years, and is renowned worldwide for his pioneering role in eLearning and new approaches to learning. Before co-founding APPLY Synergies consultancy with Conrad Gottfredson, Bob served as the chief learning evangelist for Ontuitive, director of learning strategy and evangelism for Microsoft, and executive director of education for Element K. He is an influential voice in the IT training industry, speaking at conferences and participating in industry associations. Bob was awarded the Guild Master Award in 2014 for his accomplishments and contributions to the eLearning community.

Debbie Richards

President

Creative Interactive Ideas

Debbie Richards, president of Creative Interactive Ideas, is a learning architect, self-proclaimed geek, and early adopter of learning technologies. For over 30 years, she has helped enterprise teams design, develop, and deliver immersive learning programs with measurable impact. 

Passionate about working with and mentoring other learning professionals, Debbie is a director at L&D Cares. The nonprofit group provides talent development professionals with no-cost coaching, mentoring, and resources to help them thrive and flourish in their careers. She is the past president of the Association of Talent Development, Houston chapter, and a past national advisor for chapters. Debbie has authored two TD at Work guides, Seeing the Possibilities With Augmented Reality and Preparing Your Organization for New Technologies.

Megan Torrance

CEO

TorranceLearning

Megan Torrance is CEO and founder of TorranceLearning, which helps organizations connect learning strategy to design, development, data, and ultimately performance. She has more than 25 years of experience in learning design, deployment, and consulting . Megan and the TorranceLearning team are passionate about sharing what works in learning, so they devote considerable time to teaching and sharing about Agile project management for
learning experience design and the xAPI. She is the author of Agile for Instructional Designers, The Quick Guide to LLAMA, and Making Sense of xAPI. Megan is also an eCornell Facilitator in the Women’s Executive Leadership curriculum.