Best John Helmer Podcasts (2025)

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LH #120 Agent Provocateur with Dr. Ashwin Mehta 59:09

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15h ago59:09

59:09

How AI agents are reshaping learning workflows and the L&D ecosystem "Agentic AI" is the buzzword of the moment. But how many people fully understand what it really means—or how it will change learning and work? Dr. Ashwin Mehta, Chief AI Strategist at the Learning & Performance Institute and founder of Mehtadology AI, joins John Helmer to unpack t…

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LH #119 Learning To Love America with Christian Ray Flores 1:09:23

17d ago1:09:23

1:09:23

From refugee to Russian pop star, startup founder to life coach and evangelist pastor — Christian Ray Flores's journey has spanned continents, ideologies, and careers. In this remarkable conversation, John explores how those experiences shaped Christian's views on creativity, entrepreneurship, AI, faith, and the American dream. Can such diverse ide…

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LH #118 Human Moments: the View from Crotonville w. Jay Moore and Doug Scott 55:33

1M ago55:33

55:33

The human heart of learning in a digital age. Jay Moore and Doug Scott look back on the legendary Crotonville leadership institute — and forward to what its ethos means for learning in the age of AI. They tell John Helmer how a culture built on humility, connection and trust continues to shape GE's learning legacy today. As training becomes more di…

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LH117 AI, Productivity & Humans in Charge with Brian Murphy 52:37

1M ago52:37

52:37

The Human Side of AI at Work Brian Murphy, Global Head of Learning & Development at NTT DATA, shares his perspective on how AI is reshaping work and productivity. Drawing on his experience at Microsoft, AstraZeneca, and Citi, Brian argues for a human-centric coalition between people and machines. He explores how L&D and HR can steer organizations t…

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LH #116 How L&D Gets Leverage, with Lori Niles-Hoffman 1:12:37

2M ago1:12:37

1:12:37

Systems, skills and the eight levers of learning transformation. Lori Niles-Hoffman, learning strategist and data evangelist, joins John to explore how L&D can escape legacy mindsets and regain strategic impact. Drawing on her new book, Lori outlines the eight key levers for enterprise learning transformation, why ecosystems matter more than platfo…

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LH115 Meet Your New Math(s) Teacher: a Robot Dog, with Jan Liphardt 57:55

3M ago57:55

57:55

Stanford professor Jan Liphardt—founder of OpenMind—joins the podcast to explore the future of learning at the intersection of AI, robotics, and human development. He explains why robot dogs might be ideal math tutors, how Socratic dialogue can be scaled through machines, and what AI means for education, healthcare, and daily life. A bold vision of…

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GMoL S7E43 Wellbeing with Donald Clark 1:26:59

4M ago1:26:59

1:26:59

In this final episode before the summer break, Donald Clark and John Helmer explore the rise of happiness and wellbeing as central themes in psychology, education, and policy. From Seligman's Positive Psychology to Nussbaum's Capabilities Approach, they examine the thinkers who defined the science—and pseudo-science—of flourishing. Is wellbeing a u…

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GMoL S7E42 Organizational Learning with Donald Clark 1:18:51

5M ago1:18:51

1:18:51

Learning at Scale, from Theory to Action. This episode explores the thinkers who shaped organizational learning—how institutions learn, adapt, and evolve. From Herbert Simon's decision theory to Argyris and Schön's double-loop learning, Peter Senge's "learning organization," Japanese knowledge creation, and Finnish activity theory, we trace how lea…

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GMoL S7E41 Schoolmen with Donald Clark 1:16:39

5M ago1:16:39

1:16:39

The surprising modernity of medieval minds. This episode explores the medieval thinkers known as the Schoolmen—philosophers who fused logic, faith, and classical learning to shape what would become the modern university. From Anselm's ontological argument to Ockham's razor, Donald Clark and John Helmer examine the enduring legacy of scholasticism o…

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GMoLS7E40 Critics of Higher Education with Donald Clark 1:26:13

6M ago1:26:13

1:26:13

Who is higher education really serving? In this episode of Great Minds on Learning, John Helmer and Donald Clark examine prominent critics of higher education. Economist Bryan Caplan, linguist and activist Noam Chomsky, and tech entrepreneur Peter Thiel offer powerful critiques of the academy. Meanwhile, Harold Wilson, Jennie Lee, and Paul LeBlanc …

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GMoLS7E39: Critical Pedagogues with Donald Clark 1:56:09

6M ago1:56:09

1:56:09

Education's Ideological Battleground. Education is never entirely neutral. In our own time it has been increasingly seen as deeply ideological. However, whose ideology is being promoted – and does unpicking one set of biases only serve to replace it with a different, opposing set? Donald Clark and John Helmer explore the provocative ideas of influe…

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LH #114 Learning Technologies 2025 Special with Josh Bersin, Daniel Hulme, David Kelly, etc. 3:01:17

6M ago3:01:17

3:01:17

AI shockwaves and human resilience in L&D At the Learning Technologies Conference 2025, John Helmer speaks with leading voices in learning and AI—including Josh Bersin, Daniel Hulme, David Kelly, Jerome Pereira, Sophie Costin, Tadelayo Sodipe, and Donald H. Taylor—about disruption, ethics, innovation, and the changing role of L&D. 00:03:08 - Intro …

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GMoLS7E38 Early Computing with Donald Clark 1:35:21

7M ago1:35:21

1:35:21

From Babbage to Turing: the roots of AI. In this first episode of Season 7, Donald Clark and John Helmer trace the roots of modern computing and AI through six foundational figures—Babbage, Lovelace, Hollerith, Bush, Newman & Flowers, and Turing. Exploring their machines, insights, and visionary ideas, they uncover surprising links between early da…

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LH #112: Learning Futures 3 with Kevin Oakes, Kim McMurdo and Terry Jones 1:15:31

8M ago1:15:31

1:15:31

Leading Through Culture, Teams, and AI-driven Change John Helmer discusses organizational culture, collective leadership, and AI's impact on future workplaces with Kevin Oakes (CEO, i4cp), Kim McMurdo (Global Head of OD, Standard Chartered), and Terry Jones (International Head of Talent Development, ex-PaloAlto Networks). Key themes include culture…

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LH #111 Is D.E.I. Now D.O.A.? with Amri B. Johnson 52:27

8M ago52:27

52:27

The Battle To Keep Inclusion on the Organizational Agenda. Is Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (D.E.I.) under existential threat? With political shifts and corporate cutbacks, is this the end of D.E.I. as we know it—or just a moment of transformation? In this episode, John Helmer speaks with Amri B. Johnson, author of Reconstructing Inclusion and C…

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LH #110 Will AI Wipe Out L&D? with Robert Guidi 1:10:03

8M ago1:10:03

1:10:03

In this episode, John Helmer engages with UK-based artificial intelligence expert Robert Guidi to explore the potential impact of AI on Learning and Development (L&D). With a background in data science and technology policy, Robert has worked across industries to help organizations navigate the opportunities and risks of AI adoption, translating co…

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LH #109 The Skills Dat Pay da Bills with Teresa Rose 51:13

9M ago51:13

51:13

Mastering Skills Tech: Implementation, Validation & Organizational Change. In this episode, we delve into the evolving landscape of skills technology with Teresa Rose, an award-winning learning and performance consultant and founder of ConsultHer Ltd. With over 16 years of experience in organizational and people development, Teresa shares her insig…

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LH #108 Everything You Know About Learning Theory Is Wrong with Nick Shackleton-Jones 1:14:53

10M ago1:14:53

1:14:53

Challenging assumptions about learning, performance, and the rise of AI. Nick Shackleton-Jones returns to The Learning Hack to challenge assumptions about learning theory, discuss his Affective Context Model, and reflect on the future of workplace learning. From TikTok as a learning platform to the risks of deceptive AI, this thought-provoking conv…

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LH #107 OEB Show Special with Gerd Leonhard, Laura Overton, Maribel Reyes Millán & Donald H. Taylor 1:21:55

10M ago1:21:55

1:21:55

Voices from Berlin: Learning in the Age of AI. In this episode, John Helmer reports from the Online Educa Berlin (OEB) Conference, engaging with four influential voices in learning and development: futurist Gerd Leonhard, workplace learning expert Laura Overton, digital education innovator Maribel Reyes-Millán, and L&D thought leader Donald H. Tayl…

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GMoLS6E37 Question Time with Donald Clark 1:07:13

11M ago1:07:13

1:07:13

Revisiting Learning Theories: Insights and Challenges for the Future In this special live episode of Great Minds on Learning, recorded at Online Educa Berlin 2024, Donald Clark and John Helmer tackle listener questions about learning theory's relevance, biases, and practical applications. They reflect on three years of the podcast, exploring 2,500 …

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GMoLS6E37 Question Time with Donald Clark 1:07:13

11M ago1:07:13

1:07:13

Revisiting Learning Theories: Insights and Challenges for the Future In this special live episode of Great Minds on Learning, recorded at Online Educa Berlin 2024, Donald Clark and John Helmer tackle listener questions about learning theory's relevance, biases, and practical applications. They reflect on three years of the podcast, exploring 2,500 …

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LH #106 Include Me In with Chris Jay 40:51

12M ago40:51

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Breaking Barriers: Disability Awareness and Cultural Change in Workplaces In this episode, Chris Jay, founder of Bascule Disability Training, shares insights into creating inclusive workplaces and tackling stereotypes about disability. Drawing from personal experiences as a wheelchair user with cerebral palsy, Chris discusses the economic benefits …

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Great Minds on Learning – Question Time 0:58

12M ago0:58

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Send in your questions for the Great Minds on Learning Q&A! Donald Clark and John Helmer will answer them at Online Educa Conference in Berlin, which will be recorded for a podcast episode to be issued before Christmas 2024. Email them in to [email protected] or reach out on social media.

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GMoLS7E37 Question Time 0:58

12M ago0:58

0:58

Send in your questions for the Great Minds on Learning Q&A! Donald Clark and John Helmer will answer them at Online Educa Conference in Berlin, which will be recorded for a podcast episode to be issued before Christmas 2024. Email them in to [email protected] or reach out on social media.By John Helmer

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LH #105: Learning Futures 2 with Anne-Valérie Corboz, Jane Underwood & Sarah Otley 1:14:21

12M ago1:14:21

1:14:21

Strategic Insights on Leadership, AI, and Skills for Tomorrow John Helmer explores the future of learning with Anne-Valérie Corboz (HEC Paris), Jane Underwood (Reckitt), and Sarah Otley (Akkodis Academy). They discuss leadership evolution, generative AI's impact, and strategies for building future-ready skills. From innovation challenges to alignin…

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LH #104 AI Beyond the Low-Hanging Fruit 1:14:21

1y ago1:14:21

1:14:21

The Future of Learning with AI: Moving Past Simple Applications to Transformational Impact (Learning Leaders pilot) This episode premieres the newest podcast from the Learning Hack stable, Learning Leaders, produced by NIIT in association with The Learning Hack. In this pilot episode, John explores the future of AI learning with Gregg Collins and S…

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LH #103 Hillbilly Podcasters with Brigid McCormack 44:29

1y ago44:29

44:29

Exploring Appalachia's Culture and Countering Stereotypes Through Podcasting In this episode, John Helmer is joined by Brigid McCormack, podcast producer and researcher, to discuss her study on podcasting in the Appalachian region of the United States. Brigid shares how local podcasters in this culturally rich yet often stereotyped region are using…

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LH #102 AI Learning: the Rubber Hits the Road with Saskia Huussen, Sanne Mateman, and Callum Clark 56:31

1y ago56:31

56:31

An innovative performance support project in healthcare points the way to significant productivity improvements. In this episode, John Helmer is joined by Saskia Huusen, Sanne Mateman, and Callum Clark to discuss a groundbreaking AI-powered learning project at the Alrijne Healthcare Group. This practical conversation dives deep into the real-world …

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LH #101 Learning Futures with Charles Jennings 51:31

1y ago51:31

51:31

The Chair of iVentiv's upcoming Learning Futures conference talks AI, performance and L&D complacency. John Helmer speaks with Charles Jennings, managing director of Duntroon Consultants and a founding partner of the 70:20:10 Institute. Charles has over 40 years of experience in corporate learning and performance improvement and is widely known for…

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LH #100 The Curious Case of Simon Brown 54:01

1y ago54:01

54:01

How a top CLO, author and podcaster transforms learning strategy. In this special 100th episode of The Learning Hack podcast, we celebrate a milestone by diving deep into curiosity and corporate learning with Simon Brown, Global Learning and Development Leader at EY and best-selling author of The Curious Advantage. Simon, formerly CLO at Novartis, …

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GMoLS6E36 Continental Theorists with Donald Clark 1:27:47

1+ y ago1:27:47

1:27:47

Deconstructing Continental Philosophy's Impact on Modern Education. At the end of the 19th Century, a split in Philosophy emerged that persists today. The Analytic tradition, led by Frege, Russell, and Wittgenstein, emphasized clarity, logical rigour, and formal methods in language analysis. By contrast, Continental theorists such as Husserl and He…

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GMoLS6E35 Psychoanalysts with Donald Clark 1:15:55

1+ y ago1:15:55

1:15:55

Learning in the post-Freudian age At the beginning of the 20th Century, fundamental assumptions about the nature of the mind and how it learns were completely overturned by a new set of ideas. Pre-eminent among the thinkers and practitioners who spearheaded a new field of study called psychoanalysis was the Austrian neurologist, Sigmund Freud. Foll…

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GMoLS6E34 Connectionists with Donald Clark 55:01

1+ y ago55:01

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Is the mind flatter than we thought? This episode was recorded in front of a live audience at the 'Performance Journey Goes Dutch' conference in Ermelo, The Netherlands, organised by Xpertise Learning. Donald and John explore a group of theorists who are giving us a new picture of how we think and learn that is distinctively different from what cam…

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GMoLS6E33 Scribes 2: Literacy and Orality, with Donald Clark 1:38:01

1+ y ago1:38:01

1:38:01

Second of a two-part series on the invention of writing and the impact of literacy on learning. Last time, Donald and John discussed how writing was invented in the ancient world. This time the focus moves to the 20th Century, and thinkers such as Walter Ong and Eric Havelock who revived interest in the pre-literate world of oral culture. Their wor…

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LH #99 Special: Learning Technologies Exhibition & Conference 2024 2:34:35

1+ y ago2:34:35

2:34:35

Learning Technologies London is Europe's leading showcase of organisational learning and the technology used to support learning at work. John Helmer visited the show and talked to a rich mix of the most interesting people he found there: the analyst, the ingenue, the philosopher, the CLO, the keynoter, the vendor, the budget holder and the pirate …

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GMoLS6E32 Scribes: The Invention of Writing with Donald Clark 1:12:15

1+ y ago1:12:15

1:12:15

First of a two-part series on the invention of writing and the impact of literacy on learning. Our ability to learn from written texts is something we take for granted. But like every other technology that humans use, writing had to be invented. Notational signs used next to images of animals are seen in cave paintings from as early as 35,000 BCE. …

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GMoLS6E31 Leadership with Donald Clark 1:30:29

1+ y ago1:30:29

1:30:29

Theories and critiques of leadership learning: the attribution problem and its consequences. This episode, the first of a new season, our sixth, focuses on leadership. Leadership, thought since ancient times to be critical to the destiny of nations, has long been a feature of military training and elite education. But its arrival as a staple of wor…

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GMoLS6E0 - Private View of Season 6 with Donald Clark 25:53

1+ y ago25:53

25:53

John and Donald preview the upcoming season of Great Mind on Learning. The sixth season of Great Minds on Learning begins on Monday 15th April 2024. Ahead of the first episode, John and Donald preview the treats in store! The Blog that started it all: https://donaldclarkplanb.blogspot.com/2021/09/these-were-written-as-quick-readable.html Contact Do…

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LH #98 The Knower & The Known with Leonard Houx 1:31:42

1+ y ago1:31:42

1:31:42

An award-winning learning designer reflects on 30 episodes of our sister podcast, Great Minds on Learning. This episode features a deep dive into the history of learning theory with Leonard Houx, Director of Learning Design at the Cambridge Education Group. Host John Helmer and Houx embark on an intellectual journey through the evolution of educati…

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LH #97 What Do We Speak About When We Speak About AI? with Donald H. Taylor 52:03

1+ y ago52:03

52:03

What does the intense focus on AI in learning today have to say about the future of L&D? Don Taylor is a well-recognised commentator and thinker in the fields of workplace learning and supporting technologies. He speaks world-wide, and has chaired the Learning Technologies Conference in London since 2000. His annual L&D Global Sentiment Survey, sta…

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LH #96 Uncertainty with Katherine Templar Lewis & Sam Conniff 1:03:01

1+ y ago1:03:01

1:03:01

Turning uncertainty from a problem into an opportunity. We are living in a time of great uncertainty. Economies are still suffering the effects of Covid. Countries that are home to nearly half the world's population will hold elections in 2024. Meanwhile the climate is going mad, and geopolitics seem balanced on a knife edge. How do we cope with al…

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LH #95 The Human Moment with Rob Hubbard 58:03

1+ y ago58:03

58:03

In the age of AI, what do we need humans for? The latest advances in AI are highlighting human capabilities, and particularly shortcomings, in a way that causes us once again to re-evaluate what it is to be human. Rob Hubbard is Founder of LearningAge Solutions, an award-winning provider of digital learning services that practices what it calls hum…

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LH #94 The Language of Learning with Peter Manniche Riber 1:07:03

2y ago1:07:03

1:07:03

Does the way we talk about learning improve our understanding – or hold it back? The language of learning is charged with resonant abstract nouns that mobilize professionals around new ideas and concepts. But are these concepts really so new in all cases – and do they provide a focus for practical action? To what extent is the debate driven by the …

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LH #93 Just improvise! with Belina Raffy 51:25

2y ago51:25

51:25

Can business professionals perform better with improv skills? We admire great improvisers in music (Charlie Parker, Jimi Hendrix, etc.) while tending to be suspicious of leaders in business and government who seem to be 'making it up as they go along'. But are we right to think that way? Berlin-based Belina Raffy runs a consultancy and training com…

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LH #92 AI: The Product and the Problem with Egle Vinauskaite 46:57

2y ago46:57

46:57

What is the best approach to using AI for learning in an organisation? My guest this time on the Learning Hack thinks that it's really important to know what problem you are trying to solve with AI in order to use it effectively for learning. The product has to come before the product. Egle Vinauskaite is the award-winning director of the learning …

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GMoLS5E30 Generative AI with Donald Clark 1:07:09

2y ago1:07:09

1:07:09

The theory behind generative AI as a transformational tool for learning. This episode, the last in the current season, was recorded at the Online Educa conference in Berlin and focuses on Generative AI. Since the release of ChatGPT in November 2022, the learning world has been mesmerized by the potential benefits and dangers of this new form of AI.…

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GMoLS5E29 Critics of Schools with Donald Clark 1:15:27

2y ago1:15:27

1:15:27

We don't need no education? This episode explores the transformative ideas of three influential late 20th-century educational theorists. Each began with a flourishing career in teaching but ultimately left the classroom behind, driven by a growing disenchantment with the educational system. Their collective experiences culminated in an incisive cri…

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GMoLS5E28 Schools with Donald Clark 1:32:36

2y ago1:32:36

1:32:36

The pioneers of alternative education systems. This episode covers a group of 20th Century thinkers and educationalists in both Northern and Southern hemispheres who developed a variety of alternative visions for schools. Inspired by enlightenment figures like Rousseau, and the German Idealists who came after them, they nevertheless reacted against…

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LH #Bonus: Should You Use Podcasts In Learning? 22:33

2y ago22:33

22:33

BONUS EPISODE: A talk by John Helmer recorded at the New Learning Conference, Netherlands. Podcasts are everywhere, and have become recognised as a powerful information medium. But can a podcast really cut the mustard as a learning experience? This talk by John Helmer of the Learning Hack podcast, given as a 'live podcast session' at the Next Learn…