The ability to work remotely has become more valued than ever before, and that’s not going away, particularly among younger workers. Even in organizations that remain committed to offering employees significant remote or hybrid work, there is often a desire among leaders to foster togetherness with a return to in-person learning events. But as learning professionals, the authors hear many myths when it comes to what in-person learning — or in-person experiences more generally — can actually achieve. Here, they’ll dispel the ones they hear most often and show you how to maximize connection from in-person learning events.

No one is immune to cognitive biases. Cindy Alvarez, Principle Researcher at Microsoft and Author of Lean Customer Development wanted us to recognize this fact at #mtpcon San Francisco 2018. In this Sunday Rewind, we look back on this talk and what we learned from her keynote.

We often write about how Zhang Ruimin boosted incredible levels of entrepreneurship at the Chinese firm, Haier. We even wrote a book about it: "Start-Up Factory." I recently learned about another Zhang that achieved a similar feat at another Chinese company, and it is definitely a story worth sharing. This is the story of Zhang Yong and a Chinese firm called HaiDiLao.

OKRs require continuous learning. Your teams require tools that help them do that. Here's what they'll need.

A simple thing is not inherently valuable. Simplicity is valuable if it aligns with your goals. The pilot of a plane dies suddenly. A passenger attempts to land the aircraft with the help of a trained flight instructor. Do the instructor’s commands sound simple? Yes. But they are more than simple. The commands—devoid of jargon, acronyms, and standard ATC protocol—help the non-pilot land the plane safely.

This article shares five practical tips to help you stock your product backlog and lay the foundations for a successful development effort.

A team that understands and agrees on what one another does is likely to be more high functioning than those who don’t. Here’s how to…

It’s no secret that the term “pre-work” inspires groans, eye-rolls, and even — during that all-too-familiar moment of realization that you haven’t done the pre-work — a sense of impending doom. Because of this, and because pre-work so often goes undone, many executives have given up on the practice. It doesn’t have to be this way. By embedding pre-work into meetings and carving out the first five to 20 minutes to have participants silently review a thoughtfully prepared, action-oriented document, leaders can reimagine not just the concept of pre-work, but the very nature of how teams gather. The author presents five tips for adopting the practice.

With a new season comes a new list of my recommended reading! In this installment of titles that traverse my personal and professional…