This week I had the amazing opportunity to work with a team. A real team. A soccer team. A group of individuals that must work together to achieve a collective goal. I reference ‘real’ not to be hyperbolic, but because sports offer a window into what teamwork really can be. A truly collective effort. I say this, as compared to organizations that can function under the veil of ‘team’, but often times can achieve their goals with, or without the collective effort of everyone. M

In the past month, Pathways has been asked to develop eLearning modules on the topic of Social Media awareness and usage by three of our clients. Considering the frequency of these recent requests, I decided to spend a few weeks discussing how we use Social Media. When discussing this topic with a friend he mentioned that while he was very careful with how he presented himself on social media when using his companies’ channels, he felt he could be “more himself” when using

In the past month, Pathways has been asked to develop eLearning modules on the topic of Social Media awareness and usage by three of our clients. Considering the frequency of these recent requests as well as the acknowledgement that Social Media is by no means a new phenomenon, this leads me to believe that more and more organization have, while probably already realized long ago the potential benefits of utilizing social media, only now realizing the potential pitfalls of

Recently the Pathways team took part in an exciting project in creating one of Canada’s first 360 video eLearning modules. For the past two weeks I have written about this experience, including a discussion on the lessons learned related to camera movement and lighting and on our discoveries around the camera hardware, sound and available post production software. To conclude the discussion, this week I will talk about the outlook for 360 video technology as it relates to

Gone are the days people work for the same organization for their entire career. One report from Workopolis suggests Canadians will hold approximately 15 jobs through their working career. People are looking for new challenges and opportunities and the number of career changers is on the rise. So what can companies do to attract and retain talent? Look no further than the millennials, who make up the largest percentage of the workforce, to drive workplace trends. As a Gen Xer

Recently I was shopping at a local department store when I came across something I thought was a bit out of the ordinary. A man who looked to be in his late 40’s, early 50’s, was admiring himself in a full-length mirror, swiveling his hips left and right in what I assume was an attempt to determine the fit of the pair of Blue Jeans he had on. What I thought was a bit odd was the fact the jeans looked so tight I can’t believe the gentleman had any blood flowing below the wa

Earlier in my career, I had a boss who had a somewhat unique way of responding whenever he (or his team) was asked to take on a training & development project that was outside of the regular technical development we usually focused on. It did not matter the size of the project or how many resources would be required or for how long, his first question was always the same… “What problem are you trying to solve”? Now before anyone pulls an optical muscle rolling their eye

Last week I wrote about an eLearning module I had reviewed and provided feedback on. As I mentioned then, the material significantly lacked several key elements required when creating eLearning so this week I thought I would share a few tips and suggestions that will help ensure success, specific to our learners taking from the material exactly what you expected. The first piece of advice I would start with is the most obvious, and that is to ensure your material covers all

Last week I attended a Canadian Community of Corporate Educators (CCCE) event where Dr. Alan Middleton from the Schulich Executive Education Centre spoke about business spending on training. He highlighted that while The Conference Board of Canada reported a modest increase in spending on training from 2010 to 2013, there has been an overall decline the past couple of decades. Dr. Middleton also discussed the VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous) world we live in and

As a former teacher, creating personalized learning for my students was the norm. It included everything from presenting lessons orally, followed up with a hand-out, a reading, or even a video recording of the lesson to creating a learning environment where students could work independently, in partners, or small groups to offering students choice about how they would demonstrate acquisition or mastery of knowledge, skills, and understanding. Personalized learning as a method