Knowledge Sharing: Five Minutes with Kelly Lake, KGL’s Global Head of Corporate Learning
by Mike Groth
It is no understatement to say that the workplace has evolved over the past year—and one profession that has faced this disruption and workforce transformation head on has been organizational learning and development. Recently recognized by Training Industry as a Top 20 Experiential Learning Technologies Company for 2021 and leading up to this year’s Learning Solutions Digital Experience, I sat down with KGL’s learning and performance expert Kelly Lake to discuss how organizations are adapting, how KGL is responding, and what’s next for the industry.
MG: What makes KnowledgeWorks Global Learning different?
KL: KGL is uniquely positioned in the current market. With vast experience in numerous verticals, KGL provides innovative workforce solutions to our clients. I have been part of this industry for 30 years and have been fortunate to work with many talented organizations and individuals. I am most proud of my amazing team, which is comprised of highly skilled and customer-focused experts. We are always looking for new approaches to solve client challenges and make the learning more impactful. Our success comes from knowing the market, understanding what’s next, and not being afraid to push the limits. Our clients depend on us and we take that very seriously as a consultive strategic partner.
MG: How have organizations adapted their training and development initiatives to enable the remote workforce?
KL: The L&D industry is very resilient and continuously moves forward despite the many challenges during 2020. We have definitely come together as a community. Organizational L&D leaders are not slowing down. In fact, it is no surprise to me the flexibility, adaptability, and commitment exhibited by not only leaders, but designers and trainers to meet the needs of the virtual workforce. We respond to and work with organizations on workforce enablement, providing interactive solutions for upskilling, reskilling, and virtual onboarding focused on learner engagement. We do this while developing a blueprint for the organization to grow its strategy and ensure employee development. 2021 is the year of redesign and workforce evolution.
MG: Any recent notable client projects you’re excited to discuss?
KL: Working with proactive organizations like Raley’s, National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and Intelsat has been a great experience over this past year. The passion to succeed and the dedication of these clients provides an insight into best business practices and aligns a single team between KGL and their learning leaders. Whether it is microLearning, interactive videos, gamification, or immersive design, I am so pleased we have the opportunity to design and develop engaging solutions that help our clients reach their learning and development goals. We also learn from each experience and that is what makes our relationships continue and grow.
MG: KGL has recently launched a virtual onboarding toolkit, VIBE. How does it work?
KL: VIBE (Virtual Induction Blended Experience) is a great solution and highly needed in the current workplace. Basically, when you listen to the market and your clients to respond with a solution that works, everyone benefits. VIBE provides an integrated solution for organizations to onboard remote employees. It includes a virtual roadmap, gamification, embedded videos, AI Chatbots, virtual mentoring, and digital performance support. This provides employees an engaging and interactive experience. Not only do they get the opportunity to engage with all the essential information of the organization remotely, they are supported by an AI Chatbot and a virtual mentor. VIBE gives organizations a clear picture into the onboarding process and allows them to gather feedback from employees at the start of the process.
MG: What is next for KnowledgeWorks Global Learning?
KL: We will continue to help organizations to resolve the challenges of their remote workforce. I am excited to release several new workforce performance solutions to the market over the next several months. Virtual leadership development, effective learner-measurability, and an integrated virtual workforce solution have definitely been on the forefront of our client discussions. KGL will address these issues and more.
MG: How do you spend your free time when you’re not helping organizations improve their learning and performance outcomes?
KL: When I am not climbing Everest (kidding), I enjoy anything outdoors that re-invigorates me and reminds me to breathe. I am also an avid musician which balances my creative side.
Kelly Lake leads KnowledgeWorks Global Learning, provider of innovative workforce learning solutions. For over 30 years, she has partnered with hundreds of Fortune 1000 companies, providing expertise in designing effective learning ecosystems and ROI. Mike Groth is Director of Marketing at KGL. We can be reached at info@kwglobal.com.
