Kassy LaBorie, Keynote Speaker, Author and L&D Pioneer of Kassy LaBorie Consulting, joins us to talk about what a career built on noticing things, from people and patterns to vintage Barbie dolls, can teach the learning and development field about staying curious in the age of AI. Expert leaders know a lot, which paradoxically makes genuine curiosity harder.

Kassy, host of The Spark Konnect podcast, discovered that stepping into unfamiliar territory forces the kind of authentic curiosity that matters most in learning leadership. When you move beyond your expertise, you stop performing knowledge and start asking real questions. That shift transforms how you approach talent development and team learning.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

00:00 Introduction to Kassy LaBorie, keynote speaker, author and L&D pioneer

01:33 Trading the label "corporate trainer" for “professional noticer”

04:12 How a lifelong Barbie collection became the perfect AI learning lab

05:59 A theater degree and a career fair led to an accidental path into Silicon Valley training

14:45 Interviewing athletes and artists reveals what curiosity actually requires of a host

23:51 A painter once told her to squint and see the basic shapes before filling in the details

25:53 The one thing AI can't replace: human expression

27:33 L&D leaders building AI-ready teams should focus on the strategic yes

28:21 Three books from women shaping the L&D conversation earn a recommendation

29:10 The debrief question used to bookend every session

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RESOURCES MENTIONED

The Spark Konnect podcast:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-spark-konnect/id1847731623

Interact and Engage! 75+ Activities for Virtual Training, Meetings, and Webinars by Kassy

LaBorie:

https://www.td.org/product/book--interact-and-engage-2nd-edition/112209

Producing Virtual Training, Meetings, and Webinars by Kassy LaBorie:

https://kassylaborie.com/book-producing-virtual-training-meetings-and-webinars/

Learning That Lasts by Katrina Kennedy:

https://www.td.org/product/book--learning-that-lasts/112503

L&D Order Taker No More! by Jess Almlie:

https://www.td.org/product/book---ld-order-taker-no-more/112509

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