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Make Learning Stick Through Reflection ActivitiesEmployees today crave development, growth, and skill building. They also want more meaning and connection at work. When they learn to reflect on training experiences intentionally, they get all that and more. Pausing to reflect makes it easier to retain and transfer the knowledge and skills we need on the job.L&D expert Katrina Kennedy shares more than 45 reflective learning activities that instructional designers, facilitators, and trainers can use in face-to-face and online classrooms to create more meaningful learning experiences for a variety of contexts and audiences. Each activity is designed to help participants develop critical thinking skills and improve future performance by analyzing what they’ve learned and how far they’ve come.Built around eight essential outcomes, this book will show you how to strengthen learners’ motivation, social connection, memory, and critical thinking skills through targeted reflection activities—all of which are adaptable for in-person or remote training situations.Start achieving your organization’s business goals and building learners’ capacities with this comprehensive reflection toolkit.

Learning That Lasts

Learn to use storytelling to boost learner engagement and retention. This L&D workshop equips you with proven techniques for in-person and virtual training. 

Storytelling in L&D Workshop

Accelerate your readiness for the Certified Professional in Talent Development (CPTD®) certification exam and earn the credential that proves your talent development capability.

CPTD® Certification Preparation Bootcamp

No more recorded presentations! Design engaging, memorable training videos that promote learning. Explore video psychology, storytelling, and scriptwriting.

Designing Training Videos Certificate

Combine in-person, virtual, and self-paced training for flexible, cost-effective, and engaging learning. Learn how to design impactful blended programs. 

 Blended Learning Certificate

Accelerate your readiness for the Associate Professional in Talent Development (APTD®) certification exam and earn the credential that proves your talent development capability.

APTD® Certification Preparation Bootcamp

Tackle instructional design challenges in any industry, and apply effective design principles to create e-learning courses with impact. Register today!

E-Learning Instructional Design Certificate

This advanced-level certificate program helps you master all aspects of training delivery.  Earn the respected title of ATD Master Trainer. Register today!

 ATD Master Trainer® Program

Master the instructional design process in this advanced course. Explore design models, evaluate real-world projects, and work with expert facilitators.

ATD Master Instructional Designer® Program

Modern sales training has a gap. Not a knowledge gap, but a performance one.Salespeople today aren’t just pitching products. They’re navigating complex conversations, adapting in real time, and building trust with increasingly discerning buyers. And while most training programs focus on delivering information, knowing what to say isn’t the same as knowing how to say it—or when, or why.That kind of readiness only comes from active practice. That’s where role play comes in.Research Shows Role Play Is EffectiveRole play is one of the most effective ways to prepare reps for high-stakes conversations. It gives them space to try, miss, adjust, and improve, but without risking deals. Reps can test out messaging, practice objection handling, and sharpen their instincts in a low-pressure environment.The data backs it up. Retention from active practice like role play averages around 75 percent, compared to just 5 percent for lecture-style learning. Sellers who regularly role play have been shown to close more deals—research shows by as much as 20 to 45 percent.The impact is quantifiable. Organizations implementing structured role play programs report ramp time reductions of two to four weeks. For a team of 25 new reps, each generating $40,000 monthly when fully productive, accelerating readiness by just three weeks translates to $750,000 in additional revenue—before accounting for improved win rates and retention.Despite all this clear data, many sales enablement programs treat it as an optional add-on. Why?The Challenge in Scaling Role PlayScaling role play isn’t easy. Coordinating live sessions across time zones takes time. Informal practice often lacks structure or useful feedback. Plus, many frontline managers aren’t trained as effective coaches. Without a way to track participation or outcomes, it’s hard to prove impact—or even know what’s working.So, despite being one of the most effective training strategies, role play often goes underused, replaced by easier but less effective alternatives.How to Incorporate Role Play Into Your Sales Enablement TrainingThe teams getting the most from role play are building it into their overall training flow. Some are using simulations for solo practice. Others are embedding structured peer exercises into onboarding and coaching. The common thread is consistency—making role play part of the culture, not just a one-off activity.This approach doesn’t just improve rep performance—it also gives managers and enablement leaders better insight into skills, progress, and where to focus coaching efforts.Tips for Getting StartedIf you’re looking to implement or improve role play, start simple. Here are a few tips to keep it effective and repeatable:Make it specific. Each role play should have a defined scenario, goal, and skill focus, like objection handling or pricing conversations.Keep it short. A 5- to 10-minute exchange is often enough to surface skill gaps and generate useful feedback.Pair strategically. Match newer reps with more experienced ones to build confidence and enable peer coaching.Provide a feedback framework. Teach reps how to give constructive, focused feedback to their peers. Use prompts like: What worked well? Where did they lose momentum? What would you try instead?Debrief as a group. Encourage reps to share what they learned to the wider group after the session. This helps reinforce takeaways and normalize growth through practice.Use AI tools to extend learning. Let reps practice with AI-powered simulations before and after live role play. It helps them warm up, get unstuck on common challenges, and reinforce learning through repetition.Track outcomes. Build in ways to measure participation, improvement, and skill adoption over time. This helps refine training and connects the dots between practice and pipeline impact.Involve managers early. Equip frontline managers with role play guides or rubrics so they can reinforce the same standards in coaching conversations. Their participation sends a clear message: this isn’t extra work—it’s core to performance.Build it into the rhythm. Tie role play to weekly team meetings or coaching sessions. When it becomes a habit—not an event—reps show up better prepared and more willing to improve.The more consistent the effort, the more measurable the return. Reps don’t need dozens of sessions they need regular opportunities to apply what they’re learning and reflect on what’s working.For more strategies about implementing role play that drives real outcomes, download the full guide here. 

Why Role Play Delivers 75% Retention (Vs. 5% From Lectures) 

You can’t build tomorrow’s learning program on yesterday’s infrastructure. Whether you’re training internal teams or educating external audiences like customers or members, the goal isn’t just to “keep up;” it’s to stay ahead. That means building a program that scales without breaking, adapts without rework, and delivers measurable value at every growth stage.If your current training program feels stuck in the past (or in spreadsheets), you’re not alone. But scaling isn’t just about making things bigger. It’s about making them better. Here’s what separates scalable learning programs from the ones that stall out.Designed for Flexibility, Not Just FunctionalityA rigid learning program might check boxes today, but will it hold up next quarter? Next year? Or when you onboard twice as many learners?Scalable programs are built with flexibility at the core. That means modular, reusable content that can easily be tailored by audience, role, or skill level. Instead of locking knowledge into a 60-minute webinar, you can break it into microlearning modules that slot into different learning paths.And don’t underestimate the value of interoperability. A program that “plays well with others” (whether that’s HR platforms, CRMs, or credentialing systems) is more likely to scale without rework or technical debt. Flexibility isn’t just about convenience; it’s your insurance policy against constant reinvention.Learner Experience Comes First (Always)You could have the most sophisticated learning platform on the planet, but learners won’t stick around if it’s hard to navigate.A scalable program puts the learner experience at the center. That includes intuitive navigation, mobile accessibility, clear content progression, and interactive elements that drive engagement. (No offense to static PDFs, but they’re not exactly binge-worthy.)And let’s talk about personalization. Scalable learning programs offer pathways that adjust to each learner’s goals and knowledge level. If someone’s already nailed the basics, let them skip ahead. If they need extra help, give them targeted content. The goal is to help learners succeed faster, not slog through irrelevant material just to hit a “completion” bar.Data Isn’t Just Nice to Have—It’s NonnegotiableIf you’re still gauging program success by the number of people “logged in,” it’s time for an upgrade.Scalable learning programs use data to measure not just activity but impact. They track knowledge retention, course effectiveness, skill progression, and business outcomes, like reduced onboarding time or improved customer satisfaction.This data empowers your teams to iterate in real time. Noticing a drop-off in a certain module? Optimize the content. Seeing a spike in demand for a specific skill? Build a new learning path. When your program is data-informed, it’s no longer reactive—it’s strategic.Technology That’s Built to Scale With YouSpoiler: not all learning platforms are created equal. Choosing the wrong tech stack can feel like upgrading a flip phone with an app store.A scalable program is built on technology that grows with your organization. That means open APIs, customizable workflows, native integrations, and a vibrant partner ecosystem. Whether layering on credentialing, integrating video learning, or expanding into new audiences, your tech shouldn’t hold you back.Equally important? Administrative ease. Your learning ops team should be able to manage content, users, reporting, and integrations without needing a developer on speed dial.Supports Internal AND External Training at ScaleYour organization likely has more than one audience to train. Employees, contractors, customers, channel partners, members, you name it. Too often, companies build a separate system for each, leading to silos, redundant content, and (let’s be honest) a support nightmare.A truly scalable program supports multiple audiences within one platform, with role-based access, custom branding, and personalized learning paths: one system, multiple audiences, zero chaos.This is especially valuable for organizations that generate revenue from education. If your learning program drives business growth, it needs to scale like any other revenue engine with visibility, control, and flexibility baked in.Final Thought: Scaling Is a Mindset, Not a MilestoneThe reality is that no learning program is ever “done.” Business needs evolve, technology shifts, and learner expectations keep rising. A scalable, future-ready learning program is one that adapts to all of it without starting from scratch every time.The organizations that succeed long term don’t just react to change—they design for it. They treat learning as a strategic function, prioritize the learner experience, and ask bold questions: Are we building for today, or preparing for what’s next?

Future-Proofing Your Learning Program: 5 Traits of Scalable Success

June 2025 - TD Magazine

Know the basics to improve training visuals.

Design 101

Use existing assets to create microlearning, podcasts, and vodcasts.

Repurpose With a Purpose

Use Marketing Strategies to Captivate and Persuade Your AudienceAt first glance, marketing and L&D may seem like an unlikely combination. But on closer inspection, both fields share two core goals: getting people’s attention and influencing their behavior. Marketing involves captivating, persuading, and creating value—all of which are key to learning design. When done well, learning design grabs participants’ attention like a great marketing campaign and engages them emotionally and intellectually to make learning stick. In this innovative volume, marketing and L&D experts Bianca Baumann and Mike Taylor ask: How can L&D pros make learning programs more effective by thinking like expert marketers?To answer that question, Bianca and Mike explore the potential of marketing-inspired L&D. You’ll discover:What makes marketing so persuasive and how to apply it to learningHow to craft magnetic learner personas and journeys to pull people inTactics for writing and designing content to capture attentionDigital tools and automation strategies to multiply your effectivenessWays to measure and optimize for maximum resultsWhether you’re new to learning design or a seasoned pro, this practical guide will transform how you create and deliver training. Get ready to boost engagement, improve retention, and deliver learning experiences that truly resonate.

Think Like a Marketer, Train Like an L&D Pro

Use this checklist to avoid cognitive overload, write clearly, and use appropriate style, sentence, and paragraph length. This tool was adapted from the ATD Writing for Instructional Design and Training Certificate Program. 