Our Building Better Managers research identified that employees care about having an empathetic manager, but only half reported having a manager who was fair and empathetic.

All is not lost. Empathy is a skill, and like any other skill, it can be developed. So what might that process involve?

In this episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Loren Sanders joins Ross G and Gemma to discuss:

• the difference empathy makes
• developing self-awareness to develop empathy
• tact as the expression of empathy.

You can find out more about Loren and her book Empathy is Not A Weakness and Other Stories from the Edge at loren365.com.

Ross referred to Self-awareness and empathy that Ross referred to : Whiteside, D. B., & Barclay, L. J. (2016). The face of fairness: Self-awareness as a means to promote fairness among managers with low empathy. Journal of Business Ethics, 137(4), 721-730

In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross recommended C.J Cooke's gothic thriller A Haunting in the Arctic.

For more from Mindtools Kineo, visit  our website mindtools-kineo.com. There, you'll find out how we can help your organization build AI skills, and how our Skills Practice scenarios help build human skills.

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If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn:

• Loren Sanders
• Ross Garner
• Gemma Towersey

This week, we're revisting one of our favorite episodes from last year, focusing on the role of play at work.

All children play but, over time, that instinct goes away. We don't lose it, we don't forget. Instead, we get taught to stop.

For author and toy designer Cas Holman, that's a problem. With a very real impact on business performance.

In this episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Cas joins Ross G and Gemma to discuss:

• how traditional workplaces surpress play
• the business benefits of play at work
• how to encourage play when your organization won't tolerate it.

You can find out more about Cas and her book Playfulness at casholman.com/book. You can also see her in the Netflix series Abstract: The Art of Design.

In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross discussed peculiar experiments involving moths, via The Economist.

For more from Mindtools Kineo, visit  our website mindtools-kineo.com. There, you'll find out how we can help your organization build AI skills, and how our Skills Practice scenarios help build human skills.

Connect with our speakers

If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn:

• Cas Holman
• Ross Garner
• Gemma Towersey

You know those people who seem to command a room with a certain gravitas? How are they doing it? In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Gemma is joined by Frankie Kemp and Ross D to explore:

• what presence is
• the difference between presence and presentation
• techniques to use to develop your presence.

During the discussion, Frankie referenced:

• 'Why You Need Charisma' (via Harvard Business Review)
• 'Can Charisma Be Taught? Tests of Two Interventions' (via Academy of Management Learning & Education)

You can find out more about Frankie's work via her website frankiekemp.com.

For more from Mindtools Kineo, visit  our new website mindtools-kineo.com. There, you'll find out how we can help your organization build AI skills, and how our Skills Practice scenarios help build human skills.

Connect with our speakers   

If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn:

• Ross Dickie
• Gemma Towersey
• Frankie Kemp

If AI is so transformative, how come it's so hard to adopt? In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Ross G is joined by Mindtools Kineo AI Strategy Director Rodrigo Bolaños to explore:

• the hype surrounding AI's potential
• the reality experienced by many organizations
• how to drive AI adoption at scale.

During the discussion, Ross G referenced:

• 'The state of AI in 2025' (via McKinsey)
• 'The AI Adoption Reality Check' (via Thomson Reuters)
• 'Many workers are using unapproved AI tools at work' (via TechRadar)
• '38% of AI-suing employees admit to sending sensitive work data' (via National Cybersecurity Alliance)
• 'AI-generated "workslop" is destroying producitivty' (via HBR)
• 'AI workslop is muddying the American workplace' (via The Week)
• 'AI in L&D: The Race for Impact' (via Don Taylor and Eglė Vinauskaitė)

In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross discussed 'death-cleaning', following the passing of Margareta Magnusson (via The Economist).

For more from Mindtools Kineo, visit  our new website mindtools-kineo.com. There, you'll find out how we can help your organization build AI skills, and how our Skills Practice scenarios help build human skills.

Connect with our speakers   

If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn:

• Ross Garner
• Rodrigo Bolaños

Last week, the Mindtools Kineo gang attended the Learning Technologies exhibition and conference, Europe's largest L&D event.

And so, this week on The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Ross D, Ross G, Gemma and Matt are regrouping to discuss:

• our personal highlights from Learning Tech
• what the conference tells us about the shape of the industry
• the key themes that emerged over the course of the two days
• who and what industry conferences are for in 2026.

In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross G mentioned the Stat Significant newsletter.

Ross D recommended A Spy Among Friends by Ben Macintyre.

For more from Mindtools Kineo, visit  our new website mindtools-kineo.com. There, you'll also find details of our Learning Management Systems, Content Hub for leaders and managers, and custom learning design service - including AI skills development!

Like the show? You'll LOVE our newsletter! Subscribe to The L&D Dispatch at lddispatch.com

Connect with our speakers   

If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn:

• Ross Dickie
• Ross Garner
• Gemma Towersey
• Matt Mella

Throughout human history, technology has disrupted the way we communicate with one another. But according to Andrea Pacini, the fundamental principles behind effective communication haven't changed, and are as relevant today as they were in the past.

In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, Andrea joins Ross D and Anna to discuss his forthcoming book, Timeless Presenter. We cover:

• what the book is about, and how it differs from Andrea's previous book, Confident Presenter
• why the principles of communication don't change, even as tools and technology do
• why nobody cares about your presentation skills, but they do care about the things those skills deliver
• why practice is the key to becoming a better presenter.

To find out more about Andrea's work, head to the Ideas on Stage website. You can also check out the Presentation Toolkit, where you'll find details on Timeless Presenter.

For more from Mindtools Kineo, visit mindtools.com or kineo.com. There, you'll also find details of our Learning Management Systems, Content Hub for leaders and managers, and custom learning design service - including AI skills development!

You can also email us at custom@mindtools.com.

Like the show? You'll LOVE our newsletter! Subscribe to The L&D Dispatch at lddispatch.com

Connect with our speakers   

If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn:

• Ross Dickie
• Dr Anna Barnett
• Andrea Pacini

80% of the world's workforce are deskless, but L&D teams spend most of their time worrying about the 20%. Speaker, advisor and author JD Dillon is on a mission to change that with The Frontline Enablement Playbook.

In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, JD joins Ross G and Ross D to discuss:

• why the 80% get neglected
• why frontline managers are the most important people in the business
• strategies for supporting deskless workers.

To find out more about JD, visit jddillon.com. For the book, visit jdwroteanotherbook.com

In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross D discussed Casey Newton's thoughts on Grammarly. Ross G discussed the number of satellites in the night sky.

For more from Mindtools Kineo, visit mindtools.com or kineo.com. There, you'll also find details of our Learning Management Systems, Content Hub for leaders and managers, and custom learning design service - including AI skills development!

You can also email us at custom@mindtools.com.

Like the show? You'll LOVE our newsletter! Subscribe to The L&D Dispatch at lddispatch.com

Connect with our speakers   

If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn:

• Ross Dickie
• Ross Garner
• JD Dillon

It's once again 'Bring Your Paper to Work' day here at Mindtools Kineo, as Ross G, Dr Anna and Ross D each take turns to share an academic study that they think has key insights for L&D professionals.

In this week's episode of The Mindtools L&D Podcast, we discuss the following papers:

Rogelberg, S. G., Kreamer, L. M., & Gray, J. (2026). 'Thirty years of meeting science: Lessons learned and the road ahead.' Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 13, 415–442.

Castro, S., Englmaier, F., & Guadalupe, M. (2024). 'Fostering psychological safety in teams: Evidence from an RCT'. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2024(1), 16624.

Shen, J. H., & Tamkin, A. (2026). 'How AI impacts skill formation' (arXiv preprint arXiv:2601.20245).

In 'What I Learned This Week', Ross D mentioned National Grid: Live.

For more from Mindtools Kineo, visit mindtools.com or kineo.com. There, you'll also find details of our Learning Management Systems, Content Hub for leaders and managers, and custom learning design service - including AI skills development!

You can also email us at custom@mindtools.com.

Like the show? You'll LOVE our newsletter! Subscribe to The L&D Dispatch at lddispatch.com

Connect with our speakers   

If you'd like to share your thoughts on this episode, connect with us on LinkedIn:

• Ross Dickie

• Anna Barnett

• Ross Garner