2026 Keynote Speaker
Myra Roldan is considered a visionary in artificial intelligence and emerging technologies, including quantum, blockchain, mixed reality, and digital transformation. She has master’s and doctorate’s degrees in business administration and is a certified chief AI officer (CAIO). She brings decades of experience advising Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 companies, as well as the White House, on strategic AI initiatives. Her contributions have shaped national policy, including guidance on President Biden’s Executive Order on AI. She is also the architect behind several influential frameworks recognized by the World Economic Forum and UNESCO, with global implementation across public and private sectors. | Session Description
2026 Concurrent Session Speakers
Vanessa Milara Alzate is the Owner and CEO of Kirkpatrick Partners and Founder and CEO of Anchored Training. With more than 15 years of experience, she has advised organizations across industries, including life sciences, the federal government, and the Department of Defense. She is the author of Building a Culture of Evaluation, which presents a new vision for connecting learning, performance, and innovation. Since acquiring Kirkpatrick Partners in 2023, Vanessa has led the next era of the globally recognized Kirkpatrick Model®, helping organizations position evaluation as the foundation of performance and results. | Session Description
Josh Cavalier is the founder and CEO of JoshCavalier.ai. He helps L&D professionals harness AI to transform human-machine performance. He has 30+ years’ experience in education technology, is a trainer and speaker, and hosts the show Brainpower. His book, Applying AI in Learning and Development: From Platforms to Performance, provides a roadmap for integrating AI into L&D, drawing on real-world platforms, tools, workflows, and ethical considerations. He recently co-founded and serves as the Chief Strategy Officer for Talent Rewire, which provides AI impact data on activities and upskilling as roles are redefined by AI. | Session Description
Robyn A. Defelice, PhD, has spent 25 years supporting L&D professionals in becoming more competent and confident in their craft. As a consultant, author, and practitioner, she brings practical, evidence-based approaches to real workplace challenges. Robyn is the co-author of Microlearning: Short and Sweet and author of Maximizing the Power of Microlearning. She loves rolling up her sleeves and working alongside the L&D community. | Session Description
Rance Greene formed the School of Story Design for instructional designers who struggle to humanize training. His methodology—Instructional Story Design—equips IDs with a systematic and creative way to discover, design, and deliver story-based training. Rance is the author of Instructional Story Design, a practical guide for developing stories that train. He coaches, teaches, speaks, and writes often on the benefits of stories to connect people to one another. | Session Description
Lauren Hamm received an MS in Biomedical Visualization from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2012 and a BFA in Medical Illustration from Rochester Institute of Technology in 2009. Although her educational background is in medical illustration, her work history involves mostly multimedia development and instructional design for the education and healthcare fields. She does freelance medical illustration as well. Her current position is Senior Instructional Designer at the Emergency Nurses Association in Schaumburg, Illinois. | Session Description
Dustin Herlich is the Senior Manager of Learning Experience at the American Academy of Dermatology, where he specializes in purposeful, technology-driven learning solutions. An Association for Talent Development (ATD) Master Instructional Designer and doctoral student at the American College of Education, Dustin studies the use of AI in medical education. He has designed training on topics ranging from SCUBA diving to news literacy and believes educational technology should always serve a meaningful learning purpose. Dustin enjoys analog design as a fountain pen collector and cyanotype artist. He also claims to have taught his sourdough starter two tricks: “sit” and “stay.” | Session Description
Destery Hildenbrand is a learning technology consultant, instructional designer, and speaker with 25 years of experience in learning and development. He helps organizations use AI, immersive technology, and practical design strategies to create engaging learning experiences. Destery has taught for 17 years at Kirkwood Community College and is known for making emerging technology approachable, useful, and grounded in real work. | Session Description
Elizabeth Kuhlmann is a training team lead at Yukon Learning. She has a diverse background in sales, customer success, and training facilitation at organizations ranging from small startups to Fortune 500 companies. She loves to make learning simple and enjoyable when developing courses and training in the classroom. Elizabeth has bachelor’s degrees in Political Science and Geography from the University of Iowa and her law degree from the University of St. Thomas. She is an enthusiastic advocate for creating accessible elearning and a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies. Elizabeth also enjoys learning about wine and exploring the Pacific Northwest. | Session Description
Joe Leslie is VP of Global AI Learning & Development at Golin, where he leads the transformation into a fully AI-integrated global communications agency. In under a year, he helped increase AI adoption from 15% to more than 90% across 1,700 employees worldwide. He has 20 years of L&D experience across three continents and previously led AI upskilling efforts for more than 115,000 employees at Publicis Groupe. His work focuses on behavior change and performance impact rather than tool training alone. Joe has spoken at major industry conferences and writes and consults on AI adoption strategy for organizations worldwide. | Session Description
Bridgett McGowen is The Presentation Fixer™. She can watch you present for 3 to 5 minutes and tell you what’s working, what’s not, and how to fix it. Since 2001, she has shared stages with figures including Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Shonda Rhimes, and Venus Williams. Bridgett has authored award-winning books and earned honors including the University of Texas at Austin’s Master Presenter Award and a Stevie Award for Best Female Entrepreneur. A former Forbes Coaches Council member, she coaches professionals and organizations on presentation skills and communicating with clarity, confidence, and credibility when the stakes are high. | Session Description
Ramona Meyer is an instructional designer at Wheels and founder of the NeuroInclusive Learning Lab. With over 13 years of experience, she creates neuroinclusive learning experiences grounded in executive function science, accessibility, and real-world performance. She specializes in elearning development and systems training, and leads workplace initiatives on neurodiversity to help organizations design environments where different kinds of minds can thrive. | Session Description
Ron Price is the Chief Learning Officer, a training facilitator, and an elearning designer at Yukon Learning. He has more than 40 years of experience in organizational effectiveness, leadership coaching, instructional design, and experiential learning. He has supported clients ranging from Duke University and Harvard Business School to Amazon, BP, and PepsiCo. In 2002, he founded Real-ationships, a consulting firm and outdoor challenge course focused on improving performance, authenticity, and integrity. Since joining Yukon Learning in 2008, Ron has worked closely with the Articulate team to design and develop certified training programs for the Articulate suite of tools. | Session Description
Brian Richardson is Founder and CEO of Richardson Consulting Group (RCG). RCG helps organizations unlock their hidden human potential. Using insights from neuroscience, RCG creates brain-friendly experiences that result in sticky learning and lasting behavior change. Brian has been a featured presenter at global and local events for the Association for Talent Development (ATD), the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI), Project Management International (PMI), the Finance Development and Training Institute (FDTI), and others. | Session Description
“No one comes to work to fail,” and Shannon Tipton ensures training doesn’t set them up to. As founder of Learning Rebels, she transforms outdated learning models into practical, performance-driven solutions. Shannon has deep expertise in microlearning, reinforcement strategies, and upskilling L&D professionals. She brings her candid, no-fluff approach to help design learning that sticks and delivers measurable impact in today’s workplace. | Session Description
Megan Torrance is the CEO and founder of TorranceLearning, where she leads a team focused on reimagining workplace learning through learner-centered and data-informed design. For more than two decades, her firm has supported Fortune 1000 companies, major research universities, professional associations, and federal agencies. Megan is known for connecting strategic vision with practical execution to create innovative learning solutions. She is also the author of several influential books for learning professionals, including Agile for Instructional Designers, Data & Analytics for Instructional Designers, Making Sense of xAPI, and The AI Implementation Guide for L&D. | Session Description
Chad Udell is cofounder and co-CEO of SparkLearn. He has worked with Fortune 500 companies and government agencies to create digital learning experiences for 25 years. Chad is an expert in mobile design and learning and speaks globally at industry events. He is author of Learning Everywhere: How Mobile Content Strategies Are Transforming Training and co-editor and chapter author, with Gary Woodill, of Mastering Mobile Learning: Tips and Techniques for Success. His most recent book, Shock of the New, co-authored with Gary Woodill, provides insight into and tools for evaluating emerging technologies for use in workplace learning. | Session Description
Chris Zahn, PhD, is a senior developmental editor for the Emergency Nurses Association. He has extensive experience in the publishing industry and worked at Pearson Education for over 18 years. Also an educator and researcher, Chris served as a professor at Cleveland State University and Miami University. He has designed and edited a variety of educational products, including instructor-led and self-directed courses, video courses, textbooks, technical and medical trade books, manuals, handbooks, journal articles, and gray literature (e.g., position statements, topic briefs, toolkits, and white papers). He has also worked with a variety of digital media. | Session Description