It’s been a very valuable week, as the Litmos team spent time networking with and learning from some of the best L&D professionals in the world at Brandon Hall Group’s HCM Excellence conference in Palm Beach, Florida. Thank you to the whole BHG team for your hospitality and partnership.

We also thank you again for our Gold awards for Best Advance in Mobile Learning Technology, Best Advance in Sales Enablement and Performance Tools, and Best Advance in Sales Training Online Application. We sure had fun accepting them at the Awards Gala last night.

Big thanks are also due to our beloved and brilliant customer, Ellen Vines, Director of Tools and Technology at ADP, who showed up to co-present with Litmos Chief Learning Officer Mike Martin. They charmed the crowd with a fun, interactive session on creating a world-class training organization, such as the leading one at ADP. Simple reminders like rewarding positive behaviors, caring as much as you want your learners to, removing self-imposed limitations, and honing your sales skills to earn the support of stakeholders really resonated with the passionate L&D pros in the room. Sometimes going back to the basics of why we do what we do can renew our drive and energy, which was at the core of this session.

Our team had a particular interest in a session on Wednesday that focused on how AI and machine learning will transform human capital management and learning. This is right in the Litmos wheelhouse now as we develop our own “augmented intelligence” capabilities for our customers and we were authentically inspired by the innovations that were presented. Very cool stuff.

A personal highlight for me was the two-hour workshop on advancing women in technology careers and companies, led by Rachel Cooke, COO and Principal HCM Analyst at BHG. She was joined by former White House official Bonnie St. John and other powerhouse leaders to guide a discussion on gender balance in the workplace. After an insightful panel session, the packed room broke into groups to weigh in on unconscious gender biases and how to overcome them, as well as how both women and men can be catalysts for effective, consistent, and persistent change through diverse leadership and technology innovation. A huge, warm shout-out to the four or five guys who attended and bravely participated in this session. Cheers, guys. That’s the way of the future. Let’s keep the conversation rolling.

Our own super speaker and crowd-rally king, Mike Martin, kicked off Thursday morning like a straight shot of espresso, imploring the audience to step outside of their comfort zones and try something different in how we approach training and development. His talk aimed to snap us out of the “same old, same old” mindset and challenged everyone to never stop considering a fresh approach. For those of you familiar with Mr. Martin’s antics (oh, did I say “antics”? I meant “tactics”), yes, he did make us put our “awkward finger” on top as we crossed our hands.

Those are just a handful (pun intended) of highlights from the event; I could go on. But I’ll wrap it up with a highlight from today: a panel on extending learning beyond the four walls of the organization, which was an interesting conversation on the potential monetary value of learning (again, right in the Litmos wheelhouse). As BHG’s research shows, learning for non-employees has increased to represent more than half of all learning. Approximately 40 percent of companies are now charging for these courses and recouping more than half of their LMS costs. This is a game-changer for L&D departments that have traditionally been seen as cost centers. The future of learning may shift to profit for some organizations as they leverage opportunities (and needs) to train customers, partners, and others to scale their global training operations.