SEWI-ATD upcoming events

Training Delivery PDN— Building Your Storytelling Muscle: Part 2 (September 11, 2026)

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 13:30:00 GMT

Training Delivery PDN— Building Your Storytelling Muscle: Part 2

What makes a good storyteller? Depending on the audience and purpose of the story, storytellers must flex their skills to ensure a story lands well and supports the objectives of their training session. Choosing when to use humor, how deep in the weeds to go, how expressive to be, and how to meet time requirements while building rapport with learners is a balancing act for facilitators.

Join the Training Delivery PDN (with special guest John Guarnero!) to practice delivering stories that hit the mark. We will unpack the characteristics of good storytellers, reflect on your current storytelling growth goals, and dive into several group activities based in storytelling skill building.

Technology and AI in L&D SIG Kickoff: Using AI to Elevate Impact (September 18, 2026)

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 13:45:00 GMT

Technology and AI in L&D SIG Kickoff: Using AI to Elevate Impact

AI is transforming work at the same time that L&D is being asked to show business impact. How can you turn these two shifts into an opportunity?

SEWI-ATD is excited to introduce Technology and AI in L&D Special Interest Group! This group is designed for L&D leaders to share strategies and learn together. Whether you are a small team trying to drive results without headcount or a larger organization striving to improve existing complex workflows, this group is for you!

This first session will be focused on where we are. Tool access and experience will vary widely, and we want to meet this group where we are so this is a genuine community of practice rather than another webinar. Registrants will receive a pre-session survey to help shape the agenda. Come ready to say out loud what would make this group valuable for you!

What Learners Want: 3 Things Every HR and L&D Pro Should Be Doing, Every Room, Every Time (October 02, 2026)

Fri, 02 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT

What Learners Want: 3 Things Every HR and L&D Pro Should Be Doing, Every Room, Every Time

Through this interactive session with Lora Haines, attendees will leave challenged and reflective, with a clear sense of the small, practical tweaks that can shift a room, or a 1:1 conversation, toward more openness and candor. Rather than a full overhaul, participants will walk away with a handful of shifts they can start using immediately, whether they're facilitating a training session or having a one-on-one conversation with a learner.

Time	Function
9:00-9:15 a.m.	Intro & Breakout Activity
9:15–9:25 a.m.	Recommendation 1 7 min: the why (the problem, what's really going on for learners here) 3 min: the solve (what to actually do about it)
9:25–9:35a.m.	Recommendation 2 7 min: the why (the problem, what's really going on for learners here) 3 min: the solve (what to actually do about it)
9:35–9:45 a.m.	Recommendation 3 7 min: the why (the problem, what's really going on for learners here) 3 min: the solve (what to actually do about it)
9:45–10:00 a.m.	Q&A

Meet the Speaker

Lora Haines has spent 18+ years helping people and teams work better, whether it's guiding a Fortune 500 company through culture change or coaching a burnt-out individual contributor through a hard conversation. As a former Walt Disney World Disney Institute trainer and current facilitator with JB Training Solutions and a Gallup-Certified CliftonStrengths Coach, she designs and delivers high-energy, interactive workshops across leadership and skills topics, from feedback to generational dynamics to presentation skills, with a candid, engaging style that turns insight into action people actually carry forward. What Lora cares about most is helping teams have the candid conversations that actually shift culture, and helping leaders see and leverage their strengths for real impact; she's worked with organizations like Microsoft, Marriott, Harvard, and Subaru, was named a SHRM Top-Rated Speaker, and is a former SEWI-ATD board member, thrilled to be back!