L&D Happy Hour with Shannon Tipton and Brent Schlenker: Personality Tests—Insights and Hot Takes!

Grab your favorite frosty adult beverage, hit that subscribe button, and join Shannon Tipton and Brent Schlenker for another episode of the L&D Happy Hour. This time, it’s all about personality assessments—the good, the bad, and the downright problematic.

Today, we’re diving headfirst into the world of personality assessments, uncovering their role in recruiting, corporate culture, and team-building. From DiSC and Myers-Briggs to their potential pitfalls, we’re asking the tough questions:

We also reflect on how automation, like AI-powered resume screening, has transformed the hiring process—not always for the better. With stories of frustrating recruitment practices, Shannon and Brent tackle the rise of ghosting, bait-and-switch job postings, and the erosion of humanity in human resources.

But don’t worry, it’s not all doom and gloom! Shannon and Brent share practical advice on what good leadership, coaching, and team-building look like without relying on assessments as a crutch.

So grab your drink, tune in, and get ready to:

And because it wouldn’t be Happy Hour without the Happy, here are our Frosty Adult Beverage (FAB) picks:

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Hosts: Shannon Tipton & Brent Schlenker

Podcast produced by: Obsidian Productions

L&D needs more energy, and so do our onboarding processes!

Listen in as Shannon Tipton and Deborah Harris, two L&D veterans, spill the tea (and maybe a little whiskey) on all things learning and development. No fluff, just real talk.

Today Deb and I are talking about the shocking state of onboarding and why organizations are so damn complacent about it.

So grab your beverage of choice and get ready to dive deep into the world of L&D with us!

• Explore why the L&D industry seems to have a wait-and-see mentality

So let’s all belly up to the bar!

Check these resources:

24 Shocking Employee Onboarding Statistics in 2023, Oak Digital Workplace: https://www.oak.com/blog/employee-onboarding-statistics/

Onboarding Statistics for 2024, The Importance of the Process: https://teamstage.io/onboarding-statistics/

What Does Poor Onboarding Really Do To Your Team: https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/9936-consequences-poor-onboarding.html

Because it wouldn’t be a Happy Hour without the Happy, here are our recommendations for your Frosty Adult Beverage (FAB) of choice:

Deborah: Sunday Drive by Motherload Brewing! This beer is hop-derived and has notes of citrus, leading to a gentle malt body that ends in a crisp, dry finish.

Shannon: I cannot get this FAB out of my mind! Roasted Pineapple Margarita. With Summer in full-swing, it’s a must-try! https://boulderlocavore.com/grilled-pineapple-margarita/

Happy Hour with Shannon Tipton and Brent Schlenker:

Join Shannon Tipton and Brent Schlenker for a blend of business smarts and L&D war stories. Don’t miss our happy hour recommendations at the end of these notes! 

Today, we're dissecting what’s up with pay-to-play conferences and equity in remote work.

When it comes to remote work, there are many organizations taking a hard stance - return to office or else.

Shannon and Brent are debating today: What are an organization's obligations to ensure that remote workers are offered the same growth opportunities as those who are in the office?

• Are they receiving the same learning opportunities?

When it comes to thinking differently about remote vs in-office opportunities, what changes need to be made and how can L&D support those changes?

But before we dig into this, what’s up with pay-to-play conferences and awards!?

Shannon Tipton brings up a common frustration about being asked to participate in conferences and gain awards, but having to pay for the privilege. Those who have been in the industry for more than a few years may be aware that this happens - so now it’s time to alert those who may not be aware that this is not how to gain exposure.

So grab your drink, tune in and get ready to:

• Learn the industry’s hidden play-to-play reward system

Check these resources:

The Economist: Remote Workers Workers Work Longer Not More Effeciently

https://www.economist.com/business/2021/06/10/remote-workers-work-longer-not-more-efficiently

Forbes: 18 Ways to Support Remote Workers

https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2023/08/08/18-impactful-ways-leaders-can-support-remote-employees-in-2023/

HBR: Guide to Managing Your Newly Remote Workers

https://hbr.org/2020/03/a-guide-to-managing-your-newly-remote-workers

Because it wouldn’t be a Happy Hour without the Happy, here are our recommendations for your Frosty Adult Beverage (FAB) of choice:

Brent: Stone Brewing Tangerine Express Hazy IPA

Stone Brewing's hazy IPA gets a juicy boost from real tangerine puree in every batch. This adds not just a vibrant, hazy look, but a burst of citrus that perfectly complements the brew's bold hops

Shannon: Rose Sangria: It’s too HOT, and you need something refreshing!  A sangria always does it for me! https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/michael-symon/rose-sangria-8900276

Be part of the Learning Rebels Community.

Continue the conversation while building connections and capability. Learn more here.

Join the Coffee Chat conversations

Be part of Learning Rebels live Coffee Chat Discussions! Sign up here.  

Hire Learning Rebels 

When you need learning that sticks, we’ll fight to make performance results happen. Visit the Learning Rebels website to learn more

Host: Shannon Tipton & Brent Schlenker

Podcast produced by: Obsidian Productions

(00:00) Shifting Landscape of LinkedIn Marketing

(16:06) Business Acumen in L&D Professionals

(25:33) Business Acumen in L&D

(37:06) Building Business Acumen Skill

Join Shannon Tipton and Brent Schlenker for a blend of LinkedIn hacks, business smarts, and L&D war stories. Don’t miss our happy hour recommendations at the end of these notes! 

What we do know is that organizations spend an embarrassingly amount of money of leadership programs that:

• Never leave the starting blocks

What Shannon and Brent are debating today is - forget planning your next leadership program, it may be time to consider what your organizational culture is like and will it support the change needed to sustain the ongoing attention that true development requires.

Leadership development programs fall short when they lack alignment with the organization's goals, fail to secure buy-in from management, or neglect to provide ongoing support and opportunities for applying learned skills on the job.

What’s disheartening is that these shortcomings leave participants with valuable knowledge and the energy to put new behavioral tools into action. But without the necessary environment or reinforcement to translate that knowledge into lasting behavioral change, it’s wasted time and effort, leaving the participant feeling cheated and cynical.

Brent brings into the forefront a conversation about CFW (connected frontline worker) programs. Is it just another superpowered Learning Management System, or is this the new tool that will really connect L&D and operations?

So grab your drink, tune in and get ready to:

• Learn more about CFW tools and their possibilities

Cheers to all the L&D rockstars!

Check these resources:

HBR: Why Leadership Training Fails and What to Do About It.

https://hbr.org/2016/10/why-leadership-training-fails-and-what-to-do-about-it

Ray Williams: Why Leadership Development Programs Fail and How to Do It the Right Way.

https://raybwilliams.medium.com/why-leadership-development-programs-fail-and-how-to-do-it-the-right-way-a5967811ba43

McKinsey: What’s Missing in Leadership Development

https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/leadership/whats-missing-in-leadership-development

Because it wouldn’t be a Happy Hour without the Happy, here are our recommendations for your Frosty Adult Beverage (FAB) of choice:

Brent: Sunday Drive by Motherload Brewing! This beer is hop-derived and has notes of citrus, leading to a gentle malt body that ends in a crisp, dry finish.

Shannon: The Desert Bird! Tequila, Check! Pineapple Check! Campari, YES, please! All the fixings for the perfect, Spring has sprung cocktail. Enjoy!  https://food52.com/recipes/77632-the-desert-bird-cocktail

Be part of the Learning Rebels Community.

Continue the conversation while building connections and capability. Learn more here.

Join the Coffee Chat conversations

Be part of Learning Rebels live Coffee Chat Discussions! Sign up here.  

Hire Learning Rebels 

When you need learning that sticks, we’ll fight to make performance results happen. Visit the Learning Rebels website to learn more

Host: Shannon Tipton & Brent Schlenker

Podcast produced by: Obsidian Productions

Don't forget to hit the subscribe button and join Shannon Tipton and Brent Schlenker for a blend of LinkedIn hacks, business smarts, and L&D war stories. Don’t miss our happy hour recommendations at the end of these notes! 

(00:00) Shifting Landscape of LinkedIn Marketing

(16:06) Business Acumen in L&D Professionals

(25:33) Business Acumen in L&D

(37:06) Building Business Acumen Skill

Today, we're peeling back the layers of today's LinkedIn, revealing how it's morphed from a professional networking utopia into a marketing coliseum.

Then, cheers to the 78% of L&D professionals who ventured into this domain from other careers—because today we're addressing the elephant in the room: business acumen. Discover how understanding the financial heartbeat of your organization and aligning with your leader's vision can catapult L&D from being a just another pretty PPT creator to a real problem solver. 

Next, we share our thoughts to help you cement your value, from aligning with business needs to building bridges across departments. It's a cocktail of humor, wisdom, and actionable advice to make your L&D department invaluable.

So grab your drink, tune in, and get ready to:

• Navigate LinkedIn's marketing maze

Cheers to all the L&D rockstars!

Check these resources:

• The uncomfortable truth: L&D leaders are not prepared for executive conversations https://www.linkedin.com/posts/guywwallace_the-uncomfortable-truth-ld-leaders-are-activity-7156301427546472450-otUi

Because it wouldn’t be a Happy Hour without the Happy, here are our recommendations for your Frosty Adult Beverage (FAB) of choice:

Brent: Sunday Drive by Motherload Brewing! This beer is hop-derived and has notes of citrus, leading to a gentle malt body that ends in a crisp, dry finish.

Shannon: I cannot get this FAB out of my mind! Roasted Pineapple Margarita. With Spring just around the corner, it’s a must-try! https://boulderlocavore.com/grilled-pineapple-margarita/

Grab your favorite frosty adult beverage, hit the subscribe button, and take a ride with Shannon Tipton and Brent Schlenker as they discuss the skills agenda - why is there even a "skills agenda," and why are yearly recaps a remix of lists from previous years and not particularly helpful. 

Sharing their opinions on the importance of systems, AI, and Curation are guests: JD Dillon, Myra Roldan, and Mike Taylor. Plus, parting words as a tribute to Jay Jimenez and Bob Pike. 

Beyond the Hype: Predicting the Biggest L&D Trends for 2024: https://www.hr.com/en/magazines/all_articles/beyond-the-hype-predicting-the-biggest-l-d-trends-_lqxmaw1d.html