Best Hits: Why Leaders Must Become Developers of Talent

Note: This is a replay episode of one of our most popular episodes of 2025In this solo episode of The Edge of Work podcast, host Al Dea introduces a new approach to leadership: becoming developers of talent. Al explores how managers and leaders can embrace their roles in fostering employee growth and development in the day-to-day workflow, beyond formal training programs. By offering practical strategies, lightweight tools, and actionable insights, this episode provides listeners with a fresh perspective on embedding development into their management style, empowering their teams, and boosting organizational performance. Discover how small moments can create big impacts in talent development and retention.LinksAl’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsaldea/Article: https://alsnewsletter.substack.com/p/turning-leaders-into-developers-of

Note: This is a replay episode of one of the most popular episodes from the past yearCharlene Li is an Entrepreneur, Consultant, Best-Selling Author and Keynote Speaker. As a longtime expert in studying emerging technologies and their impacts on society, business and leadership, Charlene has a keen eye for what’s new and next and it’s implications for business.In this episode, Charlene shares her insights on AI, emphasizing its role in commoditizing knowledge and fostering innovation. They delve into the challenges of digital transformation, comparing it to past shifts driven by social media. Charlene also offers insight into where she is seeing organizations make progress in incorporating AI into their work, and highlights the importance of how leaders can think about leading during uncertain and evolving times. LinksLinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charleneli/Website: https://charleneli.com/

In this solo episode of The Edge of Work, Al Dea unpacks a critical skill for today’s workplace: cultivating influence. Whether you're leading a bold change initiative or simply trying to align your team around a shared goal, your ability to influence others—without formal authority—is essential. Drawing from his experience as a facilitator and consultant, Al shares a practical framework of four principles: earning trust, demonstrating credibility, navigating organizational dynamics, and engaging with empathy. LinksLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsaldea/Website: https://www.al-dea.com/

Maya Razon drives Learning & Leadership Development at the Google School for Leaders. In this episode of The Edge of Work, Maya shares how her team designs transformative learning experiences for Google’s global leaders. She explores how the “inner game” of leadership, physical space, and AI integration are reshaping how leaders learn and grow in a rapidly changing world. From leveraging neuroaesthetics in learning environments to adapting leadership programs for social impact innovators, Maya discusses Google’s human-centered, research-informed approach to developing leaders.Links:Maya’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maya-razon-a894343/ReWork Article: https://rework.withgoogle.com/en/guides/learning-development-using-science-to-enhance-learning-outcomes 

In this solo episode of The Edge of Work, host Al Dea explores how leadership development can evolve in the age of Artificial Intelligence. Drawing from his keynote presentations and conversations with talent and business leaders, Al shares now is the time to reimagine how we think about leadership development in a rapidly changing world of work. During this episode, Al offers 4 principles for how leadership development professionals can think and working differently to reshape and take advantage of opportunities in this new world of work. LinksLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsaldea/Website: https://www.al-dea.com/

In this month’s “Work in Progress” segment, Al Dea is joined by Steve Hunt and Phil Kirschner to unpack three timely topics related to the intersection of talent and the workplace: Moderna’s decision to merge HR and IT, an experiment AI + teamwork experiment from P&G, and whether AI is wiping out the first rung of the career ladder. Together, they explore the implications of AI on job design, team dynamics, early career talent, and the future of work,and what leaders can do to prepare.Links:Steve’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steventhunt/Steve’s Book: https://talenttectonics.com/Phil’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/philkirschner/Phil’s Newsletter: https://www.flexos.work/the-worklineArticles MentionedModerna: IT and HR: https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-moderna-merged-its-tech-and-hr-departments-95318c2a?st=YTw4p4&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalinkP&G and Teams: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5188231 Aneesh Raman NY Times Op Ed: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/19/opinion/linkedin-ai-entry-level-jobs.html 

Ruth Hickin is the Vice President of Workforce Innovation at Salesforce. In this episode, Ruth unpacks her team's efforts around digital labor, and shares how her team is preparing Salesforce’s workforce for the age of AI by investing in internal talent through skilling, career mobility, and human-centered design. During our conversation, Ruth provides the philosophy behind Career Connect, an AI-powered internal talent marketplace, and how it’s enabling employees to explore personalized career paths, skill development, and internal opportunities.Finally, Ruth also shares Salesforce’s approach to job redesign, skill-based management, and the rise of agent collaboration in day-to-day roles.LinksLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruth-hickin/Article: https://www.hr-brew.com/stories/2025/03/28/hr-leaders-prioritize-l-and-dArticle: https://www.hr-brew.com/stories/2024/09/04/salesforce-ai-internal-talent-platform 

In this episode, The Edge of Work Podcast host Al Dea provides an informal recap of his time at ATD ICE ‘25 in Washington D.C. During this episode, Al covers the basics of ATD ICE, some of the programming and content themes, highlights from the expo floor and vendors, and some of his reflections from the conversations he had with talent and learning leaders.LinksLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsaldea/Website: https://www.al-dea.com/Career Experimentation: https://alsnewsletter.substack.com/p/how-to-help-your-employees-experiment Developing Talent: https://theedgeofwork.com/how-to-turn-leaders-into-developers-of-talent/ATD ICE: https://atdconference.td.org/Uplimit: https://uplimit.com/Tenor: https://tenorhq.com/

Kweilin Ellingrud is a Director of the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) and leads Diversity and Inclusion for McKinsey globally. She is also a senior partner at McKinsey and co-author of The Broken Rung: When the Career Ladder Breaks for Women--and How They Can Succeed in Spite of It, a  book on the challenges women face in career advancement.In this episode, Kweilin joins the podcast to discuss the concept of the "broken rung" or the first step up to manager that many women are disproportionately denied, and how this early gap significantly impacts long-term career progression. Together, they explore the importance of experience capital, the impact of bold career decisions, and the role of leaders and HR in fostering equitable growth.Kweilin also shares practical insights on strategic networking and recognizing workplace biases, offering listeners tangible strategies to support and advance women in the workplace.LinksLinkedIn URL: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kweilinmellingrud/ Book: https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-on-books/the-broken-rung 

Carole Bennett is the Vice President of Talent Management and Development at Sutter Health. In this episode, Carole shares her journey in leading large-scale talent strategy across a major healthcare system. She unpacks how Sutter Health is investing in internal mobility, leadership development, and workforce planning to meet both immediate and long-term needs. Carole also discusses the importance of tying talent strategies to broader business goals, building trust with leaders, the concept of building a "Career Home" and creating career paths that empower employees.LinksLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carole-bennett-phd/