𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝟐𝟓 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭!

Photo by Taruna Goel

𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝟐𝟓 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭

This June, I reached a big milestone in my career journey - I completed 25 years in L&D!

From my beginnings at NIIT in New Delhi, India in 1999 to my current role at North Pacific in Vancouver, BC, Canada in 2024, it's been an incredible journey. How does one summarize over two decades of doing what they love? A short LinkedIn update can't do justice to the experiences and stories gathered over 25 years. My cup is overflowing with immense joy and happiness, continuous learning and growth, and impactful partnerships and collaborations.

If I had to identify one thing that has been central to my L&D career, I’d say it is the dual role of being both a strategist and a practitioner.

𝐀𝐬 𝐚 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐬𝐭: Envisioning the future is exciting! Staying ahead of industry trends & business needs, setting long-term goals, and creating pathways to achieve them - I enjoy this future-forward thinking. It involves foresight, analysis, planning, stakeholder engagement, and a deep understanding of industry nuances. This is where I get to uncover the big picture and indulge in innovative ideas & approaches, and visualize frameworks that support future growth and upskilling. My aim is clear: to have a direct and lasting positive influence on the industry.

𝐀𝐬 𝐚 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐫: I love bringing this vision to life. Nothing gives me more joy than seeing learning strategies & plans translated into learning experiences that impact real-life work and improve performance. Here, I bring my practical and pragmatic side to the forefront, being creative with tools and techniques, and engaging in the design and development of learning, competency development, and competency assessment programs that are relevant, accessible, and inclusive. I'm focused on the details and immersed in the grind: execution, collaboration, problem-solving, and translating the vision into valuable outcomes.

The ability to shift between high-level learning strategy and instructional design practice and the skills to navigate these dual roles have defined my career. Balancing the abstract with the concrete is perhaps my “secret sauce” that has contributed to the development of solutions across industries, occupations, diverse learner needs, & continents—solutions that I am proud of!

Looking ahead, I'm excited about the future of L&D and my own learning as we continue to innovate and adapt to challenges and opportunities.

Thank you to everyone who has been a part of my incredible journey—family, friends, colleagues, collaborators, mentors, clients, learners, students, and mentees. I am humbled and full of gratitude for the people, experiences, and achievements that have shaped my career.

Here’s to the next chapter of learning, possibilities, growth, and success!

hashtag#LearningAndDevelopment hashtag#25YearsInLnD hashtag#Celebration hashtag#ContinuousLearning hashtag#Leadership

Misaligned Intelligence - Human VS. AI

Image by Ermal Tahiri from Pixabay

I have been reflecting on the complexity of comparing AI learning with human learning and the changing notion of intelligence itself.

When we think of AI, we know it as a collection of data-driven algorithms that work by recognizing and optimizing patterns. Human intelligence integrates not only the cognitive dimension but also the social and emotional aspects, which perhaps add to the uniqueness of human intelligence. Yet, both AI and human are learning and AI is a better learner than we imagined. So, is there a potential to expand on the definition of intelligence and that of learning in the age of AI?

In his book, "Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence", Max Tegmark talks about these kinds of implications of AI on human intelligence.

I enjoyed how he prompts us to reconsider what aspects of intelligence are truly distinctive to humans and what can be replicated or surpassed by machines. Although the book was published in 2017 and much has happened since then, his ideas (sometimes bordering on fiction, some might say) and insights are worth a read.

In one of the chapters he talks about 'mythical' worries like AI will turn evil or AI will turn conscious. He says that the real concern is AI becoming competent with goals that are misaligned with us and in that sense, "misaligned intelligence" should be the 'most important conversation of our times'.

hashtag#AI hashtag#ArtificialIntelligence hashtag#MaxTegmark hashtag#HumanIntelligence hashtag#AILearing hashtag#HumanLearning hashtag#Books

Recognizing Comptencies and Credentials

(Source: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2024PSFS0022-000907)

I work in the areas of competency development, assessment and recognition and I have an immigrant lens that informs my work. I have observed, both personally and professionally, how talented professionals have faced countless hurdles in obtaining recognition for their credentials upon arriving in Canada.

But things might be shifting.

The International Credentials Recognition Act in British Columbia will come into effect, today, on July 1, 2024, after significant consultation with 18 regulatory bodies. This act is designed to offer a more streamlined, efficient and transparent process for internationally educated professionals to get their credentials recognized in B.C. starting with 29 professions.

"One major change is eliminating the catch-22 of unnecessary Canadian work experience requirements for experienced internationally trained professionals. The catch-22 was that a person needed work experience to work in Canada, but couldn’t work in Canada because of the lack of Canadian work experience."

I have hope and faith that these new regulations can help pave the way for a more efficient pathway into the workforce. At the end of the day, this is not just about economic benefits but also about fostering a welcoming environment that values the diverse talents and experiences professionals bring from around the globe.

Cheers to reducing barriers and increasing fairness!

https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2024PSFS0022-000907

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#InternationalCredentials hashtag#BCJobs hashtag#InclusiveWorkforce hashtag#CareerDevelopment hashtag#ReducingBarriers hashtag#RecognitionOfLearning hashtag#RecognitionOfCompetencies