From Order Taker to Strategic Partner with Tracie Cantu

The business is your customer. The learner is your consumer. If you’ve been thinking about it the other way round, this episode will make you think a little differently.Tracie Cantu, Senior Learning Leader and author of Running L&D Like a Business, opens with the idea that when L&D designs for the wrong “customer,” teams end up busy, but not necessarily effective. The result is often more content with outcomes that don’t match.Think learning needs to be formal? Think again. A post-it note on a monitor can be learning if it helps someone do their job, because in some cases, the best L&D output is a job aid, not a course.Governance comes up as well, which Tracie describes it as bowling alley bumper guards. The structure helps teams make decisions without waiting for approval at every step.Learning points from the episode include:00:00 – 01:06 Introduction01:06 – 03:29 Tracie’s book and why she wrote it03:29 – 07:05 The difference between a customer and consumer07:05 – 09:07 Choosing the right format for the right moment09:07 – 13:41 AI, job loss, and the rise of L&D business partners13:41 – 20:59 Letting go of the wheel and empowering others to self-serve20:59 – 24:41 Governance, intake management, and treating learning like a portfolio24:41 – 27:11 The 72% onboarding data and proving learning impact27:11 – 29:15 Brag like the sales team29:15 – 30:37 Where to find Tracie30:37 – 32:22 OutroImportant links and mentions:Buy Tracie’s book: https://traciewroteabook.com Visit Tracie’s consulting firm: https://yourclo.netConnect with Tracie Cantu on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/traciemcantu/Learn more about Camtasia: https://www.techsmith.com/camtasia/