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ELE is a peer-powered community where people leaders don't just reframe challenges — they leave with decisions, next moves, and 30/60/90-day commitments to move real work forward.&nbsp;For 22 years, leaders from Fortune 1000 companies have brought their hardest problems here — and left sharper than they arrived.

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This is where people leaders get sharper — and their teams get smarter.ELE is a peer-powered network of people leaders who accelerate business results through shared intelligence and real-work collaboration. Learn more below about why ELE has been the trusted choice for leaders building high-performing teams for over 20 years.

About ELE

The community's votes decide what gets on the calendar.

Explain the challenge. Shape what we tackle next.

Bring a real talent challenge. Name what's at stake, what you've tried, and why it matters now.

Community-Powered Calendar

Signal what matters most. Your vote shapes what your peers tackle next.

Companies In Our Network

Contact ELE

Find the peer conversation that moves your work forward.The right exchange builds better leaders, closes capability gaps, and cuts through what internal meetings can't.

Figure out if ELE is for you. Straight answers on what ELE is, who it’s built for, and how contributing members actually work together. Still have a question? Contact us.

Get answers about how Executive Learning Exchange (ELE) works — peer-powered leadership development that fixes real work issues, reverses burnout, and accelerates business value. No programs. No vendors. In the flow of work.

Where people leaders share what's working, ask what's hard, and learn from peers navigating the same talent challenges right now. Search before you post. When referencing a resource, paste the key insight directly into your response with a link to the source.

Real conversations from people leaders tackling today's toughest talent challenges -- captured live, ready to apply with your teams when it fits your schedule, and connected to what's happening right now.

Insights on Talent Challenges | Captured Peer Conversations | ELE

Welcome

Pick your path — each plan reflects a different commitment to accelerating business value.

ELE Plans — Find your place.

Want ELE to come to you? Propose a local gathering — the community decides what gets scheduled.

Executive Learning Exchange (ELE)

Positive Delta

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Most of us don't have a dedicated HR department. No big training budget either. We're each figuring this out in whatever time is left over.
That's why Adrienne Guerrero, Dirk Tussing, and Mike Hoyt are grabbing a drink at Pollyanna Brewing Company — to talk through the talent challenges we're carrying, the blind spots none of us see on our own, and how we decrease the complexity so we can actually move faster.
Because sometimes going fast means slowing down first. And sometimes "let's slow down" is just another way of stalling. We don't think there's one right answer — that's exactly why we want to hear what you're seeing.
Bring what you're seeing — that's what starts the conversation. Drop it in the Idea Exchange before we sit down: [<a href="https://community.ele.llc/t/6213" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Idea Exchange Pre-Chat →</a>]
<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-45846" src="https://wp.ele.llc/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/2005-Fall-Summit-Teri-Anton-scaled.webp" alt="ELE Peer Exchange – Zurich North America Campus Schamburg IL" width="2560" height="1707" />


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ELE Chicago SW Meetup | SMB People Leaders Talk Talent Challenges

single-event

future of work

leadership

learning strategy

Talent Executives

Team Leaders

Meet-ups

dirk.tussing

meetup

leadership development

talent development

in-person event

adrienne.guerrero

Engagement &amp; Culture

Digital

peer-learning

L&amp;D

innovation in L&amp;D

AI transformation

organizational strategy

Executive Leadership

networking

L&amp;D strategy

enterprise learning

AI in L&amp;D

community powered

ELE Meetup

Chicago HR Events

local leaders

strategic partnership

post-conference

Fall Conference

In an age where Generative AI is accelerating the pace of change to an unprecedented degree, executives can no longer afford to view disruption as a threat—they must see it as the primary catalyst for growth. As Aaron Olson, EVP of Enterprise Clients at Aon, emphasized in this compelling keynote, culture is the true, non-replicable driver of performance in the AI era.

This keynote armed senior HR, Talent Development, and L&amp;D leaders with a practical playbook for strategic leadership, reframing risk from a liability to a springboard for innovation and cultural alignment.
<h3>Essential Leadership Takeaways:</h3>
<ul>
 	<li>Culture as the AI Differentiator: The keynote underscored why investments in technology fail without corresponding investments in culture. The focus is on aligning organizational values to a constant state of flux, where people feel equipped, not overwhelmed, by AI.</li>
 	<li>The Disruption Playbook: Drawing from decades of risk management expertise, Aaron presented a clear process for executive action:
<ol start="1">
 	<li>Recognize Emerging Patterns: Move beyond lagging indicators to identify strategic shifts early.</li>
 	<li>Make Confident, Values-Driven Decisions: Use organizational principles to guide choices under high pressure and ambiguity.</li>
 	<li>Reframe Risk: View strategic risk-taking as an essential component of innovation, directly linking the change agenda to talent development strategy.</li>
</ol>
</li>
 	<li>Talent as a Springboard for Innovation: The keynote explored the critical leadership mindsets and cultural levers needed to build a workforce that not only survives digital and global crises but actively thrives on the opportunities they create.</li>
</ul>
This high-level strategic review confirmed that the executive function is evolving from managing stability to expertly navigating and capitalizing on continuous volatility.

Strategy and Change | Finding Opportunity in Disruption

Strategy

Leadership

digital transformation

innovation

aaron.olson

CHIE2025

generative AI

Strategic Leadership

cultural alignment

risk management

strategy and change

disruption management

leadership mindsets

volatile environment

executive playbook

culture as performance driver

The Regis Company

Zurich North America

The traditional model of learning design is now a strategic liability: slow, resource-intensive, and fundamentally incapable of generating the talent the business needs at speed. Senior HR and L&amp;D leaders who joined this session saw firsthand how to move their function from being a bottleneck to becoming an engine of strategic velocity by implementing an AI-First Design architecture.

This session was not about general AI trends; it was a deep dive into the practical architecture for replacing limited, expensive talent development methods with a system that is scalable, affordable, and measurable.

Key Takeaways for Senior Leaders:
<ul>
 	<li>From Knowing to Doing: The Validation Revolution: The most critical shift demonstrated was moving L&amp;D metrics away from outdated Knowledge Verification (e.g., course completions) to robust Skills Validation, using applied judgment and performance analysis to measure true capability.</li>
 	<li>The Velocity Advantage: Attendees learned a proven, step-by-step process to move from a concept to a working learning prototype in as little as two hours, proving that scalable, effective training can be achieved for all ranks without years of development cycles.</li>
 	<li>The L&amp;D Toolkit of the Future: The session showcased the power of specialized AI agents—including AI Design Agent (AIDA), AI Interview Agent (AIIA), and AI Coaching Agent (AICA)—that are essential for accelerating design, content synthesis, and personalization.</li>
</ul>
This session provided the essential blueprint for establishing a true Skills–Strategy Link, positioning the L&amp;D function as a strategic partner that can deliver high-impact talent solutions at the speed of business.

The Skills–Strategy Link: Using AI-First Design in L&D

Digital &amp; AI

performance improvement

marsha.love-morrow

darwyn.hackney

Strategic HR

maggie.lowenberg

performance analysis

HR Technology

Future of L&amp;D

skills validation

lance.healy

skills strategy link

AI-first design

integrated talent

L&amp;D architecture

strategic velocity

capability measurement

learning prototype

velocity advantage

AI agents

L&amp;D toolkit

high impact solutions

business speed

CNA Insurance

<blockquote>"What I discovered was job task analysis as a start because that's the basis of figuring out what it is people do to be successful." -- <a href="https://www.ele.llc/members/nick-allen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nick Allen</a></blockquote>
This session provided valuable insights into the essential process of Job Task Analysis (JTA) for building a robust skills taxonomy within organizations. Here are three key takeaways from the session:
<ol>
 	<li>Job Task Analysis (JTA) is Essential: JTA is the foundational method for identifying and understanding the skills needed for various roles within an organization. It involves collaboration between managers and high-performing employees to brainstorm and validate the skills that are critical for success.</li>
 	<li>Criteria for Skill Assessment: Effective skill assessment should consider three main criteria: the frequency of skill use, the consequences of poor performance, and the difficulty of learning the skill. This ensures that the most relevant and critical skills are prioritized, enabling organizations to focus on what truly matters for performance and development.</li>
 	<li>Integration of Soft Skills in Simulations: Using immersive learning simulations to measure and develop soft skills is crucial. These simulations help organizations verify and enhance employees' soft skills, providing data-driven insights for continuous improvement. This approach ensures that employees are well-rounded and prepared to meet the dynamic challenges of the workplace.</li>
</ol>
In conclusion, the session highlighted the importance of starting with a solid skill foundation through JTA. By systematically identifying and assessing the skills needed for each role, organizations can build a comprehensive skills taxonomy that supports effective talent development and succession planning.