Introducing The L&D Master Class: David James Teaches Impactful Digital-First L&D 

With the right teacher, you can learn anything.

You can learn how to create training experiences that dazzle and entertain. You can learn how to track demonstrable improvements in employee performance. You can even learn how to pinpoint the exact business gaps your training is helping to solve.

All it takes is the right L&D teacher. Enter: David James.

In our L&D master class, join CLO David James (ex Disney, Looop co-founder) for a six-part tour of impactful, digital-first L&D. From creating content alongside subject-matter experts to proving your learning impact, we’ll show you what it really takes to solve tough business problems with L&D. 

And now, it’s time to meet your coach.

Meet your L&D coach, David James 

*This content is provided by 360learning, an independent company, with no affiliation with the “MasterClass” brand.

As one of the UK’s leading L&D figures, David James knows what it takes to drive impactful learning. David has spent more than 20 years in people development, most notably as Director of Talent, Learning & Organizational Development for The Walt Disney Company across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, where he was responsible for 14 different lines of service.   

David also co-founded Looop, a leading UK LMS changing the face of modern L&D, and is now 360Learning’s Chief Learning Officer. David is a prominent L&D writer and speaker, as well as an active member of the CIPD L&D Advisory Board. He also hosts The Learning & Development Podcast, where he interviews guests on the realities of impact-driven L&D.

As David says, his time at Disney led to a key realization about driving real business impact through learning. “I realized delivering content and programs wasn’t enough. We had to really understand what it was that people were expected to do, and do differently. Our challenge was to work with learners and business leaders to make sure we actually achieved these results.”

“My role wasn’t just to provide learning programs and content, it was to help pivot certain parts of the organization and actually prepare people for different roles. We’ve got to see ourselves as not taking the order in terms of what people have asked for, but in terms of what they actually want to achieve.”

At Disney, David led the shift to delivering impactful digital-first L&D. And now, he’s here to show you how it’s done.

Learn what it means to lead transformative learning

Over the next six weeks, David will share his proven tips and techniques on how to lead transformative learning with impactful digital-first L&D. Each episode features a mix of practical guidance based on David’s experiences, including techniques you can apply right away.

Proving your impact as an L&D leader may seem scary, but it doesn’t need to be. As David says: “All it takes is the right guidance.”

We’ll update this page every week with the latest episode, so you can come back and check every Thursday. 

Even easier? Subscribe to our weekly L&D newsletter, and we’ll make sure you get the latest episode in your inbox–along with our newest selection of curated L&D content. You can subscribe above in the top-right corner of the page, or in the green banner below.

Looking for some tips on getting the L&D salary you really deserve? Check out our L&D salary negotiation cheat sheet!

Lesson 1: How to get started with digital-first L&D

• Recognize that your goal isn’t more engagement–it’s greater impact
• Define the real problems you want to address
• Shift the conversation to focus on impact, not tools

Lesson 2: How to help learners thrive during moments of transition and adaptation

• Recognize that skills are developed on the job, not in the classroom
• Reframe your assessment of learning needs
• Make the shift from topic-centric to people-centric L&D
• Give people what they need, exactly when they need it

Lesson 3: How to really meet your learners where they are

• Look beyond engagement to specific roles
• Understand what’s actually expected from people
• Match your learning approach to different roles and stages
• Shape your learning content to reflect specialist expertise

Lesson 4: How to work alongside subject-matter experts to solve tough business problems

• Realize that user-generated content isn’t the only answer 
• Define the critical business gap
• Work alongside your experts to address points of failure
• Make content creation quick and painless

Lesson 5: How to prove your impact as a strategic business partner

• Understand the problem first
• Focus on the only metric that matters: employee performance
• Show exactly how you’re moving the needle on skills
• Be transparent and show where you’re falling short

Lesson 6: How to make your L&D strategy future-proof

• Don't just invest in a tool–invest in yourself
• Ask the right set of questions–and track the right data
• Focus on outcomes, not outputs
• Never stop experimenting

Looking for more great L&D resources?

If you loved this L&D master class, be sure to join The L&D Collective, our community of learning leaders where David hosts regular office hours on everything related to impactful L&D. 

And for more practical guidance, check out the 360Learning Resources Hub. Here, you’ll find a range of ebooks, cheat-sheets, and articles on everything from onboarding to blended learning and more.

Thanks for watching!