Build a High-Impact Mentoring Program That Drives Results
Looking to create a mentoring program that develops talent, strengthens engagement, and builds future leaders? Join us for this one-hour webinar and learn how to design, launch, and sustain a mentoring program that delivers measurable value for your organization.
Whether you're starting from scratch or looking to improve an existing initiative, you'll gain practical strategies, proven best practices, and ready-to-use tools to help you succeed.
In this webinar, you'll learn how to:
You'll leave with a practical framework and actionable next steps to confidently build a mentoring program that fosters growth, strengthens your workforce, and supports organizational success.
Speaker:
Joining us from ATD - Austin, Chan McDermott.
Chan McDermott has had a long career in Texas state government, primarily in Health and Human Services (HHS). Her career focus has been on leadership and workforce development, public health, maternal child health, health education and community mobilization. Chan’s most recent role was as the workforce development coordinator at a largestate agency.
Chan has developed and implemented small-scale and large-scale mentoring programs. She has also provided technical assistance and support to a non-profit organization’s mentoring program which includes 1:1 mentoring and peer mentoring.
Join fellow talent development professionals on Friday mornings for relaxed, no-pressure virtual conversation. Coffee & Connections is not a webinar or a formal networking event. It is a welcoming space to connect with peers, talk through real challenges, exchange ideas, and start the day with community.
Bring your mug, your curiosity, and whatever is top of mind. We will share stories, spark new ideas, and enjoy a few laughs as we wrap up the week together.
Register now to save your spot for this Friday morning virtual coffee chat.
A session for talent development professionals who are great at developing everyone else
You spend your career helping others grow — building skills, closing gaps, unlocking potential across your organization. But when was the last time you invested that same energy in your own professional relationships?
In this interactive session, Bose Akadiri — author of the Amazon bestseller The Stay Joyful Method and a featured speaker at ATD ICE 2026 — flips the networking script. Because the strongest professional networks aren't just built at conferences. They're built across departments, through genuine connection, and from a foundation of joy.
You'll walk away with:
4:30–5:00 p.m.: Networking
Reconnect with colleagues, meet new professionals, and enjoy light refreshments.
5:00–6:15 p.m.: Session
Network with Joy: A Networking Session Built for People Who Develop People
6:15–6:30 p.m.: Closing Remarks & Wrap-Up
*The Kraft-Heinz Learning & Development team has generously agreed to host us for this event!*
Bose Akadiri is The Joy Amplifier! As a Motivational Speaker, Corporate Trainer, Author and CEO of Goal and Grind LLC she partners with high-achieving professionals and forward-thinking organizations to leverage joy as a strategic advantage. The Stay Joyful Method: Using Joy as a Tool to Rise, Lead, and Redefine Success is her first book.
Bose’s work has been featured on NPR, FOX 5 DC, NBC, DC News Now, ON New Jersey, CEO World Magazine, Her Agenda, The Balancing Act by Andrew Temte, Purpose Pivot by Melissa Gonzalez, and several additional media outlets. In addition to Goal and Grind, she has led a distinguished career in Corporate Social Responsibility at Boeing, Salesforce and JPMorgan Chase.
Bose is an IMPACT Fellow with the Chicago Urban League, Ladies of Virtue Board Member, She Shines Honoree by Girls Inc. of Chicago, 40 under 40 honoree by OKC Biz Magazine, Leadership Oklahoma City alumnae and was named by ionOklahoma Magazine as a 30/30 Next Generation of Leaders.
Join ATD Chicagoland for a one-hour Ask Me Anything with Katrina Kennedy. This session will spotlight what is shaping the world of talent development today, from leadership development and workforce strategy to emerging trends and innovation.
Then, the conversation opens to you. Bring your questions, challenges, and curiosities for an honest, unscripted discussion with a leader who is actively doing the work.
About Katrina Kennedy
ATD Chicagoland members Dana Ross and Stacey Hietikko attended Josh Cavalier’s AI for Learning and Development seminar, and they ready to help you (a) use the TRACI prompting framework to make Learning Needs Analysis and Performance Analysis a snap, and (b) build your own eLearning course using AI!
In the first half of the meeting, Dana will demonstrate the TRACI prompting framework applied to Learning Needs Analysis. You will then practice it yourself, using it to strengthen Performance Analysis. You will leave with a repeatable approach for using AI more intentionally across Action Mapping, Learning Journey Design, and Workflow and Productivity Improvements, helping you ask better questions, uncover root causes, and recommend solutions that improve performance.
In the second half, follow along step by step as Stacey Hietikko uses the TRACI prompting framework to build a real, working interactive course prototype, an actual Rise-style HTML eLearning course with navigation and content.
If AI still feels like it costs you more editing time than it saves, come see what happens when you structure the ask.
What you'll walk away with:
Bring your coffee. We'll see who finishes first.
Dana is an Operations Training Manager with Southworth, where she leads learning and development initiatives across corporate teams and private clubs throughout the United States and the Bahamas. She specializes in leadership development, instructional design, performance consulting, onboarding, and operational training, helping organizations build capability while improving business results.
Passionate about creating practical, learner-centered experiences, Dana turns complex challenges into engaging, actionable learning solutions. Her work combines training strategy, technology, and adult learning principles to drive growth, enhance performance, and support exceptional employee and member experiences. Dana enjoys sharing innovative approaches to workplace learning and helping others transform ideas into meaningful impact.
Stacey is an instructional design and technology leader whose career bridges IT and learning. She has led as a Director of IT and Training and, most recently, as Senior Instructional Designer and Program Manager at Yahoo, where she helped shape global training and content strategy for one of the most recognized names in tech.
Stacey holds a Master of Education in Education Policy, Organization and Leadership from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, along with a Graduate Certificate in Instructional Design Management and Leadership and an Instructional Design MasterTrack® Certificate from the same institution. The combination of technical background and formal training gives her a practical, systems-level view of how learning gets built and delivered inside large organizations. Stacey recently earned ATD's Applying AI in Learning & Development certification. What draws her to AI is that it shifts the focus of an instructional designer’s work from production to judgment – knowing what's worth building, when a course isn't the right solution, and how to tell if it worked (the parts of the job that always mattered most).
Outside of work, you can find Stacey at live music shows, walking her dog, bullet journaling, or crocheting. She's usually got a psychological thriller going too, often alongside a home-brewed beer courtesy of her husband.
With digital transformation, AI and more, change is hitting teams harder than ever— and as a td practitioner, you're the one trying to steady the ship while everyone else is trying to find their footing. This session is about helping the people around you build real resilience, not just push through. We'll cover why change triggers resistance, how to spot stress points before they turn into burnout or disengagement, and practical ways to coach your stakeholders toward a more proactive, grounded mindset. Walk away with tools you can start using with your stakeholders right away!
Learning Outcomes:
We're excited to hear from our speaker, Michelle Yanahan:
Michelle Yanahan, Principal and Owner of ChangeFit 360, is a change management thought leader with proven expertise in executing change programs that enhance and grow organizational change management as a strategic business competency.
Michelle has 25 +years of experience in leadership roles in operations, change and project management office (PMO) development.
Michelle holds a Masters in Organizational Behavior from Benedictine University as well as CCMP and Prosci ADKAR change management certifications.
ChangeFit 360 has been recognized by ACMP, ATD, SHRM and ICF as a qualified education provider in support of their professional certifications and is proud to hold a >90% customer satisfaction rate for the past 5 years running.
Jim Perona, a professional musician, will share the story behind Rhythm Under Pressure and how his journey from professional musician to keynote concert speaker has evolved.
Enjoy a live music-infused refelction that helps leaders and teams perform at their best when conditions are at their worst.
Through live music, storytelling, and practical frameworks, audiences discover how high performers adapt when certainty disappears, recover when plans fail, and maintain excellence under pressure.
Rhythm Under Pressure: A Networking Session Built for People Who Develop People
***AIT WORLDWIDE is excited to host us for this event!**
Jim Perona is a keynote concert speaker and internationally recognized classical guitarist who helps organizations perform with greater adaptability, consistency, and confidence when conditions change.
After more than 1,000 professional performances, a career-threatening hand injury, and a life-changing multiple sclerosis diagnosis, Jim discovered that his greatest lessons were not about music. They were about performing under pressure. Those experiences inspired him to create Rhythm Under Pressure, an experiential keynote that blends live music, storytelling, and practical performance principles to help audiences navigate uncertainty and execute when it matters most.
As a performer, Jim has appeared at more than 1,000 events, earned over 750 five-star reviews, performed on the main stage of Chicago’s United Center, and recorded on a Billboard No. 1 album. Today, he brings those experiences to organizations through keynote presentations that transform real-world challenges into meaningful learning experiences.
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