David James, Chief Learning Officer at 360Learning – Interview Series

360Learning is a cloud-based learning platform combining elements of a Learning Management System (LMS) and Learning Experience Platform (LXP). Its focus is on collaborative learning — letting in-house experts co-author content, giving learners feedback, enabling peer interactions, and surfacing skills gaps. Automated tools help manage compliance training, onboarding, and scalability, while AI features assist in personalising learning paths. It’s used by thousands of teams globally and aims to help organisations “upskill from within.”

You were Director of Talent, Learning & Organisation Development at Disney (EMEA) before becoming CLO at 360Learning. What are some lessons from your Disney experience that you’re still applying today, especially when scaling L&D in AI-driven environments?

At Disney, I learned that scale only works when you get close to the business problem first. Training for training’s sake was not enough; it had to drive performance. That mindset has stayed with me, especially now with the advent of AI and its impact on the workplace. Regardless of the technology, the principle holds: start with what the business needs, then design learning that solves it.

As host of The Learning & Development Podcast, what have been some of the most surprising or under-discussed insights you’ve picked up from guests that have changed how you think about L&D?

One of the most surprising themes from podcast guests is how often L&D teams underestimate the knowledge already in their workforce. Leaders repeatedly tell me their most effective learning is not bought in, it is surfaced from within. Another is the shift to skills-based strategies, with less focus on content libraries and more on aligning to performance outcomes.

You publish regularly and are recognized as an influencer in L&D. How do you balance thought leadership (writing, speaking) with hands-on program delivery like the Performance Academy? What trade-offs do you face?

Thought leadership and delivery are two sides of the same coin. Writing and speaking keep me plugged into emerging challenges and connected to the L&D community, while leading programmes like the Performance Academy grounds me in the day-to-day challenges of L&D practitioners. The trade-off is time, but the cross-pollination makes both stronger – what I learn from speaking and interacting with the community goes into the products and services we deliver.

What prompted 360Learning to create the L&D Performance Academy now? Were there particular signals in the market or from clients that made this the right time?

The pressure L&D teams have been under to prove ROI is only mounting, amidst AI pressure and the half-lives of skills shrinking to five years or less. This means what people learn today could be outdated in two years – how can L&D teams keep pace with that? At the same time, too many L&D functions are still seen as reactive or ‘nice to have,’ rather than strategic. Businesses need L&D teams to be performance accelerators, driving measurable impact, not just delivering courses and we want to give teams the skills to do that.

The Academy will help them do exactly that: gives L&D professionals the tools to shift from reactive to strategic at exactly the moment businesses need it most. It will give them the business acumen, AI knowledge, and practical tools to align with strategy and prove their value. We’re excited to see the impact this will have.

The Academy includes two courses focused on AI: “basic AI principles” and “embedding AI strategy across L&D workflows.” Could you give a practical example of how an organisation might use these to change their L&D practice in the near term?

One way this might be used in practice is in onboarding, which is a critical aspect of L&D. Instead of handing new hires a library of generic modules, L&D teams can use AI to map the exact skills needed for a role, then embed collaborative learning so experienced peers create and validate that content. Our basic AI principles course gives practitioners the confidence to use these tools, and the AI strategy course shows how to integrate them across workflows.

Many L&D practitioners struggle to show measurable business value. What metrics or approaches do you find most effective (or underutilised) for demonstrating ROI of L&D in AI-powered workplaces?

The most underused metric is business performance itself. Course completion rates are still relied on across the industry but this fails to showcase the overall impact. Instead, track the impact on KPIs that leadership already cares about, such as sales conversion, reduced time-to-productivity, or error reduction. When you link learning directly to business outcomes, ROI becomes undeniable.

How does 360Learning envision AI being used to personalise learning without sacrificing scalability or increasing bias?

The key is to combine AI-driven skills mapping with human validation. AI can surface patterns and recommend pathways, but subject-matter experts provide the nuance and context that keep it relevant and fair. This ensures learning is personalised at scale, without falling into the trap of algorithmic bias.

Given how fast skills are now changing (with estimates of half-lives of skills being 5 years or even 2.5 in some domains), how should L&D leaders structure continuous learning or “reskilling cycles” in their organisations?

Continuous learning cannot be a once-a-year programme. Leaders should think in shorter reskilling cycles, perhaps every 12 to 18 months, tied directly to changing business priorities. For example, if the business is expanding into new markets or rolling out AI-driven tools, the reskilling cycle should directly address those needs.

AI makes this more practical by scanning market data, job roles, and internal skills profiles through skills ontologies to highlight emerging gaps before they become critical. But the real work is in how L&D integrates those insights into daily operations. That means embedding learning into workflows, so people are not just pausing their jobs to “take training,” but constantly picking up skills as part of their roles. It is about moving from episodic learning events to continuous, iterative development. Done well, these cycles not only keep employees current, they also future-proof the organisation against disruption.

What are the biggest risks or pitfalls organisations face when jumping too quickly into AI for learning/training (e.g. overpromising, low adoption, ethical concerns)?

The biggest pitfalls organisations face when jumping too quickly into using AI for anything, not just L&D, are overhyping capabilities, pushing tools without context, and failing to support adoption. AI should be introduced as an enabler, not a magic solution. If you do not connect it to real work, people will not use it. Worse, rushing can create mistrust if employees feel watched, judged, or left behind.

How do you ensure that L&D remains inclusive when introducing AI tools? For example, making sure people with lower digital literacy or in less resourced locations aren’t left behind.

Inclusivity starts with recognising not everyone has the same digital literacy. Training has to meet people where they are, with simple, practical use cases. Pairing younger digital natives with more experienced colleagues for peer learning helps too – this is part of why we are huge proponents of collaborative learning. If AI tools are rolled out without that support, you risk widening divides rather than closing them and it will give you even more problems further down the road.

In 5 years, how do you see the role of the CLO evolving (especially re: AI, performance, and business alignment)?

The CLO role is evolving away from a focus on training and becoming more about orchestrating performance. AI will automate the admin, freeing CLOs and their teams to focus on aligning skills with strategy, proving impact, and guiding ethical use of technology. The role will be judged not by how much training is delivered, but by how visibly it drives business growth and keeps people employable.

Thank you for the great interview, readers who wish to learn more should visit 360Learning or should listen to the The Learning & Development Podcast.