The first three sessions of the Learning Technologies Autumn Forum were on Tuesday, and despite very different starting points, I kept hearing versions of the same argument.

L&D needs to get closer to performance.

David Wilson from Fosway challenged the continued fixation with products and delivery. Chris Dawes at Tesco talked with Udemy  about what people actually do in the flow of work and the role of managers, systems and context around that. David Kelly asked whether the next evolution of L&D is less about what we create and more about how we operate.

AI was everywhere, obviously, but I’m less interested in content generation and more attracted to what AI changes about the role of L&D itself. The problem? We are talking more about performance, workflow, capability and business outcomes while a lot of the activity is still focused on making and delivering learning more efficiently.

Day 2 continues today. The Autumn Forum then returns on 20 and 22 October. It’s online and free, and the remaining sessions cover AI, skills, measurement, learning technology and the changing role of L&D. Learning Technologies 2026 UK

If you haven’t registered yet, there’s still time to join. Register for the Learning Technologies Autumn Forum