Most trainers spend a great deal of time thinking about engagement. We add polls, discussions, activities, and opportunities for participation because we do not want learners sitting quietly while we talk at them.
Stephanie Hubka believes we may need to go further.
In this episode of Lessons from Learning Leaders, Stephanie joins me to explore the difference between getting people involved in a training session and helping them form genuine human connections. Engagement may keep people busy for an hour. Connection can change the way they listen, contribute, take risks, and apply what they learn afterward.
Stephanie shares the unexpected path that brought her into talent development. She originally moved to Washington, DC, with a political science degree and ambitions that had nothing to do with training. A position as an education coordinator changed that almost immediately. She discovered a profession centered on people, growth, and the kind of work she could not imagine leaving.
We also talk about her experience earning the Certified Professional in Talent Development credential. Stephanie explains why the value went far beyond passing an exam or adding letters after her name. Preparing for the credential expanded her knowledge of the profession, while the community surrounding it led to relationships, volunteer opportunities, and professional connections that continued shaping her career years later.
Much of our conversation focuses on Stephanie’s Connect 4 approach to building community through training. The framework asks learning professionals to think about connection before the learning experience, during the session, after participants return to work, and across the larger collection of learning experiences an organization provides.
Stephanie explains why storytelling is one of her favorite ways to begin. Asking participants to share a story gives them a reason to talk with someone they do not know, but it does not force them into a level of vulnerability they did not choose. They decide what to share, how personal to become, and how they want to participate. That sense of control helps create psychological safety while giving people a chance to become more than strangers sitting at the same table.
We also discuss why facilitators sometimes need to give up control in order to gain greater contribution from the room, how connection prepares participants for deeper conversations later in the session, and why trainers should examine whether the engagement techniques they use are producing anything more meaningful than activity.
As AI makes content easier to produce, Stephanie makes a strong case that the human side of learning deserves more attention. Trainers still have an opportunity to create spaces where people feel seen, heard, and connected to one another. Those experiences can influence what learners remember, what they are willing to try, and whether the training leads to real change.
Connect with Stephanie Hubka
Protos Learning helps organizations design and deliver practical, human-centered learning experiences focused on application, behavior change, and connection.
Connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn
Contact Protos Learning for workshops, facilitation, speaking, custom learning design, and consulting inquiries.
Professional email listed in Stephanie’s public conference materials: Stephanie@ProtosLearning.com
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Bring Better Conversations Into Your Organization
Strong organizations are built on leaders who communicate well, ask thoughtful questions, facilitate productive discussions, and develop the people around them.
If you’d like to bring these conversations into your organization through a keynote, workshop, leadership program, or train-the-trainer engagement, I’d welcome the opportunity.
Learn more at DuaneLester.com.
