This afternoon we gather here to spark imagination,
‘Round learning that is social and fueled by collaboration,
A half-day’s exploration of new tools, research and science,
We’ll look to learning’s future, which is ‘bout more than compliance.

And so began the first L&D Campfire by NovoEd – a virtual gathering of over 250 learning leaders to celebrate cohort learning tools, research and science. Unlike a traditional user conference, the Campfire was immersive and collaborative by design, always social and never merely presentational. Participants were put front and center and in the middle of the action, asked to share their unique perspectives on cohort learning with their peers (What do they believe about L&D that nobody else believes? What are some of their best strategies for developing organizational capabilities?) and positioned to build deep relationships with fellow attendees and thought leaders.

Interactive case studies and thought leadership by The Capital Group’s Sheldon Ellis, NovoEd Co-Founder and CTO Farnaz Ronaghi and VP and Product Management Mike Straus, and the Connected Commons’ Greg Pryor and Dr. Michael Arena, sparked many of the Campfire’s richest conversations. Ellis demonstrated how The Capital Group uses cohort learning to make training more social, efficient and relevant. He examined the new change and reinforcement training developed at the firm and how cohort learning extends socialization, collaboration and learning beyond the classroom and into the flow of work. Ronaghi and Straus unveiled the six product pillars that comprise the future product roadmap at NovoEd and that support a unified and scalable solution for cohort learning in enterprise businesses. Pryor and Arena explored how social learning spurs innovation by facilitating the discovery, development and diffusion of ideas across an organizational network.

Another Campfire highlight was the first-ever Novie Awards ceremony, honoring brilliance in cohort learning. NovoEd Movie Awards were given to nine companies, and examples of their award-winning programs were showcased in a curated gallery walk, led by Drew Remiker, Director of Learning Experience Design & Services at NovoEd. Winners are:

Best Visual Design – The Center for Leadership Studies
Best Reflection Activities – NextUp
Best Use of Coaches – BetterManager
Best Learner Accountability – PrimeLending
Best Use of Teams – Forum for Theological Exploration
Best Facilitator Training – ExperiencePoint
Best Use of Course Communications – NetApp
Best Sales Enablement Use Case – Stanley Black and Decker
Best Use of Self-Paced Modality – Nestlé

While Novie Award winners will each receive a custom Award trophy and dedicated virtual badge, all Campfire participants were awarded s’mores-flavored marshmallows as a special Campfire-themed treat to enjoy as part of the proceedings. Many participants were also gifted copies of Dr. Michael Arena’s book – Adaptive Space: How GM and Other Companies Are Positively Disrupting Themselves and Transforming into Agile Organizations – as well as copies of his Connected Commons’ co-founder Dr. Rob Cross’ Beyond Collaboration Overload, and Drs. Ellen Van Oosten, Richard Boyatzis and Melvin Smith’s book, Helping People Change: Coaching with Compassion for Lifelong Learning and Growth. Select participants won a Tumi bag in celebration of NovoEd Learning Journeys.

The experience concluded just as it began – with a poem celebrating its participants: