The Leadership Skill That Fades as You Become an Expert with Kassy Laborie of Kassy Laborie Consulting
In this episode of Learning Leader Spotlight, host Leigh Anne Lankford speaks with Kassy LaBorie, a longtime voice in learning and development, keynote speaker, author, and host of The Spark Konnect podcast. Their conversation explores the intersections of creativity, facilitation, technology, and human connection, with particular attention to how learning professionals can thrive as AI becomes increasingly embedded in the workplace.
Rather than focusing solely on tools or trends, the discussion centers on curiosity, artistic thinking, and the uniquely human qualities that continue to differentiate great facilitators, leaders, and learning professionals.
Kassy LaBorie is a keynote speaker, author, consultant, and host of The Spark Konnect podcast. Known for her leadership in virtual facilitation and online learning, she has spent much of her career helping organizations engage learners in remote environments and training other facilitators to improve their delivery skills.
With a background in public speaking and theater, Kassy entered learning and development after recognizing that training provided a natural bridge between performance and business. Her career includes work teaching technology solutions, supporting virtual collaboration, and helping trainers create engaging learning experiences. Today, she continues to explore how creativity, curiosity, and human expression shape learning in an increasingly digital world.
The Power of Being a “Professional Noticer”
One of the most compelling ideas Kassy shares is her evolving identity as a collector and what she calls a “professional noticer.” While she collects vintage items and mid-century modern design pieces, she increasingly views herself as a collector of ideas, experiences, and observations about how people learn.
This mindset reflects a broader capability that is becoming more valuable in leadership and learning roles. As technology accelerates and AI automates routine work, the ability to notice patterns, recognize emerging needs, and connect seemingly unrelated ideas becomes a distinct human advantage.
The concept also reinforces an important shift for learning professionals. Expertise remains important, but the ability to remain attentive, curious, and adaptable may be equally critical in helping organizations respond to change.
Creativity as a Foundation for Learning Excellence
Throughout the conversation, Kassy repeatedly connects her success in learning and development to her creative roots as an actor and performer. She explains that her early training in theater shaped her approach to facilitation, presentation, and audience engagement. People were often interested not only in what they learned from her but in how she made them want to learn.
This perspective challenges the common view that creativity belongs exclusively to artistic professions. Instead, creativity emerges as a core professional capability for trainers, facilitators, and leaders. Whether designing learning experiences, telling stories, facilitating discussions, or adapting content in real time, creative thinking enables stronger engagement and deeper learning outcomes.
The conversation also highlights how many successful learning professionals draw from backgrounds in performance, music, visual arts, and other creative fields. These experiences can provide a powerful foundation for connecting with audiences and creating memorable learning experiences.
Curiosity as a Leadership Skill
A recurring theme is the importance of genuine curiosity. Kassy describes how hosting her podcast pushed her into conversations with artists, athletes, performers, and professionals whose worlds were often unfamiliar to her. Those interviews required her to ask questions from a place of authentic uncertainty rather than expertise.
What emerged was a deeper appreciation for curiosity as a leadership capability. When leaders have extensive experience, it can become difficult to remain open to new perspectives because they naturally compare present situations to previous ones. Kassy suggests that true curiosity often requires entering unfamiliar territory where assumptions are limited and learning becomes necessary.
Her reflections offer an important reminder for learning leaders. Curiosity is not simply asking questions. It involves creating space for discovery, suspending assumptions, and being willing to learn from people whose experiences differ from our own.
From Virtual Facilitation Expert
to Broader Human-Centered Thinking
Kassy discusses how the global shift to remote work during 2020 created a pivotal career moment. She could either resist the growing interest in virtual learning or embrace it and evolve into something broader. She chose the latter.
The result was a transition from being known primarily as a virtual facilitation expert toward exploring larger themes related to performance, creativity, communication, and human potential. Her podcast became a vehicle for these explorations and ultimately influenced the direction of her speaking and consulting work.
This evolution reflects a larger shift occurring across the learning profession. Technical expertise remains important, but organizations are increasingly seeking guidance on the human dimensions of learning, engagement, and leadership. Professionals who can connect learning practices with broader organizational and cultural challenges are likely to have growing influence.
6 Reasons You Need A Virtual Classroom Producer
Human Expression in the Age of AI
Perhaps the most significant theme in the discussion centers on AI and its implications for learning professionals. Kassy shares how she initially taught herself AI by experimenting with prompts related to two subjects she knew well: Barbie and webinar facilitation. By working from familiar territory, she could evaluate how the technology responded and better understand its strengths and limitations.
When asked what facilitators will contribute as AI becomes more capable, Kassy offers a simple yet powerful answer: intentional expressions of humanity. She emphasizes that individuals still choose how they show up, how they respond, and how they engage with others. Those choices remain distinctly human.
Rather than presenting AI as a threat, she frames it as a tool that coexists alongside uniquely human qualities such as creativity, curiosity, expression, and connection. This balanced perspective is particularly relevant for learning leaders who are navigating organizational expectations around AI adoption while preserving meaningful human interaction.
Practical Takeaways for L&D and Business Leaders
Encourage Experimental Learning Around AI
Kassy’s experience with AI demonstrates the value of approaching new technologies through subjects people already know well. Instead of beginning with abstract technical concepts, organizations can encourage employees to explore AI through familiar domains where they can easily evaluate outputs and build confidence.
This approach can reduce resistance while creating a more engaging and practical learning experience.
Develop Curiosity Alongside Expertise
Organizations often focus heavily on building expertise, but curiosity deserves equal attention. Creating opportunities for employees and leaders to engage with unfamiliar disciplines, functions, and perspectives can strengthen adaptability and innovation.
Cross-functional conversations, interviews, panel discussions, and collaborative projects can help cultivate the type of curiosity Kassy describes throughout the episode.
Preserve Human-Centered Facilitation
As AI tools become more accessible, facilitators may spend less time producing materials and more time creating meaningful interactions. Learning leaders can invest in skills such as storytelling, listening, discussion facilitation, audience engagement, and relationship building because these capabilities continue to deliver value that technology alone cannot replicate.
Create Clear Boundaries and Possibilities for AI Use
When discussing AI readiness, Kassy advocates focusing on what people can do rather than leading with restrictions and fears. Employees benefit from understanding where experimentation is encouraged, what responsible use looks like, and how innovation can occur safely and effectively.
This mindset can help organizations foster confidence and responsible adoption simultaneously.
Use Reflective Questions to Strengthen Learning
One of the most practical ideas shared involves two reflection questions inspired by a book Kassy recommends. At the beginning of a learning experience, participants consider:
“Today’s program will be valuable for me if…”
At the end, they reflect on:
“What are you still wondering about?”
These questions promote ownership, encourage reflection, and provide facilitators with useful insights into learner needs and expectations. They can be applied in training sessions, meetings, workshops, and team discussions.
Resources or Tools Mentioned
- Learning That Lasts by Katrina Kennedy
- L&D Order Taker No More by Jess Almlie
- The Spark Konnect podcast
- Kassy LaBorie’s books and facilitation work
Closing Reflection
This conversation with Kassy LaBorie offers a timely reminder that the future of learning is not solely about technology. It is equally about observation, creativity, curiosity, and the intentional ways people connect with one another. As AI continues to reshape work, the skills that enable human understanding and engagement may become even more valuable.
For learning and business leaders, the episode highlights an important opportunity: embracing technological advancement while investing deeply in the uniquely human capabilities that help individuals and organizations learn, adapt, and thrive.
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