The worldwide talent development community is diverse. Our members bring a wealth of experience and insight to their work. We're spotlighting their stories.

Katherine McDuffie has been a member of ATD since 2014. Here's her story in her own words.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

I am an energetic talent and development professional with more than 20 years of experience as an instructor and leader. Currently, I provide quality training programs, classes, and 1:1 coaching opportunities for all employees throughout Safety National. I am goal oriented and focus on increasing company productivity, employee knowledge, engagement, and purpose in every session that is designed or delivered. Professional skills include instructor-led training, public speaking, team coaching, employee mentoring, leadership development, communication, IT, human resources, and Microsoft Office.

What are your personal and professional goals?

Professionally, I strive to increase my talent and development knowledge, sharpen my skills, and always be an asset to my company. Personally, I purposefully live a life filled with faith, benevolence, happiness, respect, love, and kindness.

In a few words, please tell us about a “win” that you have experienced in your work?

Several! I love being a resource for all learning needs and providing quality training programs, classes, and development opportunities to engage and assist associates in working smarter not harder. Recently, I developed a virtual instructor-led training session to help improve remote collaboration and reduce stress for my colleagues. It was very well received.

What challenges have you overcome in your career?

I think everyone faces challenges throughout their careers. In my case, besides the ever-changing world of training, I have experienced professional challenges as well. This includes a role elimination, working as a temp, being shuffled over in a merger/acquisition, losing that job, and then starting over in a lesser-titled role. However, each of those challenges has taught me so much, including to always stay focused, stay true to myself, utilize my network, be reliable, and to always be an asset to my employer.

What’s the most valuable thing you’ve gained or experienced during your membership with ATD?

Friendships, training trends, and networking skills.

For the past several years, whether I was working or looking for work, I kept my ATD membership. The ATD membership provides so much value to a talent and development specialist because of all the offered learning events, conferences, and the invaluable shared advice from other members. I have volunteered over the years as a SIG leader and now serve on the board of directors as the VP of finance.

Could you share any professional tips, specific to talent development, that you have picked up along the way?

• Smile

• Be creative

• Respect others

• Listen to all ideas

• Love what you do

• Be open to change

• Never stop learning yourself

What’s a common misconception you see when it comes to talent development?

I think the biggest misconception I have seen over the years, is the thought that training is not needed or it is a "one and done" deal. Learning should never end.

Do you have any advice for people looking to further their careers?

Be open to change, accepting of advice, and open to other people's ideas.

Even if you do not agree, stop and listen to what they are saying. Really listen. It is important to hear and understand where they are coming from and the why behind their thoughts if you ever want to continue moving forward and have a working relationship.

How do you stay motivated and find meaning in your work?

Every morning I count my blessings and make a conscious effort to focus on the positive. When I start my workday, I do the same thing. Somedays that is not so easy because of barriers. Conversations are misunderstood, professional/personal conflicts arise, the never-ending meetings and interruptions that shift priorities, and the days where even the clock is working against you. What I do to stay motivated is identify those barriers and develop tips, mnemonics, and or classes to help myself and others reduce them. I want to help others focus on the things that are most important.

The future of work is coming—and in some cases already here. In your opinion, what does the future of work look like?

Bright! There are so many opportunities in the future of work to increase the power of learning. It is up to us as providers to be flexible, current, and most importantly, in tune with our learners. We need to utilize technology and AI to remove the mundane tasks so we can get the workforce back to work. I want the future's training battle cry to be, "Let's re-introduce the human value to businesses."

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