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ATD Greater Twin Cities

Joy of Learning

Events

ATD-GTC New and Prospective Member Welcome – July 2026

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July 10, 2026

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM – Virtual Event

New to ATD Greater Twin Cities or curious about our chapter programming? We’d like to invite you to a new member welcome and orientation so that you can take advantage of everything that our local chapter has to offer.

Spend an hour with us to learn about our various communities of practice, series of events, and ways to get involved so that you can get involved, meet other practitioners, and experience the joy of learning with ATD-GTC!

This program is FREE for all to attend.

Register for the Event

AI Tools & Techniques for L&D Professionals: Your Practical Playbook  

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June 17, 2026

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM – Virtual

Ready to use AI in your daily L&D work but not sure where to start? This hands-on session will equip you with specific tools, prompting techniques, and workflows you can implement immediately.

You’ll discover:

  • The essential AI tools every L&D professional should know (free and paid options)
  • Proven prompting strategies to get better results from ChatGPT, Claude, and other AI assistants
  • Time-saving workflows for course design, content creation, and learner support
  • How to use AI for needs analysis, assessment development, and feedback generation
  • Real examples you can adapt for your own training programs
  • Quick wins you can achieve this week with the tools you already have access to

This is a practical session designed for L&D professionals who want to work smarter, not harder. You’ll leave with templates, prompt examples, and a clear action plan for incorporating AI into your workflow. No technical background required.

Our Presenter:

Jess Pischel works with leadership teams to turn AI from an overwhelming set of possibilities into clear, prioritized decisions that drive real business value. Her work sits at the intersection of strategy, operations, culture, and change helping organizations adopt AI in ways that actually stick.

With a background spanning consulting and in-house leadership roles, Jess brings a practical, human-centered lens to AI strategy. Her experience includes working with nationally recognized brands such as KeyBank, Lexus, Celebrity Cruises, and Lush Cosmetics, supporting initiatives across customer experience, employee experience, and operational effectiveness.

Jess is known for translating complex ideas into clear roadmaps, facilitating productive executive conversations, and helping leaders focus on where AI can save time, reduce errors, and create measurable ROI without losing sight of people, trust, or adoption.

She holds an MBA, is Prosci Change Management Certified, and has completed executive education in AI and business strategy through MIT. Her approach combines structured strategy with real-world pragmatism, helping organizations move forward with confidence rather than hype. 

This program is FREE for all ATD-GTC members. Members may bring one complimentary, registered guest. 

By registering for this event, you consent to the use of your image and likeness in photographs and videos taken at the event. These images may be used by ATD-GTC for promotional purposes, including but not limited to, social media, website, and printed materials.  

Register for the Event

Book Banter – Who We Become When Life Makes Other Plans by Maya Shankar 

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July 14, 2026

11:30 AM – 1:00 PM – Virtual

What happens when life makes other plans?

For our next ATD GTC Book Banter, we will discuss The Other Side of Change: Who We Become When Life Makes Other Plans. This book is about disruption, identity, resilience, and the unexpected ways change reshapes us.

From what I’ve gathered, it’s about the human side of change, like:

What gets challenged when our plans fall apart • How we adapt (or resist)

Who we become in the process

Important stuff. Whether change has recently found you through work, leadership, family, health, ambition, burnout, or simply the passage of time, this book offers a thoughtful lens on experiences most of us quietly share.

You don’t need to have every chapter finished or every insight figured out. Bring your perspective, your questions, and your curiosity.

We hope you’ll join us for a meaningful conversation with fellow ATD GTC members.

We’d love to have you there!

Our Presenters

Benjamin Borchert s fascinated by the inner side of transformation: how people metabolize uncertainty, rebuild agency, and create meaning when life changes course unexpectedly. Recently, he’s been exploring questions around intentional living, self-authorship, and what it means to move from awareness into action. This book feels especially resonant because it treats change not just as a logistical challenge, but as a deeply human and developmental experience. He’s looking forward to the conversation and the perspectives others bring to it.

Michelle Kelly, is passionate about helping leaders and companies develop and retain their most valuable assets: people. As the founder of Empowering Performance, Inc., she and her team create engaging learning experiences that impact individual, team, and organizational performance. When not traveling, Michelle enjoys life in Northfield with her family and lots of books.

This program is FREE for all ATD-GTC members. Members may bring one complimentary, registered guest. 

By registering for this event, you consent to the use of your image and likeness in photographs and videos taken at the event. These images may be used by ATD-GTC for promotional purposes, including but not limited to, social media, website, and printed materials. 

Register for the Event

Leadership Development Community of Practice: Making Strategic Decisions in Leadership Training Content: Buy, Build, or Blend

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July 16, 2026

9:00 AM – 10:30 AM – Modernwell

This event is limited to 30 participants.

Organizations face constant pressure to deliver leadership development that is timely, relevant, scalable, and cost effective. With an expanding marketplace of off the shelf solutions and increasing demand for customized, culturally aligned programs, practitioners must make informed decisions about when to buy, build, or blend their leadership development offerings.

This session provides a decision framework and guides participants through an organizational audit to help them evaluate their current approach and identify opportunities for greater strategic alignment and impact.

Learning Objectives

Participants will: 

  • Leave with a decision tool they can use immediately with stakeholders.
  • Understand the strengths, limitations, and ideal use cases for buy, build, and blend approaches. 
  • Apply a six factor decision model to evaluate leadership development needs.
  • Conduct an organizational audit to assess current practices, gaps, and opportunities.
  • Engage in peer dialogue to benchmark approaches and explore practical solutions.

Meet our Presenter:

Ann Piepkorn is the founder of Piepkorn Leadership Solutions and a seasoned executive coach, leadership consultant, and facilitator with more than 25 years of experience helping leaders and teams thrive. She is bring her experience designing and delivering high impact leadership development programs for Fortune 500 companies to mid-market and non-profit organizations in the Twin Cities. Ann’s work blends research backed practices with practical application, focusing on executive presence, emotional intelligence, communication, leader as coach skills, and navigating difficult conversations. She is known for her engaging facilitation style, her ability to create psychologically safe learning environments, and her talent for translating complex leadership concepts into clear, actionable tools. She partners closely with HR and talent development leaders to coach executives, build scalable learning strategies, and facilitate impactful team building offsites.

This program is FREE for all ATD-GTC members. Members may bring one complimentary, registered guest. 

By registering for this event, you consent to the use of your image and likeness in photographs and videos taken at the event. These images may be used by ATD-GTC for promotional purposes, including but not limited to, social media, website, and printed materials.  

Modernwell is a members-only coworking space. We are excited to hold our events in their beautiful space, but can not extend access beyond the event time. Once the event ends, all attendees are expected to depart the building OR they can purchase a day pass at a discounted rate of $30 for the remainder of the day. Please stop by the ModernWell front desk before or after the event to purchase your pass.

Long-Term Construction Alert: ModernWell

Significant MnDOT construction on I-394 and I-94 is ongoing through late fall 2026. Please allow extra travel time, especially during afternoon rush hours.

Major Impacts Through Mid-Summer 2026

  • Penn Avenue Bridge: Closed through November 2026. Use North Wayzata Blvd. or Theodore Wirth Pkwy as a detour.
  • Westbound I-394: Reduced to two lanes between downtown Minneapolis and Hwy 100.
  • Ramp Closures: The following ramps are closed through mid-summer:
    • Westbound I-394 to/from Penn Ave.
    • Eastbound I-94 to westbound I-394.
    • Lyndale Ave to westbound I-394.

Upcoming Summer/Fall 2026 Shift

Starting in mid-summer, the construction focus will shift:

  • Eastbound I-394: Will be reduced to two lanes between Hwy 100 and downtown through the fall.
  • Penn Ave. Ramps: The eastbound I-394 ramps to/from Penn Ave. will close from mid-summer through late fall.

—

We’re thrilled to share that ATD Twin Cities events have been filling quickly — and many now have active waitlists. That is such a great reflection of the engaged, curious, and committed community we continue to build together.

Because seats are in high demand, we ask one simple favor: if your plans change and you’re no longer able to attend, please take a quick moment to

  1. View your profile on our website
  2. Select MY event registrations
  3. Locate the event you cannot attend and select CANCEL REGISTRATION.

That helps us open your seat to another member who is hoping to join us and keeps valuable spots from going unused.

We look forward to seeing you there and if you cannot attend, thank you in advance for helping us make sure every seat is filled by someone ready to participate!

Register for the Event

Getting Comfortable with the Uncomfortable in L&D Measurement 

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July 23, 2026

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM – Virtual

Many learning practitioners fail to tap into the power of analytics because of their discomfort with one or more elements associated with the measurement and evaluation process. This session will review topics like ROI, benchmarks, self-reported data, impact indicators, negative data, low impact learners, NPS, AI and roughly reasonable. The goal is to dispel the myths behind these and make what is considered uncomfortable to many comfortable and confident to all.

Learning Objectives:

a) Identify the elements of learning measurement that are difficult to do and discuss

b) Understand the methods to overcome challenges in learning measurement

c) Acquire best practices to gain confidence in applying critical learning measurement concepts

Our Presenter

Jeffrey Berk, COO, Performitiv Performitiv is a learning impact optimization technology company. As COO Jeffrey helps shape the strategy and manages day-to-day operations. Jeffrey has been in the learning measurement field for nearly 20 years. He has co-authored 2 books on human capital analytics. He is an adjunct professor on performance measurement and process improvement in Chicago.

This program is FREE for all ATD-GTC members. Members may bring one complimentary, registered guest. 

By registering for this event, you consent to the use of your image and likeness in photographs and videos taken at the event. These images may be used by ATD-GTC for promotional purposes, including but not limited to, social media, website, and printed materials. 

Register for the Event

August 2026 – Community Of Practice: Small Yet Mighty L&D Teams

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August 6, 2026

9:00 AM – 10:30 AM – In-Person @ ModernWell: 2909 S. Wayzata Blvd. Minneapolis, MN 55405

This event is limited to 28 participants

Join us for an upcoming session of the Small Yet Mighty Community of Practice, designed for Learning & Development professionals working on small teams with big responsibilities.

These events provide a space to connect with peers, share ideas, and discover practical strategies for making the most of limited time and resources.

Whether through speaker-led discussions or collaborative conversations, our goal is to explore tools, technologies, and processes that help those small-yet-mighty teams succeed.

Details will be announced soon—stay tuned!

Modernwell is a members-only coworking space. We are excited to hold our events in their beautiful space, but can not extend access beyond the event time. Once the event ends, all attendees are expected to depart the building OR they can purchase a day pass at a discounted rate of $30 for the remainder of the day. Please stop by the ModernWell front desk before or after the event to purchase your pass.

This program is FREE for all ATD-GTC members. Members may bring one complimentary, registered guest. 

By registering for this event, you consent to the use of your image and likeness in photographs and videos taken at the event. These images may be used by ATD-GTC for promotional purposes, including but not limited to, social media, website, and printed materials. 

Long-Term Construction Alert: ModernWell

Significant MnDOT construction on I-394 and I-94 is ongoing through late fall 2026. Please allow extra travel time, especially during afternoon rush hours.

Major Impacts Through Mid-Summer 2026

  • Penn Avenue Bridge: Closed through November 2026. Use North Wayzata Blvd. or Theodore Wirth Pkwy as a detour.
  • Westbound I-394: Reduced to two lanes between downtown Minneapolis and Hwy 100.
  • Ramp Closures: The following ramps are closed through mid-summer:
    • Westbound I-394 to/from Penn Ave.
    • Eastbound I-94 to westbound I-394.
    • Lyndale Ave to westbound I-394.

Upcoming Summer/Fall 2026 Shift

Starting in mid-summer, the construction focus will shift:

  • Eastbound I-394: Will be reduced to two lanes between Hwy 100 and downtown through the fall.
  • Penn Ave. Ramps: The eastbound I-394 ramps to/from Penn Ave. will close from mid-summer through late fall.

—

We’re thrilled to share that ATD Twin Cities events have been filling quickly — and many now have active waitlists. That is such a great reflection of the engaged, curious, and committed community we continue to build together.

Because seats are in high demand, we ask one simple favor: if your plans change and you’re no longer able to attend, please take a quick moment to

  1. View your profile on our website
  2. Select MY event registrations
  3. Locate the event you cannot attend and select CANCEL REGISTRATION.

That helps us open your seat to another member who is hoping to join us and keeps valuable spots from going unused.

We look forward to seeing you there and if you cannot attend, thank you in advance for helping us make sure every seat is filled by someone ready to participate!

Register for the Event