The Changing CLO Role Under the Spotlight

The Chief Learning Officer role is being reshaped by constant disruption, forcing learning leaders to rethink how they balance rigour, adaptability, and influence. This session explores how CLOs are shifting from command-and-control delivery models toward organisational enablement, coaching, and systems thinking, while still maintaining credibility through measurement and discipline. It offers a pragmatic view of what effective learning leadership looks like when change is continuous rather than episodic.

Rethinking the CLO Role: Leadership in an Era of Constant Change - Tracie Cantu

The role of the Chief Learning Officer is undergoing a fundamental shift. Accelerating technological change, evolving business expectations, and persistent resource constraints are forcing learning leaders to rethink not just what they deliver, but how they lead.

In this session, Tracie Cantu explores how CLOs are repositioning learning from a traditional support function to a true enablement capability for the organization.

Learning Technologies Conference Chair, Donald H Taylor, said: “Through this lens, the session unpacks how learning leaders are moving away from command-and-control models toward coaching, influencing, and catalyzing change, while still preserving accountability and credibility with senior stakeholders. The discussion offers a grounded look at what it takes to lead learning in environments defined by ambiguity, complexity, and rapid change.” 

Key Topics Include:

• How expectations of the CLO role are shifting from delivery and support toward organizational enablement
• The growing tension between operational rigor and the need for agility in learning strategy
• How portfolio-style thinking can help balance ROI, skills architecture, and strategic planning with the ability to pivot
• Why traditional command-and-control leadership models are breaking down in today’s learning environments
• The leadership capabilities CLOs need to navigate constant disruption, limited resources, and expanding influence

Rethinking the CLO Role: Leadership in an Era of Constant Change takes place on day one, 29 April at 11:15.