PennCLO Podcast shares success stories from students, grads, and faculty

October 4, 2024
The Practioner–Scholar: The PennCLO Podcast title card, featuring a view of Philadelphia City Hall's clocktower from North Broad Street set in blue

The Penn Chief Learning Officer (PennCLO) program is bursting with compelling success stories from its students, alumni, and faculty. To share them with a broader audience, they've created a podcast.

The Practitioner–Scholar: The PennCLO Podcast features hosts Melissa Monti and Lisa-Marie Aird, current PennCLO students, debriefing guests about experiences with the PennCLO program and their professional journeys. The podcast was recently renewed for a second season after a successful pilot run.

The podcast raises awareness for the program and shares its achievements. It is also a next-gen recruiting tool, explained Jennifer Neumaier, a Penn GSE alum who manages PennCLO’s content strategy, social media, and people relations.

“The podcast serves as an extension of the Penn GSE PennCLO program by highlighting the practical applications of our curriculum and the real-world impact of our community,” Neumaier said. “It showcases the caliber of our students and alumni and the transformative experiences they undergo at Penn GSE.”

PennCLO is a three-year executive doctoral program tailored for working professionals. It caters to mid- to senior-level learning and talent development leaders, drawing students from business, education, nonprofits, and government. Cohorts meet for two weeks each semester, one in person and one virtually, and participate in seminars, assignments, fieldwork, and group projects. Students work closely with faculty from Penn GSE and The Wharton School.

The podcast shines a light on the program’s impact. Produced in partnership by Neumaier and Alumni Podcasts, each episode is tied to timely issues, shares groundbreaking research, or highlights impactful projects.

“We look for individuals with a compelling story to tell or unique expertise to share, and we aim to feature a diverse range of voices to provide varied perspectives and enrich our discussions,” Neumaier explained.

So far, The Practioner–Scholar’s eight episodes have explored topics such as artificial intelligence, personal branding, and the ins and outs of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.

In conversations with Monti, guests share their journeys, peppered with practical advice. For example, in Episode 4, Ann Schulte, former senior vice president of talent development and chief learning officer at Procter & Gamble, encouraged professionals to experiment with generative AI and explore its potential applications for employee training and development.

Episode 2 features PennCLO Academic Director and Senior Fellow Kandi Wiens offering tips for building emotional intelligence, the subject of her new book. She shared strategies to combat stress, including carving out time for physical activity, family, and vacations.

With so many great stories to tell, the podcast is a recruiting tool for prospective Penn GSE and PennCLO students. So far, listeners have shared positive feedback, shared ideas for future interviews, and asked for more interactivity.

In response, producers started uploading the interviews to a playlist on Penn GSE’s YouTube channel to expand accessibility. Additionally, Monti and Aird encourage the audience to send in questions and topics to discuss with their guests.

Neumaier said next season’s 12 episodes will feature several new hosts interviewing alums making a global impact and authors, researchers, and practitioners working in education, leadership, and innovation. Additionally, listeners will have more opportunities to deepen their engagement and interact with guests.

“We’re also planning to integrate more multimedia content, such as behind-the-scenes footage, to enhance the overall experience,” Neumaier said.

The PennCLO Podcast can also be found on Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and other services.