Next week the dominKnow instructional design team is off to the Canadian Society for Training and Development (CSTD) conference in Toronto.

Of all the conferences of its kind that I have attended, the CSTD event is one of the best for the quality of the sessions. Since dominKnow offers a Learning Content Management System (LCMS) as well as learning solutions through courseware consultation and development, I have interests in many different areas. It is often difficult to choose a CSTD session to attend from amongst many worthwhile options.

If you're not familiar with CSTD, the conference is a great way to learn more. Our local Ottawa chapter recently held a great workshop on storytelling in the workplace, led by Jennifer Cayley and Lucie Roy. Sprinkled throughout the workshop were quotes on storytelling, leadership, and learning. One was from Alan Kay, the vice president at Walt Disney, who said, "Scratch the surface in a typical boardroom and we're all just cavemen with briefcases, hungry for a wise person to tell us stories."

That's one of the things I look for at the conference... the opportunity to listen to and share stories with others working in training and development.

In previous years, I have come back to work with practical tips to improve workflow, write challenging assessments, motivate learners, and more. This year, I'm looking forward to keynote speakers David Weiss with Leadership Solutions, Ed Hoffman's Project Management and the Three Little Pigs: The Power of Stories, and Pamela Wallin's Cross Border Connections as well as sessions on emerging trends, Web 2.0, and learning strategy.

The dominKnow team will also be in the trade show in booth 611.

The exhibit floor is a good place for us to meet people interested in learning solutions, find out what others are doing, as well as chat to some of our current partners. We hope to see you there or in one of the sessions.

Catherine Orfald, Senior Instructional Designer