Leadership Development, Reimagined: Beyond Workshops and Static Learning with Heather Conklin
January 22, 2026
What if the leadership development approach your organization built five years ago is already obsolete?
In this episode of Humanity at Scale, host Bruce Temkin sits down with Heather Conklin, CEO of Torch, about why leadership development models built for stability are no longer fit for today’s complexity. They explore why human skills are a true competitive advantage, how coaching and feedback must be embedded into daily work, and why one-off workshops fall short. The conversation unpacks systems thinking, AI-driven uncertainty, and the need for continuous, human-centred support to help leaders adapt, connect, and lead effectively at scale.
What if the leadership development approach your organization built five years ago is already obsolete?
In this episode of Humanity at Scale, host Bruce Temkin sits down with Heather Conklin, CEO of Torch, about why leadership development models built for stability are no longer fit for today’s complexity. They explore why human skills are a true competitive advantage, how coaching and feedback must be embedded into daily work, and why one-off workshops fall short. The conversation unpacks systems thinking, AI-driven uncertainty, and the need for continuous, human-centred support to help leaders adapt, connect, and lead effectively at scale.
Here are some of the topics that Bruce and Heather explore:
- Why Human Skills Aren't Soft at All
- How to Identify When Your Leadership Development Model Is Obsolete
- The Critical Difference Between Hard Skills and Human Skills Learning
- How to Design Leadership Development Around Business Outcomes, Not Generic Programs
- Why AI Is Amplifying Leadership Complexity Rather Than Simplifying It
- The "Two-Way Feedback Loop" Model for Modern Leadership Development
Heather Conklin is CEO of Torch, a leadership development platform specializing in coaching, feedback, and behavior-based support integrated into the rhythm of work. With nearly a decade at Salesforce, where she led Trailhead, a learning platform used by millions, and created the Associate Product Manager program for early-career leadership development, Conklin brings deep expertise in scaling human-centric learning.
Episode Resources:
- Heather Conklin on LinkedIn
- Torch Website
- Bruce Temkin on LinkedIn
- Humanity at Scale on Apple Podcasts
- Humanity at Scale on Spotify
- Humanity at Scale on YouTube
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