Jordana Cole: Scaling Human-Centered Leadership with AI Coaching

Most companies say they care about engagement, but keep running the same broken playbook. Jordana Cole reveals how she’s using AI coaching to tackle burnout, stagnant surveys, and “check-the-box” training at the root.

In this episode, Gary and Jordana Cole discuss:

• Nonlinear career path into learning and development
• Intrapreneurship and building scrappy, high-impact L&D programs
• Why traditional training fails to create lasting behavior change
• Using AI to scale coaching, engagement, and organizational insight
• The vision and mechanics behind Shift Well and AI coach “Clara”

Key Takeaways:

• Lasting impact from training only happens when people apply what they’ve learned in real contexts, not when they passively consume content in a classroom.
• Focusing on behavior change, enablement, and adoption is far more powerful than simply “delivering learning” as an abstract objective.
• Employee engagement problems are ecosystem problems; solving them requires aligned actions at the individual, manager, and organizational levels.
• AI can massively extend the reach of coaches and L&D leaders by providing personalized, on-demand support at scale while freeing HR and managers to focus on higher-value work.
• Ethical, well-designed AI coaching that respects privacy and human motivation can help people set better goals, build new habits, and connect personal well-being to business outcomes.

“We need a sense of autonomy. We need a sense of belonging and we need a sense of competence.”  — Jordana Cole

About Jordana Cole: As a recognized Leadership Coach, Consultant, Workshop Facilitator, and Learning and Development Strategist, Jordana Cole is renowned for empowering leaders to transform behaviors that unlock team potential and drive business results. With a background leading teams and L&D strategy within non-profit, higher education, financial services, e-commerce, and tech industries, she excels at bridging the gap between HR and business units, drawing upon advanced education in the psychology of well-being.

Over the past 10 years, she has led internal, enterprise global L&D programs across industries and organizational sizes—from start-ups to Fortune 500s—tailoring methods to diverse leader and client needs. Her expertise spans strategic design and delivery, client relationship management, coaching, and workshop facilitation, where she is known for “making magic” with limited resources and building scalable, sustainable approaches from scratch.

Tech-savvy and adaptable, Jordana is proficient in various learning management systems, virtual learning tools, and online application systems, ensuring seamless delivery of coaching and development programs in both in-person and virtual environments.

With a passion for cultivating leadership excellence and fostering environments where leadership skills and results flourish, she is committed to partnering with individuals and organizations that want to spark behavioral change and unlock more of their potential.

Connect with Jordana Cole:  

Website: https://ignitedbyjordana.com/ | https://www.shiftwell.ai/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordana-cole-mapp-pcc-a8445a8/ 

TEDx Talk: “What to Do When You Don’t Know What’s Next” — coming soon.

To get in touch with Gary:

Website: https://betterpathtraining.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gsinderbrand/

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