Episode 64: Lifelong Learning and Organizational Technology Adoption with Eric Wise

Guest Bio

I am a seasoned entrepreneur with a rich history in technical education startups, with two successful exits to my credit. My passion is in designing transformative learning experiences, ones that have positively impacted thousands across enterprises, universities, hire-train-deploy models, and accelerated training programs such as bootcamps.

Drawing on over a decade of industry success, I’ve embarked on an independent venture: 4th Wall Studios (4WS). As a Technical Training Strategist, I offer strategic advisory services to equip organizations with efficient and innovative reskilling and upskilling programs.

4WS specializes in the design and implementation of high quality learner experiences. Our design expertise encompasses process and operations, including enrollment, learner experiences, and instructor management – which spans hiring, training, and assessment. On the build side, we’re proficient in developing modular curricula, producing engaging video content, and designing accurate, impactful assessments.

Understanding the operational challenges of maintaining an in-house team for content creation and video production, I leverage my extensive network of top-tier professionals to provide a seamless outsourcing solution. This approach delivers high-quality results without the headaches of owning and managing dedicated teams, allowing our clients to focus on their core functions and adjust spend according to their immediate needs.

As the journey continues, I remain dedicated to empowering more organizations to unlock their full potential, positioning myself as a trusted leader in technical training strategy. If you’re interested in learning more about how 4WS can design, build, and enhance your reskill or upskill program, I welcome the opportunity to connect!

Recap & Takeaways

Key Takeaways

• Intro to Eric Wise, Founder of skillfoundry.io
• Eric on bootstrapping his business
• Getting started as an entrepreneur earlier before some life events
• Generative AI and cost reduction, still not good enough to do a human’s job
• Experience and Hallucinations
• Access to answers and questions, Stack Overflow
• Where the responsibility falls for learning and development, and how companies and teams curate learning
• The “Hire, Train, Deploy” movement
• Learning and development trajectories from day one
• Onboarding knowledge and relationships
• Addressing a skills gap, hiring freezes, additive and transformative learning
• Understanding data queries and analysis, Python training programs and possibilities
• Pathways to creating transformative work
• Learning together and bonding, loyalty to team and business
• Building learning, culture, and community
• Lifetime value, thinking about the relationship between college institutions and missed opportunities in lifetime training
• Lifelong learning for everyone, not just executives
• Peer group learning, being dynamic to thrive in transformative businesses
• Connective tissue: Gaps between academic courses and job functions, partnerships between higher ed and businesses
• Computer science is one of the most dropped-out degrees, and the teaching hasn’t changed
• Bringing more technical talent to a world where businesses are adapting to AI, automation, and focused learning experiences
• Not going to be replaced by AI, going to be replaced by someone who doesn’t use AI
• Eric’s hope for the future of teamwork, and how to contact him