AI is reshaping the role of individual contributors. ICs can now do more on their own than ever before, presenting both a challenge and an opportunity for L&D. This newsletter explores how to shift your focus from only developing managers to equipping ICs with the influence skills that drive retention, accelerate OKRs, and position L&D as a strategic partner to the business.
Your ICs stuck
|
Hello Reader, Today I'm launching a newsletter to tackle the fastest-growing problem I see in talent development. 👉 The Rise of the Individual Contributor (IC) and the Lack of Growth and Development You're getting this because we worked together, we chatted, or you subscribe to my newsletter. (Which tells me you care about developing people.) Structural shifts in how we work (flattening hierarchies, siloed growth, and the AI info explosion among them) are making the IC role more critical than ever. But most orgs jump to “communication training,” “presentation skills,” or “collaboration tooling.” They skip the behavioral sequencing and cognitive stack required for ICs to influence without authority. That's what we'll be exploring 2x a month in your inbox. We'll cover topics like: 👉 The Idea Graveyard: Why 7 of 10 Ideas Die in the Room—and How to Spot the Pattern 👉 Meeting Math: The Hidden $18K per Manager Your Calendar Is Costing This Quarter 👉 Attention Tax: Why Your 12-Page Deck Gets 38 Seconds of Real Focus (and What That Means for ICs) In a brief [3-2-1] format:
Nutrient-dense knowledge; no fluff. Don't want another 2 emails in your inbox each month? No worries, unsubscribe here, no hard feelings. Sticking around? I'll be back with the first edition on Sunday. Why Sunday? I loved getting the Sunday newspaper (sports section mostly) as a kid. It's always felt like a great day to read something new. See you on Sunday ✌️ |
Andrew Barry
AI is reshaping the role of individual contributors. ICs can now do more on their own than ever before, presenting both a challenge and an opportunity for L&D. This newsletter explores how to shift your focus from only developing managers to equipping ICs with the influence skills that drive retention, accelerate OKRs, and position L&D as a strategic partner to the business.
Hi Reader, Welcome to the 5th edition of the 3-2-1 (check out previous issues here). You're getting this because you care about developing people. I write about transforming ICs -> Impact Contributors. And today, we're talking about working with AI. Let's get into it. 3 Things for Work (in L&D) How to Be an Effective Early-Stage Employee The most helpful framework I've seen for developing your career as an individual contributor. Even more relevant now when AI accelerates your ability to do...
Hi Reader, Welcome to the 4th edition of the 3-2-1 (check out previous issues here). You're getting this because you care about developing people. I write about transforming ICs -> Impact Contributors. And today, we're talking about human skills for the future of work. Let's get into it. 3 Things for Work (in L&D) The Era of Continuous Reskilling A pragmatic roadmap to close the AI skills gap: model executive AI use, bridge the agent awareness divide, and pivot to skills-based growth with...
Hi Reader, Welcome to the 3rd edition of the 3-2-1 (check out previous issues here). You're getting this because you care about developing people. I write about the Irreplaceable IC. And today, we examine this pivotal role in the future of work. Let's get into it. 3 Things for Work (in L&D) NotebookLLM on Tiny Teams A treasure trove of insights from AI-first companies operating with crazy scale (think 20-person teams of ICs doing $50M ARR). You can ask questions like, “how are these teams...