Welcome back to our Member Spotlight series, where we showcase the stories behind the people who make up our network. This month we speak to Ben Collier, Co-Founder of LN Industry Partner Ocasta.
Named for the Native American god of knowledge, Ocasta’s foray into learning and development could be considered pre-destined. With over a decade of experience in the employee tech space, Ben and the team got their start as a consumer apps agency, developing solutions for easyCar Club and Virgin Media. A client’s request to get an operations manual from an A4 binder to an iPad saw them cross over into employee tech, before realising they’d carved out a niche for themselves in the world of L&D.
“We came to realise that a lot of the stuff ops teams were doing was L&D, like making sure their staff had the right knowledge for better performance,” says Ben. “They just didn’t think of themselves as an L&D person. And actually we found that our customers were using our platform for lots of learning to help drive that performance.”
Ocasta’s ops background has given them a practical approach to their solutions, taking inspiration from consumer apps like Duolingo to apply these techniques to enterprise learning: “We look at ways we know would work for people, as opposed to the ‘right L&D way’.”
As for what Ben loves about being part of the L&D space? “We sit in between operations, L&D and internal comms teams,” he says. “And I think what they all have in common is that they are really quite connected with the problems in the organisation. They’re always hearing what the pains are from the frontline, and in some cases it might not be their job to solve those problems. But I think the people we’ve come across in those kinds of roles, they love solving problems and that’s how they ended up getting into those spaces.”
“And quite frankly,” he adds, “I’m quite nosy! So it’s nice to hear about the challenges that they’re having, and solve the problems from the technical standpoint.”
For example, working with Victoria’s Secret, Ocasta launched an observation and coaching app which supports their frontline managers and associates to consistently serve their customers in the right way.
It’s Ocasta’s specialist blend of expertise that led them to speak to the Learning Network a few years ago at Learning Technologies. “At that point, I wasn’t really sure where we fitted into the L&D world,” he says. “We were trying to see – where do people say things that are interesting? What kind of aligns with where we’re at? Where can we learn from, and so on. So becoming an industry partner was the start of that journey.”
More than a year on, being part of the network has continued to pay off in small but meaningful ways. “There’s so much going on at shows like Learning Tech, it’s almost overwhelming if you’re not going there with a specific need,” Ben notes. “I still like to go to get a feel for what’s going on in the industry, and I think because of the Learning Network, we get to hear more about the bits of L&D that we’re not exposed to from our customers.”
That leads Ben onto his advice for newer members and industry partners. “The key’s in the name,” he says. “The Learning Network! It’s all about connecting with other people. I’m not saying you have to go to everything, but every time I’ve gone to something I’ve come away feeling like I’ve learned something, and it’s been really valuable. And I’d also say join the Slack channel, because there’s always some good questions and conversations in there. I’ve always seen people helping each other out, which I’m learning from just going in and reading what people are talking about.”
With a foot firmly planted in both the tech and learning worlds, Ben brings a refreshing, problem-solving mindset to L&D, and a reminder that impactful learning doesn’t always come from traditional routes – sometimes, the best ideas come from those willing to blur the boundaries.
Interested in sharing your story and insights in our Member Spotlight series? Get in touch with us today to learn how you can showcase your experience and contribute to the community!
