10 Learning and Development Leaders in Atlanta, GA

Last updated: August 2026

If you are looking for learning and development leaders in Atlanta, start with people working across workplace learning, talent development, professional learning, facilitation and leadership growth. This list introduces ten current practitioners whose work connects with Atlanta or serves people and organisations in the region. It is designed as a useful starting point for your own reading, conversations and choices.

As of August 2026, the local picture is broader than one job title. It includes a chief learning officer, association leaders, consultants, facilitators and specialists who build learning experiences inside organisations, schools and communities. Some work in large systems. Others lead focused practices. Together, they show the range of work that sits under learning and development in Atlanta.

The names are presented alphabetically by first name for easy navigation. The list is not a fixed order of importance, and it does not suggest that one person is right for every need. Use it to understand the kinds of work happening locally, then explore each person’s current organisation and area of practice before you reach out.

For a reader, the value is practical. You can use the profiles to find language for a learning challenge, compare different kinds of expertise, or spot an idea to take back to your own team. You can also use the wider professional communities around these people as a way to keep learning after this page is closed.

Why learning and development matters in Atlanta

Learning and development matters in Atlanta because organisations need more than information. People need clear expectations, useful practice, good conversations and enough support to turn a new idea into a new habit. The strongest learning work helps a person understand what to do, gives a team a way to practise it, and makes the surrounding system easier to work in.

That work can look different depending on the setting. A chief learning officer may connect learning with civic or organisational priorities. An association leader may strengthen the local profession. A facilitator may help a team learn through a difficult decision, while a specialist consultant may design the structure and tools that make development possible at scale.

This is why the Atlanta learning and development community is worth exploring as a connected field rather than a single service category. The useful question is not simply who has a learning title. It is what kind of change the person helps people make, and whether that kind of work matches the challenge in front of you.

The profiles below give you ten different entry points. Read them for the work each person makes visible, then use the practical suggestions later in the article to turn a name into a better question, a better conversation or a small experiment in your own workplace.

1. Dr. Tony Lamair Burks II

Chief Learning Officer, LEADright

Dr. Tony Lamair Burks II is Chief Learning Officer at LEADright, a role that places learning at the centre of leadership, community and education work in Atlanta. The City of Atlanta profile connects his work with civic learning and human relations, making him a useful person to know when your interest in development reaches beyond workplace training and into the wider conditions that help people grow.

The same profile describes him as a three time Fulbright recipient and a Superintendent in Residence with the National Center for Urban School Transformation. That combination is useful for readers who want learning work to connect classroom practice, leadership preparation and community outcomes rather than sit in a separate training department.

2. LaKisha Brooks

Chief Learning Officer, Brooks Enterprise and Consultants

LaKisha Brooks is Chief Learning Officer at Brooks Enterprise and Consultants, where her work spans leadership development, mentoring and coaching. Her Atlanta connection is also visible through her involvement with Greater Atlanta ATD, so she fits readers looking for a practitioner whose work sits across organisational learning and the professional community that supports it.

Her profile records service as President Elect of Greater Atlanta ATD in 2019 and 2020, as well as authorship of two books. That mix of practice, professional service and writing gives readers several ways to study how learning ideas are turned into tools people can use at work.

3. Frankie Robinson

VP Learning and Development, ATD Greater Atlanta, MogMogu Solutions

Frankie Robinson is VP Learning and Development for ATD Greater Atlanta and works with MogMogu Solutions. That makes Robinson a strong fit for this Atlanta list because the work connects a local professional association with practical learning design, enablement and training delivery for organisations.

The ATD chapter profile notes more than ten years across training, education and instructional design, including programmes for AT&T and AWS Cloud Institute. Readers can learn from that blend of experience by looking at how a learning function moves from content creation into the everyday enablement of people and teams.

4. Peter Timothy “Tim” Brown

President, ATD Greater Atlanta

Peter Timothy “Tim” Brown is President of ATD Greater Atlanta and an experienced learning and development leader. His chapter profile places him in the local professional community while also pointing to a long career in organisational learning, which gives Atlanta readers a practical route into the people and ideas shaping the field.

The profile records more than twenty years of experience and previous work as an Associate Director, Delivery and Performance Leader at AT&T. That background is relevant because it shows the connection between learning design, delivery quality and performance, rather than treating training as a one off event.

5. Katharine Stowe

Senior Partner, Leadership and Talent Consulting, Korn Ferry

Katharine Stowe is a Senior Partner in Korn Ferry’s Leadership and Talent Consulting practice, based in Atlanta. Her role fits the topic through its focus on leadership development, talent and learning solutions, especially for readers who want to understand how large organisations connect capability building with broader people systems.

Korn Ferry describes her work as including the design and development of competency based talent and learning solutions. That is useful for people building a learning plan because it points to a clear question: what capability should change, and how will the learning experience support that change?

6. Jay Lambert

Founder, Integrated Learning Services

Jay Lambert is the founder of Integrated Learning Services, an Atlanta learning services firm focused on training and elearning. Lambert fits this list as a specialist practitioner for readers who are working through the practical side of learning development, from programme design and digital learning to the systems that help people access it.

The company profile describes Lambert as a training expert with thirty years in elearning and training. That long view is valuable because learning work often needs both a clear experience for the learner and a delivery system that remains useful after the launch moment has passed.

7. Kimberly Douglas

President and Founder, FireFly Facilitation

Kimberly Douglas is President and Founder of FireFly Facilitation in Atlanta. Her work sits at the useful meeting point between learning, facilitation and change management, making her relevant for leaders who want development to show up in how teams plan, make decisions and work together.

FireFly describes her focus as including strategic planning, team effectiveness, innovation and change management. Those areas matter to learning leaders because people usually need to practise new ways of working with one another, not simply receive information and hope the wider system changes by itself.

8. Shawn Clark

President and Head Facilitator, Atlanta Challenge

Shawn Clark is President and Head Facilitator at Atlanta Challenge, an Atlanta based practice focused on team development and facilitated learning. Clark belongs on this list because team learning is often where leadership development becomes visible, especially when people must practise trust, communication and shared problem solving together.

The company leadership page identifies Clark as the founder and owner of Atlanta Challenge and describes a long focus on facilitation. That is useful for readers who want to turn development into an experience people can feel and test, rather than a set of ideas that stays on a slide.

9. Michael Wilkinson

Founder and Certified Master Facilitator, Leadership Strategies

Michael Wilkinson is Founder and Certified Master Facilitator at Leadership Strategies, and he is based in Atlanta. His work is relevant to learning and development because facilitation helps groups convert insight into decisions, commitments and practice, particularly when the learning challenge belongs to a whole team rather than one individual.

Leadership Strategies describes Wilkinson as the founder of the Facilitator Database and the author of six facilitation books. Those contributions give readers a practical library for thinking about the facilitator’s craft, including how to design conversations that help groups learn while they work.

10. Yvonne Bryant Johnson

Founder and CEO, Bryant and Associates

Yvonne Bryant Johnson is Founder and CEO of Bryant and Associates, an Atlanta based leadership development and coaching firm. Her work fits this list for readers who want development to combine leadership conversations with practical tools that help people understand behaviour, team dynamics and the choices they make together.

The firm identifies Johnson as a certified Wiley partner for Everything DiSC and The Five Behaviors, and as a LEGO Serious Play facilitator. That range is useful because it shows how a learning practitioner can bring different forms of reflection and participation into leadership development without losing sight of the team’s real work.

What these leaders show us about learning and development

Across these ten profiles, learning appears as a system of practice rather than a single event. It includes formal learning design, leadership development, facilitation, coaching, professional association work and community or education settings. That range matters because people rarely change through content alone. They change when the content is connected to a real decision, a real relationship or a real piece of work.

The profiles also show the value of a bridge between individual and group learning. A person may need a new skill, but the team may need a better conversation. A team may need a workshop, but the organisation may need clearer expectations and follow through. The Atlanta practitioners in this list work at different points in that chain, so readers can ask more precise questions about the help they actually need.

Another pattern is the importance of craft. Facilitation, instructional design, enablement and talent systems can look invisible when they work well. Yet each one shapes what people notice, practise and remember. Good development is often practical and specific: the right prompt, a usable model, a structured conversation or a way to bring learning back into Monday morning.

The best starting point is therefore a clear problem. Name the behaviour, decision or capability that needs to improve. Then look for the kind of practitioner who works closest to that problem. This keeps learning connected to the people and work it is meant to serve.

How to use this list

Use this list as a map, not as a final answer. First, name the learning problem in one sentence. For example, you may need new managers to give clearer feedback, a team to work through a change, or a learning function to make its programmes easier to use. A clear problem makes it easier to recognise relevant expertise.

Next, read across the profiles and note the different kinds of work. Look for the language each person uses about their role, the people they serve and the settings where they work. This will help you tell the difference between a design challenge, a facilitation challenge, a leadership challenge and a broader talent system challenge.

Then choose one small action. Follow a useful page, read a book or article, attend a local professional event, or write down one question you want to ask a practitioner. If you are contacting someone, explain the context, the change you want and the kind of help you are exploring. A short, specific message is kinder and more useful than a vague request for everything.

Finally, bring the learning back to your own team. Ask what should change in practice, who will own the next step and how you will know whether the new approach is helping. That is where professional curiosity becomes useful work.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does a learning and development leader do in Atlanta?

A learning and development leader helps people and organisations build capability. The work may include learning strategy, instructional design, leadership development, talent systems, facilitation, coaching or professional learning. In Atlanta, the role can sit inside a large organisation, a university, an association, a consultancy or a specialist practice.

How do I choose the right learning practitioner?

Start with the change you need, not the title you expect. Choose someone whose current work matches the problem, audience and setting. Then ask what the experience will involve, what people will practise and how the work will continue after the session or programme ends.

Are these leaders available for consulting or speaking?

Availability and service fit change over time, so check each person’s current organisation and public contact path. Some work inside organisations, while others lead consultancies or facilitation practices. A clear description of your audience, challenge and desired outcome will help you find the right conversation.

Why include facilitators in a learning and development list?

Facilitation is one way people learn while they work. A well designed conversation can help a team make sense of change, practise a new behaviour, resolve a difficult question or commit to action. That makes facilitation closely connected to development, even when the person does not hold a traditional learning title.

How can I keep learning after reading this list?

Choose one person or practice that matches your current question and spend twenty minutes exploring their work. Write down one idea you could test with your team this week. The best follow through is small, visible and connected to a real piece of work.

Conclusion

Atlanta’s learning and development community gives leaders many ways to think about growth. The ten profiles in this article include people working in enterprise learning, professional associations, education, leadership development and facilitation. Their roles are different, but each one points to the same practical question: what do people need to practise so the work can improve?

Use that question to make your next step smaller and clearer. Read one current profile, choose one idea that fits your setting, and test it with a real person or team. If you are choosing outside support, explain the challenge, the audience and the change you want to see before you discuss the format. Good learning begins with a useful problem and ends with practice people can carry into their work.

Related Reading

Continue with 35 influential learning and development leaders, best thought leaders in learning and development and Working Genius facilitators in Atlanta. You can also explore executive offsite facilitators in Atlanta when your team needs a structured conversation around a shared challenge.

A practical next step

If your organisation needs a practical keynote, workshop or facilitated leadership session, I can help you turn the learning challenge into a clear experience people can use. The focus is on useful language, honest discussion and a next step that still makes sense on Monday morning.

To explore a keynote, workshop or facilitated leadership session, email jonno@consultclarity.org.

About the Author

Jonno White is a Brisbane-based leadership consultant, keynote speaker and Certified Working Genius Facilitator, and the author of Step Up or Step Out. He works with schools, corporates and nonprofits around the world. To enquire about a keynote, workshop or facilitated leadership session, email jonno@consultclarity.org.