Just over a week ago, the Women in Learning Conference took place – the first ever in the UK! The creation of the event stemmed from Donald H Taylor’s research in 2015, which highlighted the issues surrounding gender inequality in the learning sector.

 Taylor’s main findings came from 2,635 members of the Learning and Skills Group, which was split 45% female and 55% male. Across this population, the split was roughly 2:1 females to males in support roles, 1:1 in mid-level roles and 1:2 in leadership roles.

It is evident that attracting women to the learning sector isn’t an issue, but rather their progression to more senior roles. However, this isn’t just the learning sector – there has been continual coverage of gender pay gaps and reported discrepancies of women in leadership positions in organisations across the world. 

Therefore, the Women in Learning Conference is an important event to raise awareness about the challenges women are facing in the workplace, but also a great opportunity to acknowledge their successes and inspire others. We have compiled our top five influential women in learning, who will definitely add value to your personal learning network.

1. Jane Hart (@C4LPT): Founder of the Centre For Learning & Performance Technologies, Jane has been advising businesses for over 30 years, through introducing new training practices and supporting continuous learning. She is an international speaker on workplace learning, as well as the author of a number of books. 
2. Meghan Biro (@MeghanMBiro): Founder of TalentCulture, Biro is a HR tech analyst, author and brand strategist, meaning she is sought after for her ideas about the future of work. Biro also created the weekly #WorkTrends Twitter chat and has written for the likes of Forbes and Society for Human Resources Management. 
3. Cathy Moore (@CatMoore): A L&D blogger whose ethos is to ‘save the world from boring training!’ Her blog is perfect for instructional designers, and she created the innovative model of action mapping, which is the streamlined process used to design training. 
4. Laura Overton (@lauraoverton): Overton is the CEO and Founder of TowardsMaturity, which provides independent research to help organisations deliver improved performance through learning innovation. In February 2010, she was the first woman to be awarded the Learning and Performance Institute’s prestigious Colin Corder Award for services to training.
5. Kate Graham (@kategraham23): Head of Content at Fosway Group, Graham has been in the industry for over 15 years. Not only has she contributed to numerous publications, she is also the social chair of the industry’s leading L&D event, Learning Technologies, and supports the coverage of other events. Graham also co-founded the #WomenInLearning movement.

Of course, these women are just five of many inspirational women that work within HR and L&D, and the event saw hundreds of guests (male and female) come together to raise awareness and instigate change in the future. We’re excited to witness the impact the event has!