Talent Development Lead at IonQ
Helping management and leadership teams become stronger, better, and more consistent during a period of growth and change.
Nov 2026 – Present
B.J. Schone wonders, builds, and teaches.
Part engineer, part teacher. I build to explore ideas, chase curiosities, and help people learn.
Things I've built
All 21 projects-
4 images Episode Explorer
What could I discover if I laid hundreds of podcast episodes out on a timeline and a map?
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4 images Job Hunter
How can I find the right job openings early and tailor my resume without losing control of what's in it?
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18 images Family Arcade
How personal and fun can I make a collection of games for our kid?
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3 images Travel Dashboard
What would 10 to 15 years of trips look like if I could see them all on a map?
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3 images Level 1 Ready
Can I make a site with AI that makes money, and can I help a group of people at the same time?
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12 images CX Practice Lab
How can support specialists practice difficult customer conversations before they're handling the real thing?
Why I build
I learn by building. Give me a question I can't stop thinking about - what 700 podcast episodes look like on a world history timeline, or how a support team could practice a hard conversation before a real customer shows up - and I'll want to build the thing that answers it.
My background is an unusual mix. I started as a software engineer, then moved into learning and enablement - at Qualcomm, LPL Financial, Autodesk, Atlassian, LaunchDarkly, Ramp, and now IonQ. So I build like an engineer and think like a teacher: what does someone need to see or practice before it clicks?
That click is the part I care about most - the a-ha moment. Five years of Apple Watch data that finally makes sense. A simulator where someone can get it wrong safely before it counts. Good tools help people get to those ‘a-ha!’ moments faster.
Built at scale
Learning & AI Enablement - Consulting and Research
Helped teams figure out where AI fits in their work: built a prototype that grades potential investments for a venture capital investment firm, launched Level 1 Ready, and published the open-source app-guardrails playbook.
Jun 2026 – Nov 2026 Remote
Senior Manager, Learning & Enablement at Ramp
Led a 6-person team serving employees, customers, and partners. Built 5+ internal apps and workflows for intake, drafting, course builds, and SME review, so the team matched the output of one twice its size. Led CX training for 120+ support agents and built the CX Practice Lab, an AI ticket simulator. Built Ramp Partner Academy in under 3 months: 14,000 course completions and 600 certifications in year one.
Mar 2024 – Jun 2026 Remote
Director of Learning & Enablement at LaunchDarkly
Hired a team of 5 and built LaunchDarkly Academy on Skilljar from zero. Built 30+ courses and developer certifications that Customer Success adopted as a core part of customer onboarding. Reached 80%+ learner confidence scores, and trained customers were 2x as likely to renew.
Apr 2022 – Mar 2024 Remote
Senior Manager, Talent Development at Atlassian
Built manager development for 600+ managers, including new manager onboarding and quarterly skill training, with 90%+ recommendation scores. Redesigned global new hire orientation for ~800 new hires per quarter. Led a global team of 10 and owned the learning platforms, vendors, and training budget for global L&D.
Jan 2018 – Apr 2022 Mountain View / Remote
Senior Manager, Sales Learning & Technology at Autodesk
Led product enablement for 2,500 sales employees and 10,000 channel partners, including 20+ certifications, with a global team of 18. Rebuilt sales onboarding with sales leadership and cut ramp time by 25%. Owned learning platforms, vendor partnerships, and a $1M budget.
Oct 2014 – Jan 2018 San Francisco
Director of Learning & Development at LPL Financial
Led a 6-person team that built LPL U, a corporate university for 3,000 employees with 6 department-aligned colleges, and won 3 Brandon Hall awards. Rebuilt Service Center onboarding (~600 employees) around a live, 8-week program, and guided upskilling for the IT organization (~500).
Feb 2013 – Oct 2014 San Diego
Earlier - Qualcomm and eDriving, plus founder & author detours
Started as a software engineer, then moved into e-learning. Senior Learning Technologist at Qualcomm (2008–2011) and Director of Content at eDriving (2012). Founded and sold the SaaS startup Awesome Boss (2015–2017). Published The Essential Guide to Getting Promoted at Work (2021).
2003 – 2013 San Diego