Demelza Calo
Edinburgh
Summary
Passionate about helping people grow, develop and do their best work. Experienced in designing and delivering engaging learning solutions, developing leadership capability and working with stakeholders to turn business needs into practical, meaningful development opportunities. I enjoy building relationships, bringing ideas to life and finding better ways of doing things. Approachable, proactive and adaptable, I bring a hands-on attitude, positive energy and a genuine interest in making a difference to people and the business.
Overview
2
2
Languages
12
12
years of professional experience
Work History
Learning & Development Programme Manager
DIAGEO
08.2024 - 11.2025
- Learning Programme Development & Delivery: Led learning initiatives from identifying business and capability needs through solution design, delivery, communications and evaluation.
- Stakeholder Management & Business Partnering: Worked with HR and business stakeholders to identify skills gaps and translate business requirements into practical learning solutions for different audiences.
- Learning Design & Delivery: Designed and delivered face-to-face and virtual training, creating facilitator-led sessions, digital learning, presentations, guides and practical resources.
- Onboarding & Role-Based Learning: Reviewed and improved online onboarding, helping shape a more structured and engaging experience. Supported the mapping of training to business functions and roles, helping employees identify the learning most relevant to their responsibilities.
- Learning Governance & Continuous Improvement: Developed a sustainable content governance model following a major learning technology transformation, clarifying standards, ownership and processes while leading a team to improve content quality, accessibility and the learner experience.
- Programme & Project Management: Managed plans, timelines, communications and reporting, coordinating stakeholders, subject matter experts and external suppliers to deliver learning initiatives.
- Evaluation & Data-Driven Improvement: Used participation, completion, engagement and feedback data to evaluate learning effectiveness and identify opportunities for improvement.
Other Learning Roles
DIAGEO
05.2015 - 08.2024
- Progressed through a range of roles spanning learning delivery, leadership development, digital learning, learning technology, communications and engagement. Worked with colleagues across global functions to develop employee capability, support organisational priorities and improve the learning experience.
- Johnnie Walker visitor experience onboarding: Contributed to onboarding and training for approximately 300 employees ahead of the opening of the Johnnie Walker visitor experience. Supported the development of learning resources, training activities and delivery coordination to prepare employees to meet expectations and deliver a consistent, high-quality visitor experience.
- Learning design and delivery: Designed and delivered face-to-face and virtual learning across Commercial, Supply Chain, Procurement, Governance, Technology and Innovation, translating business and technical requirements into accessible, practical learning.
- Leadership and people development: Designed and delivered learning initiatives and supported leadership programmes, working with stakeholders to develop content, coordinate delivery and encourage managers and employees to apply their learning.
- Digital learning development: Created e-learning and practical learning resources using Articulate Storyline and iSpring, developing content to support knowledge development and new ways of working.
- Business collaboration: Worked with HR, senior leaders, subject matter experts, Technology and business teams to understand requirements and develop learning solutions that supported functional and organisational priorities.
- Communications and engagement: Led global learning communications and engagement campaigns and supported Learning Champion networks to encourage participation, behavioural change and adoption of learning initiatives.
- Learning platforms and systems: Managed and improved the learner experience across enterprise learning platforms supporting approximately 30,000 global users. Supported the migration from Cornerstone to Workday Learning and EdCast, including content governance, user adoption and learning continuity.
- Content governance and quality: Managed digital learning content, including SCORM resources, and supported improvements to content quality, accessibility, consistency and learner journeys.
- Reporting and insight: Produced learning reports and Excel dashboards to monitor participation, completion and engagement, using data to inform decisions and identify opportunities for improvement.
- Digital workplace capability: Developed practical learning resources and delivered training to support Microsoft 365 adoption, including Teams, SharePoint and OneDrive.
HR Administrator
FORTH SECTOR
01.2014 - 01.2015
- Provided HR administration and coordination support within a third-sector organisation, gaining practical experience of people processes, employee support and day-to-day organisational operations.
- Supported HR and office operations, working collaboratively with colleagues across the organisation.
- Completed an MSc dissertation in collaboration with Forth Sector, exploring the positive impact of employing people with previous convictions.
Education
MSc - Human Resource Management
Edinburgh Napier University
EdinburghBachelor of Business Administration - Business Management
Edinburgh Napier University
EdinburghSkills
- Stakeholder management and business partnering
- Leadership development
- Learning design and delivery
- Change management and communication
- Programme management
- Process simplification and improvement
- Learner engagement
- Learning management systems and HR technology
- Digital learning and content development
- Learning governance and reporting
Languages
Spanish
First Language
English
Proficient
C2
Memberships
CIPD Level 7 Associate Membership
Timeline
Learning & Development Programme Manager
DIAGEO
08.2024 - 11.2025
Other Learning Roles
DIAGEO
05.2015 - 08.2024
HR Administrator
FORTH SECTOR
01.2014 - 01.2015
MSc - Human Resource Management
Edinburgh Napier University
Bachelor of Business Administration - Business Management
Edinburgh Napier University