Podcasts about product officer

AI can analyze enormous amounts of information, but more data does not always lead to better decisions.  In this episode of Leader Generation, Tessa Burg talks with Dean Smith, CTO at Credit Benchmark, about why accurate, trusted data matters more than ever and how poor-quality information can quickly lead AI further from the truth. Dean shares a practical way for businesses to make progress without trying to overhaul everything at once: start with one problem, bring together the data needed to solve it and build from there.  Listen to learn how your organization can improve data quality, show value sooner and create a more adaptable data-first culture. Leader Generation is hosted by Tessa Burg and brought to you by Mod Op. About Dean Smith: Dean Smith is Chief Technology & Product Officer at Credit Benchmark, where he leads the company's technology strategy, engineering, data infrastructure and platform development. He is responsible for scaling Credit Benchmark's technology platform and advancing its data capabilities to meet the evolving needs of global financial institutions, with a focus on strengthening the integration between product innovation, data infrastructure and client delivery.  Dean can be reached on LinkedIn. About Tessa Burg: Tessa is the Chief Technology Officer at Mod Op and Host of the Leader Generation podcast. She has led both technology and marketing teams for 15+ years. Tessa initiated and now leads Mod Op's AI/ML Pilot Team, AI Council and Innovation Pipeline. She started her career in IT and development before following her love for data and strategy into digital marketing. Tessa has held roles on both the consulting and client sides of the business for domestic and international brands, including American Greetings, Amazon, Nestlé, Anlene, Moen and many more. Tessa can be reached on LinkedIn or at Tessa.Burg@ModOp.com.

AI is changing marketing, but not in the way most people think.The real shift isn't just better content generation or faster workflows. It's how buyers discover businesses, how AI agents interact with websites, and how companies need to rethink their entire go-to-market strategy.In this episode of Uncomplicate It, I sit down with Michael Cucchi, Chief Marketing & Product Officer at Hydrolix, to explore what the next generation of marketing looks like in a world driven by AI, real-time data, and autonomous agents.Michael shares how marketers can prepare for the shift from traditional SEO to GEO, why product and marketing teams need to work more closely than ever, and how businesses can embrace AI without losing the human element that builds trust.This conversation isn't about chasing the latest AI trend. It's about understanding where technology is headed—and how leaders can adapt before everyone else catches up.We cover:Why GEO is becoming the next evolution of SEOHow AI agents are changing customer behaviorThe role of real-time data in better business decisionsProduct-led vs. sales-led growth in today's marketWhy marketers should learn AI instead of fearing itHow category leaders position themselves for long-term successThe future of agent-to-agent commerceWhy brand, messaging, and human creativity still matter in an AI-driven worldTakeaways:AI is a tool, not a replacement for people.Customer trust will matter more than ever.The companies that adapt early will have a significant competitive advantage.Marketing and product can no longer operate in silos.Success in the AI era comes from combining technology with clear strategy and human insight.If you're building a business, leading a marketing team, or trying to understand where AI is taking the future of work, this episode is packed with practical insights you can apply today.Connect with Michael Cucchi:

Have you ever considered what the bigger risk is? Adapting the wrong AI tool or waiting too long to get started?     Since predictive, generative, and agentic AI continue to alter how organizations operate, understanding how these different technologies complement one another is of utmost importance. This conversation revolves around the measurable impact of AI, while addressing concerns from making advanced analytics accessible to nonprofits of all sizes to using AI for smarter fundraising decisions. Join us and learn why incomplete or messy data shouldn't stop you from using AI, how predictive AI uncovers opportunities, and why treating AI as a strategic capability rather than another tool can help organizations to enhance efficiency, increase revenue, and stay at the very top of an increasingly AI-driven world.    Our guest today is Judah Phillips, the Chief AI and Product Officer at Market Holdings LLC and the General Manager and co-founder of Squark AI, a no-code platform for predictive analytics, forecasting, and decision intelligence. Beyond his professional role, Judah founded the Boston Generative AI Meetup, one of the world's largest in-person AI communities, and Boston AI Week, a citywide AI festival. He is also the author of multiple books related to analytics, e-commerce, and AI. His work specializes in bridging AI strategy, commercialization, governance, investment, and community building to accelerate AI adoption.    In this conversation, Nathan and Judah mainly discuss the developing relationship between predictive, generative, and agentic AI and how it affects the fundraising landscape, also what the future holds for AI and why it's important to build AI capabilities early on.   HIGHLIGHTS [01:23] Introduction and background to Judah Phillips.   [06:48] Judah's journey on the development of Squark AI.   [20:46] Making sophisticated capabilities accessible to everyone, not just building models.   [25:52] Using predictive AI to solve real fundraising challenges.  [38:37] The future convergence of predictive AI, generative AI, and agentic AI.  [45:00] The importance of adopting an AI mindset before the technology moves too far ahead. RESOURCES    Connect with Judah Phillips  LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/judahphillips/   Website - squark.ai/ 

What does it take to win? How should you balance humility, hunger to win, and curiosity? This is the question I explore with ex-semi-pro baseball player and Pelican Chief Marketing and Product Officer, Shawn LaRowe. If you're wondering how to build a franchise product, then this interview's for you. #Innovation #ProductManagement #Leadership

Unlocking billions in cloud marketplace revenue. Subscribe to our Newsletter: https://theultimatepartner.com/ebook-subscribe/ Check Out UPX: https://theultimatepartner.com/experience/ This powerful panel discussion featuring leaders from Google, Tackle, and dbt Labs dives deep into the explosive growth of cloud marketplaces and the radical shift toward AI-driven go-to-market strategies. With hyperscaler backlogs nearing half a trillion dollars, the conversation unpacks how top-tier organizations are transforming their compensation models, aligning executive buy-in, and navigating the complexities of co-selling to capture committed customer budgets. From the rise of AI agents acting as metered SaaS to the essential operational investments required to scale marketplace revenue from 10% to over 50%, this session provides an actionable roadmap for software companies ready to dominate the 2026 partner ecosystem. https://youtu.be/LSj49f5FEII Key Takeaways Hyperscaler backlog commitments represent a massive, nearly half-trillion-dollar addressable market that completely changes the budgeting conversation. Successful marketplace selling requires complete executive alignment, right down to the CFO, and strategic adjustments like spiffing sales teams for marketplace transactions. The AI category is experiencing staggering 18x year-over-year growth, forcing companies to pivot toward an “agent-first” go-to-market model. Shifting from traditional channels to cloud go-to-market demands a multi-year, intentional investment in operations, people, and technology. System integrators are evolving into software companies as they build orchestration agents to manage fragmented, end-to-end workflows. Leveraging cloud commitments bypasses standard 12-15 month budget cycles, allowing for significantly faster deal closures and larger initial lands. If you're ready to lead through change, elevate your business, and achieve extraordinary outcomes through the power of partnership—this is your community. At Ultimate Partner® we want leaders like you to join us in the Ultimate Partner Experience – where transformation begins. Key Tags: Google Cloud Marketplace, hyperscaler backlog, cloud commitments, co-selling strategies, AI agents, metered SaaS, product-led growth, rev ops, B2B sales transformation, ecosystem shift, channel strategy, system integrators, Deal registration, private offer APIs, digital transformation, software procurement. Transcript: Insight to Revenue- The State of Cloud GTM [00:00:00] Dai Vu: These are all things everyone has to do to get to that first five to 10 deals, and then 10, 20, 30% of your business through Marketplace. [00:00:09] Vince Menzione: You can feel it happening. The ecosystem is shifting beneath us, the way Hyperscalers are partnering, how AI is remaking the channel and what it means to win in 2026. [00:00:21] Vince Menzione: Welcome to the Ultimate Partner Podcast. I’m Vince Menzi, own your host, and each week I sit down with leaders at the intersection of technology. Partnerships and outcomes. The voices shaping how ecosystems actually work. We talk about what’s real, what’s changing, and what it takes to lead in this era where the partner channel isn’t just part of the strategy. [00:00:43] Vince Menzione: It is the strategy because being in the room changes [00:00:46] John Janke: everything. Let’s start. [00:00:52] Vince Menzione: And we have an incredible session. The way that we wanted today to, to, to start the day up was like, let’s talk about what’s happening right now and let’s get three leaders in this space to come up and talk about the world and how it’s a rapidly evolving. So I want to invite to the stage dvu from Google is a great friend of Ultimate Partner. [00:01:14] Vince Menzione: Are you guys ready? Are you guys micd up already? Okay, good. Good. John Yanke, the CEO and Founder of Tackle, and Sean Todo, who is an incredible leader with DBT, but also an old friend of mine. We worked together on Microsoft Days. Good to see you gentlemen. Thanks Sean. Great to have you with us. [00:01:37] John Janke: They stuck me on the side ’cause they said I’d block the screen if I sat in the middle. [00:01:41] Shawn Toldo: You still block it a little bit. [00:01:42] John Janke: And that picture’s from like 1985. I, I, we do have to get that. I had way darker hair. It was, uh, 10 year, 10 years at a startup. Makes you turn white. [00:01:52] Shawn Toldo: Mine’s the exact same right now. So it’s all good. [00:01:55] Shawn Toldo: Mine’s AI generated. Yeah. [00:01:57] Vince Menzione: Well, you know, guys, I just took it all off at that point, you know, it’s like good. Yeah, but you lose enough of it. You pull it out over the years. Yeah. So, uh, some really exciting times. Uh, you, we gotta spend some time at you at our breakfast. That’s right. A couple weeks ago. [00:02:13] Dai Vu: A lot of folks here, too. [00:02:14] Vince Menzione: A lot of folks that are here were at that breakfast, and I thought we’d spend a few moments with you talking about all the exciting things that have been happening at, at Google. I mean the, yeah, the businesses just to, first of all, the numbers were house. Outstanding. Congratulations. [00:02:28] Dai Vu: That’s right. [00:02:28] Vince Menzione: Yep. [00:02:28] Vince Menzione: Really, some really great numbers. Commitments are off the charts. [00:02:32] Dai Vu: Yes. [00:02:32] Vince Menzione: Crazy off the charts. [00:02:33] Dai Vu: Yes. [00:02:34] Vince Menzione: Yes. Uh, and then there’s a lot happening in this little world called ai, which makes a ton of sense. Yep. I was critical about Google in the beginning because you had all the assets, but Microsoft leaned in first. [00:02:45] Vince Menzione: Uh, but now it’s like things have evolved, uh, quite a bit since those first days. Absolutely. In, in November of 2022. So, uh, take us through a little bit. Let’s, let’s go through [00:02:56] Dai Vu: it. Yeah. I could talk for quite a bit of time because obviously we came out next, yeah. At the end of April, and then we had our earnings announced, but shortly thereafter. [00:03:03] Dai Vu: But, but real quick on next, uh, for folks who attended, uh, you know, the way they framed, uh, the discussion was they showed this AI integrated stack, and that’s how they frame the keynote because we position ourselves as being the only vendor that provides this. Fully integrated stack from custom silicon all the way to the apps and agents. [00:03:23] Dai Vu: And a lot of the announcements were, were focused in those areas. Um, uh, I won’t go through the, the long list, but I think the big ones coming out of next were, uh, certainly the eighth generation TPU we announced, so we actually split this into two specialized chips for training and inference. Uh, so that’s, uh, that was a big piece. [00:03:41] Dai Vu: Uh, but the big one that we announced was this, uh, Gemini Enterprise. Uh, agent platform. So think of it as the comprehensive platform for companies to basically build scale, govern and optimize their agents. And of course, once they have that, they can bring that into, uh, what we call a Gen Gemini enterprise app, which is really the front door for AI for. [00:04:03] Dai Vu: All customers and all employees to manage a mix of agents, um, as part of their daily workflow. And, uh, and a big part of it is, you know, certainly they’ll have some custom agents, but we think a lot of the agents will come from the ecosystem. And obviously there was a big announcement around what we’re doing there. [00:04:21] Dai Vu: Um, and in fact, one of the things that’s interesting is this shows the evolution of, of marketplace in our, in our partnership, which is we’ve taken a lot of the marketplace experience. And brought it into Gemini exp uh, Gemini Enterprise app, right? So search, discovery, uh, the ability to invoke agents, uh, in context. [00:04:39] Dai Vu: I think that’s gonna be very powerful as we think about the evolution, uh, of, of go to market. And then the last thing maybe I’ll highlight is this, um, is. 750 million, uh, investment fund that we’re gonna drive with the broad partnership. So this cuts across all partner types, global system integrators, uh, uh, you know, AI, pure plays, uh, ISVs, uh, the big management consultants as well, uh, because we recognize that partners are gonna be critical to drive business transformation with our end customers. [00:05:08] Dai Vu: So we’re investing around things like. Technical enablement, access to our product teams, access to our FDE for deployment engineers, and then a lot of incentives to drive usage and deployment. So, um, so a lot of, a lot of activity and obviously the ecosystem’s gonna be very critical for us to drive that impact’s. [00:05:25] Dai Vu: Fine. And the last thing, I know we’ve going on and on fine, but the last thing I’ll just mention is just on the earnings announcement, uh, Vince touched on the backlog, so people have been tracking Yeah. Two quarters ago. We were 155 billion on the backlog, and then a quarter later we were 240 billion. And then in the last quarter, just recently, 462 billion. [00:05:46] Dai Vu: So obviously that’s a, a massive signal of customer intent, but more importantly, it’s a, it’s, it’s a addressable market for this ecosystem to go after as well. [00:05:54] Vince Menzione: Yeah. Almost a half a trillion dollars. Yes. In commitment. So a lot, a lot of reason why we should be on the marketplace. [00:06:01] Dai Vu: Absolutely. Absolutely. [00:06:02] Vince Menzione: Um, each of these gentlemen have some things to talk about as well, about their companies and the exciting things that have been happening. [00:06:08] Vince Menzione: I’m gonna start, John, I’m gonna start with you because Tackle has, has transformed quite a bit since the last time you were on stage with us. I thought maybe introduce the company. Take us through the transformation and then we’re gonna do the same thing with Sean with his organization. [00:06:21] John Janke: Yeah. Thanks. Uh, thanks Vince. [00:06:23] John Janke: Great to see everybody. Uh, John Yanke, GM of Tackle at App Direct. So the big news there is Tackle was acquired in Q4 by a company called App Direct, and I think the why behind this app, direct Powers, marketplaces, they run 400 marketplaces around the world for telcos, for ISVs, for system integrators, channel partners. [00:06:42] John Janke: And we were talk like, when you build a marketplace and diagnose this, stocking the shelves is actually really hard. Uh, and we were talking to them about how could we connect the dots between the hyperscaler marketplaces, the iscs we support, and these additional routes to market. Uh, and that became more strategic and we ended up joining forces in December. [00:07:00] John Janke: And since then, the other part that’s really hard when you build a marketplace is how do you generate demand? Uh, so four weeks ago we acquired a company called Partner Stack. And Partner Stack does affiliate content. They have an affiliate content platform that allows you to connect with 150,000 content providers to be able to start to tell your story to drive leads to. [00:07:23] John Janke: Marketplace. So we think there is a tremendous opportunity to continue. We’re in the earliest days. I think the, you know, Jay, I was with Jay at Channel Partners a few weeks ago and he is like, we under called it, he didn’t say this on stage yesterday, but he is like, uh, the 82% growth. He’s like, we totally under called it. [00:07:40] John Janke: Uh, and I think just listening to dies commit level increase mm-hmm. Reinforces the fact that we’ve under called it. But I also think we’re at this tipping point in the market where all of the new capabilities coming out, we have to all rethink our better together stories. So I think the challenge to all partner leaders, it’s like, how do we. [00:07:58] John Janke: Figure that out. So it’s, it’s a, it’s a fun time. As we transform the way we worked. We wrote the first helping people kind of list, launch and sell through the marketplaces. And now to be able to take that to the next level to hopefully unlock the next a hundred billion of marketplace throughput. [00:08:13] Vince Menzione: And are we at a hundred billion? [00:08:15] Vince Menzione: ’cause that was the number, right? [00:08:16] John Janke: I mean that’s, that’s, that’s the number that’s talked about. I mean, we’re seeing the data signals we see, I mean, we will process 20 billion plus this year. Uh, and that number’s growing faster than Jay’s stated number. So I think we’re excited to see where this year lands. [00:08:30] Vince Menzione: We’ve come a long way from three years ago and we all got on stage and talked about marketplaces together. Right. It’s been, it’s been amazing. And then Sean, let’s talk about DBT. You’ve had some excitement. I know some things maybe we can’t even talk about yet on stage. [00:08:43] Shawn Toldo: Uh, yeah, go ahead. [00:08:44] Vince Menzione: No, I was saying I, I could, I’ll pre-announce things, but No, I’m just, uh, tell, tell us about DBT for those who don’t know in the room, sure. [00:08:49] Vince Menzione: Mean Yeah, that might help. [00:08:51] Shawn Toldo: So, uh, Sean Todo, I lead the partner business at DBT. I’ve been here about 18 months. Um, DBT really started as an open source tool. That help data engineers be successful in SQL transformation with cloud data warehouses? Right. And so back even to the Redshift days now into what I would call more the BigQuery, snowflake, Databricks fabric led days, um, DBT is the tool of choice amongst the data engineering community in terms of how they wanna drive SQL transformation. [00:09:21] Shawn Toldo: And so more recently, we kind of jumped into this kind of paid world. Which is why we needed to bring in additional experience leadership around go to market product, sales, et cetera. And so when I walked in the door, one of the things I noticed really quickly was we were running on AWS, which was great. [00:09:40] Shawn Toldo: We were doing some AWS marketplace stuff. We were running on Azure in Europe only. And one of my first strategies was we have to be everywhere, right customer. We have to meet customers where they are. And so we, uh, made some major investments to be on Google Cloud platform to then be able to really take advantage of marketplace, to then really be able to take advantage of the co-sell opportunities that exist in the field from a day, day-to-day AI perspective with Google. [00:10:07] Shawn Toldo: And it has been a hell of a ride. We launched on, uh, Google Marketplace in July of last year. We went to Google next and we were Google Partner of the Year. Wow. For data and analytics in a very rapid way. We’re now in three, uh, data centers around the, the world. So we’re here in the us, we’re in Frankfurt, we’re in uh, uh, UK as well. [00:10:30] Shawn Toldo: And so it’s been a pleasure to work with D and the broader team. Because the enablement we’ve had and the support we’ve had from that group has really helped our growth be up and to the right. The data point I would give is that when I walked in the door, we were 10% of our business from an A RR perspective was transacting through marketplace. [00:10:48] Shawn Toldo: Last quarter we cracked 40%. Whoa. We will be at north of 50, uh, next quarter. [00:10:53] Dai Vu: Wow. [00:10:54] Shawn Toldo: The other piece that Vince was talking about is we’re getting ready to merge with a company called Five Tran. And so there will be a new company name at some point down the road. Uh, pay attention on June 1st for a public announcement around that merger. [00:11:06] Shawn Toldo: Uh, but we’re really looking forward to what we’re gonna be able to do with folks like DI and the Google team as well as others in the ecosystem. Um, ’cause I think in this data world that we’ve played for so long. This trusted foundational element of data and what it’s gonna mean to context in the AI world. [00:11:23] Shawn Toldo: We’re in a very interesting place to really continue our growth rate at a high level. [00:11:28] John Janke: Yeah, that maybe just a comment something there. Start there. I think we, we used to hear people say we wanted to be strategic with cloud, go to market and get to say 10 or 20% of revenue. I think this like 40, 50%. Yeah. Th that’s where people are setting the bar these days. [00:11:43] John Janke: Yeah. So the numbers are getting really crazy. Yeah. Uh, and people are showing up and being like, I have to go big. Mm-hmm. So a huge change over the last few years. [00:11:52] Vince Menzione: Yep. What’s the experience you’re seeing as well? I mean, it, it was a huge amount of buzz at next. [00:11:57] Dai Vu: Yeah. I mean, so interestingly, um, you know, typically when, when people get started on the, on the marketplace in Cosal journey, I always try to caution them and say, this is, uh, this is like a multi-year. [00:12:07] Dai Vu: Yeah. Uh, process. You have to be very intentional. You have to invest. It’s not gonna be a thing where you just list and, and, and, and, and, and sort of this channel opens up. So in some ways, Sean is describing an acceleration that is not common, right? Uh, so they’ve done, we’ve done some amazing things together and we hope to keep that acceleration going. [00:12:22] Vince Menzione: What does that require, by the way? Is it engineering resource? I mean, there’s, I talk about executive commitment and maniacal focus. Yeah. But it’s all those things, right? [00:12:29] Shawn Toldo: Well, all of it. But we went to a QBR in Austin, and I put up a slide and I said, we have to do this. And everybody in our ETE agreed. So when you have a chief financial officer that’s bought into the partner business. [00:12:43] Shawn Toldo: Yeah. And I guess qualifying coming into this role at this company, I qualified the C-level staff. Uh, like are they really serious about partner or not? And it’s one of the reasons I took the role. So I think executive commitment was one thing. I think the second thing is we were really well supported, um, by the Google team across the board, right? [00:13:02] Shawn Toldo: Yeah. So folks, Indy’s team that we would work with regularly on, these are the things you need to do to have an effective marketplace offering. Here’s what you need to do operationally with folks like John and team and others that are in the market, right? That helped us a ton to be able to scale. And then the other thing that we did is we changed comp. [00:13:20] Shawn Toldo: So from our VP of sales levels down, we have a 5% kicker for everything that goes through marketplace. [00:13:26] Vince Menzione: Hear [00:13:26] Shawn Toldo: that everyone. So as soon as we incented the sales team, I love that, right? We, we created the foundation on the partner side, but then from top down on the sales side, they were all in. And as a result of that, the question would become, okay, which marketplace stage two sales cycle are we gonna go use? [00:13:42] Vince Menzione: Yeah. [00:13:43] Shawn Toldo: Who’s the right partner to go partner with? And then my team is reaching out to make sure that co-sell connection happens. [00:13:48] Vince Menzione: That is such a best practice, Sean, to, because there is, as a seller out in the field and we talk about, you talk to John, talks about rev ops all the time. But getting rev ops eng getting the field engaged in the right way. [00:14:01] Vince Menzione: ’cause it feels like it’s more work for them. ’cause they have to think, they have to have more conversations with their customer about their cloud commitments and things like that. Mm-hmm. And then getting them incentive to do the right things. The right behavior. [00:14:12] John Janke: Yeah. It’s a strategy process. People, technology problem. [00:14:17] John Janke: Yeah. It’s not just some flip API automation, go list something if you don’t like that top down view. I think the other thing. Like there’s a, there’s a theme in startups where VCs fund second time founders. I think Sean and team have done this before and they took a lot of learnings over the years and reapplied them, which I think helps them go faster. [00:14:36] John Janke: It’s like that second time. Yeah. Second time cloud go to market Founder theme. [00:14:41] Vince Menzione: Yeah. Yeah. Um, so we could talk about the platform and all the changes there on the. The, the commitments and everything. Mm-hmm. Uh, what separates ISPs generating real incremental revenue on your, in your marketplace? What, what do you see? [00:14:58] Dai Vu: Yeah, so I mean, I, I think there are a couple things. Number one is, uh, the, the foundation has to be, uh, this better together story, uh, with Google Cloud. Um, so this idea that what, you know, what do you bring, what does the Google platform bring and how does that drive impact with customers? And I think this is the reason why Sean and DBT Labs has been very effective. [00:15:16] Dai Vu: ’cause our field recognized they, they can recognize that better together story and communicate it to their customers. So I think that’s the foundation. For everything. Right. And I think as you get started, uh, you know, we do tell partners that they probably need to lean in a little bit, uh, in terms of focus, uh, you know, pick a vertical, a customer segment, um, you know, a geography where they’re particularly strong and, you know, get that momentum going. [00:15:39] Dai Vu: And once you do that, the field knows about it and starts to pull you into deals. Um, so I think that’s the other big opportunity. And then the other thing I just mentioned. Which, uh, the panel already touched on, which is be very intentional around all the things you need to do to invest. Whether it’s like, uh, you know, the business functional alignment, uh, the policies around like, uh, pricing and, and comp, uh, making sure you have the operational capabilities. [00:16:02] Dai Vu: These are all things everyone has to do to get to that. First five to 10 deals, and then 10, 20, 30% of your business through marketplace. And not to, not to top you Sean, but our very top partners are driving 80 to 90% of their business on marketplace. And in fact, some of these partners are actually only marketplace first, uh, uh, because they started out that way. [00:16:21] Dai Vu: Obviously it’s the bigger challenge if you have an existing channel, you’re trying to shift that. But, uh, the aspiration to be more marketplace focus, uh, is up there. [00:16:28] Shawn Toldo: So I just set a new goal for the business plan for me. So that’s exciting. I love it. Looking forward to seeing you in six months on that. [00:16:35] Shawn Toldo: It’s good. [00:16:36] Vince Menzione: I love [00:16:37] Dai Vu: it. Work together on that. [00:16:38] Vince Menzione: Well, di I’m just gonna add, add this because I, I got to see operationally with some of the things you do. Mm-hmm. You, you have an overlay organization. [00:16:45] Dai Vu: Yes. Yes. [00:16:46] Vince Menzione: And so you put accelerants in place within your own organization Yeah. To drive the ISVs into the, into the lines of business. [00:16:54] Vince Menzione: Right. You have, you, you do some of that to accelerate. [00:16:57] Dai Vu: Yeah, I mean, I think, I think this is somewhat unique. I don’t, I don’t wanna speak to the other [00:17:00] Shawn Toldo: hyperscalers, [00:17:01] Dai Vu: but we do have, um, uh, you gotta know the field roles, right? [00:17:04] Shawn Toldo: Yeah. So [00:17:04] Dai Vu: obviously at Google Cloud in the regions, we have, uh, ISV sales specialists who are effectively quoted on marketplace revenue, right? [00:17:12] Dai Vu: So they’re a hundred percent focused on that. And, uh, in addition to that, uh, we also have these, uh, co-sell teams, partner teams where, you know, opportunistically if there’s an opportunity, uh, in a, in a, in a particular area. This team is responsible for connecting the regional sales leadership, uh, the regional, uh, sales teams with, with the partner on the opportunity. [00:17:32] Dai Vu: So there’s a lot of things we’re doing to sort of accelerate that. And of course, the foundation for all this is, you know, our, our, you know, registering deals. And as you definitely get started on that, it’s very important to be very mindful around when you register deals. Uh, be very clear around what the ask and the engagement is with the field reps. [00:17:51] Dai Vu: But once you have that going and get the right rhythm, it becomes sort of a natural way to sort of register all your deals and get that engagement. And then, um, and then maybe the last thing I would say is it isn’t always the sales specialists. It’s, you know, the FSR, our field sales rep as well as our customer engineers are also very motivated. [00:18:08] Dai Vu: To work, uh, with, uh, with our partners because they know that this, you know, whether it be solution completeness or it’s part of a bigger workload or helps unlock greenfield opportunity, they really are motivated to engage with the partners. [00:18:21] Vince Menzione: Nice. [00:18:22] Shawn Toldo: Yeah. I’ll just add, I’ll just add to that statement too. I think, um, it’s one thing to have a story as it relates to. [00:18:30] Shawn Toldo: Google Cloud and what you do with marketplace. It’s another thing to have a story in terms of how you impact data and analytics in our world. And there’s a set of specialist sellers inside of Google mm-hmm. That really care about us because we drive a lot faster consumption of big query. And our ability to tell that story across the world effectively has really created a pull now. [00:18:54] Shawn Toldo: And so I, I would say it’s almost, you know, back to, you know, being 12 years at Microsoft and watching kind of that. Phase and how that went. As we went to the cloud and we picked specialty areas, um, Google is doing that as well and they’re doing it extremely fast in a very, very productive way with partners. [00:19:12] Shawn Toldo: And so, you know, I’ll get comments from like Levi who runs west in north region for us, and he’s a, he was at Google next and he was like, I, I gotta, I, I just gotta go to bed. I’m tired. Like we wore him out over two days with their sales team and gave him a host of follow ups and actions related to specific sales areas as well as specific accounts. [00:19:34] Shawn Toldo: And I think that’s the other thing that, um, Google’s done a good job of, but we’ve pushed and we’ve had to work really hard to earn that seat at the table. To help make those people successful from a comp perspective inside of Google as well. [00:19:45] John Janke: Yeah, and this is a huge failure zone for partners with the clouds because they think enablement’s a one and done thing. [00:19:51] John Janke: Like I did a training for the field and I told them the better together story. That doesn’t work. Like you have to literally. Have consistency around this message every day. Oftentimes you need experts who can partner with your reps to give them the confidence. ’cause they may be able to ask the first line question, but someone asks a follow up and they fold up ’cause they know your product. [00:20:11] John Janke: That’s right. They don’s don’t understand all of the nuances of Google and the clouds and the questions that may come back. But if you do that well, it is a huge unlock. [00:20:20] Vince Menzione: Talk about the coaching you provided on the tackle side of that as well and kind of helping. Through this maturity model? [00:20:26] John Janke: Yeah. I mean we, we, over the years, I mean we started as a pure SaaS company and over the years our customers would consistently ask us for more help and we would struggle to figure out how to do that, and we had to invest in services and we actually acquired a company. [00:20:42] John Janke: Five years ago now, that was the foundation. Aaron Feiger, who’s in the room. The core consulting was the foundation of our services business. And that continues to evolve with us. And you know, we see customers at scale saying, I wanna operate my cloud, go-to market really consistently, and I want you to do all the backend operations so my teams can be outselling our products, selling the better together value with Google and others, and not have to figure out how to run the machinery. [00:21:09] John Janke: So we’ve invested a lot there. We have services around strategy, like how to help people think about their business strategy and translate it into a better together story and able to get executive buy-in. And then we have coaching, which is really a phone, a friend, because I think these things get complicated. [00:21:24] John Janke: And I had a customer who was doing the largest deal in their company history. It was the end of the quarter and it was Friday, and they’re like, this is going to be the most complex transaction we’ve ever done and we have no idea how to do it. Our team gets on the phone with them, they work through, what are you selling? [00:21:40] John Janke: How are you selling it? Is your listing set up the right way? Can we actually create all the offers? In a way you have confidence to execute. ’cause those are failure modes. You try to build a cloud, go to market business, and you mess up the largest deal in the company. On the last day of the quarter, uh, that’s something you can’t recover from. [00:21:55] John Janke: So we try to really wrap support around our customers to help them have the confidence to grow. [00:22:02] Vince Menzione: Di you’ve seen tremendous growth in marketplace. Mm-hmm. We don’t publish the numbers specifically. Yeah. We kind of try to figure it out on the back end, but [00:22:09] Dai Vu: Yep. [00:22:09] Vince Menzione: I know you’re accelerated. Your, your marketplace numbers are astounding. [00:22:13] Dai Vu: Yes. I can share some numbers, if that’s [00:22:15] Vince Menzione: okay. Please. Yeah, let’s go. [00:22:18] Dai Vu: So, um. I would say that for a few years now, we’ve been talking about growth. So we’ve been consistently, uh, you know, north of a hundred percent year over year growth. Uh, for the last few years we’ve been processing, uh, what I say, uh, billions of dollars, uh, annually and, uh, uh, millions of transactions. [00:22:36] Dai Vu: And again, that’s for a few years now. Now for 24 to 25, that full year we also doubled. Wow. Uh, which is, uh, which is amazing when you think about the scale in which we operate. But more importantly, if you look at specific category areas, right? So, you know, historically, marketplace has always cater to, uh, those solution pillars that are tied to cloud migrations, like, uh, like security and data and analytics. [00:22:59] Dai Vu: And those continue to be very strong areas for us. But the biggest growth area is, uh, is in the areas of business app. So obviously, you know, the, the ServiceNow workday, uh, Salesforce of the world, as well as the AI category. So one number that we threw out next was 18 x. Year over year growth for the AI category. [00:23:17] Dai Vu: Wow. So in one year now, a lot of it is models, right? So foundational models with our, with our ecosystem. But a lot of that is around agents. So this whole agent go to market model is gonna be, continue to grow and it’s gonna be a huge focus area for, for the coming years. [00:23:32] Vince Menzione: Fantastic. Yeah. Fantastic growth. [00:23:34] Shawn Toldo: Yeah, and, and I’ll add, Diane and I talked about this at Google next. This is a. Very complex thing for DBT, where today we sell seats. [00:23:42] Vince Menzione: Mm-hmm. Yeah. [00:23:43] Shawn Toldo: To data engineers. [00:23:44] Yeah. [00:23:44] Shawn Toldo: And now we have all these agentic things that are hitting our engine. And di and I are talking and we’re like, okay, so how does this work in an ag agentic marketplace? [00:23:54] Shawn Toldo: Yeah. Kind of a scenario. And what should we build? Where should we play it? ’cause we’re gonna spin the meter in a different way, so to speak. [00:24:01] Dai Vu: Yep. [00:24:01] Shawn Toldo: And so candidly, we got stuff to figure out related to that. Um, I think what’s been fascinating for DBT is our partner ecosystem changed overnight. So now it’s like I talked to x.ai on Monday. [00:24:15] Shawn Toldo: Mm-hmm. We got time with open AI on Thursday and we have a call with Anthropic and our, uh, CEO and co-founder and uh, chief Product Officer next week. [00:24:26] Vince Menzione: Mm. [00:24:27] Shawn Toldo: We don’t have anybody managing those partners. [00:24:29] Vince Menzione: Right. [00:24:30] Shawn Toldo: Today our focus is on managing the large, uh, hyperscalers plus Snowflake and, uh, Databricks. [00:24:36] Vince Menzione: Mm-hmm. [00:24:36] Shawn Toldo: And then the SI ecosystem and some tech partners. So we’re having to like, to your point on Agile yesterday. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Like we’re having to change our strategy, operating model and organizational model to support that. And candidly, we don’t have all the answers yet, so we have a lot of things to figure out fast, which is a little bit scary. [00:24:54] Shawn Toldo: And challenging, but it’s also a huge opportunity we have to kind of embrace and get into. Yeah. [00:24:59] Vince Menzione: And they’re figuring out as well. ’cause they’re, they’re new to partnering as well. Yeah. As organizations [00:25:03] John Janke: and these AI agents. I think to demystify for a lot of people, and what Sean said is totally right. [00:25:08] John Janke: They’re disrupting everyone’s business model. But in reality from a marketplace standpoint, they’re metered SaaS. This is a thing that’s existed for a long time. Yeah. They look like product-led growth products. There is a lot of patterns around how product-led growth products work in marketplace. Mm-hmm. [00:25:24] John Janke: But you have to bring your business strategy, your product and pricing strategy to those two categories. Metered SaaS and product-led growth. Put that all together to get cross-functional alignment. So we are seeing like. A lot of people get tripped up here and it really does go back to more of the company strategy, product strategy questions, and a lot of partner leaders are not in the room for those conversations. [00:25:48] John Janke: So I think at, at this point in time, as you see big pivots with the partners to go all in on agents, you have to go elevate. Those discussions to be like, what is our plan here? ’cause I, I mean, pricing and packaging will be the thing that trips almost everyone up. [00:26:02] Dai Vu: If I could, if I just build on what John John mentioned, um, so I do agree. [00:26:06] Dai Vu: P it looks a lot like POG, but, uh, but the difference I think is POG has. More historically been in like the data and developer space, now it’s like the general business user, right? So this idea that you want a business user to be able to search and discover, um, agents that could actually be part of their like everyday workflow is going to be very critical. [00:26:26] Dai Vu: And uh, you know, I do think that when we think about the ecosystem building agents. Uh, you know, a lot of the ISV partners aren’t necessarily gonna own end-to-end workflows, right? They’ll, they’ll have a very specific, uh, domain and scope area, but you have to enable yourself to be orchestrated and managed by, you know, orchestration agents or, or, or meta agents that are gonna span end, end workflows. [00:26:49] Dai Vu: And sometimes that includes system integrators and, and others who can stitch that, that automation. So I think, I think that’s, that’s one piece of it. But the other area that I think is gonna be different is, um. There’s going to be a lot of agents. I mean, literally you’re gonna have a very fragmented set of, uh, uh, of players, right? [00:27:07] Dai Vu: It’s not just gonna be the incumbents, it’s gonna be a lot of disruptors and, and, and, and startups. And so the, uh, for the incumbents in the room, it is a mandate that you need to, to innovate because if you do not identify and go to like an agent first, go to market model. Uh, you’re gonna be, you know, disintermediated. [00:27:25] Dai Vu: Somebody’s gonna go build an agent that’s going to leverage you as a dumb database. Um, and they’re gonna own the workflow. So you have to, you have to push the, the, the, the limits here. And I think it’s creates a big opportunity for everyone in this room. [00:27:39] John Janke: I’m going off script. I’m curious. Let’s do it. I’m curious on your take on the system integrators. [00:27:44] John Janke: ’cause I think this, this puts like they’re all, a lot of them are creating agents for people and I think that’s turning them almost more into software companies than they’ve ever been. [00:27:53] Dai Vu: They are, and I think they’re, you know, obviously they’re being, uh, impacted from like, you know, typical like, you know, SOW you know, time and materials type type business models. [00:28:02] Dai Vu: But I do think they play a big role because a lot of the system integrators are bringing, um, you know, vertical and business process expertise. And, um, like I said, I said before, a lot of the ISVs are not gonna necessarily have big enough scope in their area to own end-to-end workflows. And that’s really the promise of agents, right? [00:28:20] Dai Vu: You really need. This cognitive, you know, reasoning, planning, executing across end to end workflows. And I think, you know, the system integrators are gonna bring that capability either, either through, you know, these custom, uh, orchestration or meta agents or if they’re able to productize that and bring that to a model, they can also sort of go through the marketplace model as well. [00:28:41] Dai Vu: So who knows is how it’s gonna evolve. But you know, we’ve always been talking about. Marketplace being a broader opportunity for all partner business models. And I think that will extend to not only, uh, you know, traditional sort of, uh, sell and services partners, but also some of these system integrators as well. [00:28:58] Shawn Toldo: If I could comment on that, please. Yeah. I, I was in London two weeks ago and we did an SI partner day. Mm-hmm. We had 25 sis in a room, probably about 50 people. We had no, um, hyperscalers or cloud data warehouse providers. And when we started talking about open data infrastructure. The role that they can play. [00:29:17] Vince Menzione: Mm-hmm. [00:29:18] Shawn Toldo: Cross platform in a cost efficient manner for customers and the advisory orientation of that. They all leaned in and we, we stopped talking and they started talking. [00:29:28] Vince Menzione: Right. [00:29:28] Shawn Toldo: So they’re all facing this kind of same problem, which is actually causing a little bit of a shift, I think, in how they think about, I’m a Databricks partner. [00:29:38] Shawn Toldo: Uh, you sure you wanna do that? [00:29:39] Vince Menzione: Yeah. [00:29:40] Shawn Toldo: So this, this whole thing that’s kind of evolved in the last six to 12 months, when you kind of pick one horse to ride, I, I would tell you be cautious about what that means. You may pick a horse to lead with mm-hmm. But you’re gonna have to flank yourself a bit in terms of other providers that can help you be successful with that, that that partner you’re gonna roll with. [00:30:00] Vince Menzione: So you’re suggesting data vendor agnostic. [00:30:04] Shawn Toldo: I’m suggesting you really have to think about your strategy. Yeah. Because I think the AI, AI disruption is gonna make you think about that strategy. [00:30:13] John Janke: Yeah, I mean there’s, someone mentioned anthropics First Partner Summit. I was not there, but I’ve heard from a bunch of people were there. [00:30:20] John Janke: You know, they had a hundred partners in the room. 95 of them were system integrators. Five were technology companies, the three Clouds, Databricks and Snowflake. Like if you just think about the, the one of the major disruptors in ai, ISVs, were not in the mix. So I, I think, are they trying to disrupt all of us? [00:30:40] John Janke: Uh, do they need us? And they haven’t figured out how to work with us. I, I think. It’s, it’s, [00:30:44] Vince Menzione: and I’ve heard they only have five people in their partner organization, so I just, it’s, [00:30:49] Shawn Toldo: it’s 11 now, but it’s 11, [00:30:51] Vince Menzione: so it was five [00:30:51] Shawn Toldo: last growing fast in the, in the new company I have 50. So like, to put it in perspective, they have to make some pretty big priority. [00:30:59] John Janke: Yeah. And everyone’s been there a hot second, [00:31:00] Vince Menzione: like, right, exactly. Yeah, they, well, we will talk about the learnings we’ve had over the years, getting to where they need to get to. It’s exciting times. We got a lot to talk about here. Um, I, you know, we have about 15 minutes. I I, I want to kind of gauge, ’cause we could talk, we, we have a few things we could talk about, I could ask about, but I want to see if there’s an, like, an interest in opening up to the room for questions. [00:31:25] Vince Menzione: ’cause I feel like we’ve got a very interesting group here. [00:31:28] Shawn Toldo: You got a hand here? [00:31:29] Vince Menzione: Uh, are there hands that wanna Yeah, there’s some people that wanna ask some questions. So Yeah. We have a mic? Yeah, [00:31:37] Dai Vu: we have [00:31:37] Shawn Toldo: a mic. We, [00:31:37] Vince Menzione: we [00:31:38] Shawn Toldo: got one here. [00:31:38] Vince Menzione: We got one here. One here. Thank you. Sorry we went off script, but [00:31:44] Shawn Toldo: that’s fine. [00:31:45] Vince Menzione: It’s fine. [00:31:45] Dai Vu: Off [00:31:45] Vince Menzione: script. Better is good. [00:31:46] Shawn Toldo: I’m sure you planted the questions outta anyway. It’s okay. We [00:31:48] Vince Menzione: did, we did. [00:31:55] Audience Guest: Okay. All Eva, Sean Lightner, quick question to your, uh, increase on the marketplace, and you said you spiff the salespeople by fifth percent. 5%. Mm-hmm. So, and that obviously drives a very large adoption of, uh, marketplace transactions. How are you accounting for the margin you’re losing on, uh, you know, going through the marketplace? [00:32:14] Audience Guest: And also have you done analysis? I’m sure you have, how much is, uh, shape shifting or shifting from existing versus incremental? [00:32:22] Shawn Toldo: Yeah, it’s a great question. Um, um, lemme make three points. Number one, the backlog statement makes the margin statement not matter. So do you wanna play in that space where a customer’s already bought or not? [00:32:36] Shawn Toldo: Yeah. Or do you wanna force a budget conversation that you have to drive on your own in a direct model? That to me, I think it was 484 4 62 [00:32:43] Dai Vu: 4 6 [00:32:44] Shawn Toldo: 2. [00:32:44] Vince Menzione: That’s new Tam available to you? [00:32:46] Shawn Toldo: Yeah. That, that’s just with one. Right. And we are, we are, uh, running on four marketplaces. So that just increases our tam and makes our, our sellers lives easier. [00:32:55] Shawn Toldo: So on that piece, yes, there’s an expense, but we believe it’s right for growth. So there’s a balance there. Um, I think the, and then the second part of your question again. Sorry, [00:33:05] Vince Menzione: shapeshift. [00:33:05] Shawn Toldo: Oh, shift. We, we actually don’t think we would’ve won the business. So if I go back to our Q4 and I can probably point to three or four deals that went, um, Google Marketplace, we would not have won those deals because we couldn’t have created the budget cycle and that quarter. [00:33:23] Shawn Toldo: To make it happen. Generally a budget cycle is gonna take anywhere from 12 to 15 months. Bingo. Because of the spend that was available to us, we were able to close it in that quarter, and we had the largest Q4 in company history. [00:33:35] Vince Menzione: That is such an important point. I’m sorry. [00:33:37] Dai Vu: Okay. [00:33:38] Vince Menzione: But I, I just wanna, that is such an important point of the budget cycle. [00:33:42] Dai Vu: Yeah. [00:33:43] Vince Menzione: Being a year to a year and a half versus being able to tap into a commitment that’s already been made. Yeah, so I just emphasize that [00:33:51] Dai Vu: I was, I was just gonna add real quick, even, even when we see sort of a, uh, a channel shift renewal, which is, you know, it’s on partner paper and it moves to marketplace as part of the renewals, we do consistently see that the, uh, renewal rates on marketplace and the incremental a CB on the expansion and new opportunities tend to be better when it’s on the platform marketplace than than offline. [00:34:12] Dai Vu: And that’s why partners choose to continue to drive renewals on marketplace at a reduced to rev share. But uh, because they see that that growth, [00:34:20] John Janke: we, we, sorry. [00:34:22] Shawn Toldo: We see that as well. Yeah. And I would also make the statement on our land business, when we go through marketplace, we are two x higher across marketplaces. [00:34:30] Shawn Toldo: We’re three x higher with them. [00:34:32] John Janke: Yeah, I think separate new from renewals and then instrument deeply. [00:34:37] Shawn Toldo: Yeah, [00:34:38] John Janke: go proactively talk to your CFO and your head of rev ops to understand their mindset. Because I was with a billion dollar seller a couple weeks ago, their CFO still creates friction in the process, even though they’re selling a billion dollars through these channels. [00:34:52] John Janke: But when they broke it down, their deals are three times bigger. They do them faster. They use more components of the product, which I thought was a really cool one. So customers who buy this platform, many component platforms through a marketplace, end up using six components of the product. Versus a normal land customer who uses two increases gross in net retention. [00:35:12] John Janke: So you have to get to the point where you have the data and you can tell that story real really clearly to your finance team to get support ’cause that they will trip you up if you don’t get them on board. [00:35:23] Vince Menzione: And you’re saying there’s friction in that company. I’m just kind of curious ’cause a billion dollar company. [00:35:27] John Janke: There’s a billion dollar marketplace seller [00:35:29] Vince Menzione: market marketplace company. That’s what I meant. Yeah. But, but the fact that this, their CFO friction, like, is it, is it because they’re not doing a good enough job or? [00:35:37] John Janke: Uh, in, of educating, I, the root of the question is from this person is, would they win without it? [00:35:44] Vince Menzione: Yeah. [00:35:45] Shawn Toldo: Oh, and is it worth the three points? [00:35:46] John Janke: Right. It’s, it is And, and I think some pe like to me, it’s the cheapest channel in the world. Yeah. Like with committed budget and people to support you winning. Like the, that formula, the math is so simple. [00:35:57] Shawn Toldo: Yeah. For, for a company of our size to go to like the classic resell ecosystem, I gotta walk in with 30 points. [00:36:02] John Janke: Yeah. [00:36:03] Vince Menzione: Yeah. [00:36:03] Shawn Toldo: It, it’s an illogical conversation. Outside of public sector and growth, you know, geos around the world. And so I, I’ve been lucky to have a CFO that I haven’t had that challenge with, at least at DBTI should say. [00:36:19] Vince Menzione: Really great insights. I think we have, we have another hand up here. [00:36:28] Audience Guest: Yeah. Thanks Susan. The question is for Dai. Uh, my name is Latif Hamani. I’m the founder of Partner System ai. Um, so what we’ve done is we’ve built a, a co-sell AI agent mm-hmm. That your partners can use to Yeah. Reduce all the friction in the co-sell with you. Uh, the questions that I have is, I guess I should back up, so XAWS Madison with a very large alliances, and then I worked, went on the other side. [00:36:55] Audience Guest: For software companies, and even though I had an operational team, I was spending two to three hours on on the keyboard, right? Mm-hmm. Deal registration, emails that can’t be automated, et cetera. So the question that I have for you is, I’d love for you to validate that. You know, unless you are one of the big companies, one of the big enterprises, if you go to the lower end of the enterprise or the mid market, uh, would you validate that there is a challenge? [00:37:20] Audience Guest: There’s a lot of friction for a smaller company. Mm-hmm. Uh, ’cause these marketplaces are complex. Yeah. The cosell is complex. Uh, that there’s an opportunity to really break down that friction with some automation and ai. [00:37:33] Dai Vu: Yeah, absolutely. So, um, we have already been, uh, part of the journey to remove some of the, uh, the friction as part of that selling and purchasing journey. [00:37:43] Dai Vu: Uh. We’re not quite there yet. But, uh, we’ve done things like we have, uh, you know, private offer APIs. We, uh, we have co-sell, uh, registration automation. Um, you know, we have tools like, uh, propensity to buy, tooling to help, uh, partners do, uh, more targeted efforts. Um, but the a i piece is still coming. Um, so I think, uh, the idea here is that we have launched a number of agents as part of our, um. [00:38:08] Dai Vu: Uh, part of our, uh, Google Cloud Partner network, partner hub. Uh, so these are, uh, agents that are gonna do a bunch of things to help partners as part of their workflow, but we’re gonna extend this to the marketplace and ISV area as well. Uh, so I think there’s a lot of opportunity. So, uh, I know there’s probably a lot of feedback in friction, uh, in, in certain parts. [00:38:29] Dai Vu: So we can, we can go tackle together. [00:38:32] Vince Menzione: Hey. There you go. There was a little [00:38:34] Dai Vu: plug [00:38:34] Shawn Toldo: there for tackle. Exactly. [00:38:37] Dai Vu: Uh, and I wanted, and just to be clear, I want to take a look at it from the end to end, uh, uh, flow, right? It shouldn’t just be just marketplace. It should be all the way from like, you know, top of the funnel, demand generation, all the way to like post transaction follow up. [00:38:51] Dai Vu: So we really need to take a look at, at the, the end, end flows and figure out a way we can remove some of that friction [00:38:56] Vince Menzione: three sense. [00:38:57] Dai Vu: Yeah. [00:38:59] Vince Menzione: Any more questions [00:39:00] Audience Guest: back here? Hey. Hey guys. This, this is a really good discussion. Uh, di this question’s primarily, uh, from, I’m interested in the hyperscaler response. [00:39:09] Audience Guest: Yep. Uh, but all of you, uh, can you talk about the patterns or say more about the patterns between. Um, the consumption of just platform capabilities versus industry workflows. Mm-hmm. And how industry where I, I mean, I, I, my sense is that industry workflows are becoming more [00:39:27] Dai Vu: Yeah. [00:39:28] Audience Guest: Uh, the easier thing for enterprises and SMBs to buy. [00:39:33] Audience Guest: Yeah. Especially SMBs, I think. Um, but say more about those patterns that you’re seeing develop and kind of what is. Uh, who are, where, where are those kind of, where is the demand being driven? Is it, is it, yeah. The search and discover in the marketplace, or is it being led by field sales of mm-hmm. Either GCP or partners? [00:39:55] Dai Vu: Yeah, so let me, I’ll mention a couple, a couple areas where, where it’s growing. So I think number one I mentioned before about some of these large horizontal business apps that we’re partnering with, right? Um, and, uh, and of course the fact that we’re, we’re, we’re transacting them through marketplace is, is a huge. [00:40:14] Dai Vu: Evolution from a few years ago. So who would’ve thought you would be buying like, you know, a hundred million dollars a CB deals, uh, through, through marketplace with like a Salesforce or a ServiceNow workday. But it’s happening now. And to be clear, all these. Horizontal business app. They’re not doing this in a very, you know, opportunistic, transactional way. [00:40:32] Dai Vu: They basically see marketplace and cloud go to market as a strategic growth lever for them. So that’s one big area. So from just a pure large deal perspective. Okay. Then you mentioned before around sort of corporate and SMB. Well, we find that a lot of the big opportunities are mostly around as they scale their business, uh, they’re not necessarily looking for things in the traditional sort of infrastructure space, but they’re looking for, you know, full SaaS applications to help scale their business, right? [00:40:58] Dai Vu: So it would be CRM, finance, hr, these types of solutions to become very attractive for some of this, uh, downstream market. And then lastly, as I mentioned before, which is, uh, when we think about this gentrification and owning, um. Uh, driving, uh, this business process and vertical, the ISVs become very important along with the services partners who bring that domain expertise to drive the end to end workflow. [00:41:25] Dai Vu: So I think that’s gonna be increasingly important. So those are three areas I think we need to watch out for. We. Okay. [00:41:30] John Janke: Maybe one thing, like as the cloud commit grows inside of companies, it’s shifted from being an engineering department, IT department budget line item to a corporate finance budget line item. [00:41:40] John Janke: Typically one of the top five to 10 expenses in a company. So that has shifted. Who is thinking about optimizing? The cloud commit with marketplace contracts. And that opens, that’s really opened up the avenue in addition to like these biz apps, vertical apps players. Yeah. Like having success. So I, I do think even inside your own company, evaluating where your cloud commits are, who owns them and are they thinking about the intersection of marketplace? [00:42:06] John Janke: ’cause I, I think it’s smaller companies, they’re still figuring it out. I run into engineering leaders who still own the commits, uh, but in medium to large companies. Very different. [00:42:16] Vince Menzione: Really good point. Because it, you know this, the optics change dramatically, right? This large commitment is now at the board level, [00:42:23] John Janke: right? [00:42:23] John Janke: And then you do have to teach your sellers as a vertical or business application player how to ask that question. ’cause the first resistance everybody says is, oh my, my person, my stakeholder, we. Manufacturing vertical application provider talking at an event last week, and they’re like, the shop floor manufacturing owner doesn’t know anything about the cloud commit. [00:42:43] John Janke: But if they ask the question, be like, Hey, do you guys have a strategic relationship with Google? Would it be easier to buy our product on the bill? Eight out of 10 times they get a yes. So [00:42:52] Vince Menzione: which is why the 5% comes in And that really accelerates the conversation happening. Yeah. We’ve got three more minutes. [00:43:01] Vince Menzione: Um, if we don’t have any other questions, I ha I have one for each of you really about the maturity model and partners are in the room that are not committed yet, right? We’ve talked about some very significant DBTs doing some incredible things, right? So we, there’s maybe a sense that like we, you, you are working with the be the biggest and the best out there, but what about everyone else that’s in the room that maybe isn’t committed yet? [00:43:23] Vince Menzione: And maybe they’re in motion, but they need some help and advice on what to go do next. What? What would you say die first? [00:43:30] Dai Vu: So they’re early stage, [00:43:31] Vince Menzione: early, early stage or not, they’re not on board yet. They’re not, yeah. They’re not with you yet. [00:43:35] Dai Vu: Yeah. So I’ll, I’ll go back to my earlier comment, which is that as you go into the journey, just be very intentional about what you need to do from an operational, investment people, uh, technology perspective. [00:43:47] Dai Vu: Uh, because it could be, it could be a multi-year journey. Um, uh, so I’d say go into it with the right expectations as opposed to thinking it’s going to be some accelerated six month thing that Sean has been driving here. It’s, he’s the outlier. [00:43:59] Shawn Toldo: But, but the reason for the outlier, [00:44:00] Dai Vu: yeah. [00:44:01] Shawn Toldo: And just to add to the intentional point Yeah. [00:44:02] Shawn Toldo: Is, you know, hire the right people. Right. So, somebody told me a long time ago, uh, hire slow, fire fast. That’s a really, really, really good principle that I take. Mm-hmm. I don’t like the fire part, obviously, but just for context, I, I am very lucky to have a great set of leaders that we were able to add people in. [00:44:24] Shawn Toldo: When I walked in the door, we had a person that was leading the Snowflake and AWS partnership. I had nobody on GCPI had nobody on Microsoft. I had nobody on Databricks. And then we made prioritization decisions on where we’re gonna go next. And so we hired people that had the experience and could drive the outcome in the right way. [00:44:43] Shawn Toldo: But we were very thoughtful about when we made those decisions on a quarterly basis, not a daily basis. So who you’re gonna bet on and then who you’re gonna put in the seat to make that bet come to life, I think is a really important thing as well. [00:44:58] John Janke: Yeah. [00:44:58] Vince Menzione: John, you worked with the be biggest and the best out there, so Yeah, sorry. [00:45:01] John Janke: Well, I think there’s the, like there’s the bottoms up and the tops down. Like seven years ago, this was all bottoms up. It was a partner leader who thought launching a marketplace would be good and they would go figure out how to do some deals and then sell their way up. Today there’s a lot more top down where people get it. [00:45:17] John Janke: But you can evaluate top down pretty fast. ’cause if you go talk to your CEO, you talk to your head of product, you talk to your CFO, and they have an allergic reaction to these concepts. You know, you have to go bottoms up. But there also are success story examples in every single ISV category that exists. [00:45:33] John Janke: Like this is not just security and data and DevOp like the, I think the ServiceNow. Salesforce workday. Examples are really great, like the marketing tech examples, more and more business of vertical apps every day. So I do think you can look at those people who’ve been successful. Maybe they’re your competitors, maybe they’re people you aspire to be and reference them as you’re trying to figure out how to do top down. [00:45:55] John Janke: But like you need both. You can’t win long term unless you get top down and bottom up aligned. [00:46:01] Shawn Toldo: And, and when I, when I would go ask for resourcing, I would always get the question, do, could you go faster with more? And I’d say, no. Gimme the one or two humans here, let me go prove it out and I’ll come back. [00:46:13] Shawn Toldo: So there’s a little bit of a strategy in doing that, that you’re gonna get more over time when you’re, you know, very measured in how you go ask for investment and resource. And so I would just add that point also. [00:46:27] Vince Menzione: Was, was hiring a significant component of your executive commitment, Sean? I mean, [00:46:33] Shawn Toldo: yes. So when I walked in the door at DBT, we had eight people in the partner organization. [00:46:38] Shawn Toldo: Today we have 25, and that was 18 months ago. But that did not happen. I didn’t go in and ask for, you know, that 16 people. Right. I asked over time in a very measured way with, you know, the programs and strategy team, like, what can we also support? You don’t want to bring somebody in to go do something and you don’t have the programs and operations side to support it ’cause they’ll fail. [00:47:01] Shawn Toldo: So we’ve been very thoughtful about how we’ve done that as well. [00:47:04] Vince Menzione: Die from you. I know you had something. [00:47:06] Dai Vu: No, no, no. I, I was good. [00:47:08] Vince Menzione: What is the one thing that people in this room need to go better and differently? Is there one, is there one specific thing other than what we’ve already discussed, did we miss anything? [00:47:16] Dai Vu: No, I would just, the whole identification. So obviously, uh, identifying this is not just like slapping a chat bot, but more around thinking all the things we talked about, product commercials, but also go to market where it’s agent first, where you can surface your agent in a workflow like Gemini Enterprise app. [00:47:34] Dai Vu: That’s gonna drive high alignment with how we work and go to market with Google. [00:47:38] Vince Menzione: Awesome. [00:47:38] Dai Vu: Yeah. [00:47:40] Vince Menzione: Wow. Good stuff. Yeah. Very good session. [00:47:44] Dai Vu: Thank [00:47:44] Vince Menzione: you guys. What do you think? Everyone? Thank you very much. [00:47:47] Shawn Toldo: Thanks for listening to the Ultimate Partner Podcast. [00:47:50] Vince Menzione: If today’s conversation resonated, share it with a partner leader in your network. [00:47:55] Vince Menzione: Subscribe where you listen, and head over to the ultimate partner.com. For show notes related content and the resources for this episode. And if you haven’t already, now’s the time to register for the Ultimate Partner Live Event in Reston, Virginia, [00:48:11] John Janke: October 26th through October 28th. [00:48:14] Vince Menzione: Until next time, keep showing up in the rooms that matter because being in the room changes everything [00:48:22] I.

In this episode of the IoT For All Podcast, Martin Nord, Chief Technology and Product Officer at Com4, joins Ryan Chacon to discuss IoT in 2026 and what enterprises need to consider. The conversation covers what enterprise IoT buyers actually need, the crowded IoT connectivity market, the 2G/3G sunset, how roaming in IoT is broken in subtle ways, the nature of IoT connectivity failures, prioritizing financial stability in IoT partners, satellite IoT, and the future of IoT connectivity.With over 20 years of experience in the cellular and IoT industry, Martin Nord is a visionary leader and passionate technologist. He has a proven track record of driving innovation and leading high-performance teams. As CTO and PTO, Martin plays a pivotal role in shaping Com4's product vision and strategy. He oversees the entire product lifecycle, ensuring that Com4's solutions not only meet market demands but also drive value for customers in an ever-evolving IoT landscape. By combining his deep technical expertise with a customer-focused approach, Martin ensures that Com4's offerings remain at the forefront of innovation in IoT connectivity.Com4, part of Wireless Logic Group, is a world leading provider of managed IoT connectivity services, with over 13 years of experience working with enterprises around the world. Com4 exists to provide not only the right tools but the most fitting solutions to its customers for beneficial IoT connectivity and control. Customers around the world trust them to cost-efficiently build and operate both large-scale and smaller IoT connectivity projects. All SIM cards are delivered, already activated within a few business days. Com4 supports all radio standards (2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G as well as LPWA technologies such as LTE-M and NB-IoT).Discover more about IoT at https://www.iotforall.comFind IoT solutions: https://marketplace.iotforall.comMore about Com4: https://www.com4.no/en/Connect with Martin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martinnord/Subscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/2NlcEwmJoin Our Newsletter: https://newsletter.iotforall.comFollow Us on Social: https://linktr.ee/iot4all

By Doug Green “AI, cloud communications, and mobile-first design are reshaping what voice means in a retail setting, and why this shift represents a major opportunity for the telecom channel,” says Paul Birkin, Chief Technology and Product Officer at VoCoVo. In this Technology Reseller News podcast, Paul Birkin of VoCoVo discusses how retail communications are moving beyond the traditional telephone system and becoming part of a broader connected-store environment. In that model, voice is no longer just a way to make or receive calls. It becomes the real-time interface between frontline retail associates, AI platforms, inventory systems, customer service tools, security systems and store operations. Birkin explains that retail associates often need immediate answers while they are standing in front of a customer. A shopper may ask whether an item is in stock, whether a product is vegan-friendly, whether a garment is made of cotton, or whether a promotion applies. Traditionally, the associate might need to leave the customer, find a terminal, check with a manager, or search for someone with more experience. VoCoVo's approach is to bring that information directly into the associate's ear. The associate asks a question by voice. VoCoVo converts that voice into text, connects into the retailer's AI platform, receives the answer, converts it back into voice, and delivers it to the associate in near real time. The result is a more informed associate, a better-served customer, and a faster retail interaction. The conversation also explores how this same connected voice layer can support broader store operations. Birkin describes VoCoVo as sitting at the heart of the connected store, linking associates to call points, stock systems, automated alerts, refrigeration systems, cameras, and other store technologies. A failed fridge, a low-stock alert, a customer request, or a security notification can all be routed to the right person at the right time. For telecom resellers and channel partners, the opportunity is clear. Retailers are looking for ways to improve customer service, make frontline teams more productive, and integrate AI into real-world operations. VoCoVo shows how voice can become the practical bridge between AI systems and the people working on the shop floor. Learn more at www.VoCoVo.com

What does it take to bring artificial intelligence into state child welfare systems? How do you modernize legacy systems…without losing the human judgment at the heart of child welfare? And what happens when you combine data, product thinking, and human-centered design to rethink how government delivers services? Join host Michael J. Keegan and his guest Steven Hintze, Chief Data and Product Officer at the Arizona Department of Child Safety. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   In this episode, Justin takes the opportunity of RISKWORLD 2026 to interview on-site two session co-presenters, Sandy Avina and Angel Guerra, and a fellow podcast host, Joel Appelbaum. Sandy and Angel co-wrote a book, Riskfetti: Risk Management for the Rest of Us, which comes out on May 18th. They discuss their careers, how they came to team up to write, and why this book, now. Justin and Joel discuss Joel's career in risk, from underwriter to Chief Content Officer at the International Risk Management Institute (IRMI) and podcast host of The Edge of Risk. Listen for thought leadership on communicating risk to business professionals and translating complex risk research into media content.   Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMS and RIMScast. [:14] About this episode of RIMScast. It was recorded live, on-site at RISKWORLD 2026, in Philadelphia. It's one of my favorite episodes of the year. We will be joined by a range of guests. But first… [:43] RIMS Virtual Workshops. The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Prep Course will be on May 13th and 14th. The popular CBCP and RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep Bootcamp will be held from May 18th through the 21st. The next RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep Course will be held on June 9th and 10th. [1:02] Links to registration are in this episode's notes. [1:05] Webinars. On May 14th, Origami Risk will return with a new session, "Future-Proofing Your Risk Program: Keeping Pace with Scale, Complexity, and Visibility." [1:17] On May 21st, GRC returns to present "Is Your Fire Protection Strategy Outdated? Emerging Risks Are Changing the Rules." [1:27] On May 28th, Zurich returns with "From Underwriting To Risk Management: What To Expect From The Growing Demand For Data Center Construction." Register for webinars at RIMS.org/Webinars or through the links in this episode's show notes. [1:41] Folks, RIMS is back on YouTube. Our handle is @RIMSOfficialChannel. We've got plenty of videos there, including RIMScast, RIMScast Canada video podcasts, and other informative and entertaining content from RIMS. Subscribe to the channel today! [2:00] On with the Show! We are live on the exhibit floor at RISKWORLD 2026 at the Philadelphia Convention Center. There's a lot of great energy. That energy transferred from the stage to our booth! My first guests are from our LA RIMS Chapter, Sandy Avina and Angel Guerra. [2:23] Sandy and Angel co-presented the session on Tuesday, May 5th, "Between Truth and Trauma: Investigating the Invisible." RIMScast caught up with them right after they came off the stage to discuss the state of mental health claims and get a preview of their new book. [2:37] Sandy and Angel co-authored the book coming out on May 18th. It's called Riskfetti: Risk Management for the Rest of Us. We're going to have a lot of fun! Let's get to it! [2:44] Interview! Sandy Avina and Angel Guerra, Welcome to RIMScast! [2:58] Angel says this is her third RISKWORLD and she loves it! She last attended two years ago in San Diego. Sandy says this is her first time at RISKWORLD. She's trying to experience everything, and it's like trying to put ten pounds of sugar in a five-pound bag. She's getting there. [3:17] Sandy is The Riskfluencer on TikTok. [3:25] Angel has a business, Beauty and Beast in Business. [3:28] Together, Sandy and Angel make Riskfetti. [3:41] Angel started in the mailroom of SRS 20 years ago, moved through Claims, Operations Management, and Global Risk Management, and is now a VP at Arrowhead Evaluation, which does independent medical and risk consulting. [4:11] Angel's variety of experiences lets her see everything and gives her knowledge of risk management and the ability to manage a program well. [4:31] Right out of college, Sandy joined California's workers' compensation state fund as an adjuster. She loved it and started to learn other lines. She now works for California Schools JPA, a public risk pool supporting K-12 and community colleges. [4:54] Sandy leads the California Schools JPA claims program for property liability and workers' compensation. She loves it. [5:03] Sandy and Angel connected through LinkedIn. [5:25] Sandy and Angel presented a RISKWORLD session on developing the defense for psychological claims. Sandy says we're seeing the change in legislation for allowing mental-mental claims and not just physical-mental claims. [5:35] Dr. Ron Heredia was also on the panel. He spoke on how to crack defenses and properly investigate. There are red flags and also very truthful claims. As professionals, check your unconscious bias. Think about fact-finding without a specific agenda. [6:12] Justin points out that May is Mental Health Awareness Month in the U.S. Sandy partners wth Kind Souls Foundation, a non-profit that provides a warm, emotional support line for anybody with a work-displacing event. Sandy notes the struggles of the Sandwich Generation. [6:56] Angel says we see people are being a lot more open about mental health and self-care, but there's still a stigma to it. It's important to recognize that, not just in May, but throughout the year. [7:15] Justin mentions a guest from a couple of weeks ago who served in the Canadian military. He was very open about his Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. They had a wonderful conversation about it. Justin doesn't want to bring it up if somebody doesn't want to talk about it. [7:40] Sandy says, when you have the conversations more often, and they're more open, people feel more comfortable bringing it up. [7:50] Sandy and Angel's session was "Between Truth and Trauma: Investigating the Invisible." Angel says a lot of people told them they were very happy with the session. They see increases in legislation that allow for more mental-mental claims, and it's a challenge to keep up. [8:11] Angel says having Dr. Ron Heredia with them gave a view of what it looks like from the employer's side. Are you investigating those claims, recognizing the importance of very clear documentation? If it's not in writing, it didn't happen. Have a doctor help with questions to ask. [8:43] Riskfetti: Risk Management for the Rest of Us is coming out on May 18th. Sandy says she and Angel both started in claims, and they found that a lot of employers they spoke to didn't know risk management. They didn't understand their coverage or insurance, or how it works. [9:12] Sandy says a lot of the education in the industry today is very academic and is meant for the risk managers. Employers are not going to go get their CPCU or take webinars on coverage or understanding endorsements. They assign someone else to do it. It's split in the organization. [9:35] Sandy says nobody is speaking to that audience from a layperson's perspective in a way they'll be receptive to. Sandy said we wanted to make that information accessible, so we created a book that is fun, engaging, and more accessible for business owners. [9:49] Angel says they used case studies, fun stories of claims they had managed or others had managed. It's very engaging. People say they've read the book and laughed. It's for HR Managers, Safety Managers, and CFOs, who don't understand insurance but have responsibility. [10:41] Angel's advice for beginning risk professionals: Find a community of individuals who are willing to support you and talk about the hard things and cheer you on when you're not sure if insurance or claims is where you want to be. It's not an easy industry, but a wonderful industry. [11:00] Sandy's advice for the young generation is to make content about this industry. If you are working in this industry, make your TikToks and post on socials. We need to hear from that generation. It democratizes the flow of information. They already do it for their personal life. [11:18] Sandy says, talk about your experience. I want to know what it's like for somebody coming into the industry right now. I know what it was like 23 years ago; I want to know what it's like now. That's the best way to get that information out there. We want to know those opinions. [11:40] Justin says, I love what you're doing. You've got a lot of great energy! Angel, Sandy, thank you so much for joining me on RIMScast. You were wonderful guests! I hope to see you again next year. [12:04] A Quick Break! There are so many other wonderful RIMS events coming up in 2026. The 2026 Florida RIMS Educational Conference will be held from July 28th through August 1st at the lovely Ritz-Carlton in Naples, Florida. A link to the event is in this episode's show notes. [12:25] Register now for the Second Annual RIMS Texas Regional Conference, to be held from August 10th through 12th at the Grand Hyatt on the San Antonio River Walk. Advance rates are available through June 5th. [12:39] The 11th Annual Chicagoland Risk Forum will return to the Old Post Office on Thursday, September 24th, 2026, in Chicago. Visit ChicagolandRiskForum.org for more information. [12:53] The RIMS Western Regional Conference will be held from October 4th through the 7th in Seattle, Washington. Registration is open, and you can also submit a session. Visit RIMSWesternRegional.com and the link in this episode's show notes for more information. [13:10] Save the dates October 18th through the 21st. We will be in Quebec City to celebrate the 50th Live RIMS Canada Conference. Booth sales are already open. The call for educational sessions has been extended to May 18th. Early-bird registration will open in June. [13:29] Visit RIMSCanadaConference.ca for more information. Also, remember to check out RIMS.org/Canada for our spinoff show, RIMScast Canada, hosted by National Conference Committee Chair, Aaron Lukoni. [13:44] The RIMS ERM Conference 2026 will be held on November 18th and 19th in Columbus, Ohio. Details will follow. [13:52] Our final guest is Joel Appelbaum, Executive Vice President and Chief Content Officer at IRMI, the International Risk Management Institute! Joel is the host of IRMI's podcast, The Edge of Risk. He was formerly a Chief Risk Officer. [14:10] We are going to talk all about our shared interests and the importance of risk management education, and some of the trends that are emerging, some that are overhyped, and what he's seeing on the risk landscape. Let's get to it! [14:23] Interview! Joel Appelbaum, Welcome to RIMScast! [14:28] Joel Appelbaum is the Executive Vice President and Chief Content Officer for IRMI. Joel says he is used to asking the questions; he says it will be really cool to be asked the questions. [14:47] Joel is the host of The Edge of Risk. When they launched, six years ago, the idea was to come up with more relevant content, quickly, by talking to leaders. In the last year, it has grown by 60%. There's a need for insurance podcasts. It's still growing. [15:24] Justin notes that Elise Farnham was a recent guest. Elise teaches for RIMS. Justin says insurance podcasts share the same space, and there's some natural crossover. Justin and Joel sat together the day before at the main stage keynote. [15:53] Justin asks Joel about his having been an Enterprise Chief Risk Officer, when Enterprise Chief Risk Officers first came into vogue. He felt there were not a lot of resources for being a good ECRM, after coming from an underwriting background with CPCU and IRMI. [16:22] It was a challenging time. Joel cites Adam Grant's theme of low ego but honestly trying to help. Joel remembers bringing up to his boss that IT could be a risk, and being yelled at by his boss for about an hour for yellow-flagging IT. [16:53] Joel loves where Enterprise Risk Management has gone. It's necessary to identify risks in a positive way and deal with them proactively. [17:06] Joel says when it started, it was a rough job. Asking people what keeps them up at night, and sharing that with the board regularly, people weren't ready for it. It's a necessary and important job, but Joel found it to be one of the most challenging, alone on an island. [17:30] Joel thinks everyone who's been an Enterprise Chief Risk Officer or Risk Officer will tell you they do it with very few resources. Joel is glad to have an organization like RIMS to help. [17:50] Joel says he was in a lot of positions that IRMI serves. He was a Product Officer, an Enterprise Chief Risk Officer, a Chief Underwriting Officer, and a Chief Actuary. He did a lot of great things with a lot of great people. None of that prepared him to be a Chief Content Officer. [18:17] Being a Chief Content Officer is about writing and deep research. Joel works with people who research all day. [18:29] Joel learned that there's a disconnect between deep research and understanding coverage and analysis well, and practical insights and thought leadership for how it works in the real world. Parsing it and putting it together, and communicating it is the challenge. [18:53] Joel says it was a bit bumpy coming in and changing the way that IRMI approached things. Joel speaks of his joy of working for Jack Gibson at IRMI. [19:15] Joel says trying to put all the research into writing, keeping it up to date, making it useful, and changing it from just research to practical insights was challenging. It's been a great challenge, and he loves it. [19:29] Joel says he loves being at IRMI and working with people in the industry every day, trying to understand what they need. [20:16] Joel says he struggled with translating research into print, CE courses, and conferences. That takes time, and they need to be updated with the times, as well. A podcast can be simple. Yesterday, Justin and Joel came up with six or seven relevant questions and were ready to go. [20:48] Joel says podcasts fill the gap for the on-demand, necessary knowledge somebody might be seeking on the go. Joel's 30-something children listen to podcasts in the car or while they're exercising. You don't have to sit. Joel likes to do 20- or 30-minute Edge of Risk podcasts. [21:35] Joel says you can cover a very specific, timely topic. It doesn't take the effort of doing a research project or writing a book. Getting it to print takes time. If something changes in war, terrorism, or cyber, you can have a new podcast out in a day. [21:54] Justin says he finds it very gratifying when a guest's words on RIMScast are cited in a white paper. Seeing a reference to something he has done is very gratifying. Joel agrees. [22:10] Joel feels like it's such an honor to meet with thought leaders in the industry, sit down with them, and ask them questions. Joel says he gets great knowledge, meeting them, and learning a little bit about them personally. [22:43] Joel says it's gratifying when young professionals come up to him saying they know him from the podcast. Justin mentions people hearing him talking in the halls at RISKWORLD or RIMS events and recognizing him as the RIMScast guy or the webinar host guy. [23:26] Joel says AI has been a little overhyped. We all need to understand how to use it, but it isn't going to provide all the answers. A guest on his podcast told him at RISKWORLD they're going all in on AI for learning. [23:55] Joel says he gets that AI can be a quick fit for the answer you need. It's the right tool for the right time, but all risk managers know you have to have a lot of tools in your tool kit. AI doesn't replace foundational knowledge. [24:16] Joel's MBA helped him understand the other disciplines in the organization, to know when he was getting good information or bad information, and how to talk the language. [24:35] Joel believes that RIMS certifications and IRMI certifications help risk managers and insurance professionals understand the foundational knowledge. Then they know if they're getting a good answer from the AI. [24:50] Joel says that AI is trained on the internet. The internet has some flaws. Joel predicts AI will hit a learning curve. You're not getting the latest and greatest insights from RIMS or IRMI just writing a white paper on a new topic. Are you getting your AI from a reliable data source? [25:25] Joel advocates for using AI on IRMI material. They have an AI agent in beta now. IRMI has ReferenceConnect for its customers. AI is a good tool, but it's overhyped as a solution for everything. It's not going to solve all the problems. [26:00] It's a great tool if you're using it to gather data. Joel went to a great session at RISKWORLD with LineSlip about bringing all your different brokers' information together so you can get real insights. AI is a great tool to be used at the right place, at the right time. [26:23] You can't have it write all your letters because it doesn't sound like you. [26:37] Justin says an issue that's top of mind for him is PFAS, forever chemicals, because we need water to live. The second our water supply is bad, we've got much bigger problems. [26:52] Joel says Marsh did a presentation at an IRMI conference talking about how widespread the PFAS problem is. It should be on everybody's risk radar. Joel has put more filters in all of his houses. [27:21] Justin says Third-Party Litigation Funding is an emerging risk for RIMS. Joel has also done several podcasts on that. Liberty Mutual likes to call it Legal System Abuse. They had a great podcast on it with The Edge of Risk. [28:04] Joel says the concerning aspects are inflated awards and nuclear verdicts. ISO has introduced a new endorsement on disclosing third-party litigation funding. We've always needed tort reform. Joel thought that as an Enterprise Risk Manager, 20 years ago. [28:39] Joel says if you look at how all the other countries do it, the United States has a problem. It's really important to solve it. Insurance is a fundamental backstop and assistance to business. If the problem continues, insurers may start declining. How do you find solutions? [29:10] Joel thinks one of the solutions is to determine the appropriate amount of an award. Does $200 million make up for something where $2 million would suffice? [29:33] Justin says that he and Joel met up at the keynote with Adam Grant. They both enjoyed the keynote. Adam Grant spoke of unpleasant truths we may not want to hear. There's a difference between being loyal and being honest. [30:26] Joel doesn't have a problem delivering the unpleasant truths, but it has not always been great for his career. Joel says that in a lot of big corporate organizations, people want their allies with them. A new Chief Officer comes in and brings loyal friends with him. [30:54] Four or five years of being coddled later, the officer is gone. Joel worked for CNA for four different CEOs. Joel learned that integrity matters. He says if you communicate out of frustration or anger, it comes across wrong. [31:35] Joel says what he loved about Adam Grant's message is that people need to deliver the truth in a way that is kind and fair, and not fake. The people who tell you what you want to hear and that you're the greatest ever are the people you need to "get rid of." [32:08] Joel tells people that the knife gets sharper against the steel. Joel wants somebody who's sharpening the skill. He has to work harder for it. That's who he likes to surround himself with. Joel has his "board of governors" he goes to for help as a sounding board. [32:58] Leaders who surround themselves with yes-people are not going to last long. Justin asks about the compliment sandwich. Joel likes it if it doesn't come off as fake. Ask AI what's a fair way to deliver this, a compassionate way to give feedback. AI can give unbiased feedback. [33:45] Justin shares an experience where he successfully used AI to shorten and change the tone of an angry email message before he sent it. He was very pleased with the result, and the response was "OK." Joel admits he has delivered a lot of career-shortening emails. [34:44] AI should be thought of as a sounding board. Justin thinks the students coming into the profession probably already do so. Joel says certain types he has worked with don't handle negative feedback well from their peers. AI might be the best way for them to respond. [35:25] Joel has been to about 10 RISKWORLDs. He says the vibe this year is awesome. He feels there's a lot more opportunity for small connections. He loves the smaller talks. The conversation pods are great. There's always lots to learn, interesting people, and friends. [36:07] I love what you do at IRMI. Thank you for joining our show, RIMScast! I think very highly of your show. We've had a lot of the same guests. You're wonderful, and I appreciate all of your support! [36:35] Thanks again to all of our guests here on this special episode of RIMScast, produced live on-site at RISKWORLD 2026. We look forward to seeing you all in New Orleans next year for RISKWORLD 2027! [36:47] Be sure to check out last week's episode of RIMScast, featuring Risk Manager of the Year, Jeff Bray of Prologis. [36:53] Plug Time! You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in the show notes. [37:22] RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let's collaborate and help you reach them! Contact pd@rims.org for more information. [37:40] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email membershipdept@RIMS.org for more information. [37:58] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today's risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more. [38:14] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management. [38:28] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. Please remember to subscribe to RIMScast on your favorite podcasting app. You can email us at Content@RIMS.org. [38:40] Practice good risk management, stay safe, and thank you again for your continued support!   Links: RISKWORLD Playlists:

Retail is no longer about transactions, it's about designing experiences that create joy. In this episode of Technovation, Peter High speaks with Prat Vemana, Chief Information and Product Officer at Target, about how one of the world's largest retailers is redefining customer experience across digital and physical channels. Prat shares how Target is embedding design into every layer of the organization, leveraging AI to power conversational commerce, and building a unified, multi-channel journey that blends convenience with inspiration. Key highlights include: Why Target views itself as “in the business of joy” How UX is evolving into an enterprise-wide capability The shift from search and browse to conversational discovery Building AI-ready data through semantic and contextual layers Deploying agentic AI to accelerate decision-making at scale

In this episode of the Application Security Podcast, Chris Romeo and Robert Hurlbut welcome back Steve Wilson, a global leader in AI security and Chief AI and Product Officer at Exabeam, as well as founder of the OWASP Gen AI Security Project.Steve shares how his AI assistant was “hacked” using a simple phishing attack, highlighting a major shift in security—AI agents behave more like humans than traditional software. The conversation explores how this changes the threat model, why AppSec is struggling to keep up, and how organizations should approach the practical security of AI systems.They also cover the risks of autonomous agents, the expanding blast radius of failures, and what AppSec professionals can do now to adapt.FOLLOW OUR SOCIAL MEDIA:➜Twitter: @AppSecPodcast➜LinkedIn: The Application Security Podcast➜YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ApplicationSecurityPodcastThanks for Listening!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In questa puntata un ospite che ci ricorda quanto l'Italia sia eccezionale, nel bene e nel male. Davide Passero, CEO Alleanza Assicurazioni e Country Chief Marketing & Product Officer di Generali Italia, mette in evidenza quanto la cultura assicurativa nel nostro Paese non sia ancora così diffusa. Insomma, siamo risparmiatori e grandi compratori di case, ma se dobbiamo assicurarle ci pensiamo ancora troppo. La visione sul futuro manca ancora a molti e in questa puntata vediamo cosa mettere nelle nostre to do list per assicurarci un avvenire più sereno. Questa puntata è offerta da Alleanza Assicurazioni #adv #ProtectionFirst  Una produzione Corax.

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/S7WBXNRaBJc Stacia Carr is the Chief Technology and Product Officer at second-hand Luxury Online Retailer Vestiaire Collective. As someone who grew up personally and professionally in the Bay Area, she brings a different energy to European business, probably pairing the best of both worlds, both from a technical and cultural perspective. We sat down with her at the inaugural Shoptalk Luxe in Abu Dhabi to learn about: How she brings together business and tech Building a luxury online second-hand marketplace Her prior experience in the Bay Area and then in Europe at the likes of SoundCloud and Zalando The vision for Vestiaire Collective's website and consumer experience How they are implementing new tech like AI while enhancing the customer experience   More  Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fmcgguys/ Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fmcgguys/   Audio Mixing by Modest Ferrer Voice Acting by Jason Martorell Parsekian Disclaimer The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the individual guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The FMCG Guys (Dwyer Partners SL) or its partners. The FMCG Guys make no representations or warranties about the accuracy, completeness, or suitability of any information discussed, and accept no responsibility for any decisions or outcomes based on this content. Listeners are encouraged to seek their own professional advice before acting on any of the topics covered.    

AI is revolutionizing how health information is managed. Utilizing sophisticated algorithms, it can assist professionals in making more informed decisions. For instance, optical character recognition (OCR) can read and interpret medical records, identifying potential compliance issues and ensuring every page represents the correct patient.  In this episode, host Sandy Vance chats with Anupriyo Chakravarti, the Chief Technology and Product Officer at Verisma, about how healthcare organizations can use intelligent automation to reduce risk and uncover compliance gaps in order to free staff to work at the top of their license.  In this episode, they talk about: What Verisma can do for healthcare organizations Use case examples Some of the risks Verisma mitigates by finding missteps like unauthorized disclosures  AI is taking over the world of informatics Enabling people to work at the top of their license is critical People are not anti-AI, they are anti-opacity A Little About Anupriyo: Anupriyo Chakravarti joined Verisma Systems, Inc. in 2017 as the Senior Vice President of Research and Development. Anupriyo brings 25 years of experience as a highly effective leader in healthcare IT product management and software development for Fortune 500 companies and startups. Anupriyo joined Verisma after serving as vice president of product management and marketing at McKesson, where he led the product management and marketing functions of the Extended Care Services (ECS) business unit. Before McKesson, he worked for 11 years at Surgical Information Systems (SIS), where he led software development, and ultimately product management, to deliver solutions for the surgery and anesthesia departments at health systems and ambulatory surgery centers. Prior to working with SIS, Anupriyo worked for Arthur Andersen, Ryder Dedicated Logistics, IBM and TATA Motors. Anupriyo has a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from IIT Roorkee in India.   

What happens when the noise around AI starts to drown out the actual business value it is meant to deliver? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sat down with Adam Field, Chief AI and Product Officer at Tungsten Automation, fresh from the conversations unfolding at Davos. While headlines continue to celebrate agentic AI and sweeping automation claims, Adam offered a grounded perspective shaped by decades of experience turning AI pilots into measurable, ROI-driven deployments. His view is simple. The hype cycle may be accelerating, but many organizations still struggle with the fundamentals. Adam described a common boardroom dynamic. "What do we want? AI. What do we want it to do? We're not sure." That pressure to move fast often collides with a deeper reality. Software has shifted from deterministic to probabilistic. Leaders who grew up expecting the same inputs to always produce the same outputs now face systems that behave differently by design. Measuring value in that environment requires a different mindset. One of the most compelling ideas in our conversation was Adam's concept of "boring AI." While splashy announcements about replacing hundreds of employees grab attention, he argues that real returns often come from quieter use cases. At Tungsten Automation, that means intelligent document processing, extracting trusted, AI-ready data from the 80 percent of enterprise information that is unstructured. Contracts, invoices, transcripts, compliance paperwork. The work may not trend on social media, but it saves time, improves accuracy, and fits directly into daily workflows. We also explored accountability. AI can compress output, but it concentrates responsibility. When generative tools make architectural or compliance decisions, the liability does not shift to the model. Organizations remain accountable for privacy, ethics, and customer trust. Adam shared his own experience rebuilding a legacy application in days using AI code generation, only to discover licensing and compliance nuances that required human judgment. The lesson was clear. AI amplifies capability, yet human oversight remains essential. For leaders searching for signals that an AI strategy will actually deliver long-term returns, Adam pointed to two patterns from the small percentage of projects that succeed. First, integration into daily workflows drives adoption. Second, partnering with trusted vendors often reduces risk compared to attempting everything in-house. In a world flooded with open-source experiments and "X is dead" headlines, discipline and focus still matter. Tungsten Automation has spent four decades evolving alongside automation technologies, previously known as Kofax. Today, the company applies large language models and agentic workflows to transform unstructured data into decision-ready insights across finance, logistics, banking, and insurance. It is a reminder that the future of AI may be less about replacing people and more about removing friction so humans can do the work they were actually hired to do. So as AI investment continues to grow and pressure for returns intensifies, the question becomes harder to ignore. Are we chasing the headlines, or are we building systems that quietly deliver value where it counts? Useful Links Connect with Adam Field Learn more about Tungsten Automation Upcoming Events

In this MSDW podcast episode, Mariano Gomez Bent, Chief Technology and Product Officer at Mekorma, shares a technology leader's perspective on moving to Business Central. Drawing from Mekorma's own transition from GP to Business Central, Mariano discusses key considerations around cloud security, selecting the right implementation partners, and managing change across teams. The conversation highlights real-world lessons, common pitfalls, and what organizations should prioritize to successfully navigate a move to the cloud. Considering a move to Business Central? Tune in to hear firsthand insights on cloud security, partner selection, and change management. See more Mekorma content on MSDW: https://msdynamicsworld.com/vendor/mekorma

In this episode, we interview Jeff Wittich, Chief Product Officer at Ampere. Learn about his journey up the hardware stack from Process Engineer to Product Officer, how the Innovator's Dilemma led to the founding of Ampere, and how this will impact the next generation of AI.

In this episode of the SaaS Sessions podcast, Sunil Neurgaonkar sits down with Jigar Dafda, Chief Technology & Product Officer at Fynd, to unpack how AI is fundamentally reshaping e-commerce in India.From conversational commerce and hyper-personalization to autonomous back offices and AI-driven customer support, this conversation cuts through the hype to explain what's actually changing, what's overblown, and what founders must build for if they want to survive the next decade of commerce.Key Takeaways -1. Commerce Is Shifting From Interfaces to Conversations-Traditional storefronts and search-driven UX are being replaced by conversational buying surfaces.- SEO is giving way to GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) as ChatGPT-like interfaces become the new entry point.- Merchants will still own fulfillment and data—but discovery will increasingly happen outside their websites.2. Hyper-Personalization Is No Longer Optional—It's Infrastructure- Customer Data Platforms (CDPs) are the backbone for AI-driven personalization across online and offline channels.- AI enables real-time personalization without armies of data scientists or analysts.- The real win isn't better targeting—it's higher conversion with less customer effort.3. Dynamic Pricing and Forecasting Are Moving Into the Back Office- Pricing, inventory planning, and demand forecasting are becoming autonomous systems.- Decisions that once took days (via SQL and dashboards) now happen in real time.- AI shifts teams from “executors” to “validators” of system-generated decisions.4. Customer Support Is the Lowest-Hanging AI Opportunity- 60–80% of customer queries are repetitive and easily automated.- AI agents now deliver 24/7, multilingual, context-aware support at scale.- The real challenge is no longer conversation—it's clean integration across OMS, WMS, and logistics systems.Lightning Round Insights:- Fastest way to learn today: Use ChatGPT as a personalized tutor—summarize, question, and iterate.- Hardest leadership lesson: Systems are easy. People are not.- Founder advice: Build for where the market is going, not where it is today—today's solution will expire faster than you expect.About Fynd:Fynd is one of India's leading unified commerce platforms, powering brands across online, offline, marketplaces, and quick commerce. From storefronts and PIM to OMS, WMS, and omnichannel integrations, Fynd enables end-to-end retail operations on a single stack.Chapters:00:10 – Introduction00:50 – Jigar's decade-long journey at Fynd05:20 – AI before vs after ChatGPT08:10 – Conversational commerce & GEO13:40 – Hyper-personalization and CDPs19:40 – Dynamic pricing and demand forecasting30:30 – AI in customer support37:20 – Predictions for the future of e-commerce39:40 – Lightning roundVisit our website - https://saassessions.com/Connect with me on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunilneurgaonkar/

2025 was characterized by an exponential increase in the use of AI to both perpetrate and defend against fraud. But in 2026, fraud won't just be about stealing money; it will be about undermining trust in our digital universe. In this episode, our incoming CEO Tony Ball and Mike Baxter, President and Chief Technology & Product Officer, will share key learnings from the past year along with some strategies and best practices to stay ahead of the intensifying fraud, technology, and regulatory landscape in 2026.  

Steve Wilson, Chief AI and Product Officer at Exabeam and lead of the OWASP GenAI Security Project, discusses the practical realities of securing Large Language Models and agentic workflows. Subscribe to the Gradient Flow Newsletter

This podcast is brought to you by Outcomes Rocket, your exclusive healthcare marketing agency. Learn how to accelerate your growth by going to⁠ outcomesrocket.com AI security is no longer optional; it's the foundation that determines whether innovation in healthcare will thrive or fail. In this episode, Steve Wilson, Chief AI & Product Officer for Exabeam and author, discusses the hidden vulnerabilities inside modern AI systems, why traditional software assumptions break down, and how healthcare must rethink safety, trust, and security from the ground up. He explains the risks of prompt injection and indirect prompt injection, highlights the fragile nature of AI “intuition,” and compares securing AI to training unpredictable employees rather than testing deterministic code. Steve also explores issues such as supply chain integrity, output filtering, trust boundaries, and the growing need for continuous evaluation rather than one-time testing. Finally, he shares stories from his early career at Sun Microsystems, Java's early days, startup lessons from the 90s, and how modern AI agents are reshaping cybersecurity operations. Tune in and learn how today's most advanced AI systems can be both powerful and dangerously gullible, and what it takes to secure them! Resources Connect with and follow Steve Wilson on LinkedIn. Follow Exabeam on LinkedIn and visit their website! Buy Steve Wilson's book The Developer's Playbook for Large Language Model Security here.

You've often been described as a continuous learner and someone who thrives on curiosity and experimentation. How have those qualities shaped your leadership philosophy, and how do you bring that mindset to the teams you lead? At Target, you're leading massive teams across technology and product, both of which rely on speed, innovation, and collaboration. What are some of the ways you empower teams to take smart risks and experiment while still driving business outcomes at scale? Curiosity is a powerful word, but it can be hard to operationalize. How do you take something like curiosity and translate it into everyday behaviors or rituals within your organization? Without giving too much away, Target has a big announcement coming up that seems to reflect many of the values you've championed. Continuouslearning, innovation, and customer focus. How do you ensure that experimentation and transformation don't just happen in pockets, but become part of Target's broader culture? Looking ahead, what kind leadership legacy do you hope to leave behind, both at Target and for the next generation of technology and product leaders?  

In this special episode, we discuss our partnership with Blackstone, the world's largest alternative asset manager. We also offer an overview of private credit and look at the role the asset class could play alongside public credit within investor portfolios. Our speakers are Jo McCaffrey, Chief Strategy and Product Officer, Asset Management, L&G; and Brad Marshall, Global Head of Private Credit Strategies at Blackstone. Other topics covered include: ·        The reasons behind the rapid growth of private credit ·        Key investor considerations around the asset class, in particular for the UK Wealth market ·        Blackstone's approach to underwriting investments to mitigate risk The podcast was recorded on 30 October and was moderated by Max Julius, Head of Content, Asset Management, L&G. Source for comments on private credit's history of strong performance: "Leveraged Loans” as represented by Morningstar LSTA U.S. Leveraged Loan Index. “Private Credit” as represented by Cliffwater Direct Lending Indexfrom September 30, 2005 through June 30, 2025, which is latest publicly available data. Total return reflects the sum of annualised income return, annualised realised gain / loss and annualised unrealized gain / loss during the period.  For professional investors only. Capital at risk.

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ Gustafson sits down with Colin Gardiner, General Partner at Yonder VC and former Chief Revenue and Product Officer at Outdoorsy, to unpack what really drives successful marketplace businesses. Colin shares lessons from scaling a peer-to-peer RV platform, where the biggest unlock came not from casual users but from power hosts optimizing utilization and yield through the SaaS tools they built. He introduces his “Marketplace Plus” investing framework—showing how layering SaaS and professional tools can transform a platform into an operating system—and where founders risk overreaching by taking on inventory or managing supply too tightly. The conversation dives deep into monetization, pricing psychology, take rates, and the fine balance between product-market fit and margin obsession, before zooming out to explore how AI and the decline of SEO are reshaping marketplace discovery.—LINKS:Colin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colingardiner/Company: https://www.yonder.vc/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:996 Culture, Exploding AI Bills & SaaS Chaoshttps://youtu.be/qhrxDL0gsRo“Keep the Take Rate Low” - Turo's Chuck Fisher on Scaling a Successful Peer-to-peerhttps://youtu.be/LKH8o1MjnZoThe Art of Stacking S-Curves: Olo's Winning Vertical SaaS Strategy with CFO Peter Benevideshttps://youtu.be/1X2VoYogj44—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Intro and Guest Overview00:02:57 Sponsors – RightRev, Tipalti, and Aleph00:07:13 Outdoorsy and the RV Market00:10:33 Balancing Supply and Demand00:13:05 Marketplace Plus Model00:16:59 Sponsors – Fidelity Private Shares, Metronome, and Mercury00:21:45 Professionalizing Marketplaces00:24:10 Building Software, Insurance, and Financing Layers00:28:07 Avoiding Fully Managed Models00:32:34 Take Rates and Pricing Strategy00:35:00 Monetizing Both Sides00:37:06 Advertising and Marketplace Scale00:39:48 Marketplaces Meet Social Platforms00:42:36 AI and Marketplace Distribution00:45:54 AI Agents and Matchmaking00:47:03 When AI Becomes the Supply00:49:09 Negative Gross Margins and Scale00:53:04 Picking a Side – Supply or Demand00:54:35 Branding, Utilization, and Growth00:55:42 Closing and Credits—SPONSORS:RightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That's why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.comMercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.com—#RunTheNumbersPodcast #MarketplaceStrategy #AIPoweredBusiness #SaaSModel #StartupFinance This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Allen and Joel are joined by Matthew Stead, Chief Product Officer and Co-founder of EOLIGIX-PING, at the SkySpecs Customer Forum 2025. They discuss the biggest takeaways from the forum, new developments at EOLOGIX-PING, and the upcoming Wind Energy O&M Australia event. Sign up now for Uptime Tech News, our weekly email update on all things wind technology. This episode is sponsored by Weather Guard Lightning Tech. Learn more about Weather Guard's StrikeTape Wind Turbine LPS retrofit. Follow the show on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Linkedin and visit Weather Guard on the web. And subscribe to Rosemary Barnes' YouTube channel here. Have a question we can answer on the show? Email us! Intro: [00:00:00] Welcome to Uptime Spotlight, shining Light on Wind Energy's brightest innovators. This is the Progress Powering Tomorrow. Allen Hall: Welcome to the Uptime Wind Energy Podcast. I'm your host, Alan Hall, and I'm with Joel Saxon. And we are in Ann Arbor, Michigan with Matthew Stead, chief Product Officer. And co-founder of eLog Ping and he is traveled all the way from Australia to be here in Ann Arbor, Michigan. We are at the Skys Specs customer Forum 2025. We've been spending the last couple of days with most of the operators in the United States, uh, learning about what issues they are having and how they're using Skys specs to reduce their overall operational costs. Boy, Matthew, it, it is been a really interesting couple of days hearing where customers are struggling and where they are trying to attack lost revenue. Matthew Stead: Yeah, I think it's [00:01:00] been amazing. I'm so pleased to be here. And, you know, it was great to get the invitation, uh, from Skyspace. I, I think, um, really the things that I've been hearing is the data and pulling data together, uh, to getting those insights as to what's going wrong and then, and then fixing it and getting the money back. Joel Saxum: Yeah. Yeah. The, the big thing here, we're talking about the one big beautiful build, and it's followed on the industry.  Matthew Stead: Yeah.  Joel Saxum: Right. So the, the theme of the event is prevent, perform, or prevent, prevent, predict, perform, I'm gonna get it wrong again.  Allen Hall: There's three Ps,  Joel Saxum: three very important ps. But what we're looking at is, is how, how can digitalization, how can the next generation of op intelligent asset management change the way we do things? Because you can't do things reactively like we were in the past anymore.  Matthew Stead: Yeah,  Joel Saxum: right. Even when budgets were tight before they're gonna get even tighter. We're gonna, and we're gonna have to make sure that these assets are running. And that's where like your smarter, smarter, smarter, smarter, right? Yeah. Your solutions come into play. The Skys specs team. The, the, the conversations in the sessions. The [00:02:00] conversations around the sessions, the conversations over a beer.  Matthew Stead: Yeah. Yeah.  Joel Saxum: They have all been about the same concepts, right? About how can we do this better, more efficiently. And one of the reasons I really like events. Like this is, like you said, Allen, you have all these operators. Yeah. You have all of these engine. It's a, it's a room full of 50 engineers that probably control man, 60 to 70% of the  Allen Hall: Oh yeah.  Matthew Stead: The US  Joel Saxum: fleet. In the US fleet. Right. So you have so much knowledge, so much sharing, and it's an open forum. You have people p piping up, Hey, we use this strategy. Hey, we do this. I heard some really cool things this week.  Matthew Stead: Yeah, I, I, at breakfast this morning, I was sitting to two guys, one from Canada, one from the US and they were talking about Repowering. One guy's got GE turbines. He didn't know that he could put a vestas in a cell on a G turbine.  Joel Saxum: Yeah.  Matthew Stead: And so these guys have exchanged details. Ban.

Productivity drives prosperity, yet the UK continues to lag behind countries like the US, France and Germany. We work harder, yet produce less than our peers. In this episode, Evan Davis and guests discuss what productivity really looks like in practice – from offices and factories to call centres and operating theatres. And ask whether AI could be the boost Britain's economy needs. Guests: Katy Davies, Managing Director, Cap Air Systems Louise Stead, Group Chief Executive, Royal Surrey and Ashford and St Peter's NHS Foundation Trusts Sameer Vuyyuru, Chief AI and Product Officer, CapitaProduction team: Presenter: Evan Davis Producer: Sally Abrahams Production Co-ordinator: Katie Morrison Sound engineers: Dafydd Evans and Duncan Hannant Editor: Justine Lang

Water usage can greatly affect an organization's bottom line, especially in the property management industry.Dr. Ellie Graeden, Chief Data & Product Officer at Metron, joins the podcast to discuss various types of smart water meters and why they matter to property management professionals. Dr. Graeden also addresses why it's important to share smart water analytics, such as water consumption, with residents—which can increase occupancy rates and retention.Further, Dr. Graeden discusses how to use water consumption data to drive property values and evaluate merger and acquisition opportunities. Additionally, she explores other types of data that can be used to provide context for water usage.Explore additional Beyond Rent episodes by connecting with us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, and YouTube.You can learn more about Dr. Ellie Graeden on LinkedIn, and Metron on the company's website.Visit RentManager.com/Podcast to submit an idea for an upcoming episode of Beyond Rent and discover more about the program.Learn more about Rent Manager's industry-leading accounting, reporting, maintenance, and communication features at RentManager.com, or connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and X.

We talk to Peter Kiley, Senior Vice President, Chief Revenue and Product Officer, C-SPAN, about the deal with YouTube TV and Hulu+Live TV. It's not just about carriage, it's about a new model for streaming TV.Featuring Tom Merritt and Peter Kiley. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kevin chats with Nick Retzmann, Chief Growth and Product Officer at Vaibe, to explore how gamification can transform warehouse employee engagement. Vaibe offers a software-as-a-service platform that connects to existing systems, turning daily operational KPIs into fun, team-oriented challenges. From increasing pick rates to improving safety compliance, Vaibe creates an environment where employees feel recognized and motivated. With labor shortages, retention struggles, and competitive hiring markets putting pressure on warehouse operators, Nick explains why investing in engagement is no longer optional. Instead, gamification can make work more enjoyable while driving measurable gains in productivity, performance, and retention.Get your free ID Label sample right here. Find EPG at IntraLogistex Miami in September! Follow us on LinkedIn and YouTube.Support the show

#210: Maricopa County's AI Teams Save 100s of Hours (Plus AZ's Child Safety 30-Year Data Strategy & Building AI for Service-First Gov.)Brought to you by:SentinelOne—Learn how SentinelOne empowers this state to stay secure.Verizon Frontline—The advanced network that keeps first responders connected when it matters most.Carahsoft—The Trusted Public Sector IT Solutions Provider™, supports government agencies and education/healthcare markets. Contact your Carahsoft rep today to access special discount pricing exclusively through the TechTables + Carahsoft partnership!Featuring:Aaron Judy, Chief of Innovation and Emerging Technologies, Maricopa CountySteven Hintze, Chief Data and Product Officer, Arizona Department of Child SafetyKyle Patel, Lead Product and Engineering, PolimorphicWhat You'll Learn:How to build working AI prototypes in 10 minutes that impress stakeholders and scale to production (like Maricopa County's animal contact tracing system)Why 30 years of unstructured government data delivers better AI results than traditional structured approaches—and how to leverage itThe proven framework that helped one county identify 100+ AI use cases across 55+ agencies and avoid the "SQL query disguised as AI" trapHow AI can recover 100s of hours worth of staff time by eliminating repetitive tasks while improving citizen experienceThe composable architecture strategy that lets you completely rebuild your AI stack within 30 days of production release without losing momentumTimestamps(06:00) Why 30 Years of Unstructured Data Beats Clean Databases(10:00) Beyond Press 1 Press 2: True AI Automation vs. Labor Shifting(13:00) The 10-Minute Prototype That Impressed Animal Care Directors(18:00) What Vendors Get Wrong: Extracting vs. Creating Value for Government(22:00) AI as Therapy: Validating Difficult Caseworker Decisions(30:00) The Mom Test in Government: Solving Real vs. Requested Problems(34:00) Innovation Roadshows: Getting 55 Agencies to Embrace Emerging Tech(37:00) Future Vision: Decentralized Identity and 24/7 Government(42:00) Amazon-Level Service: Building Public Trust Through Better Technology(47:00) Failing Fast with Grace: Building Psychological Safety for InnovationConnect

In this special and wide-ranging episode, Eric reflects on his journey through the asset management industry and the personal values that informed his decision to join L&G.  "Humility is key - and I think I learned that in my upbringing," he says.  Speaking with Jo McCaffrey, Chief Strategy and Product Officer for our Asset Management business, Eric also discusses his ambitions for our business, the democratisation of private markets, our approach to market volatility and why French is his favourite language but Italian is his favourite food. This podcast was recorded on 30 June, 2025. Source for percentage of pension risk transfer deals originating from existing clients: L&G 2024 full year results. All other figures cited L&G as at 30 June 2025 unless otherwise stated. For professional investors only. Capital at risk.

Send us a textHow do you lead 950 engineers and still make time for mechanical watches, family, and learning? In this thoughtful and energizing episode from IT Nation Secure 2025, Joey Pinz interviews David Raissipour, Chief Technology & Product Officer at ConnectWise.

In this episode, we're joined by a hospitality tech powerhouse: Robert Dawson, Chief Strategist and Product Officer at IRECKONU.Robert shares his journey from front desk college job to C-suite, how he fell in love with the hotel industry, and why solving fragmented data problems became his mission. We talk all things AI, automation, data management, and CRM evolution — and what's making waves at HITEC this year.We talk about:Why the entrepreneurial section at HITEC is the place to beThe real opportunities (and limits) of AI in hospitalityWhat IRECKONU is doing to turn data into real guest engagementWatch the FULL EPISODE on YouTube: https://youtu.be/7X3r0-OPuWc This episode is sponsored by IRECKONU: https://ireckonu.com/Join the conversation on today's episode on The Modern Hotelier LinkedIn pageThe Modern Hotelier is produced, edited, and published by Make More MediaLinks:Robert on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hospitalitytechnologyexecutive/IRECKONU: https://ireckonu.com/For full show notes head to: https://themodernhotelier.com/episode/180Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-...Connect with Steve and David:Steve: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E...David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-mil.

Mind-blowing new research on reach promises to reshape media investment. We also discuss Love Bonito's brand growth story and keys to multimarket success.Guests: Felipe Thomaz, Associate Professor of Marketing at the University of Oxford; Stuart Bowden, Global Chief Strategy and Product Officer at WPP Media; Gurdeep Puri, Founding Partner at the Effectiveness Partnership; Andreas Krasser, CEO, DDB Hong Kong; Dione Song, CEO, Love Bonito

Our first episode from Money20/20 Europe 2025, this one produced in partnership with LSEG Risk Intelligence, who provide a range of solutions to help organisations effectively navigate risks and reduce fraud. The event took place at the RAI in Amsterdam. Our guests for this episode were: 1/ David White, Global Head of Product & Data, LSEG Risk Intelligence 2/ Ugne Buraciene, Group CEO, payabl. 3/ Pavan Ramkishan Bachwal, Head of Ericsson Financial Services, Ericsson 4/ Denise Johansson, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Enfuce 5/ Darek Paleczny, Chief Risk & Compliance Officer, Worldline 6/ Eline Blomme, Chief Strategy & Product Officer, acquired.com 7/ Daniel Kornitzer, Head of Global Partnerships, Ebanx

Learn about the impact of AI in healthcare in CXOTalk episode 877 on AI in clinical trials. Discover how artificial intelligence is revolutionizing clinical trials and the potential benefits for the healthcare industry.AI promises faster, safer clinical trials and better patient experiences. Clario's EVP & Chief Information Technology & Product Officer, Jay Ferro, joins CXOTalk host Michael Krigsman to explain how his team unifies IT, product, data, security, and marketing under one roof, giving sponsors, sites, and patients a single, seamless platform. He outlines responsible AI governance with legal, medical, privacy, and security leaders. He shows how predictive tools speed recruitment, sharpen protocol design, cut dropout risk, and support image interpretation while physicians keep the final judgment.Watch to learn• How a unified tech-product structure cuts cost and removes friction• Steps for enterprise-wide AI oversight in a regulated environment• Real use cases for AI in recruitment, imaging, and trial optimization

Episode Topic Edge computing is transforming how businesses manage and secure data, particularly in industries like banking, retail, and fintech. In this episode of PayPod, host Kevin Rosenquist speaks with Bruce Kornfeld, Chief Marketing and Product Officer at StorMagic, about why edge data solutions are becoming critical for modern enterprises. As businesses continue their digital transformation, they face increasing challenges related to data latency, cost, and security—issues that traditional cloud storage may not fully address. Bruce explains how edge computing enables real-time data processing closer to the source, reducing delays, improving efficiency, and offering greater reliability for mission-critical applications. Whether you're an IT expert or simply curious about the future of data management, this episode will give you a comprehensive look at how edge solutions are reshaping business operations.   Lessons You'll Learn This episode dives deep into the differences between cloud and edge computing and why businesses need to rethink their data strategies. Bruce highlights how companies often underestimate the importance of local data processing and explains why relying solely on cloud storage may not be cost-effective or efficient. You'll learn about key factors influencing IT decision-making, from performance limitations and network latency to the hidden expenses of cloud services. Additionally, Bruce shares valuable insights on data security risks at the edge and how encryption plays a crucial role in safeguarding sensitive financial information. As the demand for AI-driven analytics grows, Bruce also discusses how businesses can prepare for a future where edge computing and AI work together to enhance decision-making. About Our Guest Bruce Kornfeld is an industry veteran with extensive experience in storage, data management, and edge computing. As the Chief Marketing and Product Officer at StorMagic, Bruce is responsible for driving innovation and helping businesses implement simple, cost-effective solutions for managing data at the edge. Before joining StorMagic, he held leadership roles at Dell, where he played a pivotal role in building the company's external storage business. He also worked with several successful tech startups, gaining firsthand experience in product development, customer engagement, and business strategy. With a deep understanding of IT infrastructure, data security, and edge computing, Bruce has become a recognized thought leader in the industry. Passionate about simplifying complex technologies, he is committed to helping organizations optimize their IT strategies for the next era of data storage and management.   Topics Covered This episode explores the growing importance of edge computing and its advantages over traditional cloud solutions. Bruce explains how businesses can use local data processing to reduce network latency, enhance performance, and lower costs. He also discusses the security challenges of edge computing, particularly in industries handling sensitive financial data, and how encryption technology is essential for protecting digital assets. The conversation covers AI-driven analytics, the evolution of IT decision-making, and how companies can prepare for a future where edge computing and cloud services coexist. Finally, Bruce introduces StorMagic's latest innovations, including solutions designed to make edge storage more accessible, efficient, and scalable for businesses of all sizes.  

In this episode of the IoT For All Podcast, Martin Nord, Chief Technology and Product Officer at Com4, joins Ryan Chacon to discuss navigating modern IoT connectivity. The conversation covers key connectivity challenges across industries, the impact of iSIM and multi-IMSI, customer-centric IoT strategies, satellite IoT, the transformative potential of IoT and AI, low-power wide-area networks, and understanding total cost of ownership for successful IoT deployments.With over 20 years of experience in the cellular and IoT industry, Martin Nord is a visionary leader and passionate technologist. He has a proven track record of driving innovation and leading high-performance teams. As CTO and PTO, Martin plays a pivotal role in shaping Com4's product vision and strategy. He oversees the entire product lifecycle, ensuring that Com4's solutions not only meet market demands but also drive value for customers in an ever-evolving IoT landscape. By combining his deep technical expertise with a customer-focused approach, Martin ensures that Com4's offerings remain at the forefront of innovation in IoT connectivity.Com4, part of Wireless Logic Group, is a world leading provider of managed IoT connectivity services, with over 13 years of experience working with enterprises around the world. Com4 exists to provide not only the right tools but the most fitting solutions to its customers for beneficial IoT connectivity and control. Customers around the world trust them to cost-efficiently build and operate both large-scale and smaller IoT connectivity projects. All SIM cards are delivered, already activated within a few business days. Com4 supports all radio standards (2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G as well as LPWA technologies such as LTE-M and NB-IoT).Discover more about IoT at https://www.iotforall.comFind IoT solutions: https://marketplace.iotforall.comMore about Com4: https://www.com4.no/en/Connect with Martin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martinnord/(00:00) Intro(00:09) Martin Nord and Com4(02:14) Biggest IoT connectivity challenges(02:50) The role of satellite IoT(04:57) Tailoring connectivity for specific use cases(07:29) iSIM and multi-IMSI(09:01) Customer-centric IoT strategies(10:35) Emerging technologies and trends in IoT(12:42) What industries will be impacted most by IoT?(15:16) Successfully deploying and adopting IoT(17:00) Opportunities in IoT(19:29) Outlook for Com4(21:13) Learn more and follow upSubscribe to the Channel: https://bit.ly/2NlcEwmJoin Our Newsletter: https://newsletter.iotforall.comFollow Us on Social: https://linktr.ee/iot4all

"We've moved from big bundles to à la carte chaos—there's a middle ground that offers real value and differentiation," says Chad Dunavant, EVP & Chief Strategy and Product Officer at CSG. Subscription-based services have reshaped the way businesses generate revenue and how consumers engage with brands. But has the explosion of subscriptions created more frustration than convenience? Chad joins Technology Reseller News to discuss the next evolution of subscriptions, telecom monetization, and customer engagement. The Subscription Economy: A Double-Edged Sword Subscription models provide businesses with predictable, recurring revenue streams, allowing them to scale efficiently. Consumers originally embraced subscriptions for their flexibility and ease of use. However, as Dunavant points out, many customers now find themselves drowning in multiple subscriptions, leading to frustration, bill confusion, and declining brand loyalty. From Bundles to Fragmentation – The shift from cable TV mega-bundles to fragmented streaming services has created consumer fatigue. Confusion & Lack of Transparency – Many customers are unaware of price increases or struggle to manage multiple services. Loyalty at Risk – Brands must balance monetization with clear value propositions or risk losing long-term customers. Telecoms & The New Opportunity in Subscription Monetization As telecom providers move beyond connectivity, they are uniquely positioned to bundle value-added services like streaming, cloud solutions, and enterprise tools. Dunavant highlights how telcos can use their scale to negotiate wholesale partnerships with digital service providers, creating discounted, frictionless experiences for consumers. Power of Wholesale Agreements – Telecom providers can secure better pricing for consumers by bundling third-party services with connectivity. Monetization Beyond Connectivity – New revenue streams include integrated streaming, cloud apps, and AI-driven services. Personalized Engagement & Billing – AI-powered billing solutions can proactively notify customers of changes, reducing call center frustration. CSG at Mobile World Congress 2025 Mobile World Congress, Barcelona CSG CEO Brian Shepherd Keynote: Enterprise Reinvented Topic: How telcos can reshape digital service monetization with smarter bundling, personalized billing, and AI-driven customer engagement. Learn More CSG Website: www.csgi.com Connect with Chad Dunavant on LinkedIn Follow Mobile World Congress updates for more insights on digital monetization. #SubscriptionEconomy #CustomerEngagement #TelecomMonetization #CSG #MWC2025 #BillingInnovation  

Are you wondering how to pivot from academia to the neurotech industry without starting from scratch? Many assume that moving from a PhD to industry means leaving much of their academic experience behind, but that's not necessarily the case. Welcome to this episode of Neurocareers: Doing the Impossible!, where we uncover how advanced academic skills can be a powerful asset in the neurotech sector. Today, we're honored to have Dr. Mustafa S. Hamada, Chief Science and Product Officer at Mendi Innovations in Sweden, share invaluable insights on leveraging PhD skills to break into and excel in neurotechnology. Dr. Hamada, a trailblazer in integrating neuroscience with product innovation, will guide us through how we can translate academic expertise into industry success. He'll reveal what industry employers are looking for during interviews, discuss the benefits of being a generalist versus a specialist, and provide tips on navigating the job market with your unique skills. Moreover, we'll dive into the strategic choices that can shape your career path: selecting the right company size, the importance of mentorship, and working in start-up environments. Dr. Hamada will also touch on the impact of AI in neurotech, compare the job markets in Europe and the US, and forecast the future of the industry. If you're eager to learn how your PhD can open doors in the neurotech field, and you want to know what it takes to stand out to employers and thrive in this dynamic industry, then tune into Dr. Hamada's expert advice and personal journey. Transform your academic achievements into your industry advantage with insights from a leading expert in neurotech. Let's discover how to leverage your PhD for success in the fast-evolving world of neurotechnology together! About the Podcast Guest: Dr. Mustafa S. Hamada is the Chief Science and Product Officer at Mendi Innovations, a neurotechnology startup in Sweden. Dr. Hamada drives the integration of advanced neuroscience into innovative product development, focusing on neurotechnology, behavioral design, and AI to enhance brain health solutions. He was also a recipient of the Grand Prize for Engineering in Innovation 2024. Work email: mustafa@mendi.io LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/mustafashamada   About the Podcast Host: The Neurocareers podcast is brought to you by The Institute of Neuroapproaches (https://www.neuroapproaches.org/) and its founder, Milena Korostenskaja, Ph.D. (Dr. K), a career coach for people in neuroscience and neurotechnologies. As a professional coach with a background in neurotech and Brain-Computer Interfaces, Dr. K understands the unique challenges and opportunities job applicants face in this field and can provide personalized coaching and support to help you succeed. Here's what you'll get with one-on-one coaching sessions from Dr. K: Identification and pursuit of career goals Guidance on job search strategies, resume, and cover letter development Neurotech / neuroscience job interview preparation and practice Networking strategies to connect with professionals in the field of neuroscience and neurotechnologies Ongoing support and guidance to help you stay on track and achieve your goals You can always schedule a free neurocareer consultation/coaching session with Dr. K at https://neuroapproaches.as.me/free-neurocareer-consultation Subscribe to our Nerocareers Newsletter to stay on top of all our cool neurocareers news at updates https://www.neuroapproaches.org/neurocareers-news

Value Based Care is at a turning point. In this episode, Adam Torres and Krista Smolda, Chief Brand & Product Officer at CareTalk Health, explore Value Based Care and how CareTalk Health is helping its clients with outsourced care management. Follow Adam on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/askadamtorres/ for up to date information on book releases and tour schedule. Apply to be a guest on our podcast: https://missionmatters.lpages.co/podcastguest/ Visit our website: https://missionmatters.com/ More FREE content from Mission Matters here: https://linktr.ee/missionmattersmedia

Wael is the Chief Technology and Product Officer at Imprint, a fast-growing FinTech company that partners with leading brands to launch co-branded credit cards. If you ever wondered about the details on credit cards and why companies like Walmart and Amazon create their own card, then you need to listen to this podcast. Number one tip: Act like an owner with your work   Contact info: imprint.co wael@imprint.co   https://www.engineeringcareeraccelerator.com/engineeringentrepreneur The Engineering Entrepreneur Podcast is produced by Scott Tarcy, President of CADdesignhelp.com. You can reach me at info@caddesignhelp.com  

Eric chats with Robin Daniels, Chief Business and Product Officer at Zensai. An episode on developing soft skills and working with AI. Robin brings incredible energy and wisdom to this engaging conversation. Drawing from his 20+ years of executive experience at companies like Salesforce, LinkedIn, and Box, Robin explores how AI is reshaping the workplace ... Read more The post EP 178 | Developing Soft Skills and AI at Work with Robin Daniels appeared first on KazSource.

Xmas Special: Breaking Down the Wall Between Product and Engineering With Vasco Duarte In the second episode of the “5 Wishes for 2025” series, Vasco Duarte tackles one of the most persistent and damaging divides in software development: the wall between Product and Engineering teams. Through stories, metaphors, and real-world examples, Vasco challenges the status quo and paints a vision for seamless collaboration that drives innovation and value. The Invisible Walls Holding Us Back “It's like having the ingredients and the recipe in separate rooms – how are you supposed to cook something amazing?” Vasco begins by highlighting the invisible barriers that still exist between Product and Engineering teams in many organizations. These divisions stifle innovation and slow progress. Drawing parallels to outdated structures, Vasco recounts the struggle to integrate Product Owners into Scrum teams and how that barely scratched the surface of the larger issue. He calls for a broader perspective: aligning the creative potential of engineering with the customer insights of product management to unlock real innovation. Lessons From the Field: Breaking Down Barriers 1. The Experiments-Only Team “Not the mad scientist kind, but real, product-focused experiments that bring technical innovation and product leadership together.” Vasco shares the success story of a client who created a dedicated experiments team. By combining technical expertise with clear product direction, they delivered rapid, value-driven results. This approach demonstrates the power of collaboration in turning ideas into impactful solutions. 2. Bottom-Up Product Planning “For the first time, Product and Engineering co-created a plan that aligned with strategic goals – no more top-down directives or forced OKRs!” Another client reimagined their product planning process after attending a workshop. Instead of cascading initiatives from the top, they worked collaboratively from the ground up. This innovative approach allowed them to align with company goals while fostering ownership and creativity across teams. The CTPO: A Glimpse Into the Future “It's like they turned the wall between Product and Engineering into a large living room where everyone works together.” Vasco highlights an inspiring case from Berlin, where a company merged technical and product leadership into a single CTPO (Chief Technical and Product Officer) role. This structure bridges the gap, ensuring that both technical possibilities and customer needs are seamlessly aligned. Catch Vasco's interview with this trailblazing CTPO in the show notes to explore how this innovative approach is reshaping their organization. A Wish for 2025: Common Rooms, Not Walls “Product and Engineering are like coffee and milk – different, but together they make something special.” Vasco's vision for 2025 is a world where Product and Engineering work side-by-side in shared spaces of collaboration and value creation. He calls for a shift from siloed teams to integrated partnerships where both groups speak the same language – the language of value and impact. The companies that embrace this shift will be the leaders of tomorrow, delivering innovation at the speed of market change. Join the Conversation at the Global Agile Summit 2025 “Innovation flows as freely as coffee at a developer conference when Product and Engineering collaborate.” Vasco invites listeners to experience this transformation firsthand at the Global Agile Summit 2025 in Tallinn, Estonia. The summit will showcase real-world examples of organizations successfully adopting flow-based software delivery. For holiday listeners, Vasco has a special gift: a Super Early Bird ticket with a 75% discount. Visit GlobalAgileSummit.com to grab your ticket and see what the future of software development looks like. About Vasco Duarte Vasco Duarte is a thought leader in the Agile space, co-founder of Agile Finland, and host of the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast, which has over 10 million downloads. Author of NoEstimates: How To Measure Project Progress Without Estimating, Vasco is a sought-after speaker and consultant helping organizations embrace Agile practices to achieve business success. You can link with Vasco Duarte on LinkedIn.

IN THIS EPISODE...Meet Frank Gartland, Chief Product & Technology Officer at Skillable, a visionary leader passionate about fostering meaningful organizational culture and delivering customer-centric products. He excels in team collaboration, strategic planning, and driving innovation. Frank thrives on mentoring others, aligning purpose with core values, and empowering individuals to reach their potential through impactful contributions.This conversation highlights Skillable's focus on hands-on learning, its role in building confidence through real-world experiences, and its client applications. Frank discusses his responsibilities, the balance between innovation and customer needs, AI integration, and the importance of clarity, collaboration, and meaningful contributions in driving Skillable's product strategy and leadership approach.------------Full show notes, guest bio, links to resources mentioned, and other compelling episodes can be found at http://LeadYourGamePodcast.com. (Click the magnifying icon at the top right and type “Frank”)Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share! Learn more about us! https://shockinglydifferent.com/-------------WHAT TO LISTEN FOR:1. What does Skillable focus on to enhance learning experiences?2. Who are some of Skillable's notable clients?3. How does Skillable help build confidence in learning?4. What are Frank's responsibilities as Chief Technology and Product Officer?5. How does Skillable balance customer requests with development priorities?6. What challenges does Frank face in communication within his role?7. How does AI impact Skillable's product strategy?8. What concerns does Frank have about Skillable's organizational strategy?9. What is Frank's "lamp to your feet strategy"?10. How does Skillable ensure that hands-on work is validated?------------FEATURED TIMESTAMPS:[03:25] Personal Life and Family[04:51] Overview of Skillable and Its Services[06:24] Examples of Skillable's Client Usage[10:22] Frank's Role and Responsibilities[12:49] Balancing Customer Requests and Development[16:27] Signature Segment: Frank's entry into the LATTOYG Playbook: A Day in the Life of a CTO[20:16] Impact of AI on Skillable's Product Strategy[25:40] Concerns and Future Focus[28:33] Signature Segment: Frank's LATTOYG Tactic of Choice: Leading with Courageous Agility[32:40] Frank's Contact Information------------ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR YOU:Overview: Our Signature Leadership Development Experience: http://bit.ly/DevelopYourGame

Nabil Bukhari, Chief Technology & Product Officer and General Manager of Subscriptions at Extreme Networks, joins host Maryfran Johnson for this CIO Leadership Live interview. They discuss adopting an 'ARC' approach to AI rollouts, three ways to evaluate vendor platform pitches, why frameworks really matter (but processes don't), and how to think like a futurist on IT talent. This episode is sponsored by Extreme Networks, a leader in AI-driven cloud networking, focused on delivering simple and secure connectivity between devices, applications, and users. Find out more at Extreme Networks.com.

Robin Daniels is on the Product Thinking Podcast to discuss how it's possible to transform working cultures through the careful construction of a supportive community atmosphere. Robin, Chief Business and Product Officer at Zensai, explains to Melissa Perri how his remarkable journey through product management and marketing across leading tech companies like Salesforce and LinkedIn has led him to where he is today. The pair ponder the question of what sparks joy in a corporate setting, and they discuss how a weekly check-in system that promotes self-reflection among employees is a far more functional system than the outmoded annual performance review method of performance management. Tune in to discover Robin's insights on driving growth through product-led strategies and the evolving landscape of product management.

Join Host Mike Merril as he interviews CTO and Product Officer at Basys Chris Borchers and Executive Vice President of Partner Relations at Basys Kenny Thompson. They discuss the intricacies of payment processing systems and how businesses — especially in the construction industry — can save on fees and streamline their payment operations. They'll dive into the steps involved in credit card processing, the evolution of payment technology and specific challenges faced by the construction sector. They also emphasize the importance of security measures like multi-factor authentication and PCI compliance.  Key Takeaways  • Explore the detailed steps involved in credit card processing, from the issuance of cards to the final funding stages. • Discover how businesses can achieve cost savings through the optimization of their payment processing systems. • Understand how Basys's high Net Promoter Score (NPS) significantly enhances customer retention efforts. • Learn the importance of seamlessly integrating payment systems with overall business operations. • Discover how to implement critical security measures such as Multi-Factor Authentication

Ryan interviews Robin Daniels, the Chief Business and Product Officer at Zensei. Robin shares his wealth of experience as a CMO and CPO, discussing how AI can impact human transformation and how Zensei's Human Success Platform leverages AI to empower individuals to reach their full potential.  Join 2,500+ readers getting weekly practical guidance to scale themselves and their companies using Artificial Intelligence and Revenue Cheat Codes.   Explore becoming Superhuman here: https://superhumanrevenue.beehiiv.com/ KEY TAKEAWAYS Zensei's mission is to empower individuals to be the best version of themselves through their human success platform, leveraging AI to guide personal and professional development. By creating emotional connections and standing for something, B2B companies can create a strong brand identity that resonates with customers and drives loyalty. Zensei's decision to standardize on Microsoft's platform has led to faster time to value, tighter integration, and benefits from platform upgrades. AI can be used to analyze data points and patterns to guide individuals on their career paths, helping them set goals, learn new skills, and stay engaged. Leveraging Microsoft's massive distribution network has been a strategic advantage for Zensei, allowing for easy adoption and implementation for their customers. BEST MOMENTS "I love the mission of what we're trying to do. We basically want to change the way that companies think about getting the best out of their people. We call this 'human success'." "The more we know about you and what you care about, the more we can guide you, meaning AI can guide you, and we use Microsoft AI in our products to do that." "I think in my experience, the brands that have done well have courage, conviction, and a point of view. And I think it's very rare to find that honestly in the B2B world." "It's so impressive what they've done. I mean, talking that much for water, it's not cheap. And it's just water. It's freaking water." Ryan Staley Founder and CEO Whale Boss ryan@whalesellingsystem.com www.ryanstaley.ioSaas, Saas growth, Scale, Business Growth, B2b Saas, Saas Sales, Enterprise Saas, Business growth strategy, founder, ceo: https://www.whalesellingsystem.com/closingsecrets

In this podcast episode, Dr. Jonathan H. Westover talks with Pam Cohen, PhD about AI and measuring workforce sentiment from external sources and data sets, to find patterns that impact business and reputation. Pam Cohen (https://www.linkedin.com/in/pamelacohenzionts/), PhD  is Chief Research and Product Officer, Aniline. Pam is a behavioral scientist with interests and expertise in creating opportunities for social impact in corporations. She has a proven track record of driving transformative insights across diverse sectors using predictive analytics that link back to bottom line performance for organizations. With extensive experience spanning think tanks, leading consultancies, and corporate environments, her expertise is in qualitative research, survey methodologies, analytics, and predictive modeling. Particular areas of focus have been people analytics; understanding how organizations can better care for their employees, with a particular emphasis on women, moms, families and creating better environments and cultures for work-life integration. Here work empowers organizations with actionable insights that drive strategic decision-making and foster meaningful impact.  Check out all of the podcasts in the HCI Podcast Network! Check out the ⁠HCI Academy⁠: Courses, Micro-Credentials, and Certificates to Upskill and Reskill for the Future of Work! Check out the LinkedIn ⁠Alchemizing Human Capital⁠ Newsletter. Check out Dr. Westover's book, ⁠The Future Leader⁠. Check out Dr. Westover's book, ⁠'Bluer than Indigo' Leadership⁠. Check out Dr. Westover's book, ⁠The Alchemy of Truly Remarkable Leadership⁠. Check out the latest issue of the ⁠Human Capital Leadership magazine⁠. Each HCI Podcast episode (Program, ID No. 655967) has been approved for 0.50 HR (General) recertification credit hours toward aPHR™, aPHRi™, PHR®, PHRca®, SPHR®, GPHR®, PHRi™ and SPHRi™ recertification through HR Certification Institute® (HRCI®). Each HCI Podcast episode (Program ID: 24-DP529) has been approved for 0.50 HR (General) SHRM Professional Development Credits (PDCs) for SHRM-CP and SHRM-SCPHR recertification through SHRM, as part of the knowledge and competency programs related to the SHRM Body of Applied Skills and Knowledge™ (the SHRM BASK™). Human Capital Innovations has been pre-approved by the ATD Certification Institute to offer educational programs that can be used towards initial eligibility and recertification of the Certified Professional in Talent Development (CPTD) and Associate Professional in Talent Development (APTD) credentials. Each HCI Podcast episode qualifies for a maximum of 0.50 points.