Podcasts about tech leaders

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Vijay Rajendran, investor and venture builder at gAI Ventures, UC Berkeley instructor, and author of the bestselling book The Funding Framework. Vijay brings a deeply grounded perspective on how the next generation of AI companies will actually be built, not through hype or speed alone, but through domain expertise, thoughtful leadership, and disciplined execution.The conversation explores why domain experts now have a growing advantage over pure technologists, how venture studios are evolving in an AI-first world, and what truly separates fundable AI startups from products that will be replaced by the next model release. Vijay shares insights from working with hundreds of founders, including why verticalized AI, workflow integration, and right-sized markets matter more than ever.They also dive into leadership transitions founders must make, common early-stage execution mistakes, and why fundraising is far more about listening than pitching. Drawing from his own journey as a founder and investor, Vijay emphasizes customer empathy, coachability, and falling in love with the problem rather than the solution. This episode is a must-listen for founders, operators, and tech leaders building durable companies in the age of AI.TakeawaysFounders are often poor predictors of which startups will succeed, even within their own cohorts.Exceptional companies start with a “secret” insight about how an industry truly works.Domain expertise is becoming more valuable than pure technical skill as AI commoditizes development.The strongest AI startups are verticalized and embedded directly into existing workflows.Markets should be big enough to matter, but small enough that Big Tech won't prioritize them.AI creates leverage by removing tedious work and amplifying human judgment and relationships.“Rip and replace” products face long sales cycles; bolt-on tools win faster adoption.Early traction can be misleading. Durable demand matters more than initial excitement.Founders must shift from doing everything to enabling others as the company grows.Fundraising success comes from dialogue and listening, not perfect pitch decks.Coachability and customer empathy are long-term founder advantages.The best founders fall in love with the problem, not their first solution.Chapters00:00 The Future of AI Startups02:00 What Predicts Founder Success04:30 Domain Experts vs. Technologists07:00 Where AI Is Creating Real Value10:30 Using AI to Free Humans13:00 What Makes an AI Idea Defensible17:00 How Modern Venture Studios Operate22:00 Choosing the Right Technical Partner27:30 Founder Mindset Shifts29:30 Common Early-Stage Mistakes33:00 Rethinking Fundraising41:00 Underrated AI Opportunities45:00 One Message for FoundersVijay Rajendran's Social Media Links:https://www.linkedin.com/in/vijayarajendran/The Funding Framework: Secure Startup Funding With Confidencehttps://a.co/d/jlwaiNvResources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

Discover the inspiring tech journey of Chirag Agrawal, a seasoned AI platform builder and tech leader based in Seattle, in this episode of "The Brand Called You." Host Ashutosh Garg interviews Chirag about his early curiosity for computer science, building innovative AI solutions, working with Amazon Alexa, and his philosophy on platform leverage, ethics, and democratizing AI development. Chirag shares practical wisdom for developers, explores the economics of open source vs proprietary AI models, and looks ahead to the future of agentic systems. Whether you're an aspiring developer, tech enthusiast, or just curious about the evolution of AI, this episode unpacks critical lessons and trends shaping the future.

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Allison Shapira, a Harvard faculty member, global keynote speaker, former opera singer turned communication expert, and author of AI for the Authentic Leader. Together, they explore what it truly means to lead with authenticity, clarity, and energy in an era shaped by artificial intelligence and constant uncertainty.Allison shares her journey from the world of opera to advising executives, founders, and government leaders under intense pressure. She breaks down why perfection is the enemy of progress, how clarity now matters more than certainty, and why leaders must shift from having all the answers to guiding through uncertainty with confidence.The conversation dives deep into the role AI plays in leadership communication. Rather than replacing authenticity, Allison argues AI can actually strengthen it when used in alignment with personal values. She also issues a powerful warning about the rise of “superhuman persuasion” and why transparency and ethical boundaries are essential.From creating psychological safety in high-stakes environments to navigating vulnerability at the executive level, this episode delivers a masterclass in modern leadership communication. It is an essential listen for tech leaders, founders, and executives navigating the future of work.TakeawaysThe future of leadership will reward clarity over certainty as change accelerates.Perfection blocks connection; authentic imperfection builds trust.Leaders must move beyond rehearsed talking points and speak from genuine belief.Asking “Why you?” unlocks deeper purpose and more powerful communication.Public speaking is any moment with one or more people, not just stages.Psychological safety starts when leaders model vulnerability first.AI can either outsource your voice or amplify your best self depending on how it is used.True authenticity means acting in alignment with your values, not avoiding tools.Sending AI tools into meetings may create a “Big Brother” effect that limits openness.AI is becoming more persuasive than humans, which raises ethical risks.The ACE Model (Authenticity, Clarity, Energy) is the foundation of effective leadership communication.Pausing between meetings and resetting emotional energy is a leadership skill, not a luxury.Chapters00:00 The Future of Leadership, AI, and Authenticity02:00 From Opera Singer to Leadership Communication Expert04:30 Why Perfection Holds Leaders Back06:50 The “Why You” Framework for Powerful Messaging08:30 Communication Breakdowns in High-Pressure Environments10:20 Clarity Over Certainty in Modern Leadership14:10 Creating Psychological Safety at the Top18:30 Career Epiphany and Walking Away from Prestige24:00 Can AI Make Leaders More Authentic?30:00 Should Leaders Send AI to Meetings?35:00 Why AI Won't Actually Give You More Free Time38:40 The Rise of Superhuman Persuasion44:00 The ACE Model: Authenticity, Clarity, Energy48:00 Energy, Introverts, and Speaking With Intention51:20 Books, Podcasts, and Where to Find Allison's Work52:40 Final Thoughts and Closing Remarks Allison Shapira's Social Media Links:https://www.linkedin.com/in/allisonshapirahttps://www.youtube.com/@AllisonShapiraResources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Tamara Laine, investigative journalist turned two-time tech founder and the CEO and co-founder of MPWR. Tamara brings a rare blend of storytelling, emotional intelligence, and problem-spotting instincts into the world of AI and financial innovation — and in this conversation, she unpacks how those experiences shape the products she builds today.Tamara shares how her investigative background sharpened her ability to dig into root problems, challenge assumptions, and uncover overlooked patterns — skills she now uses to design user-centric, AI-powered solutions for financial inclusion. She opens up about the realities of being a gig worker, the challenges Gen Z faces in accessing credit, and how the traditional banking world is struggling to adapt to a rapidly changing workforce.The episode dives deep into EQ-driven leadership, ethical AI, community as a modern moat, and the rise of low-code tools that are simultaneously empowering founders while making markets noisier than ever. Tamara's insights on responsible innovation, founder resilience, and building tech that actually solves human problems make this a powerful, thought-provoking conversation for today's leaders.TakeawaysInvestigative journalism taught Tamara to identify real problems, ask better questions, and challenge assumptions — essential skills for founders.Curiosity is becoming a competitive advantage in tech, not just a personality trait.Emotional intelligence is now a top leadership skill, especially as AI automates more of our operational workload.Storytelling begins with user journeys — not marketing — and should guide product design from day one.Founders must actively seek blunt feedback and treat it as a gift, not a threat.Market gaps aren't always opportunities — sometimes human behavior simply won't change.AI can create incredible value, but without ethical leadership and diverse teams, it can also reinforce harmful biases.Financial systems haven't evolved fast enough for gig workers and Gen Z borrowers — creating a massive unmet need.Empower was built as an end-to-end solution bridging lenders and borrowers through AI-driven financial fluency and credit modeling.The funding landscape now demands MVPs and traction early, making deep-tech innovation harder but still deeply needed.Chapters00:00 Welcome & Introduction01:20 From Investigative Journalism to Tech03:00 Curiosity as a Founder Superpower05:30 Market Fit, Behavior Change & Category Creation07:40 Storytelling as the Foundation of Product Design10:15 User Journeys, “Falling in Love with the Problem”12:20 The Power of Blunt Feedback in Early-Stage Building15:00 Parenting, Curiosity & Emotional Intelligence17:45 Why EQ Matters More Than Ever in the Age of AI20:20 Ethical AI, Bias, and Leadership Responsibility24:00 Financial Access, Gig Workers & the Modern Workforce27:10 How Gen Z Borrows Differently30:00 The Lender Perspective & Market Validation31:55 Fundraising Realities: Money vs. Strategic Money34:20 Noise in the AI Era & The Challenge of Differentiation36:00 Moats, LLMs & Building What Can't Be Easily Copied37:10 Community as a Strategic Advantage38:40 Founder Fears: Funding Markets & Deep Tech41:30 Biggest Founder Aha Moments42:20 Book Recommendation: Outcomes Over Output43:00 Connect with Tamara & Closing ThoughtsTamara Laine's Social Media Link:https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamaralaine/Resources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

Season 6 | Episode 16In this powerful episode of Badassery Life, Kelly sits down with Linda Calvin, a national tech leader, attorney, storyteller, mentor, and fierce advocate for women and Black leaders in tech. She's also a survivor of childhood trauma and she's boldly telling that story.Her journey is layered — growing up as the only Black child in a white family, surviving childhood sexual abuse, learning early to shrink, silence, and compartmentalize herself just to make it through.But Linda didn't stay in those shadows.Inspired by a single hour of escape each week — Star Trek — she began imagining bigger worlds and eventually stepped into her own. Today she's a VP in higher education, a writer, a leader, and a woman learning every day that she matters.This conversation is raw, real, courageous — and full of hope.

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Melanie Nabar, Vice President at Volition Capital, to uncover what truly makes a company fundable—and what silently kills deals. With a background in growth-stage investing, Melanie brings sharp insight into founder dynamics, product-market fit, and the capital efficiency required to scale in today's AI-driven market.They dive deep into the evolving expectations of Series A investors, the dangers of inflated valuations, and why product obsession without go-to-market focus can quietly drain a startup's future. Melanie breaks down how founders should assess investor psychology, decode fund structures, and strategically use secondary offerings to de-risk personal financials without sacrificing long-term upside.This episode is packed with insights on revenue quality, building moats in the AI age, and how bootstrapped founders can shift their mindset to deploy capital more effectively. Whether you're preparing to raise capital or already navigating the growth phase, Melanie delivers actionable advice with clarity and candor.TakeawaysFounders often focus too much on historical data when investors are more interested in future growth and market potential.Series A investors prioritize product-market fit, retention, and scalable go-to-market motion—not just ARR.High valuations without the fundamentals to back them can kill deals and erode trust.Revenue quality (repeatability, margin, and retention) plays a bigger role in valuation than founders often realize.Many founders burn too much capital on product without clear customer validation or ROI.Bootstrapped companies often hesitate to spend even when it's time to scale; this can stall growth.Churn and gross margin are key indicators for distinguishing real AI products from hype.Companies integrated into user workflows and habits are harder to replace and more defensible.Founders should evaluate VC fund structure, vintage, and portfolio psychology—not just the check size.Taking secondary in a raise can de-risk founders personally and improve long-term decision-making.Pattern recognition and experience on the board matter more than niche industry knowledge post-seed.The best outcomes don't always require billion-dollar exits; responsible growth can still yield generational wealth.Chapters00:00 – The biggest mistake founders make when fundraising01:15 – What makes a company fundable at Series A04:45 – Why overhyping numbers kills trust and credibility09:15 – Understanding revenue quality and valuation11:30 – How 2021 broke capital efficiency—and what's changed since16:00 – Deal-killers and how unrealistic expectations derail good companies20:00 – Smart capital deployment: where investors want to see money go24:00 – Why founder secondaries are on the rise—and when they make sense27:45 – How bootstrapped founders can shift from hoarding to strategic investment33:10 – AI moats: what's truly defensible and what's hype39:20 – Questions founders must ask before taking VC money45:30 – How fund size and check size impact founder support50:40 – The difference between VC, growth equity, and PE—and why it matters Melanie Nabar's Social Media Link:https://www.linkedin.com/in/melaniejordannabar/Melanie Nabar's Website Link:https://www.volitioncapital.com/team/melanie-nabar/Resources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

Dal caos dei fogli sparsi alla potenza dei dati in tempo reale.In questa puntata di Pionieri del Tech scopriamo il percorso di trasformazione di Umberto Cinquegrana, imprenditore dell'arredamento che ha ribaltato un modello operativo tradizionale, centralizzato il business attraverso un gestionale avanzato e reso scalabile un settore storicamente artigianale.Parliamo di come si passa da processi manuali a un modello data-driven capace di governare vendite, magazzino, post-vendita e performance dei negozi fisici in tempo reale.E soprattutto di come un settore considerato “lento” può diventare veloce, replicabile, intelligente.Una storia che dimostra come la tecnologia non sia solo software: è una mentalità.

Greg Brady spoke with Amber Mac, The AmberMac Show podcast about Tech leaders at Toronto conference downplay warnings of AI ‘bubble' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This interview was recorded at GOTO Copenhagen 2024.https://gotocph.comRuss Olsen - Author of "Getting Clojure" & "Eloquent Ruby"James Lewis - Software Architect & Director at ThoughtworksRESOURCESRusshttps://bsky.app/profile/russolsen.bsky.socialhttps://hachyderm.io/@russolsenhttps://github.com/russolsenhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/russolsenhttp://russolsen.comJameshttps://bsky.app/profile/boicy.bovon.orghttps://linkedin.com/in/james-lewis-microserviceshttps://github.com/boicyhttps://www.bovon.orgRead the full abstract here:https://gotocph.com/2024/sessions/3522RECOMMENDED BOOKSRuss Olsen • Getting Clojure • https://amzn.to/3J8zI8sRuss Olsen • Eloquent Ruby • https://amzn.to/37gOhcGRuss Olsen • Design Patterns in Ruby • https://amzn.to/3r2uBjWBarry O'Reilly • Unlearn • https://amzn.to/3O3DQeIJez Humble, Joanne Molesky & Barry O'Reilly • Lean Enterprise • https://amzn.to/3Cpt6ETSarah Wells • Enabling Microservice Success • https://amzn.to/4aa8xrvMartin Fowler • Refactoring • https://amzn.to/3EVcHXQMatthew Skelton & Manuel Pais • Team Topologies • http://amzn.to/3sVLyLQInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyBlueskyTwitterInstagramLinkedInFacebookCHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUSJoin this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/joinLooking for a unique learning experience?Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket: gotopia.techSUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL - new videos posted daily!

In this episode of the Shift AI Podcast, Alvin Graylin, Digital Fellow at Stanford's Institute for Human-Centered AI and creator of the Abundantism framework, joins host Boaz Ashkenazy for a bold and wide-ranging conversation on the future of AI and humanity. With a background that spans investing, international leadership, and advanced academic research, Alvin offers a rare, global lens on how we can — and must — steer AI toward positive societal outcomes.Together, Boaz and Alvin explore three potential AI futures — from Mad Max to Star Trek — and discuss how we can avoid a descent into dystopia by reframing our economic systems, rethinking employment, and redefining human value. The conversation touches on the AI Bill of Rights, the risks of sovereign “gladiator AIs,” and how a new GI Bill for the AI age could help millions transition into a post-labor economy.If you're curious about AI's geopolitical risks, employment disruption, or how we might architect a truly abundant society, this is an essential listen.Chapters[01:55] Alvin Graylin's Background: Stanford, XR, Global Ventures [05:13] Why the Next 5–10 Years Matter for Humanity [08:04] The Three Futures: Mad Max, Elysium, and Star Trek [13:33] “Winning the Wrong Race” — The AGI Race and Policy Pitfalls [17:02] The Real Threat: Bad Actors and Rogue AI Use [18:40] AI and the Collapse of Traditional Employment [20:39] What 15–25% Unemployment Could Mean for Society [23:02] The AI Bill of Rights and the Need for New Protections [27:10] Surveillance, Data, and Manipulation Risks [29:52] From Scarcity to Abundantism: The Shift in Mindset [32:40] Guardian AI vs Gladiator AI: What We Should Be Building [35:04] The GI Bill for the AI Age and the Need for Soft Landings [42:03] Start / Stop / Keep: Alvin's Advice to Tech Leaders [45:49] Redefining Value: The Two Words That Shape the FutureConnect with Alvin GraylinLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/agraylin/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/agraylinConnect with Boaz AshkenazyLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/boazashkenazy Email: info@shiftai.fmThe Shift AI Podcast is syndicated by Geekwire and produced by Crumpled Ink Media. Special thanks to Augmented AI Labs and Clause for sponsoring this episode.

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan welcomes back bestselling author and communication expert Chris Fenning, whose latest book Effective Meetings offers leaders a refreshingly simple framework to cut meeting time by 30% or more. Chris unpacks the hidden cost of poorly-run meetings—billions in wasted dollars, lost morale, and decision fatigue—and explains why the real issue is a lack of training, not bad intentions. Together, Avetis and Chris break down the deceptively powerful TPO method (Topic, Purpose, Output), showing leaders how to transform recurring time drains into high-impact, action-oriented conversations.From the pitfalls of daily stand-ups to the myth of the “must-attend” calendar invite, Chris shares real-world stories, practical examples, and organizational case studies (like Shopify's Chaos Monkey) that show how eliminating unnecessary meetings isn't just possible—it's urgent. Whether you're a startup founder drowning in back-to-back Zooms or a Fortune 30 exec looking to sharpen your team's focus, this episode is packed with actionable advice you can apply today.TakeawaysTPO (Topic, Purpose, Output) is the foundational framework for running effective meetings.A meeting invite with no context is like a court summons—rude and unproductive.The #1 reason meetings fail? Lack of a clear purpose—not missing agendas.“No agenda, no attendance" is a viable policy to filter out low-value invites.Recurring meetings often lose relevance over time—reevaluate them regularly.Many meetings should be emails—ask if the meeting requires real-time, multi-person input.Decision-making meetings must include actual decision-makers or become planning sessions.Multitasking in meetings is usually a sign people shouldn't be there or are disengaged.The “Inverse Time Rule”: if a topic only affects a few people, it should take minimal time.Leaders should experiment: cut one-hour weeklies to bi-weeklies and watch productivity rise.Post-meeting follow-ups are faster and clearer when the output is clearly defined.Clarity is leadership—clear asks beat backstories and long-winded explanations.Chapters00:00 – Intro: The Meeting Problem01:30 – Why Most Meetings Fail03:15 – Topic, Purpose, Output (TPO) Framework06:00 – Writing Better Meeting Invites08:00 – The Power of Saying No to Bad Meetings10:00 – Recurring Meetings: Fix or Kill Them11:45 – When a Meeting Shouldn't Be a Meeting17:00 – How to Restructure Recurring Meetings21:00 – Real Case Study: Cutting Meetings at Scale25:00 – The Truth About Daily Stand-Ups27:00 – TPO in Action: Before, During, and After31:00 – AI's Role in Meeting Efficiency33:00 – Why Clarity is the Cornerstone of Leadership35:00 – Helping Others Get to the Point Faster42:00 – Goal, Problem, Solution: The Efficient Ask45:00 – Why Experts Often Over-Explain48:00 – What's Changed Since Chris's First Book49:30 – Favorite Book Recommendation: The Culture Map51:00 – Final Thoughts & Call to ActionChris Fenning's Social Media Link:https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-fenning/Chris Fenning's Website Link:https://chrisfenning.com/Resources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

professorjrod@gmail.comThe everyday internet feels effortless, but behind every click lives a maze of services quietly doing the heavy lifting. I pull back the curtain on the systems that make your workday possible—file shares that just appear on your desktop, printers that hum along until a 200‑page PDF wrecks the queue, and the alphabet soup of protocols that move data safely and fast.We start with the essentials: SMB and Samba for file and print, why SFTP on port 22 beats FTP for modern transfers, and how relational databases differ from NoSQL when your needs shift from consistent records to massive logs. From there we head to the browser, unpacking HTTPS, TLS, and certificates so you know what that lock icon actually guarantees. Email gets its due too: SMTP for sending, IMAP for syncing, and the trio of SPF, DKIM, and DMARC that keeps phishing at bay.Security and scale meet in the middle with proxy servers, spam gateways, and Unified Threat Management devices that filter, inspect, and sandbox threats before users ever see them. Then we look at load balancers that keep portals alive at peak times, plus the messy reality of legacy systems that refuse to retire. We don't ignore the industrial world—embedded devices, ICS, and SCADA that run utilities and factories—where one misstep can ripple beyond a single office.Troubleshooting ties it all together. I share real stories and checklists for wired faults, slow networks, Wi‑Fi ghosts caused by microwave ovens, and VoIP glitches fixed with QoS and VLANs. You'll leave with practical ways to spot the root cause fast, confidence with ports and protocols, and a clearer map of the services that keep everything running.If you learned something useful, follow the show, share this episode with a teammate, and leave a quick review to help others find us. Got a strange network mystery you solved? Send it my way and we'll feature the best ones next time.Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

This interview was recorded for GOTO Unscripted.https://gotopia.techJessica Kerr - Engineering Manager of Developer Relation at Honeycomb.io & SymmathecistDiana Montalion - Systems Architect, Mentrix Founder & Author of "Learning Systems Thinking"RESOURCESJessicahttps://bsky.app/profile/jessitron.bsky.socialhttps://linkedin.com/in/jessicakerrhttps://www.twitch.tv/jessitronicahttps://jessitron.comDianahttps://bsky.app/profile/dianamontalion.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/dianamontalionhttps://montalion.comhttps://learningsystemsthinking.comDESCRIPTIONSystems architect Diana Montalion and engineering manager Jessica Kerr cut through the AI coding hype to explore what these tools actually do well - and where they have room for improvement. Moving beyond the "AI will replace developers" narrative, they reveal how AI assistants excel at the tedious work of typing, scaffolding, and error handling while remaining surprisingly bad at the nuanced thinking that experienced developers bring to complex systems.Their discussion illuminates a more mature relationship with AI tools: one where developers maintain agency over design decisions while leveraging AI's strengths in automation, synthesis, and rapid prototyping. The result is a pragmatic roadmap for using AI to amplify human expertise rather than replace it.RECOMMENDED BOOKSDiana Montalion • Learning Systems Thinking • https://amzn.to/3ZpycdJAndrew Harmel-Law • Facilitating Software Architecture • https://amzn.eu/d/5kZKVfUDonella H. Meadows • Thinking in Systems • https://amzn.to/3XtqYCVYu-kai Chou • Actionable Gamification • https://amzn.to/45D8bHAInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyBlueskyTwitterInstagramLinkedInFacebookCHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUSJoin this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/joinLooking for a unique learning experience?Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket: gotopia.techSUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL - new videos posted daily!

Send us a textWe trace how cyber policy tries to catch up with fast-moving threats, from decades-old laws to a new push for offensive capabilities. Along the way, we unpack what real resilience looks like for SMEs, critical infrastructure, and the talent pipeline that holds it all together.• Verona's route from public policy to cybersecurity• Why slow law and fast threats collide• Updating the Computer Misuse Act and research protections• Offensive cyber, deterrence, and ethical guardrails• Zero days, decision latency, and operational windows• SMEs and supply chains as systemic risk• Secure by design and secure by default at scale• State cyber reserves and public–private secondments• Talent gaps, pay gaps, and global accreditation• EU and UK moves to standardize skills and tighten rules• Government roles in funding, convening, and capability buildingFind Verona on LinkedIn: Verona Johnstone Hulse. Read NCC Group's Global Cyber Policy Radar on the NCC Group website or via Verona's LinkedIn postsInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showFollow the Podcast on Social Media! Tesla Referral Code: https://ts.la/joseph675128 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@securityunfilteredpodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/secunfpodcast/Twitter: https://twitter.com/SecUnfPodcast Affiliates➡️ OffGrid Faraday Bags: https://offgrid.co/?ref=gabzvajh➡️ OffGrid Coupon Code: JOE➡️ Unplugged Phone: https://unplugged.com/Unplugged's UP Phone - The performance you expect, with the privacy you deserve. Meet the alternative. Use Code UNFILTERED at checkout*See terms and conditions at affiliated webpages. Offers are subject to change. These are affiliated/paid promotions.

This interview was recorded for GOTO Unscripted.https://gotopia.techRead the full transcription of this interview here:https://gotopia.tech/articles/388Meri Williams - CTO at Pleo & Advisor at Skiller Whale & Kindred CapitalCharles Humble - Freelance Techie, Podcaster, Editor, Author & ConsultantRESOURCESMerihttps://x.com/Geek_Managerhttps://github.com/geekmanagerhttp://blog.geekmanager.co.ukCharleshttps://bsky.app/profile/charleshumble.bsky.socialhttps://mastodon.social/@charleshumblehttps://conissaunce.comLinkshttps://blog.container-solutions.com/managing-remote-teams-in-scaling-organisationsDESCRIPTIONJoin us in a conversation with Meri Williams, an experienced CTO who has led technology teams from 30 to 300 people across organizations.In this candid discussion, Meri shares their journey from reluctant manager to seasoned leader, revealing hard-won insights about scaling teams, avoiding the "Google trap" of copying big tech practices inappropriately, and why investing in onboarding can make or break your organization.With refreshing honesty about management mistakes and the ongoing importance of diversity in building products that serve everyone, this conversation offers practical wisdom for anyone navigating the world of tech leadership.RECOMMENDED BOOKSMeri Williams • The Principles of Project Management • https://amzn.to/4lj5B1GTom DeMarco & Tim Lister • Peopleware • https://amzn.to/3KJmFOqMarcus Buckingham & Gallup Organization • First, Break All the Rules • https://amzn.to/40xpppIDaniel H. Pink • Drive: The SurpriInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Canada NowBold ideas with the people shaping Canada's next chapter.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyBlueskyTwitterInstagramLinkedInFacebookCHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUSJoin this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/joinLooking for a unique learning experience?Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket: gotopia.techSUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL - new videos posted daily!

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Valerie Jackson — Harvard College and Georgetown Law alum, former securities lawyer turned C-suite people leader — to explore what it really takes to scale companies without breaking leaders or culture. Valerie traces her journey from advising public companies and serving at the U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board to building one of the first law-firm diversity departments and leading people operations across VC-backed rockets, public SaaS, and PE-owned businesses. Together they unpack human-centered leadership, the mechanics of burnout (as recognized by the WHO), and why self-work is often the hardest part of scaling. Valerie shares practical tools — from 360s, “powerful partnerships,” and time audits to managing brain chemistry — and makes a compelling case that AI should elevate people, not erase them, because nothing can replace a leader's “energetic signature.” The conversation closes with hard-won lessons on IPO vs. going private, PE vs. VC risk appetites, and Valerie's mantra: “Know your ripple.”TakeawaysGreat leadership starts with self-awareness. Learn yourself to lead others.Build “powerful partnerships”: pair visionary thinkers with linear operators.Align culture: what we say (cognitive) with how we behave (emotional).Use 360 feedback to surface blind spots with curiosity and humility.Burnout = exhaustion + inefficacy + cynicism. Address all three to recover.Run time audits to find your “golden ratio” of energizing vs draining work.Support brain chemistry intentionally: dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, endorphins.Keep AI human-centric. Technology should amplify people, not replace them.Design for tool obsolescence and misuse while protecting the humans.IPOs bring capital and scrutiny; going private can restore flexibility.PE and VC differ on time horizons, risk, and control expectations.Leader's billboard: “Know your ripple.” Be intentional about your impact.Chapters00:00 Intro and why human-centered leadership matters01:28 Meet Valerie Jackson: law to people leadership across stages03:25 Early diversity work and career inflection points05:10 Patterns across org models: partnership, VC, public, PE06:59 Visionary vs linear strengths and “powerful partnerships”08:51 Self-work as a prerequisite to leading others12:20 Culture alignment: words, behaviors, and trust17:29 Feedback that works: curiosity, humility, and 360s25:00 Burnout explained: exhaustion, inefficacy, cynicism32:31 Time audits and defining your “golden ratio”34:23 Brain chemistry levers for sustainable performance37:03 Delegate to elevate: designing roles around energy40:04 Keeping people at the center of AI43:11 The “energetic signature”: what AI cannot replace52:49 IPO tradeoffs and why some companies go private56:13 PE vs VC: incentives, timelines, and control1:03:09 Tools and books leaders actually use1:05:22 10X vs 2X: optimization vs transformation1:08:52 Billboard for leaders: “Know your ripple”1:11:19 Closing and take-home actionsValerie Jackson's Social Media Link:https://www.linkedin.com/in/vadjackson/Resources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

Do you tap "Accept" without reading subscriber agreements? Those long-winded documents can strip away your legal rights, and even hijack your face, your voice, and your life. Let's peek inside the dystopian world of Subscriber Agreements for streaming services and see what little goodies they hold for us.Netflix in Your Neighborhood Privacy PolicyNetflix Privacy PolicyDisney+ Subscriber AgreementDisney agrees to have Florida wrongful death lawsuit decided in courtWhat Do Consumers Understand About Predispute Arbitration Agreements? An Empirical InvestigationDisney wants to dismiss a wrongful death lawsuit because of a Disney Plus agreementSend us a textInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showJoin our Patreon to listen ad-free!

This interview was recorded for the GOTO Book Club.http://gotopia.tech/bookclubRead the full transcription of the interview here:https://gotopia.tech/episodes/393Victor Grazi - Oracle Java Champion & Co-Author of "Real-World Java"Jeanne Boyarsky - Oracle Java Champion, Co-Author of "Real-World Java" & "OCP 21 Java Cert Book"Barry Burd - Professor at Drew University, Owner at Burd Brain Consulting & Author of "Java for Dummies"RESOURCESVictorhttps://x.com/vgrazihttps://www.linkedin.com/in/victorgraziJeannehttps://bsky.app/profile/jeanneboyarsky.bsky.socialhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jeanne-boyarskyBarryhttps://x.com/allmycodehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/barry-burdLinkshttps://projectlombok.orghttps://www.selikoff.net/2014/12/07/why-i-like-regular-expressions-who-says-they-arent-readableDESCRIPTIONBarry interviews Victor and Jeanne  about their book "Real-World Java: Helping You Navigate the Java Ecosystem".Victor emphasizes that knowing how to use your development tools, particularly IDE refactoring features, is a better indicator of developer experience than algorithm tests.Rather than just teaching "hello world" examples, the authors focus on the essential ecosystem components needed to succeed in enterprise Java environments, making it accessible for anyone who knows the Java language but needs to understand the broader technological landscape they'll encounter in professional development roles. RECOMMENDED BOOKSVictor Grazi & Jeanne Boyarsky • Real-World Java • https://amzn.to/4oCEeBRJeanne Boyarsky &Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Canada NowBold ideas with the people shaping Canada's next chapter.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyBlueskyTwitterInstagramLinkedInFacebookCHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUSJoin this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/joinLooking for a unique learning experience?Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket: gotopia.techSUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL - new videos posted daily!

Send us a textWe explore why most breaches are identity failures and how to flip the model with hardware-backed, device-bound credentials that never move. Jason shares global threat trends, startup lessons, and a blueprint for preventing credential theft across people, agents, and machines.• life on the road, burnout signals and recovery• global threats to critical infrastructure and state actor pressure• startup culture, expectations and keeping teams healthy• Jason's path through engineering to entrepreneurship• identity's failure modes and why credentials are stolen• asymmetric, hardware-bound authentication and device posture• extending identity to agents, drones and satellites• cyber-physical risk and why finance invests heavily• identity as the universal control plane in cloud• practical steps to prevent session hijack and MFA fatigueConnect with Jason: “Hit me up on LinkedIn… our website, beyondidentity.com… even X”Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showFollow the Podcast on Social Media! Tesla Referral Code: https://ts.la/joseph675128 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@securityunfilteredpodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/secunfpodcast/Twitter: https://twitter.com/SecUnfPodcast Affiliates➡️ OffGrid Faraday Bags: https://offgrid.co/?ref=gabzvajh➡️ OffGrid Coupon Code: JOE➡️ Unplugged Phone: https://unplugged.com/Unplugged's UP Phone - The performance you expect, with the privacy you deserve. Meet the alternative. Use Code UNFILTERED at checkout*See terms and conditions at affiliated webpages. Offers are subject to change. These are affiliated/paid promotions.

This interview was recorded for the GOTO Book Club.Read the full transcription of the interview here:https://gotopia.tech/episodes/387Prof. Andreas Zeller - Faculty at CISPA Helmholtz Center for Information Security & Author of "The Debugging Book"Clare Sudbery - Independent Technical CoachRESOURCESAndreashttps://bsky.app/profile/andreaszeller.bsky.socialhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/andreaszellerhttps://andreas-zeller.infoClarehttps://bsky.app/profile/claresudbery.bsky.socialhttps://www.madetech.com/podcasthttps://insimpleterms.blogLinkshttps://www.debuggingbook.orghttps://github.com/uds-se/debuggingbookhttps://www.st.cs.uni-saarland.de/ddDESCRIPTIONProgramming education has a critical blind spot: while we extensively teach code creation, we barely scratch the surface of testing and give almost no attention to debugging—despite debugging consuming half of all software development time.In this conversation with Clare Sudbery, Prof. Andreas Zeller argues that systematic debugging skills and modern automated debugging tools are the "ugly stepchild" of programming that nobody wants to discuss, yet debugging represents the biggest business risk and time sink in software development.RECOMMENDED BOOKSAndreas Zeller • The Debugging Book • https://www.debuggingbook.orgSy Brand • Building a Debugger • https://amzn.to/4cWWr84Nora Sandler • Writing a C Compiler • https://amzn.to/3Z6SMhUInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyBlueskyTwitterInstagramLinkedInFacebookCHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUSJoin this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/joinLooking for a unique learning experience?Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket: gotopia.techSUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL - new videos posted daily!

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Erik Huberman, founder and CEO of Hawke Media, to unpack why the old marketing playbook is broken—and what actually scales in 2025. Erik shares how AI has collapsed the product moat, making distribution, brand, and go-to-market the real advantages. He explains the “vibe” behind breakout brands (think Liquid Death) and why software companies must now win on trust, positioning, and partnerships rather than feature lists. We dig into Hawke Media's early differentiation—“your outsourced CMO,” month-to-month flexibility, and a la carte services—and how credibility compounds through consistent standards, client communication, and third-party validation (PR as trust, not awareness). Erik also breaks down the myths of ROAS, how to measure what matters across sales cycles, and a pragmatic framework for investing in founders with an unfair advantage. Finally, he offers founder operating principles: build the company you want to run, avoid burnout and bad debt, and let culture be the brand customers experience. If you lead growth, run a services firm, or invest in SaaS, this is a tactical masterclass in cutting through noise and turning credibility into compounding results.TakeawaysAI shrinks product moats; distribution and GTM become the edge.90% should be scalable, repeatable marketing; 10% creative bets to stand out.Brand “vibe” creates defensibility—even for software—by signaling trust and values.Positioning that travels (“your outsourced CMO”) fuels word-of-mouth and referrals.PR is a **trust*asset more than awareness—turn third-party moments into ads.ROAS often lies; anchor to sales cycle, lifetime value, and full-funnel ROI.Think in “half-lives”: run long enough to see conversions, then optimize and wait again.Relationships and communication keep clients through dips; performance alone isn't enough.Niche vs. breadth: define ICP and messaging; teams can specialize without shrinking TAM.Use the Rule of 40 to balance profit and growth when setting spend.Investors should seek unfair advantages: embedded founders, ecosystem ties, real GTM.Founder principle: build for yourself; avoid debt/burnout—your ambition sets the ceiling.Chapters00:00 Intro and guest setup Erik Huberman and the new moat in an AI world04:20 Distribution, partnerships, and GTM as the unfair advantage08:05 Brand “vibe” and positioning that actually travels11:45 How Hawke Media stood out the outsourced CMO model21:30 The awareness → nurture → trust framework34:40 The ROAS trap and what to measure instead44:05 Spend strategy, Rule of 40, and scaling channels47:00 Sales-cycle “half-lives” and realistic ramp timelines48:45 Make-it-work mindset for leaders and marketers52:50 Investor lens embedded founders and unfair advantages58:21 Final takeaways and closeErik Huberman's Social Media Links:https://www.instagram.com/erikhubermanhttps://x.com/ErikHubermanhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/erikhuberman/Erik Huberman's Websites:https://erikhuberman.com/https://hawkemedia.com/Resources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

professorjrod@gmail.comEver wonder how your phone grabs an IP address the instant you join Wi‑Fi? We break down the invisible handshake that makes it happen: DORA. From discovery to acknowledgement, we map each step of the DHCP exchange, explain lease timers, and show how networks hand out addresses at scale without stepping on their own toes. Along the way, we share practical stories from classrooms, offices, and coffee shops that turn abstract packets into clear mental models.We go deeper than definitions. You'll learn how scopes shape address pools, why reservations keep printers stable, and how APIPA exposes broken paths with 169.254.x.x clues. In segmented environments, relays and the GIADDR field become the traffic cops that steer requests to the right subnet; misconfigure them and clients get stranded. Security gets real too: rogue DHCP can poison DNS, starvation floods can exhaust pools, and well‑meaning mesh gear can become a second server. We detail protective moves like DHCP snooping, port security, and rate limiting, plus how snooping's binding tables feed stronger Layer 2 defenses.Resilience matters, so we unpack failover strategies—hot standby, load balancing, and legacy split scopes—and the rich set of DHCP options that deliver DNS, NTP, TFTP, and VoIP boot settings. We also tackle IPv6 with a sober lens: where SLAAC fits, when DHCPv6 is still essential, and why economics slow change even as IPv4 addresses remain scarce. If you support users, we hand you a troubleshooting playbook: spot APIPA, check relays, expand scopes, and use ipconfig release/renew to solve issues methodically and ace help desk interviews.If this helped you see the network with new eyes, tap follow, share with a teammate, and leave a quick review. Got a DHCP puzzle or a rogue gear story? Send it our way and we might feature it next time.Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

This interview was recorded for the GOTO Book Club.http://gotopia.tech/bookclubRead the full transcription of the interview here:https://gotopia.tech/episodes/389Alessandro Colla - Partner & Head of Development at Evoluzione & Co-Author of "Domain-Driven Refactoring"Alberto Acerbis - Software Architect at Intré & Co-Author of "Domain-Driven Refactoring"Xin Yao - Independent Consultant Contextualizing DDD & Sociotechnical ArchitectureRESOURCESAlessandrohttps://www.linkedin.com/in/alessandrocollahttps://www.alessandrocolla.comAlbertohttps://www.linkedin.com/in/aacerbishttps://albertoacerbis.comXinhttps://bsky.app/profile/settling-mud.bsky.socialhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/xinxinLinkshttps://github.com/PacktPublishing/Domain-driven-Refactoringhttps://github.com/BrewUpDESCRIPTIONLegacy code isn't just old - it's a treasure chest of lost business knowledge waiting to be rediscovered. Alessandro Colla and Alberto Acerbis share their battle-tested approach to domain-driven refactoring, explaining why you should start with understanding the business problem before touching a single line of code. Like Michelangelo seeing the statue of David hidden in marble, they show how the right solution already exists within your legacy codebase—you just need the right tools and techniques to set it free.From event storming workshops over beer to modular monoliths as stepping stones, these "double-A battery" developers prove that thoughtful, incremental refactoring beats flashy microservices migrations every time.RECOMMENDED BOOKSColla & Acerbis • Domain-Driven Refactoring • https://amzn.to/3I3I7zfEvans • Domain-Driven Design • https://amzn.to/3tnGhwmVernon • Implementing Domain-Driven Design • https://amzn.to/44r39PBNilsson • Applying Domain-Driven Design and Patterns • https://amzn.to/3GoxYwInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyBlueskyTwitterInstagramLinkedInFacebookCHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUSJoin this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/joinLooking for a unique learning experience?Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket: gotopia.techSUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL - new videos posted daily!

Send us a textWe explore how to prepare for a post‑quantum world while dealing with today's outages and social engineering risks. From zero trust on satellites to multi‑region cloud design, we share practical ways to trade brittle efficiency for real resilience.• mapping careers toward emerging security domains• zero trust for satellites and patch constraints• harvest now decrypt later and crypto agility• early adopters of quantum‑resistant algorithms• futurist methods for security decision‑making• shifting from passwords to stronger credentials• efficiency versus resilience trade‑offs in cloud• lessons from government redundancy models• attack surface, attacker and defender effectiveness• deepfakes, social engineering, and process tripwires• practical controls like rotating passcodes and dual control• resources and where to find Heather's workPick up Heather's books and reach out if you wantInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showFollow the Podcast on Social Media! Tesla Referral Code: https://ts.la/joseph675128 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@securityunfilteredpodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/secunfpodcast/Twitter: https://twitter.com/SecUnfPodcast Affiliates➡️ OffGrid Faraday Bags: https://offgrid.co/?ref=gabzvajh➡️ OffGrid Coupon Code: JOE➡️ Unplugged Phone: https://unplugged.com/Unplugged's UP Phone - The performance you expect, with the privacy you deserve. Meet the alternative. Use Code UNFILTERED at checkout*See terms and conditions at affiliated webpages. Offers are subject to change. These are affiliated/paid promotions.

professorjrod@gmail.comA census solved with cardboard, a company remade by a $5 billion gamble, and a tiny firmware layer that cracked open the PC market—this is the human story behind how computing became a platform, not a product. We go from Hermann Hollerith's 1890 insight to IBM's sales-first system that taught the world to think in fields and records, and then to the cultural and ethical crosscurrents that come with scale. Those punched holes didn't just count people; they trained generations to quantify work, plan logistics, and make decisions with data.The narrative turns at a crossroads in the early 1960s. Thomas J. Watson Jr. sees a maze of incompatible machines and bets the company on a single, compatible architecture: System/360. It demanded new chips, code, factories, and nerve. Launch day lands with shock and relief—orders flood in for a family of computers that finally speak the same language. That choice redefined the industry's economics: software could live longer than hardware, upgrades didn't mean rewrites, and customers stopped fearing growth. Architecture became destiny, and IBM set the standard that everyone from Apple to ARM would later emulate in their own ecosystems.Then the stage shifts again to 1981, where a humble BIOS turns one machine into a platform. IBM documented how its firmware behaved; Compaq legally reimplemented it; the clone market ignited. Prices dropped, innovation surged, and the Wintel era took shape. IBM lost tight control but the world gained a common PC standard that carried software across brands and borders. From punch card schemas to UEFI, from batch jobs to cloud migrations, the same lesson repeats: design for compatibility, bet on continuity, and accept that openness can multiply impact.If the story made you think differently about the architecture beneath your apps and devices, follow the show, share it with a friend, and leave a review to help others find Technology Tap. What bold standard—or act of openness—should today's tech leaders champion next?Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

"Who are my People I want to do life with?" -Jason Toevs, CTO Scroll Happy   Social Media pllatforms changed all of our lives-- some positive, some negative, some tragically. Jason Toevs is a Founder and Tech Leader and he is very thoughtful about his approach to this powerful tool.  Scroll Happy (scrollhappy.com) is the wholesome platform for Social Media.  This world will continue to grow and we must be disciplined about our engagement with it.  This is what Scroll Happy by UP has as their mission.  Jason's leadership with technology, social media, and AI is through one lens: maximum human benefit, without eroding our humanity.

Popular movies sometimes feature leagues of superheroes who are ready to defend the Earth against catastrophe. In this episode, we're going to be discussing some real-life superheroes, as chronicled in the new book by our guest, Tom Ough. The book is entitled “The Anti-Catastrophe League: The Pioneers And Visionaries On A Quest To Save The World”. Some of these heroes are already reasonably well known, but others were new to David, and, he suspects, to many of the book's readers.Tom is a London-based journalist. Earlier in his career he worked in newspapers, mostly for the Telegraph, where he was a staff feature-writer and commissioning editor. He is currently a senior editor at UnHerd, where he commissions essays and occasionally writes them. Perhaps one reason why he writes so well is that he has a BA in English Language and Literature from Oxford University, where he was a Casberd scholar.Selected follow-ups:About Tom OughThe Anti-Catastrophe League - The book's webpageOn novel methods of pandemic preventionWhat is effective altruism? (EA)Sam Bankman-Fried - Wikipedia (also covers FTX)Open PhilanthropyConsciumHere Comes the Sun - book by Bill McKibbenThe 10 Best Beatles Songs (Based on Streams)Carrington Event - WikipediaMirror life - WikipediaFuture of Humanity Institute 2005-2024: final report - by Anders SandbergOxford FHI Global Catastrophic Risks - FHI Conference, 2008ForethoughtReview of Nick Bostrom's Deep Utopia - by CalumDeepMind and OpenAI claim gold in International Mathematical OlympiadWhat the Heck is Hubble Tension?The Decade Ahead - by Leopold AschenbrennerAI 2027AnglofuturismMusic: Spike Protein, by Koi Discovery, available under CC0 1.0 Public Domain DeclarationInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

This interview was recorded at GOTO Copenhagen 2024.https://gotocph.comDaniel Terhorst-North - Originator of Behavior Driven Development (BDD) & Principal at Dan North & AssociatesKevlin Henney - Consultant, Programmer, Keynote Speaker, Technologist, Trainer & WriterRESOURCESDanielhttps://bsky.app/profile/tastapod.comhttps://twitter.com/tastapodhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/tastapodhttps://github.com/tastapodhttps://mastodon.social/@tastapodhttp://dannorth.net/blogKevlinhttps://bsky.app/profile/kevlin.bsky.socialhttps://about.me/kevlinhttps://twitter.com/KevlinHenneyhttps://linkedin.com/in/kevlinhttps://instagram.com/kevlin.henneyhttps://kevlinhenney.medium.comLinkshttps://jaoo.dk/jaoo2004/index2.jsphttps://jaoo.dk/archivesRECOMMENDED BOOKSJez Humble & David Farley • Continuous Delivery • https://amzn.to/452ZRkyNicole Forsgren, Jez Humble & Gene Kim • Accelerate • https://amzn.to/442Rep0Kevlin Henney & Trisha Gee • 97 Things Every Java Programmer Should Know • https://amzn.to/3kiTwJJKevlin Henney • 97 Things Every Programmer Should Know • https://amzn.to/2Yahf9UHenney & Monson-Haefel • 97 Things Every Software Architect Should Know • https://amzn.to/3pZuHsQGojko Adzic • Specification by Example • https://amzn.to/44uqT6zInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyBlueskyTwitterInstagramLinkedInFacebookCHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUSJoin this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/joinLooking for a unique learning experience?Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket: gotopia.techSUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL - new videos posted daily!

professorjrod@gmail.comSecurity that actually holds under pressure starts long before passwords and antivirus. We pull back the rack door and walk through the parts that make a network resilient: switches that enforce port security, routers that block spoofed traffic, servers that stay patched and locked down, and load balancers that keep services steady when a node falls over. From a small bookstore's POS to a global bank's data center, the patterns repeat with higher stakes and tighter controls.We break down the real tools of infrastructure defense and why they matter. Policy‑based firewalls translate intent like “block social media for guests” into action, while next‑gen engines add deep inspection and URL filtering. Forward proxies protect outbound browsing and reverse proxies hide internal services. Deception tech—honeypots, honeynets, and sinkholes—turns attackers into sources of intel. IDS alerts, IPS blocks, and together they feed visibility into an XDR layer that correlates endpoint, server, cloud, and email signals to stop ransomware chains before they detonate.Good design contains failure. VLANs limit blast radius when a laptop is compromised. DMZs and jump servers separate public‑facing apps from sensitive systems. Zero trust reframes access with “never trust, always verify,” enforcing MFA, continuous checks, and least privilege across users and APIs. VPNs connect people and sites with SSL and IPsec, while NAC verifies device health and quarantines noncompliant endpoints—a must for any BYOD policy. We tie it all together with practical case studies, a quick quiz to test your instincts, and clear takeaways you can apply to classrooms, clinics, nonprofits, and clouds.If this deep dive helps you think more clearly about your network's weak points and how to shrink them, tap follow, share with a teammate, and leave a review so more builders can find it. What's the first segment you'll harden this week?Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Sam Goodner, the serial entrepreneur and former CEO of Catapult Systems — Microsoft's top-ranked consulting partner at the time of its acquisition. Sam shares his 30-year journey from starting a small IT consulting firm in 1993 with just $17,000 in the bank to scaling multiple companies to eight- and nine-figure exits, including turning a parking tech startup into a unicorn.Through vivid stories and practical lessons, Sam reveals the disciplines behind operational scalability, decentralized leadership, and what it truly takes to build a company that can run — and grow — without its founder. He discusses his book Like Clockwork: Run Your Business with Swiss Army Precision, the frameworks he used to recession-proof his companies, and how he transformed chaos into predictable growth. From his military lessons in Switzerland to his role as an angel investor mentoring the next generation of entrepreneurs, Sam offers a masterclass in clarity, systems, and execution — proving that growth isn't luck, it's discipline.TakeawaysGreat businesses scale through clarity, disciplined execution, and time, not luck.Founders often become the bottleneck — true leadership means empowering others to decide and own outcomes.Operational scalability starts when the company can run and grow without the founder.Create rules of empowerment: if a decision is right for the customer, company, ethical, aligned with values, and you're accountable — act.Codify best practices with playbooks, especially for sales and hiring.Hire people better than you, then get out of their way.Mentorship and coachability accelerate growth more than any funding round.Recession-proofing begins before the downturn — diversify industries, services, and recurring revenue streams.Every company needs to define what it's best in the world at and its unfair advantage.Founders should spend 95% of their time on the business, not in it.Focus on discipline and systems, not just ideas — execution is where companies win.Success evolves from climbing mountains to helping others climb theirs.Chapters00:00 Intro: Scaling Beyond Chaos01:30 From Developer to Founder: The Birth of Catapult Systems03:20 Bootstrapping to Profitability in the 90s06:00 Why Raising Money Isn't Always the Answer07:30 Investing in Flash Parking: Spotting a Unicorn in an Unsexy Industry12:00 The Power of Coachability and Mentorship16:50 Breaking Founder Mode and Achieving Operational Scalability21:00 Building Playbooks for Sales and Talent Acquisition26:00 Decentralized Decision-Making and the Rules of Empowerment37:00 The Swiss Army Precision: Inside Sam's Book “Like Clockwork”43:00 Recession-Proofing Your Business51:00 Balancing Focus and Diversification55:00 Defining Your Unfair Advantage57:00 The Aha Moment: Realizing You're the Bottleneck59:00 The Third Chapter: Giving Back and Mentoring Entrepreneurs01:01:00 Closing Thoughts: Build Systems, Empower People, Stay DisciplinedSam Goodner's Social Media Links:https://www.linkedin.com/in/samgoodner/Sam Goodner's Websites:https://samgoodner.com/

Jennie Magiera, Global Head of Education Impact at Google, joins the podcast to discuss her journey from classroom teacher to tech leader. She shares practical ways educators can use Google Gemini to support diverse student needs and save time, while also addressing critical data privacy considerations and introducing a brand-new hub of AI resources for teachers.Jennie on LinkedInCourageous Edventures, discover your own version of innovation, using the limitless possibilities of educational technologyPhillips Exeter AcademyGoogle for Education Learning CenterGet Started with Google for Education productsGoogle for Education training, catalog of quick lessons and comprehensive courses to build curriculumhttps://ai.google/literacy, AI literacy resources and trainings that empower students, educators, and families to use AI effectively, safely, and responsiblyGoogle NotebookLMKPop Demon HuntersCarnac the Magnificent, character from The Tonight Show with Johnny CarsonVoltaire, French Enlightenment writer, philosopher (philosophe), satirist, and historian

professorjrod@gmail.comThe mic feels heavier at 100—not from gear, but from history. We started with a doctoral dare, a $40 class, and a shaky first recording. We built a library that helped learners pass A+, Network+, and Security+ while connecting the dots between hardware, operating systems, storage, networking, and the human choices behind every device and policy. Along the way, our mission sharpened: pair skill with story, prioritize curiosity over checkboxes, and keep ethics at the center of cybersecurity and cloud.We revisit the moments that defined the journey: early fundamentals that formed a base, a pivot into security architecture and zero trust, and the realization that protocols carry purpose. DHCP becomes resource allocation. Firewalls express trust. Wireshark reveals perspective. The show grew with the audience—from notes to narratives to lived stories sent from classrooms, help desks, and late-night study sessions. A single email about subnets “finally clicking” mattered more than download spikes, shaping how we teach: simpler words, stronger analogies, and transparent context.Five pillars now anchor everything we make: accessibility for every learner and veteran, context that grounds acronyms in origin, curiosity that asks better questions, community that turns listeners into collaborators, and reflection that slows tech long enough for wisdom to land. We also share the personal side—health resets, renewed consistency, and the choice to keep going when the stats dip—because sustainable teaching requires a sustainable teacher.Looking ahead, we're doubling down on practical Q&A, live sessions, and clear paths through Network+, Security+, and cloud that never lose sight of ethics and inclusion. If you found value in the archive—from storage myths to authentication breakthroughs—help steer the next hundred. Subscribe, share with a friend who's studying, and send your biggest question for episode 101. Your curiosity sets the agenda.Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

This interview was recorded for GOTO Unscripted.https://gotopia.techRead the full transcription of this interview here:https://gotopia.tech/articles/386Flavia Circiumaru - Software Engineer at FundAppsHannes Lowette - Principal Consultant at Axxes, Monolith Advocate, Speaker & Whiskey LoverRESOURCESFlaviahttps://x.com/FlavsFAhttps://github.com/flaviacirciumaruhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/flavia-circiumaruHanneshttps://bsky.app/profile/hanneslowette.nethttps://twitter.com/hannes_lowettehttps://github.com/Belenarhttps://linkedin.com/in/hanneslowetteDESCRIPTIONWhen FundApps exploded from 20 to 50+ engineers in just one year, their old "everyone does support" model crumbled spectacularly. Software engineer Flavia Circiumaru and host Hannes Lowette dive deep into how this London-based regulatory compliance company transformed from a support-free-for-all to a streamlined powerhouse.Flavia Circiumaru reveals the behind-the-scenes story of building a three-desk support system that turned their support team into the ultimate connector, bridging customers, developers, and business teams like never before. From battling context-switching nightmares to creating communication magic, Flavia and Hannes explore actionable insights on scaling support without losing your sanity.The twist? Their ultimate goal is to make support so seamless that dedicated teams won't even be needed. Talk about engineering your way out of a job!RECOMMENDED BOOKSJacqui Read • Communication Patterns • https://amzn.to/3E37lvvSaleem Siddiqui • Learning Test-Driven Development • https://amzn.to/35OMb3nBen Goldacre • Bad Science • https://amzn.to/4lqNLKNBen Goldacre • Bad Pharma • https://amzn.to/3G15Mz7Jeet Pattanaik • Ethics in AI • https://amzn.to/4jXyQXwInspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyBlueskyTwitterInstagramLinkedInFacebookCHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUSJoin this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/joinLooking for a unique learning experience?Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket: gotopia.techSUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL - new videos posted daily!

In this episode, Ray breaks down a petition signed by 800+ leaders calling to pause the superintelligence race, then digs into AWS outage chatter about AI replacing DevOps, and Microsoft's Gaming Copilot privacy concerns. Plus: a prompt trick that boosts LLM accuracy, a 2-billion-FPS camera that visualizes light, and JAXA's HTV-X cargo launch to the … Continue reading Tech Leaders Demand a Pause on Superintelligence #1849 → The post Tech Leaders Demand a Pause on Superintelligence #1849 appeared first on Geek News Central.

Send us a textSecurity gets sharper when we stop treating AI like magic and start treating it like an untrusted user. We sit down with Eric Galinkin to unpack the real-world ways red teams and defenders are using language models today, where they fall apart, and how to build guardrails that hold up under pressure. From MCP servers that look a lot like ordinary APIs to the messy truths of model hallucination, this conversation trades buzzwords for practical patterns you can apply right now.Eric shares takeaways from Offensive AI Con: how models help triage code and surface likely bug classes, why decomposed workflows beat “find all vulns” prompts, and what happens when toy benchmarks meet stubborn, real binaries. We explore reinforcement learning environments as a scalable way to train security behaviors without leaking sensitive data, and we grapple with the uncomfortable reality that jailbreaks aren't going away—so output validation, sandboxing, and principled boundaries must do the heavy lifting.We also dig into Garak, the open-source system security scanner that targets LLM-integrated apps where it hurts: prompted cross-site scripting, template injection in Jinja, and OS command execution. By mapping findings to CWE, Garak turns vague model “misbehavior” into concrete fixes tied to known controls. Along the way, we compare GPT, Claude, and Grok, talk through verification habits to counter confident nonsense, and zoom out on careers: cultivate niche depth, stay broadly literate, and keep your skepticism calibrated. If you've ever wondered how to harness AI without handing it the keys to prod, this one's for you.Enjoyed the episode? Follow, share with a teammate, and leave a quick review so more builders and defenders can find the show.Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showFollow the Podcast on Social Media! Tesla Referral Code: https://ts.la/joseph675128 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@securityunfilteredpodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/secunfpodcast/Twitter: https://twitter.com/SecUnfPodcast Affiliates➡️ OffGrid Faraday Bags: https://offgrid.co/?ref=gabzvajh➡️ OffGrid Coupon Code: JOE➡️ Unplugged Phone: https://unplugged.com/Unplugged's UP Phone - The performance you expect, with the privacy you deserve. Meet the alternative. Use Code UNFILTERED at checkout*See terms and conditions at affiliated webpages. Offers are subject to change. These are affiliated/paid promotions.

professorjrod@gmail.comA quiet country house. A noisy war. And a handful of people who turned logic into a lifeline. We take you inside Bletchley Park to follow the thread from Poland's algebraic assault on Enigma, through Alan Turing's audacious vision for the Bombe, to Tommy Flowers' all‑electronic Colossus that read Germany's secrets at machine speed. Along the way, you'll meet Bill Tutte, the young mathematician who reverse‑engineered the Lorenz cipher from ciphertext alone and set the stage for statistical attacks that still echo in modern cryptography.We map how Ultra and Tunny intelligence shortened the war, steered convoys past U‑boats, and primed the D‑Day invasion with hard facts, not guesses. But the plot deepens with the cost of secrecy: Colossus dismantled, blueprints burned, and careers muted by classification. While ENIAC and others claimed the spotlight, Bletchley's ideas seeped into everything—stored‑program computers at Manchester and Cambridge, Shannon's information theory, von Neumann architecture, and the earliest questions that became artificial intelligence. The voices in these huts showed that when information turns into a battlefield, computation becomes survival.We connect that legacy to today's cybersecurity. The logic that beat Enigma lives in encryption standards, key exchange, and the machine learning models that scan for anomalies. The teamwork across mathematics, engineering, and linguistics looks a lot like modern incident response. And the ethos—knowledge in service of freedom—remains the standard for responsible tech. If you care about AI, encryption, or the story of how ideas become tools, this journey will sharpen how you think about the devices in your pocket and the systems that guard your data.If this story moved you, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review telling us which breakthrough you think had the biggest impact.Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

professorjrod@gmail.comWhat's the weakest link in your world—an old router, a forgotten Windows box, or that “anyone with the link” setting you meant to change? We unpack the real vulnerabilities hiding in small businesses, nonprofits, and home networks, then share a clear playbook to find them early and fix them fast without enterprise budgets.We start with the quiet culprits: end‑of‑life operating systems, abandoned firmware, and default passwords that ship on printers, cameras, and routers. You'll hear why isolation, segmentation, and least privilege are lifesavers when replacement isn't an option. From ransomware on aging desktops to misconfigured cloud shares that leak donor lists, we connect everyday scenarios to practical countermeasures like MFA, strong crypto, key rotation, and simple access reviews.Then we go deeper into application and web risks—SQL injection, XSS, CSRF, race conditions, buffer overflows—and how attackers exploit timing and input validation gaps. We break down supply chain threats, where a compromised plugin server can Trojanize an entire customer base, and show how to vet vendors with a software bill of materials and clear service level terms. You'll also get a workable monitoring routine: weekly vulnerability scans (credentialed and non‑credentialed), reputable threat feeds like IBM X‑Force and Abuse.ch, and dark web awareness for leaked credentials.To round it out, we map a no‑nonsense remediation loop: discover, analyze, fix, verify, repeat. Learn to use CVE identifiers and CVSS scores to prioritize by risk and business impact, spot false positives and negatives, and handle patches that break production with rollbacks and compensating controls. Along the way, we share a memorable bug bounty story that proves anyone—even a kid—can help make the internet safer. Subscribe for more practical cybersecurity, share this with someone running on “set it and forget it,” and leave a review telling us the one update you're making today.Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

Unlock millions in ROI from your enterprise drone program.Our FREE Enterprise Drone Program Maturity Assessment benchmarks your program against best practices and reveals the strategic initiatives needed to scale.Get your free assessment now!

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan is joined by Christian Ulstrup, founder of Powerline, to explore how AI is transforming business practices. Christian, with over a decade of experience in applied AI, discusses the evolution of AI technologies and their real-world impact on industries ranging from startups to the U.S. federal government. He shares insights on moving from experimentation to impactful applications of AI, stressing the importance of cultivating a culture of continuous experimentation. Together, Avetis and Christian dive into how leaders can leverage AI for exponential growth, from AI quick wins to deep organizational transformations. The conversation touches on practical applications, such as automating back-office processes, improving customer interactions, and identifying hidden opportunities through AI-driven insights. Christian also discusses his firm's approach to using AI tools to generate value, drive profitability, and reduce costs while maintaining a human-centered focus. His unique perspective on the role of AI in shaping the future of work is both enlightening and inspiring, offering actionable advice for tech leaders eager to embrace the AI revolution.TakeawaysAI's role is not just about the technology itself but how and where it's applied in business processes.Business leaders must foster a culture of continuous experimentation to maximize the potential of AI.AI quick wins involve improving existing processes to work faster and more efficiently, sometimes 10 times faster.A "10x" approach, rather than incremental changes, can drive larger, more impactful transformations.Engaging with AI tools and experimenting with them helps uncover surprising efficiencies and new opportunities.Effective AI adoption starts with clear executive alignment and a formal mandate for experimentation across the organization.Some AI models like GPT and Claude are revolutionizing business processes that were previously time-consuming or costly.AI tools should be integrated into everyday workflows, from sales to HR, to gain real-time insights and efficiencies.Companies should prioritize AI experimentation, with an eye on both short-term wins and long-term cultural transformation.AI can help businesses of all sizes democratize access to powerful data insights, leveling the playing field for smaller companies.Chapters00:00 Introduction01:26 Christian Ulstrup's Background03:15 AI's Role in Business Transformation05:47 The AI Quick Win07:55 Thinking Big for AI Impact09:54 Three Phases of AI Adoption12:18 Tools for AI Adoption14:37 Identifying Power Users16:58 Formalizing AI Use Across the Organization19:15 Analyzing Data with AI Tools23:30 AI for Small Businesses27:48 AI and Profit Impact in PE-backed Firms31:46 Second-Order Effects of AI34:08 Risk Reduction and AI39:56 Opportunity Spotting with AI44:23 Change Management and AI49:42 Biggest Aha Moment in Christian's AI Journey54:03 The Future of Work with AIChristian Ulstrup's Social Media Links:https://www.linkedin.com/in/christianulstrup/Resources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

professorjrod@gmail.comEver wish the network would just explain itself? We walk through the real language of connectivity—how links come alive, how packets choose their paths, and how a few core ideas unlock routers, firewalls, addressing, and the exam questions that test them. It starts with the wire (and the air): DSL over copper, cable scaling with DOCSIS, fiber to an ONT at your home, and why fixed wireless, satellite, and 5G fill coverage gaps with very different tradeoffs in speed and latency. From there, we draw the line between moving traffic and governing it. Routers forward based on IP and subnets; firewalls enforce policy using IPs, protocols, and ports—think velvet rope, but for packets.We bring the TCP/IP stack down to earth with a clean mental model of layers and encapsulation, then dig into IPv4 addressing, subnet masks, and private ranges that rely on NAT to share a single public IP. You'll learn why static IPs belong on printers and servers, how DHCP's DORA flow keeps clients online, and what APIPA is telling you when a lease fails. We also size up IPv6—128-bit addresses, hexadecimal notation, dual stack—and unpack the practical roadblocks that slow adoption despite the promise of massive address space.Transport choices make or break performance, so we compare TCP's three‑way handshake and delivery guarantees with UDP's low-latency approach favored by streaming and gaming. We highlight the ports every tech should know—22, 53, 80, 443, 67/68, 21/20, 3389—because port literacy speeds troubleshooting. On identity and isolation, we translate DNS records (A, AAAA, CNAME, MX, TXT) into everyday use and show how VLANs reduce broadcast noise while VPNs protect data over untrusted networks. To cement it all, we run live quiz walkthroughs and model how to spot keywords, eliminate distractors, and reason under time pressure—skills you can carry straight into the CompTIA A+ and beyond.If this helped you think more clearly about networks, follow the show, leave a rating, and share it with a friend who's studying. Got a topic you want us to deep-dive next—DHCP, DNS, or VLANs? Drop a note and subscribe so you don't miss the next breakdown.Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

Send us a textIn this episode, Joe sits down with Gidi Cohen, a cybersecurity expert with a rich background in the Israeli 8200 unit, to explore the evolving landscape of data security. They delve into the challenges of managing large data sets, the impact of AI on cybersecurity, and the innovative solutions offered by Bonfy AI. Whether you're a seasoned professional or new to the field, this conversation offers valuable insights into the complexities and opportunities within data security. Tune in to learn how to navigate the ocean of data and protect your organization's most valuable assets.00:00 Introduction to Gidi Cohen and His Background01:49 The Role of 8200 Unit in Cybersecurity04:25 Transitioning from Military to Industry11:32 Identifying Problems in Data Security16:00 The Challenges of Data Management in Organizations23:58 The Challenge of Data Classification26:59 Understanding Context in Data Security29:44 Adaptive Learning in AI Solutions32:22 Proactive Risk Mitigation Strategies34:57 Integrating Data Security Across Platforms37:33 The Future of Data Security SolutionsBonfy ACS is a next-gen DLP platform built for the AI era, combining contextual intelligence and adaptive remediation to secure sensitive data and enable AI innovation at scale. With high accuracy and out-of-the-box policies, it delivers fast time to value while reducing false alerts and investigation overhead. Trusted by regulated organizations, Bonfy ensures compliance and integrates seamlessly with Microsoft 365, Salesforce, Slack, and Google Workspace.Speaker: Gidi Cohen, CEO and Co-Founder of Bonfy.AIhttps://www.bonfy.ai/Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyBonfy.aiBonfy ACS is a next-gen DLP platform built for the AI era. Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the showFollow the Podcast on Social Media! Tesla Referral Code: https://ts.la/joseph675128 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@securityunfilteredpodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/secunfpodcast/Twitter: https://twitter.com/SecUnfPodcast Affiliates➡️ OffGrid Faraday Bags: https://offgrid.co/?ref=gabzvajh➡️ OffGrid Coupon Code: JOE➡️ Unplugged Phone: https://unplugged.com/Unplugged's UP Phone - The performance you expect, with the privacy you deserve. Meet the alternative. Use Code UNFILTERED at checkout*See terms and conditions at affiliated webpages. Offers are subject to change. These are affiliated/paid promotions.

professorjrod@gmail.comWhat if the world's hard drives merged into one invisible place—and you used it a hundred times today without thinking? We pull back the curtain on cloud storage, tracing its unlikely path from room-sized machines and punch cards to AWS's game-changing S3, Dropbox's frictionless sync, and the moment Netflix stopped shipping envelopes and started streaming the future. Along the way, we unpack why storage got so cheap, how reliability reached “eleven nines,” and where the hidden risks still live.We start with J.C.R. Licklider's radical idea—computing as a utility—and follow the thread through ARPANET, early hosting, and the price freefall that turned terabytes into pocket change. Then we shift from enterprise to everyday life: the folder that follows you everywhere, photos that back up before you can worry, and classrooms that collaborate across continents. But convenience has a cost, and we tackle it head on: infamous breaches, painful outages, and the reality that all clouds are built on real servers, power grids, and people. You'll hear how modern security—encryption by default, MFA, redundancy—raised the bar, and why good hygiene still starts with you.The story crescendos with Netflix's bold pivot: betting on bandwidth, partnering with AWS for storage and compute, and building Open Connect to put content near viewers. That playbook—rent the core, own the edge—reshaped entertainment and proved what elastic infrastructure makes possible. We also confront the environmental bill for our “infinite” drive: data centers' energy appetite, the race to renewables, and why the next leap must be cleaner, not just faster and cheaper. Finally, we look ahead to decentralized storage, edge computing, and AI-guided data management—and face the paradox of abundance: when everything can be saved, deletion becomes a superpower.If this journey sharpened how you think about the files you trust to the sky, share it with a friend, hit follow, and leave a quick review. Tell us: what do you trust the cloud with—and what will you delete today?Inspiring Tech Leaders - The Technology PodcastInterviews with Tech Leaders and insights on the latest emerging technology trends.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan lays out a wartime CEO playbook for thriving in downturns, drawing on the same strategies his team used to scale HireClout and help clients grow through multiple recessions. He argues that recessions do not kill companies, timid leadership does, and makes the case for buying market share when others freeze. Avetis explains why momentum dies faster than cash burns, how to reinforce your core and double down on your edge, and where “talent arbitrage” appears when markets are scared. He also breaks down weaponized efficiency, using AI and automation to cut friction instead of people, and how leaders can keep teams aligned by leading with certainty, transparency, and small weekly wins. Along the way, Avetis shares candid stories from COVID, investing in AI startups and real estate, and the tough calls required of a wartime CEO. The result is a concise, practical blueprint for founders and operators who want to play to win rather than “not lose.”TakeawaysRecessions concentrate opportunity in the hands of bold leadersMomentum dies faster than cash burns, so “wait and see” erodes advantageCut distractions, not drivers; double down on your core edgeDownturns are prime time for talent arbitrage and loyalty buildingYou cannot cut your way to greatness; savings alone will not scale a companyUse AI and automation to remove friction so people can drive revenueTurn downtime into build time by rebuilding systems to be 10x-readyKeep outbound and thought leadership consistent while others go quietLead with certainty; your team mirrors your energy and confidenceCreate small weekly wins to sustain morale and momentumPair clarity with optimism; either one alone leads to noise or paralysisThe leaders who act decisively now will own the rebound laterChapters00:00 Why timid leaders lose in recessions02:22 The big lie of “conserve and wait”04:30 You cannot cut your way to greatness06:45 Recessions as the cheapest time to buy market share08:23 Talent arbitrage and loyalty during downturns10:32 Reinforce your core and double down on your edge12:50 Weaponized efficiency: cut friction, not talent15:16 Turn downtime into build time and rebuild systems17:22 Keep marketing; brand compounding when others go silent19:25 Lead with certainty and reassure through transparency21:40 Clarity plus optimism and the cost of overanalysis23:40 No fluff, make it happen: own the reboundResources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

Erik Braden, managing partner at Braden Business Systems, uncovers the secrets behind transforming a family business into a nationwide managed technology powerhouse. From his early days on Wall Street to navigating the intricate balance of preserving a strong business legacy while fostering growth, Erik's journey is a testament to the power of persistence, accountability, and adhering to core values. This episode unpacks the challenges of working with AI and cybersecurity, highlighting the imperative of a secure infrastructure to prevent data leaks and ensure seamless technology integration.  Our conversation with Erik also takes a fascinating turn as we explore innovative sales strategies and the critical role of CRM technology in modern business operations. Collaborating with Dale Dupree of the Sales Rebellion, Erik shares insights on how to break away from traditional sales methods and embrace a more community-driven, impactful approach. Through strategic roadmapping, compliance with cyber insurance policies, and the art of pattern interrupt marketing, Erik reveals how businesses can not only survive but thrive in a competitive environment.  Leadership with a genuine touch is the cornerstone of Erik's philosophy, as he emphasizes vulnerability and authenticity in managing successful teams. By sharing personal growth stories and illustrating the power of leading by example, Erik underscores the importance of empowering team members to devise solutions and innovate. As businesses gear up for the AI revolution, he stresses on fostering a culture of collaboration and emotional intelligence, paving the way for a future where technology and humanity coalesce for unprecedented success.  Erik Braden is the CEO and Managing Partner of Braden Business Systems, where he has led the company's evolution from a regional office equipment dealer to a nationally recognized technology leader. With a background in investment banking and private equity across New York, Los Angeles, and Zurich, Erik brought strategic discipline and a global outlook to the family business. Under his leadership, Braden has quadrupled in size, expanded into managed IT, cybersecurity, and document management, and earned top rankings on the MSP 501 list.  Known for his people-first approach and culture of transparency, Erik has driven record growth while maintaining exceptional client satisfaction and employee retention. His leadership has earned him accolades including the MSP 501 Executive of the Year and the Fortress Cybersecurity Leadership Award. Outside of work, he supports over 100 nonprofits annually and serves on several industry boards.    Quotes: "Persistence opens doors, but accountability keeps them open." "Leadership with a genuine touch is the cornerstone of my philosophy. Vulnerability and authenticity in managing teams lead to success." "As businesses gear up for the AI revolution, it's crucial to foster a culture of collaboration and emotional intelligence." "You can't just bolt AI onto your operations without a secure infrastructure; the risks of data leaks are too great."   Links: Erik's LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/erik-braden-1930904/ Braden Business Systems - https://bradenonline.com Find this episode and all other Sales Lead Dog episodes at https://empellorcrm.com/salesleaddog/ 

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Jossie Haines—executive coach, fractional engineering leader, and former engineering leader at Apple, Zynga, Tile, and Life360—to unpack how great leaders build inclusive, high-performing teams and adopt AI with intention. Jossie shares pivotal moments from leading Siri teams at Apple (including award-winning Apple TV work) and scaling engineering at Tile, where she helped double the org and architect a culture people still miss. She gets candid about imposter syndrome, why inclusion (not box-checking diversity) drives psychological safety and product quality, and how to communicate in CEO/CFO language: business outcomes, trade-offs, and crisp “yes—and” solutions. You'll also hear her playbook for leaders using AI to reclaim strategic time, from code-base ramp-ups to custom GPTs that coach junior PMs and engineers. Plus: lessons from Zynga's two-week company-wide pivot, the value of age diversity in teams, and why “slow productivity” beats 80-hour grinds. A masterclass in defining success on your own terms—and leading with clarity, courage, and measurable impact.TakeawaysInclusion and psychological safety are prerequisites for high performance.Focus on mechanics (meetings, feedback, promotions) before chasing diversity metrics.Communicate in outcomes and trade-offs; lead with business impact.Use “yes, and” to surface constraints without being the “no” person.Leaders should model effective AI use to raise adoption quality.Treat AI as an 80–90% draft; humans add accuracy and context.Deploy AI where it frees strategy time: research, ramp-ups, admin loops.Build leverage by shipping tangible alternatives quickly.Age diversity strengthens execution and pattern recognition.Replace hustle myths with sustainable “slow productivity.”Senior leaders must self-generate confidence signals; feedback gets rarer.Define success on your terms and make clear, bold asks.Chapters00:00 Intro & Guest Setup02:00 Apple & Tile: Wins, Burnout, and Imposter Syndrome05:00 Designing Roles and Cultures People Miss08:30 Why Senior Leaders Feel Isolated10:40 Inclusion → Psychological Safety → Performance13:10 Operationalizing Inclusion (Meetings, Feedback, Promotions)16:50 Hiring Panels, Representation, and Real Accountability18:55 Keeping Eyes on Outcomes, Not Optics21:50 The Overlooked Advantage of Age Diversity26:20 Boundaries, Peak Hours, and Sustainable Work28:40 Leaders & AI: Modeling Quality and Guardrails33:00 AI as Draft Partner: Seniors vs. Juniors36:30 Practical AI Workflows (Ramp-Ups, Custom Assistants)40:15 Speaking CFO/CEO: Outcomes, Trade-offs, “Yes, and”46:50 Shipping Fast for Negotiation Leverage51:10 Trust Yourself, Ask Boldly, Create Roles54:30 Closing & Book RecommendationsJossie Haines's Social Media Links:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jossiemann/Jossie Haines's Websites:https://jossiehaines.com/Resources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

Fraud rates in the public sector are estimated at 20%, compared to 3% in the private sector. Some estimate the loss to the federal government at over $500 billion. Today, we sat down with Haywood Talcove, the CEO of LexisNexis Special Services. He presents listeners with shocking statistics on fraud, shares personal stories, and offers suggestions to help taxpayers overcome this loss of money. FRAUD Talcove begins by noting the fraud rate in the federal government before COVID was a paltry 0.1%. No news there. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, federal employees were legally obligated to disperse funds promptly. They became more concerned about sending out money than maintaining precise accounting. PERSONAL STORY During the interview, Talcove recounts the story of how a bank teller defrauded his mother. He details the frustration in just trying to uncover the fraud. After many attempts, he collaborated with local police to discover the method of the attack. SOLUTIONS The fact of the matter is that an employee of AMEX has a strong interest in preventing fraud. In contrast, many in the federal government are more concerned about compliance with directives than avoiding loss. NIST has a recent update standard, NIST SP 800-64 Digital Identity Guidelines, but criminals move faster than federal regulations can keep up. The solution is obvious: to improve data sharing between government agencies. Next, learn from the private sector how to identify and stop fraud more effectively. What can a consumer do? ·      One   credit bureau  freeze closed. ·      Two  informed delivery  post offices ·      Three  county alerts on title ·      Four  text messages alert any transaction  -- know quickly.  

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Radhika Dutt—MIT-trained engineer, entrepreneur, and author of Radical Product Thinking, to rethink how high-growth companies set direction and measure progress. Radhika explains why traditional goal systems (KPIs/OKRs) often incentivize “performance theater,” tracing their lineage from Drucker's MBOs to Andy Grove to today's playbooks—and why they're mismatched to modern, creative work. She introduces OHLs (Objectives, Hypotheses, Learnings) and a “puzzle setting/puzzle solving” culture that pushes teams to interrogate bad numbers, not hide them. Along the way she names common “product diseases” (HERO syndrome, obsessive sales disorder, pivotitis, strategic swelling, Narcissus complex) and shows how a clear, testable vision prevents whiplash pivots. A standout case study: at Signal Ocean, reframing the challenge for tech-averse users helped double sales in 2024 and again in 2025 while reducing churn from 26% to 4%. Leaders also get a practical script for better reviews (“How well is it working? What did we learn? What will we try next?”) and a reminder to build experimentation muscles before a crisis. The result is a rigorous, human approach to strategy that replaces vanity metrics with compounding learning.TakeawaysOKRs often reward optics over insight, encouraging “performance theater.”Use a concrete vision that states the problem, audience, status quo, desired end state, and product's role.Shift from “hit the target” to puzzle setting so teams feel invited to solve the right problems.Run on OHLs: Objectives, Hypotheses, Learnings to measure deeply and learn publicly.Watch for “product diseases” like HERO syndrome, obsessive sales disorder, pivotitis, strategic swelling, and the Narcissus complex.Pivot with gravitas by stating what was wrong, what you learned, and what you'll try next.Case study: at Signal Ocean, reframing for tech-averse users unlocked adoption, doubled sales year over year, and reduced churn.OKRs trace back to MBOs, which fit repetitive work but struggle with today's creative, uncertain problems.Leaders should act like detectives, not judges to create psychological safety for honest learning.Introduce OHLs inside your current cadence before replacing existing processes.Spread market insight beyond the founder so teams can challenge assumptions and stay aligned.Start with the segment that has the most urgent need, then expand intentionally.Chapters00:00 Intro & Why Targets Mislead01:27 Radhika's Path and Early Lessons03:41 Hitting Numbers vs. Reality on the Ground05:31 “Product Diseases” That Derail Strategy07:51 Writing a Vision You Can Execute09:49 The Wine Startup Example and Narcissus Complex13:07 Pivotitis and How to Pivot with Gravitas16:34 Translating Vision into Actionable Experiments17:44 Why Goals Alone Don't Work20:03 A Short History of OKRs and Their Limits24:43 From Targets to Puzzles: Reframing Stalled Sales26:50 OHLs: Objectives, Hypotheses, Learnings29:14 Running Better Reviews: Three Questions35:31 Case Study: Signal Ocean's Tech-Averse Users39:55 Outcomes: Doubling Sales and Reducing Churn41:58 Intel's Lesson: Experimentation Beats Goal Mechanics47:58 Detectives, Not Judges: Building a Learning Culture50:06 How to Start Tomorrow with OHLs59:37 Don't Do Founder Mode; Spread Insight01:03:18 Closing Notes & ResourcesRadhika Dutt's Social Media Links:https://www.linkedin.com/in/radhika-dutt/Radhika Dutt's Websites:https://www.radicalproduct.com/https://rdutt.com/Resources and Links:https://www.hireclout.comhttps://www.podcast.hireclout.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/hirefasthireright

How can reframing your approach to talent, technology, and learning future-proof your entire organization? In this episode, Nicole Jansen sits down with Steve Cadigan—renowned talent strategist, former LinkedIn VP of Talent, and author of Workquake—to unlock what it means to truly lead in an era where work is being reinvented at lightning speed. Drawing on experience guiding LinkedIn through explosive growth, building world-class cultures, and advising the likes of Google and Harvard, Steve shares a bold blueprint for navigating AI, fostering “career security,” and turning today's workplace challenges into tomorrow's breakthrough opportunities. Steve and Nicole challenge the status quo in how leaders approach AI, talent development, and organizational design. From leveraging AI to unleash human potential (not just cut costs), to building learning-centric cultures that attract and retain top talent—even in a world of short tenures and ever-evolving skills—this is essential listening for leaders ready to thrive in the future of work. Episode Timestamps 0:00 – Career Security vs. Job Security 1:40 – The Promise & Pitfalls of AI 4:10 – Asking Better AI Questions 9:24 – Discovering Hidden Talent 10:14 – Work Trends: Change & Upskilling 13:43 – AI Case Study: Prudential's Approach 16:07 – Rethinking Retention 21:13 – Learning Over Tenure 23:46 – Companies as Learning Hubs 31:14 – Growth Through New Challenges 34:09 – Embracing Experimentation 36:14 – Adaptability & Pandemic Lessons 41:13 – The Human Side of Tech 42:00 – Action Steps for Leaders 10 Key Takeaways Career Security Beats Job Security: The modern workforce values opportunities for growth over the false promise of long-term employment. Leaders that invest in employee learning build true loyalty and adaptability. AI is More Than Automation: Most companies only use AI to cut costs or replace jobs. Its real power lies in redefining work, solving new problems, and unlocking human creativity. Ask the Right Questions: “How can we use AI to rethink our work altogether?” opens far more potential than “How do we do this same process faster?” Hidden Talent Is Everywhere: Most organizations don't know the full extent of their people's skills. AI can help surface and map internal capabilities, opening up new pathways for growth and engagement. Experimentation Over Benchmarks: There are no established playbooks for this new era. Leading organizations experiment constantly—and learn quickly from the results. Retention is Out, “Returnship” is In: Rather than focusing on keeping people forever, forward-thinking companies build relationships that welcome alumni back and track who returns and why. Hire for Learning Agility: Technical skills expire fast; the ability to learn quickly is now the most sought-after trait in hiring and promotion. Break the Boxes: Job titles and prior roles excessively limit talent. When employees' true capabilities are surfaced, internal mobility and innovation soar. The Joy of Newness: Growth, engagement, and breakthrough innovation come from giving employees new challenges—even if they stretch comfort zones (and tenures are short). Reclaiming the Human Side of Tech: Leaders should use AI and digital tools to create more meaningful, joyful work experiences—not just greater efficiency. Ready to future-proof your organization? Dive in, get inspired, and take action. Episode Resources: https://leadersoftransformation.com/podcast/business/544-unlocking-human-potential-with-ai-steve-cadigan Check out our complete library of episodes and other leadership resources here: https://leadersoftransformation.com ________

The U.S. tech and startup community was stunned by an executive order last week imposing a $100,000 fee for employers seeking new H-1B visas for skilled foreign workers, a program heavily used by the technology industry. This move brings a longstanding debate back to the forefront: are skilled immigrants taking American jobs, or are they a vital engine for innovation and economic growth? Our guest this week has a strong point of view on this topic. Shirish Nadkarni is a serial entrepreneur and Microsoft veteran who founded companies acquired by BlackBerry and Rosetta Stone. An immigrant himself, he just released a timely new book, The Indian American Tech Success Story, which makes the case that immigrant founders, particularly from India, are one of America's greatest economic assets — creating far more jobs than they could ever be accused of taking. Related Links and Stories Startup leaders warn new $100K H-1B visa fee will hurt U.S. entrepreneurship and innovation New TiE Seattle president on how the $100K H-1B fee could snuff out entrepreneurial flame Will new U.S. visa fee boost Canada’s tech sector? B.C. sees an opening against Seattle and Silicon Valley With GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop; Edited by Curt Milton.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Get the free team night guide here: https://getmxu.com/resources/team-night-guide/?utm_campaign=tech-leadersDownload the free volunteer development toolkit here: https://getmxu.com/resources/volunteer-development-toolkit/?utm_campaign=tech-leadersMasterclasses for every position in worship ministry:  https://getmxu.com/browse/?utm_campaign=tech-leadersFREE RESOURCES