Discover the collection of The Work Item podcast episodes with the Leadership tag. Go to the Episodes page to listen to the latest releases, find interesting guests, or navigate through the history of the show.
Leadership Podcast Episodes
#79 - How To Get Promoted To Tech Executive - Lena Reinhard (VP Engineering, CircleCI, Travis CI)
May 28, 2024
We often talk about promotions and growth, but the moment the conversation shifts towards paths to staff or executive positions, the advice goes blank. There is very little actionable information out there that can tell you how you can get to the highest echelons of leadership. To get a clearer picture on this topic, I sat down with Lena Reinhard, a seasoned executive with an extensive track record at CircleCI, Travis CI, and more.
#50 - Problem And Product Management, with Isaac Hepworth
March 3, 2022
Today I chat with a good friend, mentor, and an all-around great person - Isaac Hepworth. Isaac is the person you should go to if you want to learn more about what it means to be achieving excellence in the product management space. We chat about the role of a problem solver, what it means to be a PM across different companies and titles, and what one can do to better prepare for an industry that changes by the day.
#37 - Be A Builder, With Jack Zerby
June 25, 2021
Last time I chatted with Jack, I had pages of questions I still wanted to ask - with this episode, I attempt to address that backlog. And the more I talked to Jack, the more I realized that the theme of his entire career is - "be a builder." As someone who started and worked at many startups, he sure knows first-hand how to do that well and in a way that is sustainable. Today, we talk about his work at Vimeo, what it means to collaborate with others, and how to build a network of folks that are there when you need them most.
#31 - Lessons In Leadership, with Chad Fowler, VP of Technology at DEVCON
April 25, 2021
Talking to Chad Fowler, you quickly realize what true leadership means. Chad has extensive experience leading large technical organizations such as LivingSocial and 6Wunderkinder, being a venture partner at BlueYard Capital, and now - helping make the Internet safer as Chief Product Officer at DEVCON. Did I mention that Chad also is a musician? In this episode, I talk to Chad about his work, lessons learned from music and travel and how those apply to life and career, and what is the approach to consider for one to carve out a path towards an executive role.
#26 - How to Grow as a Product Manager, with Dan Olsen
March 14, 2021
There is no single, well-defined path to becoming a product manager. There are more questions than answers when it comes to figuring out which skills are necessary, what books or blog posts to read, or which courses to take. Dan Olsen, the author of The Lean Product Playbook, former product leader at Intuit, Friendster, Box, and the US Navy (he worked on submarine design) shares with us some insights on what it means to grow as a product manager.
#14 - Interview with Richard Lander
October 18, 2020
In this episode of The Work Item we interview Richard Lander, Principal Program Manager on the .NET team at Microsoft. Richard does a deep dive on communication, being a generalist vs. specialist, and growing one's career.
#13 - Interview with Amanda Silver
September 27, 2020
In this episode of The Work Item we interview Amanda Silver, Corporate Vice President, Developer Division at Microsoft. We discuss the process of building great developer tools, the human element in product design, and career advice for the long run.
#5 - Interview with Jin Yang
June 21, 2020
A virtual fireside chat with Jin Yang, VP of design at CapitalOne. We discuss leadership, building great teams, and wrap up the show with food place recommendations.