The Work Item - A Career Growth and Exploration Podcast https://theworkitem.com en-us © 2022 by Den Delimarsky. Den Delimarsky Building a fulfilling career is hard. With so many people around us taking on different adventures that propel their careers in unexpected trajectories, is there a path a person can take that is going to increase their likelihood of success? Can I build a career creating content? What does it take to make the transition from information technology jobs to space? Can I start a start-up and not lose my sanity? Every week, Den sits down with folks from a range of industries, roles, and backgrounds to learn more about their career journey, lessons learned, and what it takes to map out your own very unique track. serial Den podcast@den.dev no full 13 03 #60 - Defining A Force Multiplier, with Sam Saccone When we choose our career path, we often try to optimize for one specific bucket - you’re a product manager, or a project manager, or a UX designer, or any other variation of an expertise area in tech. Sam Saccone defies the expectations of a single role and instead believes in being a “plumber” - doing whatever work is necessary to enable others to do their own version of great work. I sat down with Sam to learn more about his path to a Senior Staff Engineer at Google, what it means to brute-force your way through problems, and what the best avenues are to become a force multiplier for your team. When we choose our career path, we often try to optimize for one specific bucket - you’re a product manager, or a project manager, or a UX designer, or any other variation of an expertise area in tech. Sam Saccone defies the expectations of a single role and instead believes in being a “plumber” - doing whatever work is necessary to enable others to do their own version of great work. I sat down with Sam to learn more about his path to a Senior Staff Engineer at Google, what it means to brute-force your way through problems, and what the best avenues are to become a force multiplier for your team. When we choose our career path, we often try to optimize for one specific bucket - you’re a product manager, or a project manager, or a UX designer, or any other variation of an expertise area in tech. Sam Saccone defies the expectations of a single role and instead believes in being a “plumber” - doing whatever work is necessary to enable others to do their own version of great work.

I sat down with Sam to learn more about his path to a Senior Staff Engineer at Google, what it means to brute-force your way through problems, and what the best avenues are to become a force multiplier for your team.

You can find Sam on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 1747e944-d81b-49aa-86bc-ca54e1737d8f Wed, 28 Dec 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2889 no full 12 03 #59 - Building On Your Own, with iOS Developer Donny Wals Leaving your full-time job behind and starting your own business based on your own brand is a somewhat scary proposition. And yet, this is exactly what Donny Wals, a prolific iOS developer and technology teacher, is doing. In this episode I sat down with him to talk more about his work, what was his thinking in going solo, and what one needs to learn quickly in an ever-changing technology space. Leaving your full-time job behind and starting your own business based on your own brand is a somewhat scary proposition. And yet, this is exactly what Donny Wals, a prolific iOS developer and technology teacher, is doing. In this episode I sat down with him to talk more about his work, what was his thinking in going solo, and what one needs to learn quickly in an ever-changing technology space. Leaving your full-time job behind and starting your own business based on your own brand is a somewhat scary proposition. And yet, this is exactly what Donny Wals, a prolific iOS developer and technology teacher, is doing. In this episode I sat down with him to talk more about his work, what was his thinking in going solo, and what one needs to learn quickly in an ever-changing technology space.

You can find Donny on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 62826997-9477-47e4-a6d0-789bd8c14089 Thu, 22 Dec 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2347 no full 11 03 #58 - Becoming a Game Studio Co-Founder, with Moon Studios' Gennadiy Korol Working on games is hard. It's even harder to go from an engineer to a founder of a game studio that is able to produce two blockbuster titles in a row. In today's show I chat with Moon Studios co-founder Gennadiy Korol about his work on Ori (if you're near an Xbox or a PC - the game is worth your time), learning the complexity of graphics engineering, and navigating the uncertainty that comes from starting a zero-to-one effort where you have nothing to fall back on. Working on games is hard. It's even harder to go from an engineer to a founder of a game studio that is able to produce two blockbuster titles in a row. In today's show I chat with Moon Studios co-founder Gennadiy Korol about his work on Ori (if you're near an Xbox or a PC - the game is worth your time), learning the complexity of graphics engineering, and navigating the uncertainty that comes from starting a zero-to-one effort where you have nothing to fall back on. Working on games is hard. It's even harder to go from an engineer to a founder of a game studio that is able to produce two blockbuster titles in a row. In today’s show I chat with Moon Studios co-founder Gennadiy Korol about his work on Ori (if you’re near an Xbox or a PC - the game is worth your time), learning the complexity of graphics engineering, and navigating the uncertainty that comes from starting a zero-to-one effort where you have nothing to fall back on.

You can find Gennadiy on the following sites:

You can learn more about Gennadiy's work as well:

The podcast was produced by Den. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 06cf6c0b-de2b-4c53-8201-4b3d0a39634a Wed, 02 Nov 2022 12:00:00 GMT 3542 no full 10 03 #57 - From Turbo Pascal to CodePen, with Chris Coyier If you are a web developer, chances are that you used CodePen more than once. You’re also probably very familiar with CSS-Tricks for, well, more than just CSS tricks. The man behind these experiences, Chris Coyier, actually started his journey some time ago with a programming language called Turbo Pascal - many steps removed from web development. I sat down with Chris to talk more about his career, lessons in getting CodePen out into the world, and so much more. If you are a web developer, chances are that you used CodePen more than once. You’re also probably very familiar with CSS-Tricks for, well, more than just CSS tricks. The man behind these experiences, Chris Coyier, actually started his journey some time ago with a programming language called Turbo Pascal - many steps removed from web development. I sat down with Chris to talk more about his career, lessons in getting CodePen out into the world, and so much more. If you are a web developer, chances are that you used CodePen more than once. You’re also probably very familiar with CSS-Tricks for, well, more than just CSS tricks. The man behind these experiences, Chris Coyier, actually started his journey some time ago with a programming language called Turbo Pascal - many steps removed from web development. I sat down with Chris to talk more about his career, lessons in getting CodePen out into the world, and so much more.

You can find Chris on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 8c71af7b-4df1-479b-af62-ac86a910d232 Sat, 29 Oct 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2296 no full 09 03 #56 - Reverse Engineering The Halo API with Alexis from HaloDotAPI If you ever played any of the Halo games, you probably know that there is a _wealth_ of data being exchanged between the game and Halo services. This includes stats and so much more. If you've ever wanted to use those stats, you also probably ran into HaloDotAPI - a Halo API wrapper for Halo Infinite and Master Chief Collection. Behind all of this work is one individual - Alexis, or Zeny_IC (on both Twitter and Xbox Live). If you ever played any of the Halo games, you probably know that there is a _wealth_ of data being exchanged between the game and Halo services. This includes stats and so much more. If you've ever wanted to use those stats, you also probably ran into HaloDotAPI - a Halo API wrapper for Halo Infinite and Master Chief Collection. Behind all of this work is one individual - Alexis, or Zeny_IC (on both Twitter and Xbox Live). If you ever played any of the Halo games, you probably know that there is a wealth of data being exchanged between the game and Halo services. This includes stats and so much more. If you’ve ever wanted to use those stats, you also probably ran into HaloDotAPI - a Halo API wrapper for Halo Infinite and Master Chief Collection. Behind all of this work is one individual - Alexis, or Zeny_IC (on both Twitter and Xbox Live).

Today I chat with Alexis about his early roots, what led him to explore reverse engineering as a viable career path, as well as what it took to actually figure out the Halo API.

You can find Alexis on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> ab229330-27f8-46c2-b50d-90856947756e Mon, 10 Oct 2022 12:00:00 GMT 1694 no full 08 03 #55 - Open Source and Web Development, with Monica Powell What does one need to do to make open-source code more approachable? How do you figure out which teams to join for maximum positive impact on your communities? And how do you build communities? These questions and more are the topic of my conversation with Monica Powell, software engineer extraordinaire, who also happens to be a GitHub Star - an exclusive group of contributors recognized for their outstanding work in the open-source software space! What does one need to do to make open-source code more approachable? How do you figure out which teams to join for maximum positive impact on your communities? And how do you build communities? These questions and more are the topic of my conversation with Monica Powell, software engineer extraordinaire, who also happens to be a GitHub Star - an exclusive group of contributors recognized for their outstanding work in the open-source software space! What does one need to do to make open-source code more approachable? How do you figure out which teams to join for maximum positive impact on your communities? And how do you build communities? These questions and more are the topic of my conversation with Monica Powell, software engineer extraordinaire, who also happens to be a GitHub Star - an exclusive group of contributors recognized for their outstanding work in the open-source software space!

You can find Monica on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> edf3cc4b-b7b8-4f78-921f-e1e9914b2027 Sat, 27 Aug 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2501 no full 07 03 #54 - From Apple to Netflix, with Carola Nitz Carola Nitz is a seasoned engineer who has been involved in a variety of complex projects - from VLC, to Apple Maps, and now working at Netflix on their iOS app experience. She also started her career by learning medical computer science - what a way to jump in! In this episode, we're learning about her career, what helped her be successful, and how she thinks about the importance of jumps between projects and companies. Carola Nitz is a seasoned engineer who has been involved in a variety of complex projects - from VLC, to Apple Maps, and now working at Netflix on their iOS app experience. She also started her career by learning medical computer science - what a way to jump in! In this episode, we're learning about her career, what helped her be successful, and how she thinks about the importance of jumps between projects and companies. Carola Nitz is a seasoned engineer who has been involved in a variety of complex projects - from VLC, to Apple Maps, and now working at Netflix on their iOS app experience. She also started her career by learning medical computer science - what a way to jump in!

In this episode, we're learning about her career, what helped her be successful, and how she thinks about the importance of jumps between projects and companies.

You can find Carola on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> d25fcfed-4176-44db-b39d-ebe255968c6e Fri, 20 May 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2045 no full 06 03 #53 - Find Your Mentor And Complementary Skills, With Nicole Zhu, Senior Engineer At Vox Media There are a few things in your engineering career that you should focus on relentlessly, but few as impactful as finding yourself a guide through the journey, as well as develop a set of complementary skills that can help accelerate your own trajectory. I chatted with Nicole Zhu, Senior Engineer at Vox Media, about the importance of mentorship, peer feedback (or any feedback, for that matter), and how skills that are not directly related to writing code can be more helpful to success than you anticipate. There are a few things in your engineering career that you should focus on relentlessly, but few as impactful as finding yourself a guide through the journey, as well as develop a set of complementary skills that can help accelerate your own trajectory. I chatted with Nicole Zhu, Senior Engineer at Vox Media, about the importance of mentorship, peer feedback (or any feedback, for that matter), and how skills that are not directly related to writing code can be more helpful to success than you anticipate. There are a few things in your engineering career that you should focus on relentlessly, but few as impactful as finding yourself a guide through the journey, as well as develop a set of complementary skills that can help accelerate your own trajectory. I chatted with Nicole Zhu, Senior Engineer at Vox Media, about the importance of mentorship, peer feedback (or any feedback, for that matter), and how skills that are not directly related to writing code can be more helpful to success than you anticipate.

You can find Nicole on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 791376a2-69f2-4740-a924-93473b82a976 Thu, 21 Apr 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2228 no full 05 03 #52 - Grow Your Career in Data Science, with Nick Wan, Director of Analytics for Cincinnati Reds I don't talk about data science enough on this show. To remedy that, I brought in a remarkable analytics and data science expert - Nick Wan, who is a director of analytics for the Cincinnati Reds. Yes - the baseball team. We chat about his track from academia to working for a sports team, and how to build a career outside your typical FAANG (or is it MANGA) scaffolding. I don't talk about data science enough on this show. To remedy that, I brought in a remarkable analytics and data science expert - Nick Wan, who is a director of analytics for the Cincinnati Reds. Yes - the baseball team. We chat about his track from academia to working for a sports team, and how to build a career outside your typical FAANG (or is it MANGA) scaffolding. I don’t talk about data science enough on this show. To remedy that, I brought in a remarkable analytics and data science expert - Nick Wan, who is a director of analytics for the Cincinnati Reds. Yes - the baseball team. We chat about his track from academia to working for a sports team, and how to build a career outside your typical FAANG (or is it MANGA) scaffolding.

You can find Nick on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 77a02638-5467-4b8e-92db-1cd7f52f2357 Fri, 25 Mar 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2322 no full 04 03 #51 - Finding Your Engineering Passion, with Vicente Plata of 500 Startups LatAm, Shopify, and More Vicente Plata is doing way more than one would expect from an engineering leader - not only is he an engineering manager, but he also advises startups and communities, is deeply involved in various mentorship programs, and is someone who is always eager to help. In this episode we sit down to chat more about his aspirations, how he balances time between all the responsibilities, and what someone working in tech can do to accelerate their career on an exponential trajectory. Vicente Plata is doing way more than one would expect from an engineering leader - not only is he an engineering manager, but he also advises startups and communities, is deeply involved in various mentorship programs, and is someone who is always eager to help. In this episode we sit down to chat more about his aspirations, how he balances time between all the responsibilities, and what someone working in tech can do to accelerate their career on an exponential trajectory. Vicente Plata is doing way more than one would expect from an engineering leader - not only is he an engineering manager, but he also advises startups and communities, is deeply involved in various mentorship programs, and is someone who is always eager to help.

In this episode we sit down to chat more about his aspirations, how he balances time between all the responsibilities, and what someone working in tech can do to accelerate their career on an exponential trajectory.

You can find Vicente on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 831da896-2547-4e77-b99a-9859cd1cbec4 Fri, 11 Mar 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2475 no full 03 03 #50 - Problem And Product Management, with Isaac Hepworth 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. 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. 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.

You can find Isaac on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> f26be823-5ad0-4482-80d2-b0b168e0321e Fri, 04 Mar 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2440 no full 02 03 #49 - Product Management in Government, with Director of Product Management for the City and County of San Francisco, Adrianna Tan Despite starting a career in product management at one of the big companies, I've never considered to do the same job but working for the government. Not because I didn't want to. Mainly, because I did not know that was even an option. As it turns out - it is, in fact, an option, and a pretty impactful one at that. To learn more about this career trajectory, I chatted with Adrianna Tan, Director of Product Management for the City and County of San Francisco. She shares her journey as a founder of startups and non-profits, an avid hiker and an advocate for an open web, and how it all combines in her work. Despite starting a career in product management at one of the big companies, I've never considered to do the same job but working for the government. Not because I didn't want to. Mainly, because I did not know that was even an option. As it turns out - it is, in fact, an option, and a pretty impactful one at that. To learn more about this career trajectory, I chatted with Adrianna Tan, Director of Product Management for the City and County of San Francisco. She shares her journey as a founder of startups and non-profits, an avid hiker and an advocate for an open web, and how it all combines in her work. Despite starting a career in product management at one of the big companies, I’ve never considered to do the same job but working for the government. Not because I didn’t want to. Mainly, because I did not know that was even an option. As it turns out - it is, in fact, an option, and a pretty impactful one at that.

To learn more about this career trajectory, I chatted with Adrianna Tan, Director of Product Management for the City and County of San Francisco. She shares her journey as a founder of startups and non-profits, an avid hiker and an advocate for an open web, and how it all combines in her work.

You can find Adrianna on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> f52f399c-3638-41b8-89d6-50eb34fe760d Thu, 17 Feb 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2217 no full 01 03 #48 - The Story of Working In Developer Relations, with Dan Shaw This is the brand-new start of the third season of The Work Item podcast, and to make the kick-off even better I sat down with our good friend of the show, Dan Shaw, to learn more about their career. Dan shares the story of bootstrapping a Developer Relations arm at PayPal, wisdom around career decisions, and much more in this episode. This is the brand-new start of the third season of The Work Item podcast, and to make the kick-off even better I sat down with our good friend of the show, Dan Shaw, to learn more about their career. Dan shares the story of bootstrapping a Developer Relations arm at PayPal, wisdom around career decisions, and much more in this episode. This is the brand-new start of the third season of The Work Item podcast, and to make the kick-off even better I sat down with our good friend of the show, Dan Shaw, to learn more about their career. Dan shares the story of bootstrapping a Developer Relations arm at PayPal, wisdom around career decisions, and much more in this episode.

You can find Dan on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 53de5cbd-72a3-4bfa-9633-01f65b323e55 Sun, 06 Feb 2022 12:00:00 GMT 2308 yes full 28 02 #47 - 2021 Reflections, Creativity, and More, with Mayuko Inoue The end of 2021 is almost here, and it’s time to wrap up the second season of The Work Item. And what better way to do that than to invite a good friend on the show to talk about their journey through the past 12 months? In this episode, I am chatting with Mayuko Inoue about all things 2021, the best choices in comfort foods, McDonalds french fries, thoughts on the content creator career path, and more. We wanted to make this episode very informal, yet informative. To borrow Mayuko’s intro to her own podcast, Muko’s Corner (which you should subscribe to) - sit down, get cozy, grab a cup of tea, and enjoy the show! The end of 2021 is almost here, and it’s time to wrap up the second season of The Work Item. And what better way to do that than to invite a good friend on the show to talk about their journey through the past 12 months? In this episode, I am chatting with Mayuko Inoue about all things 2021, the best choices in comfort foods, McDonalds french fries, thoughts on the content creator career path, and more. We wanted to make this episode very informal, yet informative. To borrow Mayuko’s intro to her own podcast, Muko’s Corner (which you should subscribe to) - sit down, get cozy, grab a cup of tea, and enjoy the show! The end of 2021 is almost here, and it’s time to wrap up the second season of The Work Item. And what better way to do that than to invite a good friend on the show to talk about their journey through the past 12 months? In this episode, I am chatting with Mayuko Inoue about all things 2021, the best choices in comfort foods, McDonalds french fries, thoughts on the content creator career path, and more.

We wanted to make this episode very informal, yet informative. To borrow Mayuko’s intro to her own podcast, Muko’s Corner (which you should subscribe to) - sit down, get cozy, grab a cup of tea, and enjoy the show!

You can find Mayuko on the following sites:

If you haven’t yet seen Mayuko’s “A Day In The Life of a Software Engineer” and “Why Japan Fell Behind in the Tech Industry” - add them to your watch queue!

As a side-note, you can also check out my interview with Mayuko on her channel.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 42f7a664-26b6-457f-affc-caddf88df935 Sun, 12 Dec 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3586 no full 27 02 #46 - From Journalism to Developer Engagement, with Christina Warren The myth of the superhero programmer - we often hear about it, but it’s rarely the reality. Being a superhero on a team takes more than just technical chops, and that’s one of the topics that I chat about today with Senior Developer Advocate at Microsoft - Christina Warren. You might’ve seen Christina before on This Week on Channel 9, or even back in the day - at Gizmodo and Mashable. This episode ended up being less of a career chat and more of a friendly exchange about the latest happenings and what we can learn from them. Yes, we even talk a bit about the re-released Grand Theft Auto: The Definitive Edition. The myth of the superhero programmer - we often hear about it, but it’s rarely the reality. Being a superhero on a team takes more than just technical chops, and that’s one of the topics that I chat about today with Senior Developer Advocate at Microsoft - Christina Warren. You might’ve seen Christina before on This Week on Channel 9, or even back in the day - at Gizmodo and Mashable. This episode ended up being less of a career chat and more of a friendly exchange about the latest happenings and what we can learn from them. Yes, we even talk a bit about the re-released Grand Theft Auto: The Definitive Edition. The myth of the superhero programmer - we often hear about it, but it’s rarely the reality. Being a superhero on a team takes more than just technical chops, and that’s one of the topics that I chat about today with Senior Developer Advocate at Microsoft - Christina Warren. You might’ve seen Christina before on This Week on Channel 9, or even back in the day - at Gizmodo and Mashable.

This episode ended up being less of a career chat and more of a friendly exchange about the latest happenings and what we can learn from them. Yes, we even talk a bit about the re-released Grand Theft Auto: The Definitive Edition.

You can find Christina on the following sites:

And if you want to see more of Clippy (the beloved Office assistant) come to life, you absolutely have to help Christina get to 10,000 followers on Instagram.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> e54d3016-6c90-4c39-b6e1-480311db9a70 Sun, 5 Dec 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3506 no full 26 02 #45 - Startups, Growth, and A Quest to Build People-focused Companies, with Jennifer Kim The decision to join a startup or a big company is not an easy one, as one has to consider many factors that go beyond just the financial side of things. In this episode, I talk to Jennifer Kim, a seasoned startup advisor with a lot of experience dealing with these kinds of decisions and more. Jennifer also specializes in the people part of the startup equation - arguably, one of the hardest ones. We chat about the current challenges startups encounter in this space, why it’s important to build a diverse workforce, and what one individual can do to be a changemaker in their company’s culture. The decision to join a startup or a big company is not an easy one, as one has to consider many factors that go beyond just the financial side of things. In this episode, I talk to Jennifer Kim, a seasoned startup advisor with a lot of experience dealing with these kinds of decisions and more. Jennifer also specializes in the people part of the startup equation - arguably, one of the hardest ones. We chat about the current challenges startups encounter in this space, why it’s important to build a diverse workforce, and what one individual can do to be a changemaker in their company’s culture. The decision to join a startup or a big company is not an easy one, as one has to consider many factors that go beyond just the financial side of things. In this episode, I talk to Jennifer Kim, a seasoned startup advisor with a lot of experience dealing with these kinds of decisions and more. Jennifer also specializes in the people part of the startup equation - arguably, one of the hardest ones. We chat about the current challenges startups encounter in this space, why it’s important to build a diverse workforce, and what one individual can do to be a changemaker in their company’s culture.

You can find Jennifer on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> ad679b3a-c713-4463-bac4-5a8e7b6a411c Sun, 28 Nov 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3251 no full 25 02 #44 - So What Is Product Marketing, with Isaac Levin You've probably heard of the many types of PM - project managers, product managers, and even program managers. But did you also know that there is a PMM - product marketing manager? I wasn't quite sure what the responsibilities of one would be, so I reached out to Isaac Levin - Principal Product Marketing Manager at Elastic, and asked him to talk about his work. You've probably heard of the many types of PM - project managers, product managers, and even program managers. But did you also know that there is a PMM - product marketing manager? I wasn't quite sure what the responsibilities of one would be, so I reached out to Isaac Levin - Principal Product Marketing Manager at Elastic, and asked him to talk about his work. You’ve probably heard of the many types of PM - project managers, product managers, and even program managers. But did you also know that there is a PMM - product marketing manager? I wasn’t quite sure what the responsibilities of one would be, so I reached out to Isaac Levin - Principal Product Marketing Manager at Elastic, and asked him to talk about his work.

You can find Isaac on the following sites:

Make sure to also check out Isaac’s podcast - Coffee and Open Source.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> b67245d4-0c52-4d49-839f-aba01955eee1 Sun, 14 Nov 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3688 no full 24 02 #43 - Ins And Outs Of Developer Advocacy, with Brian Douglas Developer Advocacy is a relatively new field, but when it comes to knowing how to navigate it, Brian Douglas' knowledge is second to none. As Director of Developer Advocacy at GitHub, he is at the forefront of a lot of the developer engagement efforts - from understanding the pain points of those that use GitHub, to advocating for new initiatives and programs. I sit down with Brian to learn more about what it takes to be a great developer advocate, how one can break into the field, and how you measure success in the role. Suffice to say - it was a packed conversation and we needed more time and maybe even a future follow-up to cover everything. Developer Advocacy is a relatively new field, but when it comes to knowing how to navigate it, Brian Douglas' knowledge is second to none. As Director of Developer Advocacy at GitHub, he is at the forefront of a lot of the developer engagement efforts - from understanding the pain points of those that use GitHub, to advocating for new initiatives and programs. I sit down with Brian to learn more about what it takes to be a great developer advocate, how one can break into the field, and how you measure success in the role. Suffice to say - it was a packed conversation and we needed more time and maybe even a future follow-up to cover everything. Developer Advocacy is a relatively new field, but when it comes to knowing how to navigate it, Brian Douglas' knowledge is second to none. As Director of Developer Advocacy at GitHub, he is at the forefront of a lot of the developer engagement efforts - from understanding the pain points of those that use GitHub, to advocating for new initiatives and programs.

I sit down with Brian to learn more about what it takes to be a great developer advocate, how one can break into the field, and how you measure success in the role. Suffice to say - it was a packed conversation and we needed more time and maybe even a future follow-up to cover everything.

You can find Brian on the following sites:

Also, check out This Developing Story and Jamstack Radio - both podcasts that Brian runs!

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 2a220767-3a3f-4f59-b553-2c9ee57e1589 Sun, 07 Nov 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3472 no full 23 02 #42 - Building The World You Want To See, with Jeff Atwood Whether you are new in the tech industry or are a veteran developer, chances are that you've used a product that Jeff Atwood worked on. I'm talking about Stack Overflow and Discourse, of course. When it comes to building communities and fostering good conversations, Jeff took an unusual position - steer the conversation towards finding the best in people, argue ideas and not people, and ultimately, contribute to a world that's just a bit better. How does it all work? Jeff elaborates in this episode. Whether you are new in the tech industry or are a veteran developer, chances are that you've used a product that Jeff Atwood worked on. I'm talking about Stack Overflow and Discourse, of course. When it comes to building communities and fostering good conversations, Jeff took an unusual position - steer the conversation towards finding the best in people, argue ideas and not people, and ultimately, contribute to a world that's just a bit better. How does it all work? Jeff elaborates in this episode. Whether you are new in the tech industry or are a veteran developer, chances are that you’ve used a product that Jeff Atwood worked on. I’m talking about Stack Overflow and Discourse, of course. When it comes to building communities and fostering good conversations, Jeff took an unusual position - steer the conversation towards finding the best in people, argue ideas and not people, and ultimately, contribute to a world that’s just a bit better. How does it all work? Jeff elaborates in this episode.

You can find Jeff on the following sites:

As called-out on the show, you should check out Discourse, along with the Meta and Boing Boing communities.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 053477b0-0897-44b5-aa58-3b2296aeeab2 Sun, 31 Oct 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3514 no full 22 02 #41 - Why Big Tech Is Not For Me, with Chloe Shih Despite what your LinkedIn feed might tell you, a career in FAANG is not the only way to grow in tech. Or even get started in tech, for that matter. There are many variables in play that can help you determine what career track to pursue, but none more important than the answer to your own “Why?” That’s why today I am talking to Chloe Shih, a product manager and content creator, about her journey to a product manager role, struggles along the way, and the realization that work in Big Tech might not be all that interesting or impactful. Despite what your LinkedIn feed might tell you, a career in FAANG is not the only way to grow in tech. Or even get started in tech, for that matter. There are many variables in play that can help you determine what career track to pursue, but none more important than the answer to your own “Why?” That’s why today I am talking to Chloe Shih, a product manager and content creator, about her journey to a product manager role, struggles along the way, and the realization that work in Big Tech might not be all that interesting or impactful. Despite what your LinkedIn feed might tell you, a career in FAANG is not the only way to grow in tech. Or even get started in tech, for that matter. There are many variables in play that can help you determine what career track to pursue, but none more important than the answer to your own “Why?”

That’s why today I am talking to Chloe Shih, a product manager and content creator, about her journey to a product manager role, struggles along the way, and the realization that work in Big Tech might not be all that interesting or impactful.

You can find Chloe on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> aa294d84-436f-4375-96e5-401c7652a603 Sun, 24 Oct 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3635 no full 21 02 #40 - Engineering and Team Empathy, with Amro Mousa Management, and especially engineering management, is way more than just telling others what to build. Talking to Amro Mousa, an engineering manager at Twitter, it becomes evident that a key ingredient to a good team is empathy. In this episode, I learn from him on what the best way is to lead with empathy in a team, and how one should think about the management track as a potential avenue in their career. Management, and especially engineering management, is way more than just telling others what to build. Talking to Amro Mousa, an engineering manager at Twitter, it becomes evident that a key ingredient to a good team is empathy. In this episode, I learn from him on what the best way is to lead with empathy in a team, and how one should think about the management track as a potential avenue in their career. Management, and especially engineering management, is way more than just telling others what to build. Talking to Amro Mousa, an engineering manager at Twitter, it becomes evident that a key ingredient to a good team is empathy. In this episode, I learn from him on what the best way is to lead with empathy in a team, and how one should think about the management track as a potential avenue in their career.

You can find Amro on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 187a49d8-b357-48f3-b1ee-313ae8950548 Sun, 17 Oct 2021 12:00:00 GMT 2686 no full 20 02 #39 - Focus on Delivering Value, with Dan Shaw In the sea of shiny technology objects (I am talking frameworks, tools, libraries, and many others), Dan Shaw has been pretty opinionated - focus on delivering value to the customer first, and tools second. In this episode, I sit down with Dan to learn more about this approach, and how he applied it in his career and work with the Node.js community - after all, he’s known as the Godfather of Node.js. In the sea of shiny technology objects (I am talking frameworks, tools, libraries, and many others), Dan Shaw has been pretty opinionated - focus on delivering value to the customer first, and tools second. In this episode, I sit down with Dan to learn more about this approach, and how he applied it in his career and work with the Node.js community - after all, he’s known as the Godfather of Node.js. In the sea of shiny technology objects (I am talking frameworks, tools, libraries, and many others), Dan Shawhas been pretty opinionated - focus on delivering value to the customer first, and tools second. In this episode, I sit down with Dan to learn more about this approach, and how he applied it in his career and work with the Node.js community - after all, he’s known as the Godfather of Node.js.

You can find Dan on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 813ce6d8-8f10-444a-be6d-ea001dc07e38 Sun, 03 Oct 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3560 yes full 19 02 #38 - Becoming a Polymath, with Salman Ansari From the early days - when we are growing up, to when we go to school, we tend to be involved in a lot of activities. From sports, to music, painting, coding classes. But as we grow up, we tend to specialize. One is a product manager, or a Python programmer, or even a doctor. According to my good friend Salman Ansari, this is where we have an opportunity to break out of the typical norms and become a polymath - a person with extensive knowledge in several domains. In this episode, I learn more about Salman’s career, as well as his take on how someone can become a polymath. From the early days - when we are growing up, to when we go to school, we tend to be involved in a lot of activities. From sports, to music, painting, coding classes. But as we grow up, we tend to specialize. One is a product manager, or a Python programmer, or even a doctor. According to my good friend Salman Ansari, this is where we have an opportunity to break out of the typical norms and become a polymath - a person with extensive knowledge in several domains. In this episode, I learn more about Salman’s career, as well as his take on how someone can become a polymath. From the early days - when we are growing up, to when we go to school, we tend to be involved in a lot of activities. From sports, to music, painting, coding classes. But as we grow up, we tend to specialize. One is a product manager, or a Python programmer, or even a doctor.

According to my good friend Salman Ansari, this is where we have an opportunity to break out of the typical norms and become a polymath - a person with extensive knowledge in several domains. In this episode, I learn more about Salman’s career, as well as his take on how someone can become a polymath.

You can find Salman on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> f25b8670-0929-4fbb-a9ae-a7767d16d575 Sun, 11 Jul 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3142 no full 18 02 #37 - Be A Builder, With Jack Zerby 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. 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. Last time I chatted with Jack, I had pagesof 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.

You can find Jack on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> c11a60b1-e910-4808-8336-4da489cdd4bf Sun, 27 Jun 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3774 no full 17 02 #36 - Diving Into Open Source Engineering, with Jenn Creighton There is a bit of a chasm between requirements for building open source projects and those that are designed to be closed. Not surprisingly, it also requires a different set of skills altogether if you want to do it right. To learn more about this, I sat down with Jenn Creighton, Senior Staff Open Source Engineer at Apollo GraphQL. Jenn has been building scalable web experiences at companies such as Ralph Lauren, Chartbeat, and ClassPass, and is now leading the work on one of the most interesting and active open projects out there. There is a bit of a chasm between requirements for building open source projects and those that are designed to be closed. Not surprisingly, it also requires a different set of skills altogether if you want to do it right. To learn more about this, I sat down with Jenn Creighton, Senior Staff Open Source Engineer at Apollo GraphQL. Jenn has been building scalable web experiences at companies such as Ralph Lauren, Chartbeat, and ClassPass, and is now leading the work on one of the most interesting and active open projects out there. There is a bit of a chasm between requirements for building open source projects and those that are designed to be closed. Not surprisingly, it also requires a different set of skills altogether if you want to do it right.

To learn more about this, I sat down with Jenn Creighton, Senior Staff Open Source Engineer at Apollo GraphQL. Jenn has been building scalable web experiences at companies such as Ralph Lauren, Chartbeat, and ClassPass, and is now leading the work on one of the most interesting and active open projects out there.

You can find Jenn on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> a2e97cae-47c2-4541-8f17-cc63dd2a4cb5 Sun, 13 Jun 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3433 no full 16 02 #35 - From Pre-Med To Product Management, with Janine Co I often hear about folks moving from engineering to product management and back. Others make the transition from marketing and sales to product management. In a first for this show, today I talk to Janine Co, a product manager who recently joined the Microsoft Teams team, who also happened to switch from following a pre-med path to one in product. What things did she consider when making the switch? What did Janine do to build a network from scratch? It's all in this episode. I often hear about folks moving from engineering to product management and back. Others make the transition from marketing and sales to product management. In a first for this show, today I talk to Janine Co, a product manager who recently joined the Microsoft Teams team, who also happened to switch from following a pre-med path to one in product. What things did she consider when making the switch? What did Janine do to build a network from scratch? It's all in this episode. I often hear about folks moving from engineering to product management and back. Others make the transition from marketing and sales to product management. In a first for this show, today I talk to Janine Co, a product manager who recently joined the Microsoft Teams team, who also happened to switch from following a pre-med path to one in product.

What things did she consider when making the switch? What did Janine do to build a network from scratch? It’s all in this episode.

You can find Janine on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> e0ca1bb1-eed4-440c-acfe-5dc7695e0a46 Sun, 6 Jun 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3365 no full 15 02 #34 - Busting Career Myths with Laurie Barth There are thousands of blog posts, tutorials, and videos that tell you what engineering careers are about, how you should be thinking about your dream job, and promotion trajectory. In this sea of content, it's often hard to separate the common from the edge case. In this episode, I talk to Laurie Barth, a renowned technologist and Senior Software Engineer at Netflix, about the myths we encounter in our careers, and what we can do to think about growth in a sustainable way. There are thousands of blog posts, tutorials, and videos that tell you what engineering careers are about, how you should be thinking about your dream job, and promotion trajectory. In this sea of content, it's often hard to separate the common from the edge case. In this episode, I talk to Laurie Barth, a renowned technologist and Senior Software Engineer at Netflix, about the myths we encounter in our careers, and what we can do to think about growth in a sustainable way. There are thousands of blog posts, tutorials, and videos that tell you what engineering careers are about, how you should be thinking about your dream job, and promotion trajectory. In this sea of content, it’s often hard to separate the common from the edge case.

In this episode, I talk to Laurie Barth, a renowned technologist and Senior Software Engineer at Netflix, about the myths we encounter in our careers, and what we can do to think about growth in a sustainable way.

You can find Laurie on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> cf3c6cf4-5840-43a7-89d5-34228432f0c1 Sun, 30 May 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3367 no full 14 02 #33 - Engineering In A News Organization And Beyond, with Nicole Tibaldi What lessons can you take away from a music degree and bring into engineering management? How do engineers work with folks in the newsroom at one of the biggest news organization on the planet? Nicole Tibaldi, Senior Engineering Manager at The New York Times (yes, that The New York Times) is here to tell us more about these things, her work, career, and how to foster a culture where your team feels included. What lessons can you take away from a music degree and bring into engineering management? How do engineers work with folks in the newsroom at one of the biggest news organization on the planet? Nicole Tibaldi, Senior Engineering Manager at The New York Times (yes, that The New York Times) is here to tell us more about these things, her work, career, and how to foster a culture where your team feels included. What lessons can you take away from a music degree and bring into engineering management? How do engineers work with folks in the newsroom at one of the biggest news organization on the planet?

Nicole Tibaldi, Senior Engineering Manager at The New York Times (yes, thatThe New York Times) is here to tell us more about these things, her work, career, and how to foster a culture where your team feels included.

You can find Nicole on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboifrom Pixabay.

]]> 19371786-7c41-482a-8275-647232ff9972 Sun, 16 May 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3341 no full 13 02 #32 - Camille Fournier on Engineering Management Paths Setting your sights high for a career in engineering management might be an appealing endeavor, but it also means that you will be making a lot of assumptions about future roles without really knowing what those roles are truly about. In this episode, I sit down with Camille Fournier - a veteran CTO, speaker, and entrepreneur, to learn more about ways to map out the path to becoming a CTO (or not). Setting your sights high for a career in engineering management might be an appealing endeavor, but it also means that you will be making a lot of assumptions about future roles without really knowing what those roles are truly about. In this episode, I sit down with Camille Fournier - a veteran CTO, speaker, and entrepreneur, to learn more about ways to map out the path to becoming a CTO (or not). Setting your sights high for a career in engineering management might be an appealing endeavor, but it also means that you will be making a lot of assumptions about future roles without really knowing what those roles are truly about.

In this episode, I sit down with Camille Fournier - a veteran CTO, speaker, and entrepreneur, to learn more about ways to map out the path to becoming a CTO (or not).

You can find Camille on the following sites:

If you haven’t yet, make sure to check out Camille’s book - The Manager’s Path.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 9d01275d-fdc1-4c8d-aed7-916c0926a797 Sun, 09 May 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3248 no full 12 02 #31 - Lessons In Leadership, with Chad Fowler, VP of Technology at DEVCON 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. 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. 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.

You can find Chad on the following sites:

Make sure to also check out Chad’s book - The Passionate Programmer.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 10d9b285-3111-40ac-891f-5635e9618026 Sun, 25 Apr 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3726 no full 11 02 #30 - Creativity in Code and Beyond, with Monica Dinculescu, Engineer Extraordinaire Folks often forget that engineering is inherently a very creative process. Monica Dinculescu found her own niche where she can build impactful things and do it in some of the most unusual ways possible. An excellent engineer, creative thinker, and fellow Eastern European by origin, Monica joins me today to talk about the things she learned as she figured out her career path. Folks often forget that engineering is inherently a very creative process. Monica Dinculescu found her own niche where she can build impactful things and do it in some of the most unusual ways possible. An excellent engineer, creative thinker, and fellow Eastern European by origin, Monica joins me today to talk about the things she learned as she figured out her career path. Folks often forget that engineering is inherently a very creative process. Monica Dinculescu found her own niche where she can build impactful things and do it in some of the most unusual ways possible. An excellent engineer, creative thinker, and fellow Eastern European by origin, Monica joins me today to talk about the things she learned as she figured out her career path.

You can find Monica on the following sites:

Make sure to also check out Tim Holman’s work, that Monica recommended during the show!

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboifrom Pixabay.

]]> c2825db0-2faa-4896-8295-a23e9708ce26 Sun, 18 Apr 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3512 no full 10 02 #29 - Building Things You Love, with Ben Sandofsky, Head of Development for Halide From Pascal, to writing image processing code, if there is one word you absolutely can’t use to describe Ben Sandofsky‘s career, it would be “uneventful.” He was one of the first mobile engineers at Twitter, had a stint helping build Periscope, and ultimately ventured into unexplored territory to finish a photo app he always wanted, that later became Halide. In this episode, I sit down with Ben to get a better understanding of the decisions he made in his career, and what were the critical turning points that made him start his own studio - Lux. From Pascal, to writing image processing code, if there is one word you absolutely can’t use to describe Ben Sandofsky‘s career, it would be “uneventful.” He was one of the first mobile engineers at Twitter, had a stint helping build Periscope, and ultimately ventured into unexplored territory to finish a photo app he always wanted, that later became Halide. In this episode, I sit down with Ben to get a better understanding of the decisions he made in his career, and what were the critical turning points that made him start his own studio - Lux. From Pascal, to writing image processing code, if there is one word you absolutely can’t use to describe Ben Sandofsky‘s career, it would be “uneventful.” He was one of the first mobile engineers at Twitter, had a stint helping build Periscope, and ultimately ventured into unexplored territory to finish a photo app he always wanted, that later became Halide.

In this episode, I sit down with Ben to get a better understanding of the decisions he made in his career, and what were the critical turning points that made him start his own studio - Lux.

You can find Ben on the following sites:

While at it, you should check out Halideand Spectre- the must-have camera apps for iOS!

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 1413759c-8329-413f-9124-3b17f0ea1e27 Sun, 11 Apr 2021 12:00:00 GMT 4487 no full 09 02 #28 - The Art of Engineering Management, with Rebecca Murphey, EM at Stripe Rebecca Murphey tried a lot of things on her way to becoming an engineering manager at Stripe - from journalism to advertisement, and even learning how to fly. In this episode, I sit down with Rebecca to learn more about her path, what were the important lessons learned in her non-tech career that helped her be an efficient engineering leader, and what aspiring engineering managers can start doing today to figure out if this career track is for them. Rebecca Murphey tried a lot of things on her way to becoming an engineering manager at Stripe - from journalism to advertisement, and even learning how to fly. In this episode, I sit down with Rebecca to learn more about her path, what were the important lessons learned in her non-tech career that helped her be an efficient engineering leader, and what aspiring engineering managers can start doing today to figure out if this career track is for them. From all the questions I get asked, this one comes up quite often - “How do I become an engineering manager?” While I don’t know the answer myself, I think I have an idea of who might have the insights on this topic.

Rebecca Murpheytried a lot of things on her way to becoming an engineering manager at Stripe - from journalism to advertisement, and even learning how to fly.

In this episode, I sit down with Rebecca to learn more about her path, what were the important lessons learned in her non-tech career that helped her be an efficient engineering leader, and what aspiring engineering managers can start doing today to figure out if this career track is for them.

You can find Rebecca on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> a313d58e-ac42-4de9-8c46-54e3d72ea247 Sun, 4 Apr 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3687 no full 08 02 #27 - How to Build a Career in Human Resources, with David Daniels There is a certain air of mystery around careers in Human Resources (HR), and David Daniels, who is a veteran HR leader in tech, is here to bring some clarity about the work. David has extensive experience being in HR at Microsoft, Pinterest, and now - Snapchat. He shares his insights about going from education to leadership in some of the most prominent tech companies, fighting against the fixed mindset, and uncommon recommendations for folks wanting to get started with their careers. There is a certain air of mystery around careers in Human Resources (HR), and David Daniels, who is a veteran HR leader in tech, is here to bring some clarity about the work. David has extensive experience being in HR at Microsoft, Pinterest, and now - Snapchat. He shares his insights about going from education to leadership in some of the most prominent tech companies, fighting against the fixed mindset, and uncommon recommendations for folks wanting to get started with their careers. There is a certain air of mystery around careers in Human Resources (HR), and David Daniels, who is a veteran HR leader in tech, is here to bring some clarity about the work.

David has extensive experience being in HR at Microsoft, Pinterest, and now - Snapchat. He shares his insights about going from education to leadership in some of the most prominent tech companies, fighting against the fixed mindset, and uncommon recommendations for folks wanting to get started with their careers.

You can find David on the following sites:

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> b02c94bb-e0b7-4b77-a2c7-a1f4cbe674f5 Sun, 21 Mar 2021 12:00:00 GMT 2828 no full 07 02 #26 - How to Grow as a Product Manager, with Dan Olsen 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. 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. 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.

You can find Dan on the following sites:

Make sure to sign up for Dan’s upcoming Lean Product Management online workshop on April 20, 2021.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 9566a1ee-a42a-4def-a224-91fd96c6b1dd Sun, 14 Mar 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3520 no full 06 02 #25 - How to Build a Career in Design and Pitch Gary Vee, with Jack Zerby Jack Zerby is not your typical designer. His experience producing music, working at Pentagram and Frog, building startups, pitching to Gary Vee, and now - building tools for creators at Gumroad, puts him square in the middle of a very uncommon career path. In this episode, I chat with Jack to learn more about what motivated him to grow his career, how to break into design, how to make the transition from a big company to a startup, and what does it mean to build compelling narratives in deck format. Jack Zerby is not your typical designer. His experience producing music, working at Pentagram and Frog, building startups, pitching to Gary Vee, and now - building tools for creators at Gumroad, puts him square in the middle of a very uncommon career path. In this episode, I chat with Jack to learn more about what motivated him to grow his career, how to break into design, how to make the transition from a big company to a startup, and what does it mean to build compelling narratives in deck format. Jack Zerbyis not your typical designer. His experience producing music, working at Pentagram and Frog, building startups, pitching to Gary Vee, and now - building tools for creators at Gumroad, puts him square in the middle of a very uncommon career path.

In this episode, I chat with Jack to learn more about what motivated him to grow his career, how to break into design, how to make the transition from a big company to a startup, and what does it mean to build compelling narratives in deck format.

Make sure to check out Jack’s upcoming Design for Decksworkshop to change the way you think about presentations.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarsky. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 390822eb-d5f4-4baf-99e6-52999cb156b1 Sun, 7 Mar 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3677 no full 05 02 #24 - Building Communities with Jess Lee Jess Lee is the co-founder of dev.to - a developer community that emphasizes the importance of a friendly approach to guiding folks through the tumultuous waters of software development. In this episode, we chat about Jess’ career, the journey to founding Forem - the open-source platform powering large communities, and her experience building successful distributed teams. Jess Lee is the co-founder of dev.to - a developer community that emphasizes the importance of a friendly approach to guiding folks through the tumultuous waters of software development. In this episode, we chat about Jess’ career, the journey to founding Forem - the open-source platform powering large communities, and her experience building successful distributed teams. Jess Leeis the co-founder of dev.to- a developer community that emphasizes the importance of a friendly approach to guiding folks through the tumultuous waters of software development.

In this episode, we chat about Jess’ career, the journey to founding Forem- the open-source platform powering large communities, and her experience building successful distributed teams.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarskyand Courtny Cotten. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> e33cbed3-404f-43a8-8f89-c7367bb55964 Sun, 28 Feb 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3120 no full 04 02 #23 - From Servers, Phones, and Voice Assistants to Space with Charlie Kindel Charlie Kindel is a tech industry veteran who helped bootstrap, grow, and manage teams that built home servers, phones, voice assistants, home automation software, and hopefully soon - space technologies. In this episode, we dive a bit deeper into Charlie’s approach to product ideation and design, discuss the importance of having a principled organization, and ask questions about his most recent adventure around space. Charlie Kindel is a tech industry veteran who helped bootstrap, grow, and manage teams that built home servers, phones, voice assistants, home automation software, and hopefully soon - space technologies. In this episode, we dive a bit deeper into Charlie’s approach to product ideation and design, discuss the importance of having a principled organization, and ask questions about his most recent adventure around space. Charlie Kindel is a tech industry veteran who helped bootstrap, grow, and manage teams that built home servers, phones, voice assistants, home automation software, and hopefully soon - space technologies. In this episode, we dive a bit deeper into Charlie’s approach to product ideation and design, discuss the importance of having a principled organization, and ask questions about his most recent adventure around space.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarskyand Courtny Cotten. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> b28b6861-6f7c-4c2a-abe5-92a9f766687d Sun, 21 Feb 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3517 no full 03 02 #22 - Paige Bailey on Building a Career In Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Paige Bailey is one of the few Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) experts who is able to convey complex technical topics in an easy-to-understand and relatable language. Her Twitter feed is full of AI/ML paper recommendations, open source projects, and insights about the ever-evolving tech space. What was her journey like to a career in a very complex domain? What does it mean to build an inclusive AI? This week, we sit down with Paige to learn from her experience. Paige Bailey is one of the few Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) experts who is able to convey complex technical topics in an easy-to-understand and relatable language. Her Twitter feed is full of AI/ML paper recommendations, open source projects, and insights about the ever-evolving tech space. What was her journey like to a career in a very complex domain? What does it mean to build an inclusive AI? This week, we sit down with Paige to learn from her experience. Paige Bailey is one of the few Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) experts who is able to convey complex technical topics in an easy-to-understand and relatable language. Her Twitter feed is full of AI/ML paper recommendations, open source projects, and insights about the ever-evolving tech space. What was her journey like to a career in a very complex domain? What does it mean to build an inclusive AI? This week, we sit down with Paige to learn from her experience.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarskyand Courtny Cotten. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> b584608e-4594-4d8c-9c96-9f0b77a4b2fd Mon, 1 Feb 2021 12:00:00 GMT 4046 no full 02 02 #21 - Mayuko Inoue on Building a Content Creator Career Path Mayuko Inoue made a bold step by defying the stereotypical career path of a software engineer, and became a full-time content creator. Her videos on YouTube answer some of the more salient questions that are almost never covered in your typical coding tutorials and overviews. What was behind this career decision and what were the lessons learned? How do you build a healthy community, and develop a good work-life balance? We talk to Mayuko about her personal take on the unique trajectory she's carving, as well as the lessons learned along the way. Mayuko Inoue made a bold step by defying the stereotypical career path of a software engineer, and became a full-time content creator. Her videos on YouTube answer some of the more salient questions that are almost never covered in your typical coding tutorials and overviews. What was behind this career decision and what were the lessons learned? How do you build a healthy community, and develop a good work-life balance? We talk to Mayuko about her personal take on the unique trajectory she's carving, as well as the lessons learned along the way. Mayuko Inoue made a bold step by defying the stereotypical career path of a software engineer, and became a full-time content creator. Her videos on YouTube answer some of the more salient questions that are almost never covered in your typical coding tutorials and overviews. What was behind this career decision and what were the lessons learned? How do you build a healthy community, and develop a good work-life balance? We talk to Mayuko about her personal take on the unique trajectory she's carving, as well as the lessons learned along the way.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarskyand Courtny Cotten. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> 5d556b87-e428-402a-beff-46f60b81f817 Sun, 17 Jan 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3676 no full 01 02 #20 - Scott Hanselman on Intentionality Our first episode of the year is with the one and only Scott Hanselman. We tried to come up with a catchy title, but the entire episode could be summarized in one word - intentionality. We discuss Scott’s foray into TikTok, building your own definition of success, and fostering strong relationships with people around you. Our first episode of the year is with the one and only Scott Hanselman. We tried to come up with a catchy title, but the entire episode could be summarized in one word - intentionality. We discuss Scott’s foray into TikTok, building your own definition of success, and fostering strong relationships with people around you. Our first episode of the year is with the one and only Scott Hanselman. We tried to come up with a catchy title, but the entire episode could be summarized in one word - intentionality. We discuss Scott’s foray into TikTok, building your own definition of success, and fostering strong relationships with people around you.

The podcast was produced by Den Delimarskyand Courtny Cotten. Music by Wataboi from Pixabay.

]]> b04c5154-b355-4556-8bc1-3b50375b0f69 Sun, 10 Jan 2021 12:00:00 GMT 3257 no full 19 01 #19 - Wrap Up Episode For 2020 Den and Courtny reflect on the year we just went through, and discuss our plans for 2021. There is a lot to be thankful for, and we had quite a year kickstarting a new podcast from scratch. This also happens to be the last episode of our Season 1. Den and Courtny reflect on the year we just went through, and discuss our plans for 2021. There is a lot to be thankful for, and we had quite a year kickstarting a new podcast from scratch. This also happens to be the last episode of our Season 1. Den and Courtny reflect on the year we just went through, and discuss our plans for 2021. There is a lot to be thankful for, and we had quite a year kickstarting a new podcast from scratch. This also happens to be the last episode of our Season 1.

]]> 80aed162-625b-4426-9b73-3af85cb005fd Sun, 20 Dec 2020 12:00:00 GMT 2486 no full 18 01 #18 - Megan Risdal on Building a Career at the Intersection of Data Science and Product Management Right before the Thanksgiving break, we are releasing a fresh new episode with Megan Risdal, Product Lead at Kaggle. Megan took the multi-talented route to the career she has today, and enjoys every bit of it. In this episode, we talk about the importance of being a multi-dimensional professional in a product role, finding the best ways to collect customer feedback, and building communities at scale. Right before the Thanksgiving break, we are releasing a fresh new episode with Megan Risdal, Product Lead at Kaggle. Megan took the multi-talented route to the career she has today, and enjoys every bit of it. In this episode, we talk about the importance of being a multi-dimensional professional in a product role, finding the best ways to collect customer feedback, and building communities at scale. Right before the Thanksgiving break, we are releasing a fresh new episode with Megan Risdal, Product Lead at Kaggle. Megan took the multi-talented route to the career she has today, and enjoys every bit of it. In this episode, we talk about the importance of being a multi-dimensional professional in a product role, finding the best ways to collect customer feedback, and building communities at scale.

]]> 7618c7c9-1449-495c-aeaa-048c2c2467a9 Sun, 22 Nov 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3544 no full 17 01 #17 - Christos Matskas on Going From Consulting to Corporate and Building Identity Tools In a surprising twist, this week we chat with Christos Matskas on two topics - transitioning from consulting life to a corporate life, as well as about building identity tools and services in the cloud. In a surprising twist, this week we chat with Christos Matskas on two topics - transitioning from consulting life to a corporate life, as well as about building identity tools and services in the cloud. In a surprising twist, this week we chat with Christos Matskas on two topics - transitioning from consulting life to a corporate life, as well as about building identity tools and services in the cloud.

]]> c46c9592-cf9f-41e0-9baf-4e64b9e3dc3f Sun, 15 Nov 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3766 no full 16 01 #16 - Bill Kenney on Building Brands That Last This weekend, we go outdoors with Bill Kenney, co-founder of Focus Lab, a branding agency that is entirely remote. We talk to Bill about the importance of a good brand and what distinguishes professionals from amateurs in the field. This weekend, we go outdoors with Bill Kenney, co-founder of Focus Lab, a branding agency that is entirely remote. We talk to Bill about the importance of a good brand and what distinguishes professionals from amateurs in the field. This weekend, we go outdoors with Bill Kenney, co-founder of Focus Lab, a branding agency that is entirely remote. We talk to Bill about the importance of a good brand and what distinguishes professionals from amateurs in the field.

]]> e6205376-5678-48d9-b25c-3d12d7dd13f7 Sun, 08 Nov 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3765 no full 15 01 #15 - Tarun Gangwani on Innovation, Navigating Product Decisions, and Building Growth Engines We sit down to chat with Tarun Gangwani, Senior Product Manager at Sanity.io. Tarun is a seasoned PM with tons of expertise to share about the product management domain. With previous experience at Twitch, where he oversaw the entire lifecycle of a developer using extensions and data services to create engaging and personalized viewing and streaming experiences, Tarun is talking about lessons learned, differences between startup and large company environments, along with the ways in which product managers can broaden the understanding of their products and customer needs. We sit down to chat with Tarun Gangwani, Senior Product Manager at Sanity.io. Tarun is a seasoned PM with tons of expertise to share about the product management domain. With previous experience at Twitch, where he oversaw the entire lifecycle of a developer using extensions and data services to create engaging and personalized viewing and streaming experiences, Tarun is talking about lessons learned, differences between startup and large company environments, along with the ways in which product managers can broaden the understanding of their products and customer needs. We sit down to chat with Tarun Gangwani, Senior Product Manager at Sanity.io. Tarun is a seasoned PM with tons of expertise to share about the product management domain. With previous experience at Twitch, where he oversaw the entire lifecycle of a developer using extensions and data services to create engaging and personalized viewing and streaming experiences, Tarun is talking about lessons learned, differences between startup and large company environments, along with the ways in which product managers can broaden the understanding of their products and customer needs.

]]> e72dfa56-de79-45f8-94d5-20fffc2b60a9 Sun, 01 Nov 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3077 no full 14 1 #14 - Interview with Richard Lander 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. 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. 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.

]]> 9ed197e2-f098-4190-b94d-53efb1e90531 Sun, 18 Oct 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3810 no full 13 1 #13 - Interview with Amanda Silver 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. 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. 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.

]]> d685f86b-1677-46cb-9d5d-5a0ba4eebfff Sun, 27 Sep 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3635 no full 12 1 #12 - Interview with Christina Weng In this episode of The Work Item we interview Christina Weng, product designer at Facebook, about building a career in user experience design from scratch. In this episode of The Work Item we interview Christina Weng, product designer at Facebook, about building a career in user experience design from scratch. In this episode of The Work Item we interview Christina Weng, product designer at Facebook, about building a career in user experience design from scratch.

]]> 48d97516-5828-4dbf-97f3-66c659622822 Sun, 20 Sep 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3521 no full 11 1 #11 - Interview with Eric Martel We're back after a week-long hiatus with an interview. This time, we chat with Eric Martel, Director of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning at Eidos-Montréal. We re-visit some of the gream games of the past, talk about console development considerations for modern games, and dig into how artificial intelligence and machine learning are going to revolutionize the engineering process. We're back after a week-long hiatus with an interview. This time, we chat with Eric Martel, Director of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning at Eidos-Montréal. We re-visit some of the gream games of the past, talk about console development considerations for modern games, and dig into how artificial intelligence and machine learning are going to revolutionize the engineering process. We're back after a week-long hiatus with an interview. This time, we chat with Eric Martel, Director of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning at Eidos-Montréal. We re-visit some of the gream games of the past, talk about console development considerations for modern games, and dig into how artificial intelligence and machine learning are going to revolutionize the engineering process.

]]> fcd76cd9-bb9c-4d44-91e4-e33193183e4c Sun, 23 Aug 2020 12:00:00 GMT 4021 no full 10 1 #10 - Interview with Sara Chipps In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Sara Chipps, Director of Public Q and A at Stack Overflow. Sara is also the founder of JewelBots, a company that provides electronic building kits for young inventors. We chat with Sara about community feedback, engineering management career tracks, and building tools for STEM inclusivity. In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Sara Chipps, Director of Public Q and A at Stack Overflow. Sara is also the founder of JewelBots, a company that provides electronic building kits for young inventors. We chat with Sara about community feedback, engineering management career tracks, and building tools for STEM inclusivity. In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Sara Chipps, Director of Public Q and A at Stack Overflow. Sara is also the founder of JewelBots, a company that provides electronic building kits for young inventors. We chat with Sara about community feedback, engineering management career tracks, and building tools for STEM inclusivity.

]]> 0b3bd3bf-e2e3-4a8f-9851-32269d3a5f4e Sun, 09 Aug 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3163 no full 9 1 #9 - Interview with Philipp Cannons In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Philipp Cannons, CEO and founder of PMFIT.AI - a startup that aims to accelerate product success. Philipp talks about his experience starting a business from scratch and building a deep understanding of large organizations. In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Philipp Cannons, CEO and founder of PMFIT.AI - a startup that aims to accelerate product success. Philipp talks about his experience starting a business from scratch and building a deep understanding of large organizations. In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Philipp Cannons, CEO and founder of PMFIT.AI - a startup that aims to accelerate product success. Philipp talks about his experience starting a business from scratch and building a deep understanding of large organizations.

]]> 80279444-74c9-4e8f-b4f1-ec0373266074 Mon, 20 Jul 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3111 no full 8 1 #8 - Interview with Charmaine Lee In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Charmaine Lee, product manager intern at Microsoft, and a friend of the show. Charmaine talks about her experiences breaking into tech, building projects for fun, and being engaged in local tech scenes. In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Charmaine Lee, product manager intern at Microsoft, and a friend of the show. Charmaine talks about her experiences breaking into tech, building projects for fun, and being engaged in local tech scenes. In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Charmaine Lee, product manager intern at Microsoft, and a friend of the show. Charmaine talks about her experiences breaking into tech, building projects for fun, and being engaged in local tech scenes.

]]> a57767ca-6b2e-40dd-9804-39c3684ae416 Sun, 19 Jul 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3642 no full 7 1 #7 - Interview with Dan Fernandez In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Dan Fernandez, VP of Product for Developer Services at Salesforce. Dan, a tech veteran, talks about product management, skill stacking, and building great developer experiences. In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Dan Fernandez, VP of Product for Developer Services at Salesforce. Dan, a tech veteran, talks about product management, skill stacking, and building great developer experiences. In this episode of The Work Item, we interview Dan Fernandez, VP of Product for Developer Services at Salesforce. Dan, a tech veteran, talks about product management, skill stacking, and building great developer experiences.

]]> 1aad2877-6417-4b30-9e34-005d52289578 Sun, 5 Jul 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3577 no full 6 1 #6 - Interview with Matt Swanson Today, we had the honor of having an in-depth conversation with Matt Swanson, a software engineer at SEP, on engineering best practices, design systems, and managing complexity. Today, we had the honor of having an in-depth conversation with Matt Swanson, a software engineer at SEP, on engineering best practices, design systems, and managing complexity. Today, we had the honor of having an in-depth conversation with Matt Swanson, a software engineer at SEP, on engineering best practices, design systems, and managing complexity.

]]> b2649232-e74e-4846-aa1c-70a88a4b183c Sun, 28 Jun 2020 12:00:00 GMT 4033 no full 5 1 #5 - Interview with Jin Yang 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. 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. 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.

]]> f8198fa9-367a-4dec-8024-7d74a0da9d69 Sun, 21 Jun 2020 12:00:00 GMT 4002 no full 4 1 #4 - Interview with Clint Rutkas In this episode, Courtny Cotten and Den Delimarsky chat with Clint Rutkas about PowerToys - a fantastic set of utilities for Windows power users. In this episode, Courtny Cotten and Den Delimarsky chat with Clint Rutkas about PowerToys - a fantastic set of utilities for Windows power users. In this episode, Courtny Cotten and Den Delimarsky chat with Clint Rutkas about PowerToys - a fantastic set of utilities for Windows power users.

]]> a00f4164-b8b6-4b99-8070-f4005fc0f646 Sun, 3 May 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3239 no full 3 1 #3 - Interview with April Speight In this episode, Courtny Cotten and Den Delimarsky chat with April Speight, Senior Developer Advocate at Microsoft, about social media, writing Python books for kids, and more. In this episode, Courtny Cotten and Den Delimarsky chat with April Speight, Senior Developer Advocate at Microsoft, about social media, writing Python books for kids, and more. In this episode, Courtny Cotten and Den Delimarsky chat with April Speight, Senior Developer Advocate at Microsoft, about social media, writing Python books for kids, and more.

]]> a1d3834c-c351-4d50-866f-7ac7f0901ebc Sun, 12 Apr 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3813 no full 2 1 #2 - Career Starts In this episode, Den and Courtny are talking about their career starts. In this episode, Den and Courtny are talking about their career starts. In this episode, Den and Courtny are talking about their career starts.

]]> e6a87083-cd05-44a0-b71a-b68b2988dbcc Sun, 5 Apr 2020 12:00:00 GMT 1769 no full 1 1 #1 - Remote Work In this episode, Courtny Cotten and Den Delimarsky talk about what it takes to work remotely, along with some tips and best practices. In this episode, Courtny Cotten and Den Delimarsky talk about what it takes to work remotely, along with some tips and best practices. In this episode, Courtny Cotten and Den Delimarsky talk about what it takes to work remotely, along with some tips and best practices.

]]> 7f035dd4-0dee-42b6-9039-926e604a37a0 Sun, 15 Mar 2020 12:00:00 GMT 3374 no