Teams at Work

In this week’s episode, our co-founder Darja chatted with Stephanie Herre, Senior Sales Leader at Remote (ex-Cisco, and SAP). Stephanie shared her take on how AI will impact the future of work, and why we need fewer managers, but more leaders. She discussed the simple steps you can take not to feel overwhelmed as a leader, how to say “no” at work without sounding rude, and still be there for your team. Stephanie believes the skill of asking the right questions at work and being self-reflective is underrated, and the world needs better question-askers, not better talkers. She also shared what she struggled with the most as a first-time manager and how she learned to set communication boundaries at work to maximize productivity, live a full life, and help her team do the same. In this episode, you’ll learn:How Stephanie transformed her under-performing team as a first-time manager and gained her team’s trust while helping everyone achieve their goals What makes a true leader nowadays, and the super skills that will help you to go from good to great leader How to utilize and make the most out of the 30-60-90 plan, and why this good old framework, should be your go-to tool as a first-time manager Will we need managers in the coming years at all, and why in the future with AI, you won’t go far without the human skills Timecodes:4:20 - the question you ask someone at the beginning of their leadership journey 6:05 - will AI replace managers, will we need managers in the coming years at all? 9:00 - in the future with AI, you won’t go far without the human skills 14:05 - the simple steps you can take not to feel overwhelmed as a leader 18:00 - how to say “no” and decline meetings at work without being rude 26:00 - role play: how to help your coachees or mentees apply what they’ve learned in the sessions 29:30 - how Stephanie transformed her under-performing team as a first-time manager 30:20 - the number one advice to first-time managers: utilize the good old 30-60-90 plan 33:30 - a quick practice to free up your schedule 37:25 - the 3 main skills you need to train for the future of work 42:00 - the competitive advantage of introverted leaders Connect with Danielle:Twitter: https://twitter.com/coachsteph2022 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephherre/ Udemy Course: https://www.udemy.com/course/306090plan-leadership/ Connect with Darja:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick Follow Bunch:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

In this week’s episode, our co-founder Darja chatted with Danielle Leong, currently VP of Engineering at Maca, working on SaaS pricing insights. She started her career as an early engineer at Twilio, after that Danielle became a Director of Engineering, building a tech team to lead the development of mission-critical services at GitHub. She is a passionate learner and loves mentoring others on their journey, she also has her own photography studio where she captures and amplifies diverse and unique voices. Danielle shared her nontypical career journey, and how she balances her technical and creative sides (and how they complement each other). She also shared her take on leading by example, why failing is healthy, and how to actually apply learnings from the past to solve problems in the present. Danielle believes even if you are early on in your career or come from a different background you always have something to bring to the table, you just gotta believe in yourself and be curious! In this episode, you’ll learn: Why technical talent is made, not born, and the two qualities you actually need to succeed on the tech leadership journey How to make sense of all the resources out there, adjust them as a template to fit the needs of your team, and then pick out a specific solution Why leading by example is not showing what you know but rather stepping up and admitting what you don’t know How failing fast and failing often can help you become a better professional and why none of us actually “have it together” Timecodes: 6:00 - why curiosity and drive to learn are the only things you need to succeed in anything 8:20 - how to apply learnings from the past, what inspires Danelle today, and what she’s keen on learning more about 11:00 - why you gotta fail fast and fail forward, and how failure can positively shape your journey 13:50 - none of us “have it together” and even leaders fail 16:30 - if people are afraid to admit they don’t know something, you need to lead by example 24:28 - Panda Planner method for productivity 27:35 - unpopular opinions about engineering management 38:00 - no matter what you’re going through, you are not alone, and there are definitely mentors and people out there ready to help Connect with Danielle: Twitter: https://twitter.com/tsunamino LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielleleong/ Connect with Darja: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

In this week’s episode, our co-founders Darja and Anthony chatted with Eric Weiss, ex-CTO at Rock My World, Angel Investor, CEO, and Podcast Host at Chaos To Clarity, and an Executive Coach working with technical founders and executives to help them overcome the challenges of growth. Eric shared his two guiding leadership philosophies that helped him throughout his career, and his key learnings on the pillars you have to oversee and manage as an engineering leader, and how to balance them all. Eric also shared how was passionate about technology alone at first, but after beginning his engineering career, he discovered his love for working with people and leading teams, how much he enjoyed understanding the motivations of each team member, how to best work and collaborate with them, and leverage their own motivations to achieve the shared team goals, which ultimately led him to become an engineering leader and coach. In this episode, you’ll learn:Why the role of the CTO is the most complicated C-level role and is it even possible to truly excel in it at all Why executives sometimes make bad decisions and how to prevent it - spoiler alert: Eric does a live exercise for that in the podcast! Why understanding the product-building methodologies and being customer-centric is more important than being a good coder BONUS: top learnings from 40 Teams at Work episodes from our co-founders Anthony and Darja Timecodes:2:11 - where Eric’s passion for leadership and technology came from 5:15 - why the role of the CTO is the most complicated C-level role 9:15 - the pillars you have to oversee and manage as an engineering leader, and how to balance it all 13:13 - why is it important for engineers to be customer-centric 21:30 - understanding the product-building methodologies is more important than being a good coder 25:15 - Eric’s two guiding leadership philosophies 36:00 - what are the most common challenges executives and founders are facing today, and how Eric helps them navigate this chaos 39:17 - you should be leading out of confidence, not out of fear 42:00 - feeling scared as a leader? Do this exercise 46:00 - Eric’s advice to his younger self Connect with Eric:Twitter: https://twitter.com/realEricWeiss LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericmweiss/ Podcast: https://linktr.ee/chaos2clarity Connect with Anthony:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo Follow Bunch:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

In this week’s episode, our co-founders Darja and Anthony chatted with Raz Shuty, Senior Director of Engineering at Delivery Hero with over 12 years of experience leading technology teams. Raz shared why he hated the role of a manager at first, and how he struggled to fit in, what he learned about leadership from his father, a chef and why the first manager he ever had is a role model when it comes to management. In this episode, you’ll learn:Why becoming a manager in engineering means a negative return on investment on the craft that brought you to the role Why Raz hated his first engineering manager job, quit, and how he ultimately found his role and got to enjoy it How working in sprints can suck, and what you can do to find a framework that will work best for your team and your goals The limitations of remote work and why there is an upside to working in an office Timecodes:2:06 - how being a Senior Director of Engineering can be a nightmare 9:40 - why you should not become a manager 12:30 - did Raz ever regret becoming an engineering manager 16:00 - go-to tools and hacks to stay productive as a manager 19:50 - how to determine your mission for the week and prioritize effectively 25:05 - what is the primary difference between managing individual contributors vs. other managers 33:30 - the benefits and the struggles of remote work through the lens of an engineering leader 48:00 - growth is not a numbers game, sometimes it’s about doing as much as you can with what you have in the moment 50:30 - creating a fun environment is an underrated part of management that can actually result in better team engagement 53:00 - why Raz despises sprints as a work framework for engineering teams Connect with Raz:Blog: somehowimanage.blog LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raz-schweiger-shuty-86299814/ Podcast: techpointcharlie.blog Connect with Anthony:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo Follow Bunch:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

In this week’s episode, our co-founders Darja and Anthony chatted with Meri Williams. Meri was the CTO at Monzo - the online bank - before it even became a bank! She led the technology team through a period of immense growth in both the team itself and in the customer base. Now as the CTO at Pleo, Meri is continuing to lead teams through different changes while enabling each team member to reach their full potential. Meri shared her key learnings on what it actually takes to create a healthy, safe, diverse and inclusive work environment, as well as why high-performing teams are the ones who are happy, and feel comfortable in their individual roles. Meri also discussed what she would do differently as a new CTO, some of her best principles for success and why sometimes hotdogs are the only thing you need to make your team happy.In this episode, you’ll learn:Why management (especially in engineering) is a career change, not a promotion, and how can you succeed in it Purpose, autonomy, mastery, inclusion: the 4-part formula for building high-performing teams What it really takes to build a diverse and inclusive team: 3 questions you should ask yourself What is the real difference between being nice vs. kind to your team and the impact it can have Why you shouldn’t treat others like you would want to be treated. Rather treat them like they want to be treated Timecodes:2:30 - the challenges of joining a growing startup as a CTO 3:30 - why and how your own happiness in the role affects other people 4:00 - what would Meri do differently as a new CTO 6:16 - biggest challenges for engineering leaders today 10:10 - high-performing teams = happy teams 12:00 - purpose, autonomy, mastery, inclusion: the magic formula for high performance 14:00 - the model for DEI: 3 questions you should ask 28:00 - the importance of having a support network at work 32:00 - why management is a career change, not a promotion and how can you succeed in it 39:00 - you can have great leadership but you can lack good management - how to bridge this gap 41:00 - how to help people feel safe at work, enabling them to reach their potential: be nice AND kind 42:40 - the secrets to energy and time management as a new manager 44:00 - how to think about your work as a manager as feedback loops and adjust your energy spend accordingly 47:20 - the principles of a successful CTO 49:00 - not your typical advice to younger self 51:00 - how to really be an empathetic person and leader 53:50 - 1:1s should be at the core of your leadership system 55:00 - if your team member hates team meetings, try offering them a hotdog during those 58:00 - how to overcome tech debt

In today’s episode, our co-founder Anthony chatted with Alvar Lumberg. Alvar was one of the Founding Engineering Team leaders at Wise (formely TransferWise), now he is an investor, and the CTO, and co-founder at Grünfin. Alvar shared how he uses coaching to help engineering and first-time managers succeed in their roles. He also discussed what makes leading an engineering team and succeeding as a manager at the same time a tough balance to achieve. From learning how to navigate the transition from individual contributor to manager, to understanding how the definition of leadership has changed over time, and what does it take to be a successful leader today. Alvar also shared his top book recommendations, what he is still trying to grow in and why it is essential to understand emerging technologies to plan ahead. In this episode, you’ll learn: How you can be a leader even if your job title doesn’t necessarily imply it Being an engineering lead at a big company vs. a startup - tricks, tips, and best strategies to succeed Why it is important for leaders to take a step back, and revisit the broader picture regularly What are the biggest challenges engineering managers face today, and how you can overcome those Best practices to discovering your unique leadership style as a new manager Timecodes: 1:10 - how and where Alvar’s journey began 6:40 - why passion was the key to kick-starting Alvar’s career and setting him up for success 11:25 - what was it like joining an early-stage startup as an engineering lead 16:00 - Alvar’s leadership style and what would he advise to first time managers 17:00 - your job as a leader is not to tell people what to do, it’s to align on goals and support them with achieving those 21:30 - leadership through coaching - how does Alvar lead his teams 26:50 - the biggest challenge engineering leaders and managers face today 29:20 - why you need to understand emerging technologies to be able to plan ahead 30:05 - Alvar’s books recommendations 33:50 - what it truly means to be a leader and a role model (hint: it’s not about your title) 35:10 - how would Alvar define leadership 36:00 - what Alvar is still trying to grow in 40:00 - what would Alvar advise to his younger self and all first time managers out there Connect with Alvar: Twitter: https://twitter.com/alvarlumberg LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alvarlumberg/ Connect with Anthony: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

In this week’s episode, our co-founders Darja and Anthony chatted with Scott Markovits. Scott was one of the Founding Team at InVision - one of the first companies to work fully remotely (before either Zoom or Slack were created). Since then Scott has helped tons of other companies scale and succeed in a remote environment, building world-class operational, engagement, and leadership cultures. From learning how to adapt to the ever-changing work culture in tech to introducing the best rituals to connect and strengthen remote teams, Scott shared his key learnings and memorable experiences leading A teams remotely. Scott also discussed his journey at early-stage startups, why product-market fit is overrated, and what your success as a leader really looks like. In this episode, you’ll learn: The key rituals to keep your distributed teams strong and connected How remote work can help you create a better work-life balance and why a 4-day work week is the future Why product-market fit is overrated Remote vs. Hybrid vs. In-person - where is the future of work, and what companies will succeed in this game long-term Timecodes: 2:30 - what inspired Scott to switch to remote work 4:20 - why remote work can help you create a better work-life balance 8:25 - the power of off-site in real life for remote teams 14:50 - what was it like being part of one of the first companies to go fully remote 18:20 - what was remote work like before Slack and Zoom 19:40 - remote work is the future, everyone else is playing a short-term game 25:30 - where is the future of work 31:30 - in the future having an office will be a perk 34:00 - how can you succeed as a manager remotely 38:10 - rituals to keep your distributed teams strong and connected 42:30 - 4 day work week and at least 1 week off per quarter - the secrets to long-term team success Connect with Scott LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottmarkovits/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/ScottMarkovits Connect with Anthony: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo Connect with Darja: Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

In this week’s episode, our co-founder Anthony chatted with Richard Newman. Richard is the Founder & CEO of Body Talk, the global leader in evidence-based courses on the psychology of communication, helping more than 10,000 organizations and individuals every year to discover the power of storytelling, conflict resolution, and presentation skills. From learning to understand the Tibetan monks to discovering the true power of communication, Richard shared how his company started from a free haircut he got. He also shared why he was resistant to the idea of leadership at first, and how he ultimately learned the 3 pillars of leadership to drive his company forward. In this episode, you’ll learn: The three areas you need to activate in your audience in order for them to not only listen to your story but act on it What children can teach adults about good communication and why you should read your business report like a children's storybook How better communication can win you a billion-dollar deal Why your ideas don’t speak for themselves - and you have to do it instead Timeline: 01: 15 - Running the company and leading the company are not the same things 02:20 - The 3 pillars of leadership (vision, mission, values) 10:25 - Teaching how to communicate at the hair salon (power of a haircut) 15:55 - You are born to speak - why everyone can be a good communicator 19:01 - How our innate ability to communicate well is killed over time by others 22:10 - Actionable steps to help communicate as we used to as children 25:05 - Your ideas don’t speak for themselves - you have to do it 28:03 - Content matters less - what matters is how you deliver the information 33:45 - Your job when you tell a story is to get people to take action 46:10 - How better communication can win you a billion dollars - sell your benefits Connect with Richard: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardnewmanspeaks/ Follow Body Talk: Twitter: https://twitter.com/ukbodytalk LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/communicationskillstraining/ Connect with Anthony: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

In this week’s episode, our co-founder Anthony chatted with Chris Schembra. Through stories and lessons learned, Chris shared how he started his career in theater and video production, ultimately discovering the power of gratitude and the role it plays in leadership and building teams. He is the founder and Chief Question Asker of 7:47, an advisory firm that helps companies create meaningful connections through its 7:47 Gratitude Experience, an evidence-based framework that helps leaders build a community and strengthen relationships. In this episode, you’ll learn: How gratitude can help you get through hard times Why community-focused leadership is the key to thriving through uncertain and challenging times How Chris went from daily struggle to discovering his true purpose, and how Italian food helped him on that journey Connect with Chris: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/schembra/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/cschembra Chris's books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Chris-Schembra/author/B083WMTMJF?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true Connect with Anthony: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

In this week’s episode, we chatted with Louie Bacaj, who shared his journey from starting his career as an engineer in big tech to ultimately becoming an engineering leader at companies like Jet, Walmart, and Bank of America, where he has built teams and lead teams through massive growth, crisis, and various transitions. Transitioning from the corporate world, Louie is now pursuing his passion as an entrepreneur, building Nines, and a creator, mentoring companies and individuals, and helping engineers navigate and succeed in their careers. In this episode, you’ll learn: How a learner mindset can enable you to pursue any passion despite the risks What could be the future of big tech and what are the skills you need to acquire to succeed in it Why Louie made the decision to leave the big tech and become an entrepreneur, and a creator (and how he overcame the imposter syndrome on his journey) The principles of building lasting team relationships based on trust and transparency 3:00 - What inspired Louie’s transition from the corporate big tech world to entrepreneurship and creatorship 5:40 - Skills Louie had to learn as an engineer and engineering leader 6:00 - How does it feel to walk away from big money to chase your dreams as an entrepreneur 8:05 - Louie’s current projects and how he deals with imposter syndrome along the way 11:00 - What’s important for tech leaders now 14:15 - Why evolving technology caused trouble for big tech 16:30 - How to constantly stay in demand as an engineer 21:00 - Skills/traits people need to develop to succeed in the tech leadership roles 25:00 - How to grow in your career by always keeping the learner mindset 28:00 - How to stay on top of the relevant tech trends Connect with Louie: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louiebacaj/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/LBacaj Connect with Darja: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick Substack: https://weeklybriefing.substack.com/ Connect with Anthony: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

This week we chatted with Steve Tauber. Steve is a CTO in residence at madewithlove, where he has worked with more than 45 startups, helping them establish scale-proof processes, and build strong, high-performing teams. Steve also recently co-authored a book called “Freerange Management” that helps leaders create an environment where people are truly happy and free to do their best work. In this episode, you’ll learn: Steve’s new book on free-range management, and what free-range chickens and engineering teams have in common Why leaders need to step back to allow their teams to step up What to look for in candidates to create knowledge-first organizations What you need on your roadmap to succeed in 2023 2:35 - What is a CTO in residence 9:50 - What are knowledge-first organizations and why they are relevant today 14:35 - Steve’s new book and its value for engineering leaders 25:10 - Double diamond design framework for problem-solving 29:00 - Accountability in free-range management 30:55 - How to celebrate failures and learn from them 38:00 - The toughest moments in Steve’s career and how we overcame them 41:30 - How getting enough sleep can help you solve problems faster 44:45 - Why you shouldn’t read any of the popular industry books Connect with Steve: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevetauber/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/SteveTauber Steve's book: https://freerange.management/ Connect with Darja: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick Substack: https://weeklybriefing.substack.com/ Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

Ozioma works with Fortune 500 companies, non-profit organizations, and business owners, to help them transform their businesses and make them future-proof with key frameworks like Visionary Future-Making. She is Expert faculty at Singularity University, holds a degree from Cornell, and even invented a Masters level course taught at Columbia University. Ozioma has been featured on NBC, in The Guardian, and has spoken at SXSW, ADWEEK, the Websummit, and more. In this episode you’ll learn: How to use the Visionary Future-Making framework to access high-order vision and bring it forward into reality. The importance of storytelling in solving problems and inspiring your team, your customers… and yourself! What different generations need from the workplace, and how that is pushing organizations to find more impactful, forward-thinking solutions for everyone. Timecodes: 0:45 Conditions and ingredients for transformation 3:40 The Transformation Economy, The Experience Economy by B. Joseph Pine and James H. Gilmore 6:30 Singularity University, David Roberts 8:50 The future and context of work 19:00 The Visionary Future-Making framework 25:20 Generations in the workplace 31:40 Ozioma’s background 36:30 Overcoming challenges 42:05 Advice for her younger self Connect with Ozioma: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ozioma/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/culturalmaven Connect with Darja: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick Substack: https://weeklybriefing.substack.com/ Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

In this episode we sat down with Christain Rebernik, a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, mentor, and father of 3. Christian is the former CEO and Co-Founder at Vivy, former CTO and MD at N26, former CTO at Parship, and created award winning apps like ShareTheMeal for the UN World Food Programme. His current mission is to educate and empower the changemakers of tomorrow as CEO and Co-Founder at Germany’s first virtual university, Tomorrow University of Applied Sciences. He shared insights and encouragement about how to pick the right opportunity at the right time, stay motivated, and prioritize your own development. In this episode you’ll learn: How to reframe challenges so that you can get the most satisfaction and benefit out of learning something new, whether it’s a new skill, new role, or a complete career change. How the best founding teams build trust, and why founding is not a purpose in itself, but a chance to create a culture and a product that you want to see in the world. Why an education based on critical thinking is the answer to creating a sustainable future and solving the problems of tomorrow. Connect with Christian: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/crebernik/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/crebernik7791 Follow Tomorrow University: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/school/tomorrowuniversity/ Connect with Darja: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick Substack: https://weeklybriefing.substack.com/ Connect with Anthony: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

In this episode we sat down with Julius Bachmann, a founder coach whose mission is to make the future of venture more human. He started his career as an investor, then founded a personal growth startup, and now provides a holistic support structure for founders, entrepreneurs and leaders. He shared insights and actionable advice about setting up the building blocks of optimal performance, taking the next tiny step to accomplish your goals, and guiding your team out of a conflict. In this episode you’ll learn: How to balance rational, emotional, and body-level intelligence to support optimal performance, and two easy exercises you can do any time. How to break down your 3-month goals into weekly and daily actions, and the motivating questions that will help you take the next step. How to get back to a good routine after a transition, when you know exactly what to do but can’t make yourself do it. Connect with Julius: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jmbachmann/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/jmbachmann Connect with Darja: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick Substack: https://weeklybriefing.substack.com/ Connect with Anthony: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

Jossie Haines is an executive and engineering leadership coach focused on empowering high performing leadership through empathy and compassion. Her mission is to retain women in tech and break the statistic that 56% of women leave tech after 10-20 years by empowering engineering leaders with the effective and fair management practices and principles needed to finally more the needle. She has spent over 22 years in the tech industry as an award winning software engineering leader at the forefront of emerging consumer technology across Silicon Valley, including management roles at Apple, Tile, Zynga and American Express. She was most recently the VP of Software Engineering & Head of DEI at Tile where she had grown the engineering team by 45% from 29 to 55 in 5 months during COVID and led all software engineering efforts across mobile, backend, web, and QA. At Apple, she had led the Siri music team during the development of the HomePod, as well as the Siri media team who won a technical Emmy for the Siri on Apple TV integration. Jossie is an avid public speaker, having given over 100 talks, workshops and podcasts on retaining women in tech, engineering leadership, DEI and various technologies. Get in touch with Jossie for a free coaching session! Connect with Jossie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jossiemann/ Connect with Darja Gutnick on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/) or Twitter (https://twitter.com/darjagutnick) and sign up for her Substack to get free frameworks and templates for your leadership challenges. Connect with Anthony Reo: Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ In this episode you’ll learn: What it was like in Silicon Valley of the 90ies and how Zynga casually took on Facebook and built a social network in 2 weeks How to ask for feedback so that you get the advice you need to grow How inclusion is interlinked with productivity and performance Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it free on the App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1500872908?pt=121075759&ct=Teams%20At%20Work%20Podcast&mt=8 Follow BUNCH: Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ) LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/

This episode’s guest is Sonia Joseph, CTO & co-founder at Alexandria Labs, a web3 library. Sonia is also a machine learning & neuroscience researcher at Mila - Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute. Sonia and her co-founder are on a mission to bring ebooks to blockchain for readers and authors and we had a super interesting conversation spanning everything from startup life to the future of humanity. Enjoy! In this episode you’ll learn: How to keep up to date with an ever faster evolving space around tech overall, and especially web3 The importance of “exceptional” narratives and how they can help you find your way in your tech career What startups and science have in common and how to succeed in both Why and how women have a larger decision-making space in society and what the consequences of that are Why a library on the blockchain makes perfect sense Connect with Sonia: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/soniamjoseph/ Web: https://www.soniajoseph.ai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/soniajoseph_?lang=en Follow Alexandria Labs: https://alexandrialabs.xyz/ Connect with Darja: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/darjagutnick Substack: https://weeklybriefing.substack.com/ Connect with Anthony: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyreo/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/anthonyareo Follow Bunch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it for FREE on the App Store

Today we chatted with Constanze Buchheim, founder of the executive search consultancy i-potentials. For 15 years, she has been building and transforming teams in the German and European Startup ecosystem. She’s been named one of the 50 most influential women in German business by the Boston Consulting Group and Manager Magazin, and in 2020 was selected by Focus magazine as one of the 100 Women of the Year. Connect with Constanze on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/constanzebuchheim/ Connect with Darja Gutnick on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/darjagutnick/) or Twitter (https://twitter.com/darjagutnick) and sign up for her Substack to get free frameworks and templates for your leadership challenges. Connect with Anthony Reo on LinkedIn or Twitter: In this episode you’ll learn: How to manage the difference between expectation and reality in order to consistently surprise people with more than they expect, and delight your customers and your team. Tips for exploring your own goals, motivations, and roadblocks so that you can be more authentic and transparent with your team What are Specialists, Managers, and Leaders, what’s the difference and how each of them contributes to a successful organization. How coaching your team members and then getting out of their way creates flexibility that empowers your team and benefits your customers too. Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it free on the App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1500872908?pt=121075759&ct=Teams%20At%20Work%20Podcast&mt=8 Follow BUNCH on Twitter: @bunch_HQ (https://twitter.com/bunch_HQ) and LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/

In this chat we interviewed Kieran Flanagan, Senior Vice President of Marketing at HubSpot. He is an experienced startup advisor and investor, and has spent the past decade building and leading marketing teams. He also has his own podcast, the GrowthTLDR, and has shared tons of actionable advice on how to build and scale effective teams with us. In this episode you’ll learn: The difference between a good leader and a good manager, and the ingredients for inspiring your team while giving them the operational support they need. How to leverage growth at any stage by balancing three types of roles: builders, creators and operators. What everyone can learn from product managers about identifying problems and motivating teams to solve them. How to hire for core skills, mindset, and coachability, and the 100-day onboarding plan to give your new team members clarity, accountability, and purpose. Connect with Kieran on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kieranjflanagan/ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it free on the App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1500872908?pt=121075759&ct=Teams%20At%20Work%20Podcast&mt=8 Follow BUNCH on Twitter: @bunch_HQ and LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Subscribe to our newsletter The Weekly Briefing on Substack for more frameworks and resources!

In this episode we sit down with Noor van Boven, investor, global people executive, and co-founder at Invested. She has worked and led people teams at Soundcloud, N26, and Deloitte, and is also a board member to numerous startups. With Noor, we reflect on high-context culture and how to design a context for your team to perform autonomously at their highest level. Plus, she told us her strategy for setting expectations and has some great advice for giving feedback in a way that helps your team learn and thrive. In this episode you’ll learn: How to set “guard rails” so that your team can operate with autonomy, which leads to more efficiency and less confusion. The best way to frame feedback so you can support your report’s perspective while staying realistic about the solution and what can and can’t be changed. How to define and align with your organization’s cultural dynamics, so that you and your team can have the strongest impact. We really benefited from hearing Noor’s expert perspective on keeping goals crystal clear and realistic, balanced with her advice to be kind, do your best, and learn from your mistakes. We hope this inspires you too! Connect with Noor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noorvanboven/ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it free on the App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1500872908?pt=121075759&ct=Teams%20At%20Work%20Podcast&mt=8 Follow BUNCH on Twitter: @bunch_HQ and LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Subscribe to our newsletter The Weekly Briefing on Substack for more frameworks and resources!

Our guest today is Anand Safi. He started his career as an engineer with a strong interest in leadership, then found opportunities to learn and contribute as a coach and mentor at MentorCruise, Plato, BestPracticer, and First Round Fast Track. Over the past ten years, he has worked at eBay, Intent, Insurity, and is an executive contributor to Brainz Magazine. He is now Director of Engineering at Mark43. In this episode, we talk about Anand’s leadership journey from individual contributor to manager and coach. In this episode you’ll learn: What makes a team sustainable, and how to manage your time so that you can be both productive and available. How to get buy-in from your team and stakeholders by approaching presentations as conversations. Why it’s important to stay vulnerable and open when starting a new role, even when you feel like you have to impress and strive for perfection… and how to do it! We found it really inspiring to hear how Anand has balanced his deep interest in leadership with a realistic perspective about what’s actually possible in the day-to-day. He’s got some great advice for keeping track of the big picture, avoiding burnout, and supporting your team for sustainable success by always being just one Slack message away. Connect with Anand on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anandsafi/ Become a better leader in 2 minutes a day with BUNCH, the AI Leadership Coach. Download it free on the App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1500872908?pt=121075759&ct=Teams%20At%20Work%20Podcast&mt=8 Follow BUNCH on Twitter: @bunch_HQ and LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bunchai/ Subscribe to our newsletter The Weekly Briefing on Substack for more frameworks and resources!