Beyond Tech Skills

A common question we get from newbie speakers is, How many slides should I have, and how many bullet points on each slide? The answer: That’s precisely the wrong question! Jim and Liron talk with their guest Luiza Nowak, a recognized expert with a background in marketing and teaching people how to present effectively. Luiza explains how presenters often overload their sessions with too much detail - what she likes to call “slidedocs” – and explains techniques for telling your story to your audience to maximize your message’s impact.

Looking to expand your network? Build a personal brand? Meet new colleagues? Even learn new stuff you’d normally never have a chance to? One of the best ways is presenting – really, storytelling - at virtual and public events. Jim and Liron discuss how they overcome imposter syndrome as well as stage fright (spoiler alert: yes, they both have it!). If you’re new to presenting, they also offer advice on getting started with storytelling and how to submit your story so you’ll have the best chance at getting noticed and accepted.

You might as well learn to love your data because it’s gonna outlive your code. Liron and Jim talk with Microsoft MVP Karen Lopez about her fascinating career as a real-life data engineer and current NASA DataNaut. Karen explains her historical viewpoint as a pioneer of women in technology (#WIT), how she developed her unique personal online brand (Twitter handle: @datachick), and reveals her super-powers for dealing with trolls on social media.

Jim and Liron talk with Danny Bryant about his experiences growing up in the heart of the “New South” – Atlanta, GA – his experiences during his college days at Georgia Tech, and the journey he’s undertaken during his professional career. Danny also chats about his actions to empower other young Black engineers through organizations like /dev/color. Even more importantly, Danny explains what it means when someone from the South looks you in the eye and says “Bless Your Heart.”

Boomers. Gen-X. Millennials. Jim and Liron chat with our guest Jessica Sharp to discuss the way our different generations look at the world, our careers, and even problem-solving (spoiler alert: not necessarily divergent). We also talk about how mentorship is crucial to building a team of professionals, and how treating our colleagues with respect regardless of age, gender, or background creates cohesion and purposefulness.

Jim and Liron talk with Heli Helskyaho – or, as she’s better known on Twitter, @HeliFromFinland – about her experiences as CEO of her own IT company in Europe and how she has faced the challenges of increasing DEI in technology. Along the way, she shares her insights on hiring the best talent, pursuing personal excellence, and building work-life balance.

Born in India, raised in Nigeria, studied in England, lived in Scotland and now settled in Canada, Jim and Liron talk with their colleague Oti Ometie about his experiences as he emigrated to Canada from Africa and built a successful career in North American IT. We’ll chat about the benefits of multiculturalism, what it’s like to experience “Snowmaggeddon” in Manitoba, but also how it is to be an immigrant, different from others and the challenges it brings.

Imagine if your first serious IT job meant flying 24 hours straight halfway across the world … and you’ve never even been on an airplane before. Liron and Jim chat with their guest, Biju Thomas, on how he built a successful IT career after coming to the USA in 1995. We’ll share his tales of culture shock and his unique viewpoints during a 25-year journey of self-discovery.

In the 1980s, women composed as much as 25% of the IT workforce in the USA. Today, that number has shrunk to less than 10%. Jim and Liron chat with their guest, Kellyn Gorman, about the reasons for that decline and how the Women In Technology (WIT) movement is actively working to identify and rectify the loss of diversity in the tech industry.

Gender bias when playing with baby girls vs. baby boys:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWu44AqF0iI

Jim and Liron discuss how they ascertain the depth of a candidate’s technical skill sets during the last part of the interview, sharing their personal experiences with letting the resume itself drive the depth and breadth of the technical questions they ask. On the candidate’s side, they discuss what to do in certain situations you might find yourself in an interview and how to make the best of it.