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Amid constant change, how can leaders prepare for what's next without losing focus on today? In this episode, Lisa Bodell, Bestselling Author of "Kill the Company" and "Why Simple Wins", shares powerful strategies for becoming future-ready. She explains why agility and resilience matter more than rigid planning, how to leverage tools like STEEP and the Futures Wheel, and why every company must "Kill the Company" to uncover blind spots and innovate. Lisa also explores the dangers of "perma crisis" on creativity and why teaching human-centered skills like curiosity and agility is essential to thriving in uncertainty.

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Start your day with the world's top leaders by joining thousands of others at Great Leadership on Substack. Just enter your email: ⁠⁠https://greatleadership.substack.com/

Since the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022, Stack Overflow has seen a noticeable drop in daily visits, with traffic decreasing by 1 million — a 15% reduction within just four months. This trend underscores a growing preference for automated solutions, as users increasingly turn to AI for answers, reflecting a shift in how people seek information and interact socially.

In this “AI Horizons” podcast episode, Wharton marketing professor and AI at Wharton co-director Stefano Puntoni joins Gordon Burtch, information systems professor at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business; Julian De Freitas, a business administration professor and director of the Ethical Intelligence Lab at Harvard Business School; and Weiguang Wang, a computer and information systems professor at the University of Rochester’s Simon Business School to discuss the topic.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The opposite of love isn't hate, it's indifference.  This week, Pat and the team discuss the causes of mediocrity, and why it comes with costs beyond the financial.  

 

To listen to the Working Genius Podcast: https://www.workinggenius.com/podcast

 

This week's unpaid ad: https://no.co/brands/noco-boost

Everyone knows the era of growth at all costs is over, but where does that leave us? And specifically, where does that leave founders? The answer is straightforward: founders have to start thinking like business people. 

This week, Conor Bronsdon interviews Ashish Aggarwal, founder and CTO of Productive and an active investor in over 30 companies.

Ashish shares his insights on how startups are adapting to the new “efficient growth” environment, why this paradigm shift is an opportunity for founders, and how the pressures of efficiency have created incentives for companies to move towards geo-distributed teams instead of co-located teams.

Show Notes:

• Refactoring x Dev Interrupted Survey
• Ashish’s LinkedIn
• 2024 State of SaaS Consolidation Report

OFFERS

• Start Free Trial: Get started with LinearB's AI productivity platform for free.
• Book a Demo: Learn how you can ship faster, improve DevEx, and lead with confidence in the AI era.

LEARN ABOUT LINEARB

• AI Code Reviews: Automate reviews to catch bugs, security risks, and performance issues before they hit production.
• AI & Productivity Insights: Go beyond DORA with AI-powered recommendations and dashboards to measure and improve performance.
• AI-Powered Workflow Automations: Use AI-generated PR descriptions, smart routing, and other automations to reduce developer toil.
• MCP Server: Interact with your engineering data using natural language to build custom reports and get answers on the fly.

Most developers (ourselves included) want to run for the hills when they hear the words “engineering process.” But it turns out, the biggest danger to your team may not be having enough process.

You don’t have to take our word for it. This week’s guest made a believer out of us and we’re willing to bet she’ll make a believer out of you too.

Julianna Lamb, co-founder and CTO of Stytch, understands that engineering processes can be a sensitive subject for developers. But she argues that the right amount of process can actually boost your team's velocity and empower them to take ownership. Julianna shares insights on how to right-size processes for teams, implement effective project life cycles, and address friction points to ensure smooth workflows.

Show Notes:

• Refactoring x Dev Interrupted Survey
• Learn more about Stytch
• Julianna’s LinkedIn
• Julianna’s Twitter

OFFERS

• Start Free Trial: Get started with LinearB's AI productivity platform for free.
• Book a Demo: Learn how you can ship faster, improve DevEx, and lead with confidence in the AI era.

LEARN ABOUT LINEARB

• AI Code Reviews: Automate reviews to catch bugs, security risks, and performance issues before they hit production.
• AI & Productivity Insights: Go beyond DORA with AI-powered recommendations and dashboards to measure and improve performance.
• AI-Powered Workflow Automations: Use AI-generated PR descriptions, smart routing, and other automations to reduce developer toil.
• MCP Server: Interact with your engineering data using natural language to build custom reports and get answers on the fly.

2025 will test every assumption about how engineering teams work.

With the new year fast approaching Ori Keren, CEO of LinearB, has some bold predictions that might surprise you, like why developer productivity could actually go down in 2025.

Yep, you read that right.

As AI tools flood the market, we might see a dip in both productivity and creativity before the long-term benefits kick in. It’s a wake-up call for engineering leaders to rethink how they lead their teams.

Ori dives into the trends that’ll dominate:
- AI’s rise
- The ever-growing need for cybersecurity
- Why DevEx and developer productivity are heading for a showdown

His advice? Stop flying blind. “You can’t optimize what you don’t measure,” he says.

If you’re leading an engineering org, this episode is your 2025 game plan: a mix of data-driven decision-making and people-first strategies to stay ahead in a year of change. Don’t miss this insightful fusion of qual and quant.

Show Notes:

• Join us at Dev Interrupted Live!
• 2025 Engineering Benchmarks Insights Webinar
• Follow Ori
• Follow Ben
• Follow Andrew

OFFERS

• Start Free Trial: Get started with LinearB's AI productivity platform for free.
• Book a Demo: Learn how you can ship faster, improve DevEx, and lead with confidence in the AI era.

LEARN ABOUT LINEARB

• AI Code Reviews: Automate reviews to catch bugs, security risks, and performance issues before they hit production.
• AI & Productivity Insights: Go beyond DORA with AI-powered recommendations and dashboards to measure and improve performance.
• AI-Powered Workflow Automations: Use AI-generated PR descriptions, smart routing, and other automations to reduce developer toil.
• MCP Server: Interact with your engineering data using natural language to build custom reports and get answers on the fly.

In this episode, Abi and Laura introduce the DX Core 4, a new framework designed to simplify how organizations measure developer productivity. They discuss the evolution of productivity metrics, comparing Core 4 with frameworks like DORA, SPACE, and DevEx, and emphasize its focus on speed, effectiveness, quality, and impact. They explore why each metric was chosen, the importance of balancing productivity measures with developer experience, and how Core 4 can help engineering leaders align productivity goals with broader business objectives.   

Mentions and Links:

• Measuring developer productivity with the DX Core 4
• Laura’s developer productivity metrics course

Discussion Points:

• (2:42) Introduction to the DX Core 4
• (3:42) Identifying the Core 4's target audience and key stakeholders
• (4:38) Origins and purpose
• (9:20) Building executive alignment
• (14:15) Tying metrics to business value through output-oriented measures
• (24:45) Defining impact
• (32:42) Choosing between DORA, SPACE, and Core 4 frameworks

Farhan Thawar is the head of engineering at Shopify, where he oversees more than 1,000 engineers and a platform that powers over 10% of all U.S. e-commerce. Before Shopify, he was VP of engineering at Pivotal Labs and Xtreme Labs, and co-founder of Helpful.com. In our conversation, Farhan shares:

• Why choosing the harder path leads to better outcomes

• How to create intensity within your org (without burnout)

• Why every company should be embracing pair programming

• How he hires without interviewing

• How he built the world’s largest internship program

• His mission to create a “crafter’s paradise” for engineers

• Much more

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Brought to you by:

• DX—A platform for measuring and improving developer productivity

• Persona—A global leader in digital identity verification

• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security

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Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-shopify-builds-a-high-intensity-culture-farhan-thawer

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Where to find Farhan Thawar:

• X: https://x.com/fnthawar

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fnthawar

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Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

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In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Farhan’s background

(05:38) Choosing the hard path

(09:37) Getting comfortable with looking dumb

(13:20) Lessons from working with visionaries

(19:19) Creating intensity in organizations

(22:06) The power of pair programming

(29:18) Shopify’s culture of intensity

(37:18) Meeting Armageddon: revolutionizing company meetings

(39:46) Reducing distractions

(41:10) Deleting 1M+ lines of code

(49:05) Three buckets of building

(57:45) Remote work and trust battery

(01:00:29) Finding stability in uncomfortable times

(01:03:14) Hiring philosophy

(01:11:41) Internship programs and co-op systems

(01:15:32) Lessons from managing 120 direct reports

(01:20:40) Failure corner

(01:27:46) Lightning round and closing thoughts

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Referenced:

• The Steve Jobs quote about connecting dots: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/463176-you-can-t-connect-the-dots-looking-forward-you-can-only

• Shopify: https://www.shopify.com/

• GitHub: https://github.com/

• Farhan’s “questions to ask” framework: https://x.com/fnthawar/status/1514193402828574721

• Palantir: https://www.palantir.com/

• Joe Liemandt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/liemandt

• Chamath Palihapitya: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chamath_Palihapitiya

• Xtreme Labs: https://www.xtremelabs.io

• Parkinson’s law: https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-parkinsons-law-6674423

• Pair programming: https://dev.to/documatic/pair-programming-best-practices-and-tools-154j

• Cody Fauser on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/codyfauser

• How Shopify builds product: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-shopify-builds-product

• Chaos Monkey: We look at Shopify’s new ‘culture of focus’: https://www.siliconrepublic.com/careers/shopify-chaos-monkey-meetings-culture-deann-evans

• Empowering devs with AI: How Shopify made GitHub Copilot core to its culture: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVKBwcm5dbw&t=2318s

• Tobi Lütke of Shopify: Powering a Team with a ‘Trust Battery’: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/24/business/tobi-lutke-of-shopify-powering-a-team-with-a-trust-battery.html

• Brian Chesky’s new playbook: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/brian-cheskys-contrarian-approach

• Stop Being Deceived by Interviews When You’re Hiring: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesleadershipforum/2012/02/07/stop-being-deceived-by-interviews-when-youre-hiring/

• Shopify’s made the Life Story a major part of their interview: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39294140

• Internships at Shopify: https://internships.shopify.com

• Nick Adams on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-adams-32b28139

• React Native: https://reactnative.dev

• Swift: https://www.swift.org

• Acquired podcast: The Mark Zuckerberg interview: https://www.acquired.fm/episodes/the-mark-zuckerberg-interview

• The Power of Performance Reviews: Use This System to Become a Better Manager: https://review.firstround.com/the-power-of-performance-reviews-use-this-system-to-become-a-better-manager

• Airbnb’s Vlad Loktev on embracing chaos, inquiry over advocacy, poking the bear, and “impact, impact, impact” (Partner at Index Ventures, Airbnb GM/VP Product): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/impact-impact-impact-vlad-loktev

• The Secret to a Great Planning Process—Lessons from Airbnb and Eventbrite: https://review.firstround.com/the-secret-to-a-great-planning-process-lessons-from-airbnb-and-eventbrite

• How to do great work: https://www.paulgraham.com/greatwork.html

• Challengers on Prime: https://www.amazon.com/Challengers-Luca-Guadagnino/dp/B0CX5MZ9M4

• Halt and Catch Fire on Prime: https://www.amazon.com/Halt-Catch-Fire-Season-1/dp/B0CKXZNT96

• Meta Ray-Bans: https://www.meta.com/smart-glasses/shop-all

• Making Meta | Andrew ‘Boz’ Bosworth (CTO): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/making-meta-andrew-boz-bosworth-cto

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Recommended books:

• The Undoing Project: A Friendship That Changed Our Minds: https://www.amazon.com/Undoing-Project-Friendship-Changed-Minds/dp/0393254593

• Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World: https://www.amazon.com/Range-Generalists-Triumph-Specialized-World/dp/0735214484

• Manna: Two Visions of Humanity’s Future: https://www.amazon.com/Manna-Two-Visions-Humanitys-Future-ebook/dp/B007HQH67U

• Business Adventures: Twelve Classic Tales from the World of Wall Street: https://www.amazon.com/Business-Adventures-Twelve-Classic-Street/dp/1504000021

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Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email [email protected].

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Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.

Save Money on Cloud Costs with Claire Fautsch (CTO @ Joblift). Find out how the team at Joblift slashed monthly cloud costs from €100K to €30K without compromising performance.

Listen here

BROUGHT TO YOU BY SmartRecruiters.

Claire Fautsch is working as CTO at Joblift, where she is leading the engineering team but also still enjoying regular coding time. She enjoys being part of a team building innovative products and tackle complex challenges. Besides spending all non-coding and tech time with her family, she enjoys reading and sports

(00:00:00) – Meet Claire Fauch: From Academia to CTO

(00:08:09) – Early Days of Joblift & Cloud Adoption Strategy

(00:10:01) – Joblift’s Cloud Cost Optimization Journey Begins

(00:13:04) – Strategic Use of Committed Usage Discounts (CUDs)

(00:18:15) – Making Cost Optimization a Team Effort

(00:20:53) – Creating a FinOps Mentality Across Teams

(00:28:38) – Technical Adjustments for Maximum Savings

(00:32:01) – The Impact of Cloud Startup Programs

(00:35:10) – CTO Advice: Key Takeaways for Optimizing Cloud Usage

(00:37:39) – A Message to Young Claire: Embracing Risk and Ownership

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