Software People Stories

In today's episode we have Chitra in conversation with Lekha Bajpai where she shares -

• Tech veteran of 30 plus years
• Started her career in Calcutta with Deep Tech across many sectors like manufacturing, commercial apps, engineering aps and supply chain
• Inspired by her father to study engineering
• First project on inter machine communication protocols, the excitement of innovation 
• Working on an experiment to build a control system to ship coal
• Showcasing use cases to the business
• Supply chain software solutions - building was easy, convincing users and allaying their fears was the big challenge to roll out the solution across 350 locations in India
• Developed strong experience with ERP implementations leading to building of data warehouses, BI reporting and monitoring apps for execs
• Experience at Kantar with challenges in data preparation and processing, working with just CPU’s, expensive cloud resources
• Helping apps scale, developing market research products to support the entire data life cycle from collection to dashboards
• Encouraging POC’s and learning with data techniques 
• Approaching AI today - Bring Your Own AI to work, encourage usage, take risks and also take care of Data privacy, protection, governance & compliance
• Data bias challenges for India
• Advice to young folks aspiring for a career in AI - discover different AI personas, understand business catalysts, use AI tech, drive adoption of AI, besides only aspiring to build/develop AI



M.Tech BIT Messra, Greenbelt Six Sigma, Strategic IT Management (IIM Ahmedabad), Enterprise Architecture, Certified Process Professional, Certified Data Scientist

With over 30 years of technology leadership experience, Lekha has been a thought leader and mentor in driving digital transformation and process automation across end-to-end processes and analytics.

As a CIO/CTO and a Strategic Leader, she has led technology strategy functions for multiple units in APAC and MENA, as a member of the Executive Committee of Kantar IMRB. Delivered technology products and solutions to global & local clients, transforming IT into a strategic business partner.

Worked on cutting-edge Technology adoption and Innovation, including cloud, big data environments, data warehouses & data lakes, to drive business improvements. Expertise spans across IT Strategy development & execution, Product & Application management for large scale applications & products on mobility, e-commerce, business analytics, social text analytics, chatbots, and image analysis using AI/ML and deep learning algorithms. 

Has Architected enterprise platforms for analytics delivery across diverse domains - Supply chain management, Logistics, Warehousing and freight forwarding, Chemical consultancy, Civil contracting, Manufacturing, Market research, Media and digital research, Social media analytics, Digital marketing and EdTech & Job Tech.

Achieved Process Excellence within multiple organization and setup measure to monitor business process and growth. Achieved IT security processes like ISO27001 across various organizations. Streamlined IT services delivery across APAC using ITIL processes, Agile methodology & CMMI framework emphasizing on service availability and performance measurement.

Accreditations and Contributions:

Awarded the “Innovation Leader” Award by World Innovation Congress, featured in CIO Magazine “Top 30 - Ones to watch”, CIO & Leader Magazine as “11 Most Powerful Women in Tech in India” and a few others. Case study published in CIO Decisions & Network Computing, Logistics Magazine, Dataquest, & CIO Magazine. Presented technology papers at the Market Research Society of India (MRSI) on new age Technologies and won awards on “Best Analytics product” & “Best E2E Process Automation”. Actively involved as a technology expert speaker on multiple tech forums and colleges, project guide, evaluator, mentor for data science & technology students.

Shiv continues his conversation with Greg Foster, Cofounder and CTO of graphite.dev.

Greg shares

AI's Role in Code Review:

• AI as a Code Reviewer: AI can identify simple bugs, stylistic issues, and potential inconsistencies.
• Limitations of AI: AI struggles with complex reasoning, understanding context, and making creative decisions.
• Human-AI Collaboration: Humans are still essential for high-level understanding, architectural decisions, and complex problem-solving.
• AI-Enhanced Documentation: AI can help maintain accurate and up-to-date documentation.
• AI's Potential in Testing and Debugging: AI can assist in identifying potential issues in complex systems, especially those with external dependencies.

Career Advice for Developers:

• Embrace AI as a Tool: AI can augment developer capabilities, not replace them.
• Focus on Human Skills: Strong communication, problem-solving, and project management skills remain crucial.
• Continuous Learning: Stay updated with emerging technologies and trends.
• Find Your Flow: Create an environment that supports focused work and minimizes distractions.

In this episode Shiv is in conversation with Greg Foster, Cofounder and CTO of graphite.dev.

This is the first part, Greg talks about

His Journey into Software:

• Early Days: Started coding in high school, selling iPhone apps.
• College and Early Career: Studied CS, worked at Airbnb, learned infrastructure and on-call duties.
• Founding Graphite: Co-founded Graphite with friends to build developer tools.
• Passion for Developer Experience: Enjoys building tools that improve software development workflows.

Key Points:

• On-Call Experiences: Loved the challenge and responsibility of on-call work, but also experienced the frustrations of dealing with user issues and developer mistakes.
• Building a Startup: Balancing technical work with business operations, hiring, and team culture.
• Graphite's Mission: Improving developer productivity by focusing on code review and collaboration tools, inspired by best practices from large tech companies.

AI Integration: Exploring AI-powered tools to enhance code review and analysis.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregmfoster/

In this episode Shiv is in conversation with Greg Foster, Cofounder and CTO of graphite.dev.

This is the first part, Greg talks about

His Journey into Software:

• Early Days: Started coding in high school, selling iPhone apps.
• College and Early Career: Studied CS, worked at Airbnb, learned infrastructure and on-call duties.
• Founding Graphite: Co-founded Graphite with friends to build developer tools.
• Passion for Developer Experience: Enjoys building tools that improve software development workflows.

Key Points:

• On-Call Experiences: Loved the challenge and responsibility of on-call work, but also experienced the frustrations of dealing with user issues and developer mistakes.
• Building a Startup: Balancing technical work with business operations, hiring, and team culture.
• Graphite's Mission: Improving developer productivity by focusing on code review and collaboration tools, inspired by best practices from large tech companies.

AI Integration: Exploring AI-powered tools to enhance code review and analysis.

This Episode marks six years of the podcast ! Thanks to all your love and support.

In today's conversation we have all our three hosts Sivaguru Gayatri and Chitra reflecting their own personal and professional S-curves .

They also ideate on what could be coming up next for the podcast.

Happy listening!!

In this episode, Gayatri is in conversation with Santana Krishnan.(SK)

SK talks about

How he started building his own self from the educational perspective in Kochi.

Built his firm for independent organization which was creating early wins using agile as a way of working

Moving to ThoughtWorks and then currently consulting with many organizations' in the advisory capacity as well as executive coach.

How these leaps of faith during various transitions coincides with both professional and Personal life

How is spiritual journey has transcended over decades.

How time has helped him realize his decisions.

.Enjoy the conversations!

Today Gayatri is in conversation with Srini on his personal and professional s-curves, where

• He talks about his multiple decades of career span across geographies.
• He talks about S-curves that failed and succeeded.
• He also constantly gives a very good framework of thought processes on how you have to think. When you move up the ladder.
• He covers around why, what is the intention behind choosing the next level , the effort it needs and the time you should give for the same to materialize understanding the risks associated.
• He also talks about the need for a mentor or a coach.

Happy Listening!!

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In this thematic  conversation on S-curves, I am in conversation with my colleague and Coach at PM Power, Mohan Ram..

In this conversation, Mohan touches upon various topics, including:

• S Curves in Personal and Professional Life
• Conscious vs. Unconscious S Curves
• The Importance of Support Systems
• Letting Go and Moving On
• Preparing for New Roles
• Retrospective Analysis
• The Impact of Rapid Change
• The Importance of Perspective
• Leveraging Organizational Resources
• Humility and Learning
• The Role of Reflection and Self-Awareness
• The Power of Mentorship

In this thematic  conversation on S-curves, I am in conversation with my colleague and Coach at PM Power, Anantha Natarajan. 

In this conversation, Anand, as he prefers to be called, shared various significant S-curves in his personal and professional life including

• Decision to enter the software industry,
• Migrating to Australia, 
• Pursuing an MBA, and 
• Transitioning to a leadership role. 

He emphasized the importance of considering multiple dimensions beyond career goals, such as personal growth, family relationships, and financial stability.

In this thematic  conversation on S-curves, I am in conversation with my colleague and  Coach at PM Power, Gopalan.

In this conversation, Gopal shares:some Specific S-Curves:

• Transitioning from Home to Hostel: This early experience fostered independence and adaptability.
• Shifting from Academics to Professional Life: Adapting to the different demands and expectations of the professional world.
• Evolving Roles: Taking on leadership positions, managing teams, and transitioning from technical roles to business management.
• Navigating Organizational Changes: Adapting to changes within organizations, such as mergers, restructurings, and shifts in company direction.
• Building a Startup: The challenges and rewards of founding and leading a startup.