The Engineering Leadership Podcast

Vision-first leadership & reimagining product w/ “Shift Out,” Do-It-as-a-Service & Jobs-to-Be-Done w/ John Amaral #226

4 snips
Jul 8, 2025
Guest
John Amaral
Join John Amaral, CTO and co-founder of Root.io, a veteran leader in cybersecurity, as he discusses the evolving role of engineering leaders in today’s tech landscape. He introduces the concept of 'Shift Out' in development strategies and the transformative potential of AI in enhancing developer productivity. John emphasizes empowering teams with a vision-first approach and the importance of innovative thinking while tackling software vulnerabilities. He also highlights using creativity and AI to streamline workflows and redefine the future of software development.
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INSIGHT

Engineering Leadership's New Focus

  • Engineering leaders must focus on vision, agency, and execution clarity rather than managing delivery minutiae.
  • Combining human engineers with AI agents creates a powerful partnership that accelerates innovation and quality.
INSIGHT

Shift Left Is Dead, Shift Out Rises

  • Shift Left is obsolete; the new paradigm is Shift Out, where AI does the work rather than humans.
  • SaaS is evolving to 'do it as a service,' focusing on outcome-oriented solutions that automatically solve problems.
ANECDOTE

Root.io's AI Vulnerability Fixing

  • Root.io automates fixing vulnerabilities in container images using AI, drastically reducing developer toil.
  • Their system patches and backports fixes without breaking existing software, preserving developer choices.
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