Tech Leader Talk

On this episode, I have the pleasure of talking with Anu Shukla. Anu is a serial entrepreneur with more than 25 years of high-tech industry experience. She is an active angel investor personally supporting and investing in women and minority led enterprises. Anu has founded and exited several software companies: ranging from a Fintech loyalty currency company to Adtech and marketing automation companies. She has successfully exited two startups with $600M in enterprise value. In her current role, Anu is a Co-founder and Executive Chair of Botco.ai, an emerging player in the application of AI/NLP to enterprise marketing automation. And, she is named as an inventor on four patents based on her work in the technology industry. "You want to turn your website into a conversation." – Anu Shukla Today on the Tech Leader Talk podcast: - The best way to start integrating chatbots into your business - Current marketing automation breakthroughs using AI and other technologies - Marketing trends that use AI to stay nimble and campaign-driven - The art and data science of marketing Resources Mentioned: Get a free copy of Anu's Book: 25 Best Practices to Turn Your Website Into a Conversation Connect with Anu Shukla: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anushukla/ Website: https://www.botco.ai/ Thanks for listening! Be sure to get your free copy of Steve's latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover his proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book.

On this episode, I talk with Sam Fry and Richard Adams. Sam works at the intersection of innovation, technology, and art. He works for a technology company during the day and speaks to artists about technology at night. Richard describes himself as an artist, musician, educator, and emerging tech architect. Sam and Richard host a podcast called TECHnique where they where talk to artists about how they are working with technology. In their Design Thinking series on the TECHnique podcast, Sam and Richard talk with several expert practitioners about Design Thinking. "Technology has always been a part of art." – Richard Adams Today on the Tech Leader Talk podcast: - What Sam and Richard learned from interviews with Design Thinking experts - Learning from the intersection of Art and Technology - Advantages to failing fast and failing often - Using Design Thinking techniques to solve problems - The human element of Design Thinking Resources Mentioned: UK Design Council's Double Diamond framework: https://www.designcouncil.org.uk/news-opinion/what-framework-innovation-design-councils-evolved-double-diamond Connect with Sam Fry and Richard Adams: LinkedIn (Sam Fry): https://www.linkedin.com/in/samueljfry/ LinkedIn (Richard Adams): https://www.linkedin.com/in/dickyadams/ TECHnique podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/technique/id1123475818 Twitter (Sam Fry): @SamuelJFry Twitter (Richard Adams): @DickyAdams Twitter (Technique Podcast): @TechniqueUK Thanks for listening! Be sure to get your free copy of Steve's latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover his proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book.

On today's podcast episode, I'm talking with Mike Geller, who is the Chief Technology Officer at Tegrita, a marketing technology consulting firm. He is also a co-author of the book "CMO to CRO – The revenue takeover by the next generation executive." This book describes how an organizational restructure, combined with effective technology, can exponentially increase a company's revenue. Mike attended Ryerson University in Toronto and has 15 years of experience with marketing technology. Mike describes himself as a coffee snob, a Trekkie, a husband, and a proud dad to two beautiful children. "Don't buy technology that is oversized for your business. " – Mike Geller Today on the Tech Leader Talk podcast: - How to find the best technology for marketing your business - Why "adding more technology" won't fix marketing problems - Current marketing automation trends - What you should do first to boost your marketing effectiveness - Questions to ask when looking at new technology tools Resources Mentioned: Book: CMO to CRO- The revenue takeover by the next generation executive Connect with Mike Geller: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikegeller/ Tegrita Website: https://tegrita.com/ Thanks for listening! Be sure to get your free copy of Steve's latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover his proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book.

Listen in as Paul Ruppert and I talk about how he has scaled tech companies to $1 Billion and lessons he's learned from helping generate $400 Million in B2B enterprise sales. Paul also shares his experience with improving customer engagement. Paul is the CEO of Global Point View and provides strategic advice to tech companies on high-stakes sales and cross-border negotiation. Paul is a Harvard graduate and is named as an inventor on two U.S. patents. Paul worked for 12 years as a Federal Trade Lobbyist, serving Congress and multiple White House administrations. He also has 20 years of experience with CpaaS (Communication Platform as a Service), messaging, and customer engagement. "Almost all things are globally scalable." – Paul Ruppert Today on the Tech Leader Talk podcast: - The importance of network capability in scaling your business - Understanding your value proposition for business growth - How to select your initial customers - Building out your architecture for expanding your business - Customer engagement techniques that are working today Resources Mentioned: Book: Blitzscaling by Reid Hoffman Connect with Paul Ruppert: Paul's Website: http://globalpointview.com/ Email: pruppert@gpvltd.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulruppertintl/ Thanks for listening! Be sure to get your free copy of Steve's latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover his proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book.

On this episode, Jeff Kushmerek and I talk about software startups and building customer success teams. Jeff has more than 20 years of experience with software startups. He started working as a developer in the 90's, and has been part of teams at Endeca (purchased by Oracle), Brightcove, and Virgin. While at Brightcove, Jeff started to notice the change from on-premise software to SaaS (Software as a Service), and how that was affecting customer onboarding and implementation. Then, when he was at Virgin, he noticed the need for more specialization on customer success teams. For the last 10 years, Jeff has been working with companies to make the continuous improvements to Customer Success and Professional Services teams that are needed. Jeff understands that many factors have an impact on the important first steps that create customer satisfaction and customer retention. Along the way, Jeff has coded, managed products, created teams, fixed teams, and rolls up his sleeves to help wherever needed. "Customer success starts before the sale." – Jeff Kushmerek Today on the Tech Leader Talk podcast: - Why should the customer support team get involved before a deal is closed - The importance of having a dedicated support team - New software tools that help with customer success operations Resources Mentioned: Book: Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss Connect with Jeff Kushmerek: Jeff's Website: www.jeffkushmerek.com Thanks for listening! Be sure to get your free copy of Steve's latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover his proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book/ .

In this episode, Marco Silva and I have a great discussion about artificial intelligence and cloud technologies. Marco lives in Portugal and is a Cloud Solution Architect for Microsoft with many years of experience. As a Cloud Solution Architect, he challenges customers with new ideas and new ways to use cloud technologies. Marco has experience in Computer Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, and Computer Graphics. He is part of the AI Ambassador team at Microsoft, which means he empowers people to leverage AI and create new uses of AI. Marco is also a professional speaker and teaches courses on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning at ISEG in Lisbon, Portugal. "Simulated environments are necessary for learning anywhere." – Marco Silva Today on the Tech Leader Talk podcast: - Why every business needs AI - New business models that didn't exist until a year or two ago - Digital transformation includes looking at AI for your business - A new pricing model for Rolls-Royce airplane engines that optimizes AI - What you must have to effectively use Machine Learning in your company Resources Mentioned: Microsoft Mesh – A collaboration and communications platform developed by Microsoft. Connect with Marco Silva: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marconsilva/ Thanks for listening! Be sure to get your free copy of Steve's latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover his proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book.

In this episode, I have a fun discussion with Shane Neely, who is a former laboratory scientist turned programmer. He has helped to author 11 scientific papers and build a cancer treatment software company. Today, Shane uses machine learning and artificial intelligence for everything from bioinformatics to art. He is particularly interested in AI for language generation, digital art, and other computational creativity. Shane is the author of the book Stone Age Code: From Monkey Business to AI. His book explores artificial intelligence and human evolution from his perspective as a data scientist and biologist. In his free time, Shane enjoys adventures around the Pacific Northwest with his family. "Using AI writing tools can eliminate writer's block." – Shane Neeley Today on the Tech Leader Talk podcast: - Similarities between human evolution and the evolution of artificial intelligence - How Shane used AI to help write and design his book - From using stone tools to "modern" tools like AI - Training neural networks to copy your writing style Resources Mentioned: Shane's Book: Stone Age Code: From Monkey Business to AI Connect with Shane Neeley: Website: ShaneNeeley.com LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/neeley1 Thanks for listening! Be sure to get your free copy of Steve's latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover his proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book.

Eric is a best selling author, speaker, and pragmatic futurist. Eric is focused on addressing disruption by increasing the creative capacity of individuals, teams, and organizations to ignite change, innovation, and foster continuous growth. Eric has an undergraduate degree in engineering, an MBA in Information Systems, and a Ph.D. in Global Leadership. His doctoral work primarily explored complexity sciences centered on executive cognition and their use of intuitive improvisation, decision-making, artificial intelligence, and data-based decision models. Eric's recent book, Surfing Rogue Waves released in May. His love of being active and outdoors led him to use the parallels between life and surfing as a metaphor for how we can deal with the changes happening around us. "If we don't 'ride' the 4th Industrial Revolution, we will be left behind." – Eric Pilon-Bignell Today on the Tech Leader Talk podcast: - What is the 4th Industrial Revolution and how is it changing the world - How surfing is related to the 4th Industrial Revolution - Why disruption is the new normal - Technology advancements are happening exponentially faster and converging with each other Resources Mentioned: Eric's Book: Surfing Rogue Waves Connect with Eric Pilon-Bignell: Website: http://ericpb.me LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericpilonbignell/ Thanks for listening! Be sure to get your free copy of Steve's latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover his proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book.

Shannon is a Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Catalyst Constellations. She has over twenty years of experience working with startups, launching her own ventures, and driving innovation in the world's largest companies. She is a passionate thought leader about creating sustainable organizations in every sense of the word: for people, planet, and profit. Shannon is a best-selling author of Move Fast, Break Shit, Burn Out; The Catalyst's Guide to Working Well. In her previous roles, as EVP of Emerging Business at Ericsson, Senior Innovation Architect at Cisco's Hyperinnovation Living Lab, and Director of Innovation at Vodafone Global Enterprise, Shannon empowered Fortune 500 businesses to stay agile, competitive, and sustainable through the adoption of new technologies and organizational structures. "Catalysts are super dot connectors and move into action quickly." – Shannon Lucas Today on the Tech Leader Talk podcast: - Why innovation is dependent on company culture - How to identify Catalysts in your organization - Techniques for encouraging Catalysts to use their skills to benefit the company - How to reduce stress and burnout in your team members Resources Mentioned: Move Fast. Break Shit. Burn Out. by Shannon Lucas: https://www.amazon.com/Move-Fast-Break-Shit-Burn-ebook/dp/B08JNWBQ9Y Undisruptable by Aidan McCullen: https://www.amazon.com/Undisruptable-Permanent-Reinvention-Individuals-Organisations-ebook/dp/B08YPHN6RK Essentials for Catalysts Course: https://catalystconstellations.com/essentials-for-catalysts Connect with Shannon Lucas: Website: https://catalystconstellations.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannonglucas/ Thanks for listening! Be sure to get your free copy of Steve's latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover his proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book.

On this episode of Tech Leader Talk, Steve Shwartz have an interesting discussion about artificial intelligence, robots, and self-driving cars. Steve is the author of "Evil Robots, Killer Computers, and Other Myths: The Truth About AI and the Future of Humanity" which was published in February by Fast Company Press. Steve began his Artificial Intelligence career as a postdoctoral researcher in the Yale University Computer Science Dept. During his career, he has been a founder or co-founder of many companies. Steve has also helped fund many startups as an investor including Tangoe, which was the 6th-best IPO of 2011. "We don't need to worry about AI systems exterminating humans or turning us into pets." – Steve Shwartz Today on the Tech Leader Talk podcast: - Why we shouldn't be worried about robots and AI systems taking over the world - How self-driving vehicles will affect society - Government regulation of artificial intelligence - Which jobs may be replaced with AI systems Resources Mentioned: Book: Evil Robots, Killer Computers, and Other Myths Free eBook: Artificial Intelligence 101 Steve's AI Blog: https://www.aiperspectives.com/blog/ Connect with Steve Shwartz: Website: https://www.aiperspectives.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steveshwartz/ Thanks for listening! Be sure to get your free copy of Steve's latest book, Cracking the Patent Code, and discover his proven system for identifying and protecting your most valuable inventions. Get the book at https://stevesponseller.com/book.