Tech Connects

We have a very special edition of Tech Connects this time around. Dice’s latest Tech Salary Report just dropped, and we’re talking to Art Zeile, CEO of DHI Group, the parent company of Dice, about the report’s takeaways. When it comes to tech professionals and salary, we’re in a very interesting moment. For example, the Report revealed that average tech salaries trended upward, increasing 2.3 percent to $111,348… and yet tech professionals are more dissatisfied with their salaries year-over-year. What’s behind that dissatisfaction, and how can budget-crunched companies overcome it if they can’t actually offer higher salaries? We’ll also dig into the layoffs at some of tech’s largest companies and how that contrasts with the low tech unemployment rate, the technologies that could define the industry in coming years, the nature of digital transformation, and much more. Let’s listen in!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our guests are Jacob Little, Glassdoor Senior Head of People Experience and DEI, and Stuart McCalla, Evolution Managing Partner. I was interested in speaking with them because of their deep backgrounds in DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion), particularly in how DEI programs can potentially improve a company’s internal diversity and culture. Back in 2020, Glassdoor noticed that users were joining companies that had high ratings on its platform, but once they arrived at their new employer, they found an unwelcoming environment. Glassdoor then partnered with Evolution, a coaching, culture, and leadership development firm, on a two-pronged mission: to boost DEI within Glassdoor, and to better infuse DEI principles into the platform itself. It was a complicated mission that produced some interesting results.Here are some key takeaways from our discussion with Jacob and Stewart: First, DEI impacts everyone. Team leaders, project managers, and even C-suite executives might think they only need to be good at engineering products or making sure teams hit deadlines, but leadership is ultimately about having the skill and fluency to recognize diversity. You need to absorb and respond to peoples’ individual experiences and culture—if you can’t do that, you’re going to have issues with retention, and your best and brightest will walk right out the door.Second, a formulaic approach to DEI just won’t cut it. You need to make sure that team members respond to DEI initiatives on an emotional level. That way, they’ll truly internalize what the organization is trying to teach. It’s more than just KPIs.Third, DEI succeeds when it’s working on three levels: the individual, the collective, and the systemic. You have to make sure that issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion are being addressed on every possible level, from the c-suite on down. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our guest today is Anand Subbaraj, who’s the CEO of Zuper. Anand and his team build software that helps companies manage their field services. If you’ve ever had the plumber, electrician, or cable guy over to fix something, you might not have any idea about the amount of complicated tech that goes into ensuring they get to your door on time. With clients like Ikea, Zuper is also exploring how to use automation and pattern detection to make these kinds of everyday services even better.I personally had no idea about the amount of tech that went into some kinds of field operations, but when you think about it, it makes perfect sense: whether you have a dozen or a couple thousand people in the field, their tasks and movements can quickly become exponentially complex.Zuper is also just one example of how automation and ‘real time’ artificial intelligence (A.I.) are permeating pretty much every industry in a number of unexpected ways. No matter where you work—or what you’re working on—pay attention to how automation, machine learning, and pattern recognition could impact even the smallest parts of your daily workflow. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael Schutzler is the CEO of Washington Technology Industry Association (WTIA), a consortium of 1,000 tech companies working together to build a robust, equity-centered tech sector that empowers thriving communities. A 30-year industry veteran, Schutzler has keen insight into how Washington State, one of the nation’s original and largest tech hubs, has evolved over the decades—and where it might go in the future. In addition to talking about the factors influencing the growth of tech hubs at the moment, we’re also going to delve into remote work, the ways in which factors like the cost of living can seriously impact a tech community, and much more.If you work in tech, you know that Seattle, Bellevue and other cities are synonymous with tech innovation and some of the biggest names in the industry, including Microsoft and Amazon. Washington State’s tech scene also has some valuable takeaways for other tech hubs across the country. First, tech hubs, especially those on the rise, need to provide a reasonable cost of living for technology professionals and others. There also needs to be an attractive culture—people want to live and work in places that are fun. Second, tech hubs and centers of innovation can spring up in all sorts of circumstances. We might be heading into a recessionary environment at the moment, but that’s when many technology professionals decide to strike out on their own and finally get their startup off the ground. If you have enough startups in the area, founders can connect with each other and with talent, and create a meaningful community. Third, while tech hubs remain vibrant places, companies have discovered that an openness to remote and hybrid work can unlock a sizable talent reservoir. If you’re trying to put together a team of tech professionals, especially specialized ones, don’t discount how offering a remote job can help you land the talent you need. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dominique Bastos, senior vice president at Persistent Systems, is a cloud expert and three-time founder. We’re going to cover some key issues critical to companies of all sizes, including modernization and digital transformation, migrating to the cloud, and the need for diversity on teams.Modernization and digital transformation are obviously huge endeavors with a lot of moving parts. It’s a challenge even for the biggest and most well-funded enterprises. So it’s great to talk to someone like Dominique that has a substantial grasp on it. We covered a lot in that conversation, but here are just a few key takeaways: First: Startups have trained consumers to expect that companies will evolve, react, and adapt quickly. Digital transformation and modernization allows the biggest companies—some of which aren’t used to moving at speed—to accelerate their businesses and leap to meet consumers’ expectations. Second: Any company undergoing digital transformation needs to ensure there are solid lines of communication and transparency. Expectations also need to be set, and there needs to be top-down support from the highest levels. Otherwise, such a complex effort may grind to a total halt. Third: Diversity in teams is crucial. Although there’s been progress in diversifying engineering and other teams, there’s still much to be done. Adding other perspectives to the mix is crucial, because end users expect a product—whether it’s a service or app or anything like that—to reflect their world and needs. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our guest today is Saad Siddiqui, who’s General Partner at Telstra Ventures, a San Francisco-based strategic growth firm. He invests in HR tech companies such as Certn and Forage, which gives him some unique insights into talent acquisition, how technology impacts onboarding and training, and the future of work itself. He also previously served as an executive at Informatica and Cisco.Here are some key points from the discussion:First, the rise of remote and hybrid work is giving companies a lot more flexibility. It’s now potentially easier to recruit on a national and international basis, as well as find the right talent. But even though there are more opportunities to find the right candidates, a company needs its hiring, onboarding, training, and workplace arranged so that new employees can integrate into the company as smoothly as possible.Second, a lot of workers miss the ability to collaborate in-person within an office. That’s a key reason why many technology professionals prefer hybrid work, where they go back to their offices a few days per week. Many companies are working on how to bring the collaboration, camaraderie, and spontaneity of the office to a virtual environment, in a way that’s not just giving a thumbs-up on Slack. Keep an eye on what tech companies are doing to make remote work more personable.Third, startups are also trying to figure out how to help businesses manage rising employee costs such as healthcare. With inflation and other factors leading to rising prices, keep an eye on how emerging companies are trying to make company spending more efficient. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our guest today is Kevin Kelly, Director of Cloud Career Training Programs at Amazon Web Services. Those programs include AWS Academy and AWS re/Start, which collaborate with higher education institutions, non-profits, and government organizations to assist students launch into cloud careers. AWS re/Start is a part of Amazon’s commitment to provide 29 million people around the world with access to free cloud computing skills training by 2025. As you’re about to hear, Kevin is on a mission to help close the cloud IT skills gap, which is growing year by year despite companies and schools dedicating enormous resources to training. We’re going to cover everything from the cloud as a growth industry, to the kind of knowledge technology professionals need to succeed in the cloud space, to whether certifications can have an impact on your cloud career.Here are some additional key takeaways from the chat:First, the cloud remains a growth industry. Whether they realize it or not, an incredible number of workers in virtually every industry rely on the cloud in some way. That’s helping drive the demand for those with cloud skills, and it means those who have cloud skills—and keep them up-to-date—will have lots of professional opportunities far into the future. If you can deploy, test, and maintain projects in the cloud, you’re valuable. Second: In order to be an effective cloud professional, it helps to have a working understanding of compute, storage, network, database, and security. From there, things get a bit more complicated. For example, knowing what object storage is and how it operates in the context of the cloud, or immutable storage if you’re building a cloud-based blockchain app of some kind.Third: Certifications are useful. Pursuing certifications allows you to learn the skills that you’ll need throughout your cloud career. Certifications are also attractive to employers, which is why hiring managers and recruiters will ask you about them when you’re applying for jobs. If you’re just starting out, foundation-level certifications can demonstrate you have a working knowledge of the cloud. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Steven Brand is the head of employer brand at Mambu, a rapidly growing fintech company. Brand also has tons of fans online, including on LinkedIn, where he regularly posts his thoughts on the evolution of employer branding.  As a term, ‘employer branding’ has existed since the 90s, and it encompasses the steps an organization can take to position itself as a great place to work. When an organization’s employer branding succeeds, it helps bring in talent that not only has the right skills, but also integrates well into the company’s culture. During our chat, Steven’s going to break down why employer branding can serve as a company’s “secret weapon,” reducing attrition and dissatisfaction, boosting engagement and productivity, and ultimately helping drive an influx of great talent. The employer brand has the potential to impact the bottom line of an organization. When you hire the right talent, they’re more productive and more likely to stay longer because they're happier. If you’re working in employer branding, it’s important to educate those around you – especially senior leadership – about the very real impact of your work.  But figuring out the ideal employer branding strategy isn’t something that will happen quickly. It takes time, patience, resources, and buy-in at all levels of the organization. If you’re interested in improving your employer branding, it’s key to foster a culture of experimentation around it: by figuring out what works and what doesn’t, you can eventually develop employer branding channels that work really well for your organization.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Manish Narayanaswami is an associate director at Kissflow, which is a builder of no- and low-code platforms that enable business customers to build apps and workflows with a minimum of coding. He’s spent years refining how to use cutting-edge technologies to make things simpler for end-users. I wanted to talk to Manish because I’ve been fascinated by no- and low-code tools for a long time. For businesses, no- and low-code presents the tantalizing possibility of allowing employees who don’t have a tech background to quickly spin up the apps and services they need. However, many technologists are also concerned about how no- and low-code workflows could potentially make it more confusing to manage an organization’s tech stack. Let’s listen as Manish and I hash out how these technologies could have a significant impact over the next several years.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode of "Tech Connects," we're speaking with Mark Feffer, who’s the executive editor at Recruiting Daily; he’s also editor and publisher of the HCM Technology Report. He has a long, storied career as a journalist covering the technology industry, with a particular focus on hiring and recruiting trends and HR tech. Mark and I first met while he was the managing editor of Dice, and I’ve always found him one of the most insightful people in the business. We’re going to chat about a variety of topics, including the current economic uncertainty, the rise of automation in hiring, and even how companies are approaching next-generation technologies like augmented reality (AR). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.