Mastering Tech Growth Mike Sirius

Mike interviews Aycan Gulez, the CTO of Faraday, to explore the world of carbon emissions management and energy optimisation. Aycan shares invaluable insights on leveraging AI, navigating hardware challenges, and driving sustainability in the tech industry. Listen to this episode to discover how Faraday is revolutionising the way businesses measure and reduce their environmental impact, and learn practical strategies for scaling tech ventures while prioritising sustainability.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Measuring carbon emissions is crucial for companies to comply with upcoming regulations and avoid potential carbon taxes
Faraday provides a platform for companies to calculate carbon emissions and manage energy consumption using IoT devices and AI algorithms
Outdated practices and hardware-centric mindsets in the energy management industry pose challenges for innovation and flexibility
Scalability issues with relational databases can be addressed using techniques like vertical scaling, ARM processors, and the ZFS file system
Prioritising simplicity in tech stack choices, such as using Vue.js over React, can improve developer experience and reduce complexity
Working closely with customers to understand pain points and develop solutions is key to successful product innovation
Ensuring security through encryption, simplifying tech stacks, and following best practices is essential when handling large amounts of sensitive data
Achieving product-market fit is the most critical factor for the growth and success of any tech venture

BEST MOMENTS

"You can't reduce something you don't measure. And also, there are initiatives about a so-called carbon tax, some companies will be expected to pay a carbon tax for damaging the environment and making the entire world a really bad place for our children to live in." (03:05) Aycan emphasises the importance of measuring carbon emissions.

"I prefer to have as few dependencies as possible because statistically speaking the more dependencies you have, the more chances of something going wrong. So, I think it makes sense to build a monolith first." (28:06)  Aycan discusses his approach to managing complexity in software architecture.

"Soon this I hope will be normal. I mean, asking your partners what their emissions are. Right now, I mean, no one cares. But there is an increasing awareness and the upcoming regulations that make it mandatory to check all these data from your suppliers." (40:59)  Aycan predicts the future of carbon emissions reporting in business partnerships.

"I hate pointless government regulations as much as everyone. But I think self-regulation is an oxymoron. In a free market, all economic actors are supposed to act in their own self-interest. That's the agreement, right?" (41:47) Aycan shares his blunt opinion on the necessity of government regulations for carbon emissions.

"I mean, tech is only part of the equation. I believe that business developments, marketing, product-market fit, things like this, soft things are actually more important than the tech stack, because if you, if no one knows that you have a great product, then I mean, it doesn't really matter" (52:33)  Aycan stresses the importance of product-market fit over technology.

ABOUT THE HOST

Meet Mike, a seasoned tech entrepreneur and visionary with over two and a half decades of invaluable experience in founding and scaling successful tech start-ups. Mike brings a wealth of firsthand knowledge and a deep understanding of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and tech professionals.

As a host, Mike is dedicated to sharing actionable insights, strategies, and stories gathered from conversations with industry leaders, innovators, and experts. With a remarkable ability to distil practical wisdom from guests, Mike curates engaging discussions that resonate with both aspiring entrepreneurs and seasoned professionals. 

ABOUT THE SHOW

Welcome to Mastering Tech Growth, where we dive deep into the strategies, challenges

Mike interviews Kossi Selom Banybah, CTO of Gebeya, a Pan-African tech leadership company. Kossi shares invaluable insights on building SaaS platforms, utilising microservices effectively, and Gebeya's groundbreaking partnership with Microsoft to empower young African talent. Tune in to discover how Gebeya is revolutionising the tech landscape and gain expert advice on navigating the world of microservices and SaaS.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Gebeya's SaaS platform enables entrepreneurs and companies to have their own talent cloud for searching, upskilling, and managing talent efficiently.
When transitioning to a SaaS model, the biggest challenge is ensuring proper multi-tenancy and data segregation between tenants.
Start small with microservices, finding a balance between monolithic and fully microservice-based approaches to avoid overwhelming complexity.
Choose the right technology stack that solves your problem from the beginning, as changing it later can be very difficult.
Implement monitoring, distributed tracing, and logging tools to improve visibility and troubleshoot issues effectively in microservice architectures.
Be technology agnostic and select solutions based on the problem at hand, rather than religious adherence to specific technologies.
SaaS is here to stay due to its accessibility, easy management, and the ability to forecast revenue more accurately.
Embrace collaboration, seek diverse perspectives, and maintain a balanced approach in both technology and life for long-term success.

BEST MOMENTS

"So basically our SaaS platform allows you as an entrepreneur or as a company to have your own talent cloud where you can search for people or upscale your people, right?"  [3:51] (Kossi explaining the core functionality of Gebeya's SaaS platform)

"So if I understand this correctly, I am a company and if I use Gebeya, I can build my talent cloud from a candidate's use guy source, or do I need to source it myself?" - Mike and Kossi discussing the launch of the Microsoft Talent Cloud and how companies can use Gebeya to build their talent pools [4:32] (Exploring the benefits of Gebeya's platform for companies)

"It's like a talent selection SaaS platform" [5:07] Mike summarising Gebeya

"If you want more, I would say to have more probability of succeeding, um, and focusing on your business instead of building the platform and at the same time in the business. I would say, oh, SaaS is the best solution for you." [22:34] (Kossi discussing the benefits of using Gebeya's SaaS platform compared to building an in-house solution)

 "We started straight from microservice, but like I said it's really in the middle because we had the same big services not that big, but not also small. So we did not start with a monolith. We start right away with microservice, but in a safer way because if you don't, if you jump right into microservice, we don't have the right knowledge, you make work much more difficult for yourself, right?" [33:27] (Kossi explaining Gebeya's approach to microservices)

"I think a lot of problems will be solved in this world if you can have the right person, the right position to do a job."  [59:39] (Kossi discusses how Gebeya's platform can revolutionise the way organisations find and manage skilled individuals for specific projects)

EPISODE RESOURCES

https://gebeya.com

ABOUT THE HOST

Meet Mike, a seasoned tech entrepreneur and visionary with over two and a half decades of invaluable experience in founding and scaling successful tech start-ups. Mike brings a wealth of firsthand knowledge and a deep understanding of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and tech professionals.

As a host, Mike is dedicated to sharing actionable insights, strategies, and stories gathered from conversations with industry leaders, innovators, and experts. With a remarkable ability to distill practical wisdom from guests, Mike curates engaging discussions that resonate with both aspiring entrepreneurs and seasoned professionals. 

Mike is joined in this episode by David Santoro, the CTO and co-founder of CarWow. David shares his fascinating journey in the tech industry, offering invaluable insights on building a resilient business, fostering a positive company culture, and navigating the challenges of acquisitions. With 13 years of experience at CarWow, David's wisdom is a must-listen for anyone looking to grow their tech venture.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Building business resilience requires a long-term perspective, diversifying revenue streams, and adapting to market changes.
Fostering a positive company culture is crucial for employee retention and overall success, with a focus on collaboration, humility, and personal growth.
Acquisitions can be a strategic move for growth but require careful consideration of cultural integration and resource allocation.
Maintaining a high-quality codebase and keeping technologies up to date is essential for attracting and retaining top engineering talent.
Scope control and prioritisation are key to maintaining speed and efficiency in project development.
Customer feedback and data-informed decisions should guide product development, but not to the point of paralysis.
Navigating regulations and legal requirements is a balancing act between compliance and customer-centric decision-making.
Extreme focus and targeted growth strategies can demonstrate business value and attract investment.

BEST MOMENTS

"Failure was the default in a sense. So, when later in business, we encountered our first dips through the market and so forth and so forth. I think as founders, we were like, this is fine, this is normal, we can cope with that." [3:23] (David discusses how the early challenges and lack of funding at CarWow helped build resilience in the founders)

“You have to be resilient, it’s impossible to grow on and on without challenges” [4:46] (David talking about the importance of resilience in business and why there will always be hurdles when working in any business for a long time)

"I think there were, before COVID, the nuclear market, there were a few other critical events that happened. One was the diesel scandal. Another one was WFPT, where the CEO of a new company thought, wait a second, we have a lots of traffic. We are not monetising really well." [08:00] (David explains how critical events in the automotive industry prompted CarWow's CEO to diversify revenue streams and improve monetisation)

"I'm very happy with the culture. The key differentiator for us is we are highly co-collaborative and we don't just say it, we like helping each other and whenever new people come from other companies, they always mention it" [26:48] (David expresses his satisfaction with CarWow's highly collaborative culture and how it stands out to new employees)

"We are trying to organise the organisation in a way that, hey, If you're helping the department and we help the whole organisation, you thrive." [27:37] (David explains how CarWow's organisational structure encourages collaboration and mutual success)

“You have to compete or you fall behind, simple as that” [33:23] (David talks about how to manage changes and scale, including long term to remain competitive in the market)

"That’s important in a start-up, you need to find people that enjoy technology as a tool to achieve." [40:46] (David on why finding coders and other tech-based employees that share a company’s vision is essential for the companies success)

ABOUT THE HOST

Meet Mike, a seasoned tech entrepreneur and visionary with over two and a half decades of invaluable experience in founding and scaling successful tech startups. Mike brings a wealth of firsthand knowledge and a deep understanding of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and tech professionals.

As a host, Mike is dedicated to sharing actionable insights, strategies, and stories gathered from conversations with industry leaders, innovators, and experts. With a remarkable ability to distil practical wisd

Mike sits down with Vasileios Fasoulas to explore the key elements of building and leading high-performing engineering teams. Vasileios shares valuable insights on navigating the challenges of talent acquisition, retention, and career progression in the fast-paced world of tech. Tune in to discover actionable strategies for unlocking your engineering team's full potential and mastering tech growth.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Unlock the power of clear communication to navigate project challenges and changes like a boss.
Embrace diversity in your engineering teams to supercharge problem-solving and innovation.
Master the art of mentorship to help your team members soar to new heights.
Crack the code on balancing senior and junior engineers to achieve your team's mission.
Adapt to the new normal of remote work to attract and retain top engineering talent.
Fuel your engineers' passion with continuous learning opportunities that keep them on the cutting edge.
Discover the secret to retaining top talent by understanding their motivations and creating a growth-focused environment.
Learn to make bold decisions and communicate effectively to conquer legacy technology challenges.

BEST MOMENTS

"It all starts and ends with people...people are the most important thing because ultimately this is what you compete with, you know, resources and capital." (00:46:06) Vasileios discussing the most critical factor for tech ventures' growth.

"I strongly suspect that hard figures will show that if not now...we'll have another year or two, this will grind to unmanageable levels." (01:23:26) Vasileios tackling legacy technology challenges head-on.

"So if there are people who have that aspiration and you feel that they have, this capability or growing towards that capability, say how could you, how you can support them. And that brings us back to mentoring." (01:13:07) Vasileios championing internal promotion and growth through mentorship.

"I think put a CTO hat on for this one. It's a bold decision and communication to CEO to the board and say, look, we understand we invested in this platform. It served its role right now."  (01:23:00) Vasileios stepping up as a CTO to address legacy technology issues.

"Don't do it. Now. The decision will be made for you again maybe a year, two years from you when you literally have no people to support and then You've been a really tough In a really tough place commercially as well." (01:24:26) Mike emphasising the importance of proactive decision-making.

ABOUT THE HOST

Meet Mike, a seasoned tech entrepreneur and visionary with over two and a half decades of invaluable experience in founding and scaling successful tech startups. Mike brings a wealth of firsthand knowledge and a deep understanding of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and tech professionals.

As a host, Mike is dedicated to sharing actionable insights, strategies, and stories gathered from conversations with industry leaders, innovators, and experts. With a remarkable ability to distil practical wisdom from guests, Mike curates engaging discussions that resonate with both aspiring entrepreneurs and seasoned professionals. 

ABOUT THE SHOW

Welcome to Mastering Tech Growth, where we dive deep into the strategies, challenges, and triumphs of scaling tech-driven ventures. Join us as we explore the dynamic world of technology businesses, uncovering the secrets behind successful growth trajectories. Each episode brings you candid conversations with founders and industry experts, sharing invaluable insights, proven tactics, and real-life stories. Whether you're a budding entrepreneur or a seasoned professional, discover the roadmap to navigating the complexities of scaling in the ever-evolving tech landscape.

 

Join Mike in this episode as he interviews Michele Alessandrini, CTO of Atex Media Group, for a fascinating deep dive into how AI is transforming the publishing industry. Michele shares invaluable insights on leveraging AI to boost efficiency, personalise content, and navigate ethical challenges. Listen in to discover how publishers can harness the power of AI while maintaining trust and quality.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


AI helps publishers focus on their core job of writing high-quality articles by automating tasks like title generation, SEO optimisation, social media publishing, and translations.
Fine-tuning AI models allows publishers to customise output to their specific style, tone, and language preferences, ensuring brand consistency.
Transparency is key in maintaining reader trust when using AI-generated content, with publishers explicitly stating how AI was involved in the article creation process.
Fact-checking AI-generated content is crucial to mitigate the risk of misinformation, requiring a combination of automated verification and human oversight.
Serverless cloud infrastructure enables scalability and cost-efficiency for AI solutions in publishing, allowing dynamic resource allocation based on usage.
Publishers should foster a culture of learning and innovation, empowering employees to stay curious and adapt to rapidly evolving AI technologies.
AI enables journalists to process and derive insights from the vast amounts of data available today, enhancing their ability to create comprehensive, well-informed articles.
While AI can significantly aid content creation, human gatekeepers remain essential for ensuring quality, accuracy, and ethical standards in publishing.

BEST MOMENTS

"They’re definitely the industry that can benefit the most from artificial intelligence today." [00:03:29] (Michele on the publishing industry's potential to leverage AI)

"Can you expect the output fully or is there a human-driven sanity check that will still take place in the publishing side?." [00:22:58] (Mike on whether AI is currently a full solution)

"The more we are progressing, the more modern will advance, the maturity of the companies will advance, maturity of the readers will advance, maturity of the human species towards AI will advance." [00:35:31] (Michele on the future of AI in publishing)

"In the next five years, what I see is an industry completely embracing it, which means from their perspective, being able to focus on the only one thing they want to focus on today, which is writing the best quality article." [00:40:35]  (Michele on the future impact of AI on publishing)

"Publishing on social media, newsletter, translating an article into another language…those are all activities that are not strictly related with the quality of the output and this is an immediate benefit, immediate gain a publisher can get from embracing AI." [00:51:19]  (Michele on the immediate benefits AI can present to the publishing industry)

ABOUT THE HOST

Meet Mike, a seasoned tech entrepreneur and visionary with over two and a half decades of invaluable experience in founding and scaling successful tech startups. Mike brings a wealth of firsthand knowledge and a deep understanding of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and tech professionals.

As a host, Mike is dedicated to sharing actionable insights, strategies, and stories gathered from conversations with industry leaders, innovators, and experts. With a remarkable ability to distil practical wisdom from guests, Mike curates engaging discussions that resonate with both aspiring entrepreneurs and seasoned professionals. 

ABOUT THE SHOW

Welcome to Mastering Tech Growth, where we dive deep into the strategies, challenges, and triumphs of scaling tech-driven ventures. Join us as we explore the dynamic world of technology businesses, uncovering the secrets behind successful growth trajectories. Each episode brings you candid conversations with founders and industry experts, sharing in

Join Mike as he interviews Salavat Magazov, a product development engineer with a passion for biotech automation. Salavat shares his fascinating journey of building a complex cell culture automation machine with a team of dedicated individuals, all while navigating the challenges of managing a remote, unpaid team. Discover the key motivators that keep the team engaged and learn valuable insights into balancing chaos and order in the creative process.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Salavat and his team are developing a complex cell culture automation machine to alleviate the manual labour of biologists, allowing them to focus on creative work and advance science.
The team, consisting of remote and unpaid members, remains highly motivated due to the presence of purpose, mastery, and autonomy in the project.
AI plays a significant role in the project, with 80% of the code written by AI and 20% by humans, demonstrating the potential for AI to revolutionise software development.
Balancing chaos and order is crucial for creative endeavours; Salavat maintains this balance by setting physical boundaries between the two in his workspace.
Product-market fit is essential for sustainable business growth, as even strong marketing and sales cannot compensate for a product that poorly fits customer needs.
Effective communication between commercial and engineering teams is vital to maintain a sense of purpose and motivation within the team.
AI struggles with spatial reasoning and global thinking but excels in constrained spaces and can significantly boost productivity in areas like code generation and comprehension of complex subjects.
Removing financial anxiety allows people to focus on personal growth and contributing to society, which are key drivers of happiness and satisfaction.

BEST MOMENTS

"We don't know if there is actual commercial need we think there is we have very little actual validation, because, well, primarily because we're not seeking validation right now. It's for us, a fun project to do and it stretches our skills to, quite often to the limit." (13:09) - Salavat on the team's motivation and focus on challenging themselves.

"It turns out that this phenomenon about people not being motivated by money has been known to mainstream science for about 40 years, about 20 years ago, I had a friend who was doing a PhD and the topic of the PhD was non-financial incentives to workers." (42:12) - Salavat on the research behind non-financial motivators for workers.

"I think AI made our current level of software progress possible. If we had to just type all of that extra 80 percent of code would be a lot of work, a lot of manual work, and then debugging all of that and, you know, creating test cases." (1:02:35) - Salavat discusses the impact of AI on their software development process.

"Chaos is my nature. It's how I work, but I'm also trying to be orderly because it's necessity." (1:12:50) - Salavat discussing his struggle to balance chaos and order in his work.

"I think product market is probably, if I had to pick one, it would be this, everything else can be solved, by getting new people, trying new avenues of approaching the market, getting a new CFO, if something doesn't work. But if your product is a poor fit to the customer needs, yeah, it is. It's like, it's no brainer, right? Just build something people want. That's your market for business." (1:16:16) - Salavat emphasises the importance of product-market fit for business success.

ABOUT THE HOST

Meet Mike, a seasoned tech entrepreneur and visionary with over two and a half decades of invaluable experience in founding and scaling successful tech startups. Mike brings a wealth of firsthand knowledge and a deep understanding of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and tech professionals.

As a host, Mike is dedicated to sharing actionable insights, strategies, and stories gathered from conversations with industry leaders, innovators, and experts. With a remarkable ability to distil pr