Sheffield Digital Podcast Sheffield Digital

This episode of the Sheffield Digital podcast features a group interview with four apprentices working at Tes Global. In collaboration with Makers, Tes offered the opportunity for those passionate about tech to retrain, learn to code, and launch a new career in software development. Jack Thacker, Noelia Perez Marin, Sonia Khan and Jose Lopez Guerrero were invited to this interview to share what their experiences have been like so far, and what they are looking forward to next. 
Before starting the apprenticeship:
Noelia worked as a graphic designer for many years, specialising in merchandising.Jack was first a student and then a writer and researcher in English Literature.Sonia was working in museums, including a games museum.Jose was working in hospitality as a receptionist and then had a job in finance, in the customer service line for shareholders.
Each guest shares why they decided to make a career change, what skills and knowledge they are bringing from previous roles, and how Tes is supporting them throughout the experience. Other topics they touch on include imposter syndrome, diversity of people, and advice for people considering applying for a similar apprenticeship.
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Notes and Links
The apprentices were interviewed online by Sarah Lister, Membership Coordinator at Sheffield Digital, on 8th August 2023.
Every episode comes with a list of links to the companies we reference:
Links
Tes website 
References
Makers Academy: https://makers.tech/become/apprentice/
Code Academy: https://www.codecademy.com/
Did we miss something you’re looking for? Just get in touch and let us know. 
Join the conversation
We’re really keen to get your feedback on the podcast. You can share your thoughts with us on Twitter or on the channel in the Sheffield Digital Slack community.
Thank you for the music
Thanks to Alex Mclean – aka Yaxu – for the show’s intro music, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

How did you get here?
Dan Kirby shares his journey to becoming Co-Founder and CEO of The Tech Dept, specialists in working with early-stage startups, particularly impact startups. Their mission is to help impact founders do good at scale. 
Dan tells us about his life as an entrepreneur since 2001, the highs and lows of running a business, and why he started a podcast called “Honey, I blew up the business” which has reached the top 2.5% of global podcasts and is listened to in 44 countries. Guests on the show talk about what it's really like to be a founder; what it's like to face your demons and come out the other side as a better person and a better entrepreneur. In this interview Dan shares some of the themes covered on his show, including fear, ego and intuition.
He says that “...having an idea and having the freedom to pursue it, that is itself a form of success.” Hear this and much more in the 30 minute interview between Dan and Sarah Lister.
Subscribe to the podcast
If you’d like to have new episodes of the show appear right in your podcast player, you can subscribe via our page on Apple Podcasts and follow the show on Spotify, or search for us in your podcast app of choice!
Notes and Links
Dan was interviewed online by Sarah Lister, Membership Coordinator at Sheffield Digital, on 23rd June 2023.
Every episode comes with a list of links to the companies we reference:
The Tech Dept websiteHoney, I blew up the business podcastDan Kirby on LinkedInRichard Grundy on LinkedIn
References
The Tech OffTech Off movie pilot'Extreme Ownership’ by Jocko WillinkThe Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness & Healing in a Toxic Culture by Gabor MatéInner Engineering by Sadhguru
Did we miss something you’re looking for? Just get in touch and let us know. 
Join the conversation
We’re really keen to get your feedback on the podcast. You can share your thoughts with us on Twitter or on the channel in the Sheffield Digital Slack community.
Thank you for the music
Thanks to Alex Mclean – aka Yaxu – for the show’s intro music, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

How did you get here?
Dash Tabor shares her journey to becoming the founder of an AI machine learning startup.
Dash Tabor didn’t expect to work in tech, never mind to start her own deep-tech company specialising in the application of AI for small and incomplete datasets.
Growing up, she felt that tech wasn’t her, that it was too complicated and too ‘mathy’. However, after completing a Masters in City Planning and Sustainable Development, Dash needed a job and landed an admin role in a tech company. 
From this point, she started to develop an interest and passion for data, and so her journey to tech founder began.
She gathered different skills, learning how to spot opportunities both in tech and in the market, and she watched different people doing things in different ways.
Living and working in London it was the busy and over-crowded tube journeys she had to take every morning that gave Dash the impetus to found her own company, developing technology that could predict the peaks at London tube stations on just small amounts of data.
Since this point in 2020, she has moved to Sheffield setting up her business, Tubr, at Sheffield Technology Parks. She has hired, secured customers,  gained funding from Angels and Venture Capitalists, and Tubr has patent pending technology.
Dash says that the point she stopped being scared of failure was the point at which the business started doing well.
Hear about all of this and much more in the 20 minute interview between Dash and Sarah Lister.
Subscribe to the podcast
If you’d like to have new episodes of the show appear right in your podcast player, you can subscribe via our page on Apple Podcasts and follow the show on Spotify, or search for us in your podcast app of choice!
Notes and links
Dash was interviewed online by Sarah Lister, Membership Coordinator at Sheffield Digital, on 9th May 2023.
Every episode comes with a list of links to the companies we reference.
TUBRSheffield Technology ParksDash on LinkedInSheffield Women in TechSheffield Digital
Did we miss something you’re looking for? Just get in touch and let us know. 
Join the conversation
We’re really keen to get your feedback on the podcast. You can share your thoughts with us on Twitter or on the channel in the Sheffield Digital Slack community.
Thank you for the music
Thanks to Alex Mclean – aka Yaxu – for the show’s intro music, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Last autumn, Mina announced that it had become B Corporation (B Corp) certified. The global B Corp movement sets a standard for businesses who want to ‘do good’ through their actions towards the environment, their employees and the impact they make in their local community. In this interview with Mina Co-Founder and Managing Director, Chris Dalrymple, he tells us about the process, why it took longer than expected to achieve certification, how its impact is already being felt, and he offers advice to other businesses that are considering becoming a B Corp.
We hope you enjoy it and, if there are other stories you’d like us to explore, please let us know.
Don’t forget, you can always join the Sheffield Digital Slack community or email info@sheffield.digital to get in touch and share your thoughts. 
Subscribe to the show
If you’d like to have new episodes of the show appear right in your podcast player, you can subscribe via our page on Apple Podcasts or search for us in your podcast app of choice!
Notes and links
Every episode comes with a list of links to the various people, companies and topics that we reference.
MinaChris Dalrymple on LinkedInB Corp movementB Impact Assessment
Did we miss something you’re looking for? Just get in touch and let us know. 
Join the conversation
We’re really keen to get your feedback on the podcast. You can share your thoughts with us on Twitter or on the channel in the Sheffield Digital Slack community.
Thank you for the music
Thanks to Alex Mclean – aka Yaxu – for the show’s intro music, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

‘Sheffield Digital Insight’ focuses on careers in the tech sector. In a series of interviews with people who work in the Sheffield City Region, we are starting a conversation about different roles, the skills you need or can expect to learn, and everything that is exciting and inspiring about working in tech. 
This episode features Ryan Temple who is Head of Product Development at Tes. Sarah asks him about the main skills and tasks involved in the job, how his career has progressed, which parts of the job he finds challenging and which aspects he enjoys the most, and what it's like working for the company.
Tes has evolved from a printed newspaper supplement to support schools and teachers with their work, into a leading education business and global digital community. In 2018, Tes opened an office in Sheffield and here the evolution continues, with the announcement of a new Engineering Hub in 2021 and the creation of 20 new roles in the city. You can find out more in our company spotlight.
Watch our series of interviews on the Sheffield Digital YouTube channel and subscribe to the channel for new episodes. Find out more about the campaign on our website.
Subscribe to the podcast
If you’d like to have new episodes of the show appear right in your podcast player, you can subscribe via our page on Apple Podcasts and follow the show on Spotify, or search for us in your podcast app of choice!
Notes and links
Ryan was interviewed online by Sarah Lister, Membership Coordinator at Sheffield Digital, on 4th August 2022.
Every episode comes with a list of links to the companies we reference.
TesSheffield DigitalSheffield Digital Insight
Did we miss something you’re looking for? Just get in touch and let us know. 
Join the conversation
We’re really keen to get your feedback on the podcast. You can share your thoughts with us on Twitter or on the channel in the Sheffield Digital Slack community.
Thank you for the music
Thanks to Alex Mclean – aka Yaxu – for the show’s intro music, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Mel follows-up with Dan and Andrew from Airship, delves into some Sheffield history and finds out the highs and lows of reinventing a tech business.
If you listened to Episode 72 of this podcast, you will have heard us chat with two very successful start-ups: Mina and Airship. You will also have discovered that Airship isn’t really a start-up; the company was originally set up in 2003. Since then, it’s grown, shrunk, pivoted and changed from being an agency that “sells hours” to a SaaS technology business.
Mel wanted to find out more – what’s that journey like and what does it take to make the change from being a lifestyle business to a high-growth business with a clear exit strategy? So this is a special follow-up episode, hearing from two of the senior people in the business about their journey.
The guests for this episode are Dan Brookman, CEO, and Andrew Whiteley, Director, from Airship.
As this is a “special” episode, there’s no news or updates, just an in-depth interview. We hope you enjoy it and, if there are other stories you’d like us to explore, please let us know.
Don’t forget, you can always join the Sheffield Digital Slack community or email info@sheffield.digital to get in touch and share your thoughts. 
Subscribe to the show
If you’d like to have new episodes of the show appear right in your podcast player, you can subscribe via our page on Apple Podcasts or search for us in your podcast app of choice!
Notes and links
Every episode comes with a list of links to all of the various people, companies and topics that we reference.
AirshipDan Brookman on LinkedInAndrew Whiteley on LinkedInJoin our Slack community – Sheffield DigitalMeet our members | Sheffield DigitalBecome a member of Sheffield Digital
Did we miss something you’re looking for? Just get in touch and let us know. 
Join the conversation
We’re really keen to get your feedback on the podcast. You can share your thoughts with us on Twitter or on the channel in the Sheffield Digital Slack community.
Thank you for the music
Thanks to Alex Mclean – aka Yaxu – for the show’s intro music, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.