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On the podcast today we have Alexander Gilmanov, and he's sharing his story of transitioning from freelancer to agency manager, now overseeing a team of 43. With a focus on WordPress ecosystem, Alexander discusses his leadership approach, avoiding negative motivation and instead fostering a culture of trust and positive reinforcement. He elaborates on the nuances of team management and the benefits of smaller, independent teams coordinated across departments like development, marketing, and support. Key tools like Google Suite, Slack, Jira, and Notion are integral to his operations. His story highlights the importance of community engagement, learning from industry leaders, and the necessity of continuously seeking suitable team members for sustainable management.

On the podcast today we have Alexander Gilmanov. Alex comes to us today from Belgrade, Serbia. He’s a full-stack developer with a rich heritage of freelance and agency work. His company officially launched in 2014, and they’ve continued work with clients, as well as creating a range of WordPress plugins, and their own SaaS apps, mainly in the online booking space. If you’re a developer and are in the weeds of writing code, perhaps you’ve thought about a change of direction. We explore Alexander’s transition from hands-on coding to strategic management. It’s a fascinating conversation, and if you’ve wanted to start an agency but have concerns about what that might bring, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Paolo Belcastro.

Paolo works at Automattic, where he’s focused on Jetpack and .blog products. He’s been working remotely since 1994 and managing distributed teams since 1998.

He’s on the podcast today to talk about AI, and he certainly brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in integrating AI with web development.

With Paolo’s insights into the recent advancements in open source AI models and the collaborative efforts within the AI community to keep platforms accessible but innovative, you’ll gain a comprehensive view of where AI in web development stands today and where it might head tomorrow.

If you're a developer, a tech enthusiast, or anyone interested in the intersection of AI and creative processes, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Nahuai Badiola. Nahuai is a freelance WordPress developer, theme, and plugin creator. He also writes WordPress code tutorials and enjoys sharing everything he learns about web sustainability in his blog, podcast, and at WordPress events. Nahuai’s life took an unexpected turn one day when he attended a 10-minute lightning talk at a WordCamp. The content of that talk was web sustainability and it profoundly changed his perspective on how we should view our use of the internet. Nahuai has since been a vocal advocate for sustainability within the WordPress community. Today, Nahuai and I discuss the nuances of the environmental impact of web development with a particular focus on WordPress. We discuss ideas like reducing code in plugins, and highlight the Performance Team's efforts to make WordPress more green. If you're curious about sustainability within WordPress web development, and the community more broadly, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Maestro Stevens. Maestro is an international speaker and managing director of The Iconic Expressions. His areas of expertise include digital marketing, brand strategy, web development, and project leadership. In this episode Maestro lays out the case for how inclusivity is not just something that we need to be concerned about at things like events, but also in our WordPress website designs. If you're curious about the intersection of creativity, representation, and the WordPress ecosystem, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Jonathan Desrosier. Jonathan has been a contributor to WordPress Core for many years, and a WordPress Core committer since 2018. Jonathan currently works as a Senior Software Engineer at Bluehost, where he is sponsored full-time to contribute to WordPress Core through the Five for the Future program. We talk about the challenges that come with contributing to such a large and multi-faceted project, from the intricate process of decision-making, involving many stakeholders, to the occasional moments of feeling demoralised when contributions seem like a drop in the ocean. We discuss the importance of regular contributions, and about the sustainability of the open-source ecosystem, emphasising the critical role businesses need to play, and the potential risks when key contributors step back. If you’re curious about how you can contribute, what that looks likes, and where it can take you, this episode is for you.