Conversations with Winsala

The Oluwaseun Winsala Network (T.O.W.N)

Welcome to my podcast. These are laid back conversations with my friends and I. This season is us talking about creating products in tech. I speak with every guest about their journeys so far and their impartations on the creation processes.

  1. Transitioning Into Tech From An Unrelated Field ft Caroline Umukobwa

    23/01/2025

    Transitioning Into Tech From An Unrelated Field ft Caroline Umukobwa

    I'm back with another episode, and this time my guest is Caroline Umukobwa. Caroline is a passionate and experienced project and product manager with over seven years of experience leading cross-functional teams to bring ideas to life. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering with a minor in Mathematics from Seattle University. She began her career in consulting, transitioned to government project management, and eventually found her stride in the tech industry. She excels at bringing diverse talents together, meticulously planning, and executing projects to deliver impactful solutions. Beyond her professional achievements, Caroline has ventured into social impact by launching a startup aimed at reducing youth unemployment in Africa, blending her passion for innovation with a commitment to making a difference. Caroline began her career as a civil engineer, but eventually transitioned to a role as a tech product manager. In this episode, she shares her journey and offers insights on what it takes to be successful in this role. She also reflects on the privilege of having educated parents and how that influenced her career choices. In our usual fashion, we discuss questions that, when answered by a prospective candidate interested in product management, will demonstrate their proficiency in the field. At the end of the episode, Caroline describes what she does for a living to a seven-year-old. She says that she's a product manager, and that she helps people make decisions about what to build. You can connect with her on LinkedIn through Caroline Umukobwa

    53 min
  2. 29/05/2023

    The Sales of Tech Products ft Funmi Omoliki

    On today's episode, our guest is Funmi Omoliki, a Data and AI specialist at Microsoft with over 10 years experience working at software and hardware technology companies. She started her career as an electrical electronics engineer working at Nokia and Ericsson. She then ventured into product management and analytics at Ntel before she moved to the U.S. to complete her MBA at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School. Over the last four years, she has honed her expertise in tech product sales, implementing Cloud and AI solutions for enterprise customers. In this episode, she shares her experience in selling tech products to prospective buyers and maintaining relationships with customers.  The following are the highlights of this episode: Brief introduction about herself in her current role. (01:22) Why she started a career in engineering and tech and motivation for getting an MBA. (02:34) Navigating the sales space with an engineering background. (09:22) The importance of sales in the tech product creation process. (15:07) A typical day in her life (18:25) Convincing prospective and current customers about one's product compared to competitors (23:00). Building strong relationships with customers using people skills. (27:50) Considerations in sourcing a person to head the sales business unit in a tech company. (29:38) Responsible tech through the lens of a black woman in tech and how it affects sales. (32:04) Explanation of sales in tech to a 7 year old. (42:48) Keep up with Funmi LinkedIn Funmi Omoliki Follow this podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Tunein

    46 min
  3. Cloud and Systems Support Engineering ft Dairo Ghalib

    05/04/2023

    Cloud and Systems Support Engineering ft Dairo Ghalib

    Dairo Ghalib is a seasoned cloud engineer who started as an infrastructure engineer with Stanbic IBTC, a national bank in Nigeria. He studied Computer Engineering at the University of Lagos and has his masters degree in Commerce, Information Systems and Technology (from where). He discovered the world of cloud engineering during his masters degree program and hasn't looked back since then. He has worked in Cloud Engineering for over 4 years now, and currently works with Daemon as a Cloud/DevOps engineer. From his wealth of experience, he shares the importance of cloud engineering and how it contributes to running tech products smoothly. If you're even vaguely interested in Cloud, this episode is for you. Highlights of this episode: How he became interested in Cloud and support engineering (03:56) The contribution of cloud to the creation of tech products (06:50) Explanation of what cloud engineering is (not so lay man terms) (09:37) A typical day as a cloud engineer (11:52) The role of support engineers (15:22) Resolving conflicts as a support engineer (18:53) Day-to-day tools need to function in this role (21:20) Answers that will convince a recruiter that one is proficient in cloud and support engineering (24:22) Explaining what cloud and support engineering is to a 7 year old (29:25) Corporate culture in South Africa (31:09) Keep up with Ghalib LinkedIn Ghalib Dairo Follow this podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Tunein

    37 min

About

Welcome to my podcast. These are laid back conversations with my friends and I. This season is us talking about creating products in tech. I speak with every guest about their journeys so far and their impartations on the creation processes.