Build Better Tech: How the nation’s leading companies use tech as business strategy to win.

Colleen Reidelbach
  • 5.0 (18)
  • Technology

Build Better Tech brings you into the room with technology leaders at influential companies, talking about how to do hard work really well. We'll have upbeat conversations about how they've leveraged excellent tech as business strategy to craft their companies' futures, and we'll share both war stories and proudest moments, all with an eye towards doing great work and building great teams.This show is for everyone seeking to build better in their own work world, regardless of technological expertise, interested in hearing from the top leaders at companies they love.

Episodes

  1. 05/10/2022

    Airbnb CSO & Head of Trust Engineering & Data Science Vijaya Kaza: "There are no failures in life, only opportunities and experiences to learn from."

    Vijaya Kaza is the Chief Security Officer and Head of Engineering & Data Science for Trust & Safety at Airbnb. She has an extraordinary record of technology leadership in building teams, guiding product development, and driving innovation in the field of security, machine learning, and AI.  Her personal framework for scaling companies which she shares in our discussion comes from her years of experience doing exactly that at some of the biggest tech companies in the world. Make sure to follow Vijaya on LinkedIn to keep up with her insights.  I also want to highlight the inspiring account she shares of how Airbnb and many of its users have rallied to support the Ukrainian people during the terrible conflict in Ukraine. Prior to 2022, Airbnb had already helped match over 100,000 people in crisis with housing and other types of support, and the work carries forward with massive contributions and housing programs to support affected Ukrainians. Learn more at airbnb.org.

  2. 04/05/2022

    Lexmark Global CTO & CIO Vishal Gupta: “Ask: Is this critical or good-to-have?”

    Vishal Gupta is the Global CIO and CTO, and SVP of Connected Technology at Lexmark, a brand you’ve likely encountered through their printing products. Our conversation opened my eyes to the wide range of applications for the technologies Lexmark has developed: IOT, predictive data analytics, gaming, and curling irons. Vishal's leadership in the innovation, development, and commercialization of those technologies has no doubt been key to their success.  He shared stories and great advice as we recorded remotely in January 2022.  Thanks once again to Vishal and the Lexmark team members who helped coordinate our discussion. Vishal is a prolific member of the Forbes Technology Council and the Wall Street Journal CIO Council, so be sure to follow his work there and on LinkedIn.  For more from Build Better Tech including episode news and behind the scenes content, follow on Twitter, LinkedIn, and our fledgling Instagram account @buildbettertech. I’d also love a five star review on your favorite podcast platform!

  3. 03/09/2022

    State Farm Chief Data Officer DeWayne Griffin: "Data is a team sport."

    Today we hear from DeWayne Griffin, Chief Data Officer at State Farm. In the insurance industry, data is critical both to optimization of the business and to delivering a personalized customer experience, and the insight, expertise, and vision Dewayne brings to his role make it easy to understand why he was the right man for the job technically. His leadership philosophy and warmth make it clear why he excels in his executive and people management responsibilities. We met at the State Farm campus in Atlanta in January 2022. Thanks once again to DeWayne and the State Farm team members who helped coordinate our discussion. Make sure to follow DeWayne on LinkedIn for more of his insight. And while you’re making the rounds on your social platforms, give @BuildBetterTech a follow on Twitter, LinkedIn, and our fledgling Instagram account for episode news and the occasional behind the scenes snapshot. I’d also love a five star review on your favorite podcast platform! As always feel free to reach out with feedback at buildbettertechpodcast@gmail.com, or connect with me directly on LinkedIn. Thanks for tuning in!

  4. 02/02/2022

    Home Depot VP Justin Burleigh: “Play Chess, Not Checkers”

    Justin Burleigh is the Vice President of E-Commerce and Interconnected Experience at Home Depot. He is the archetype of a great product person: laser-focused on empathy for the user, and visionary in solving problems without an attachment to the solutions themselves. His team builds the innovative products that help Home Depot’s customers and pros fuel their DIY needs, and it was fascinating to get insight into this household as a technology company. He also made me aware of the Home De...

  5. 10/26/2021

    Zoom CTO Brendan Ittelson

    Brendan Ittelson loves solving problems for people and enabling them to accomplish their goals. He loved it even as a kid when he was tapped to troubleshoot tech issues around his school so often that he started a “Tech Squad”, and it seems to me that he loves it more than ever now, as he serves as the CTO of Zoom. He took the helm in the early days of the pandemic, thereby stepping into a role important to all of us who have relied on Zoom to stay connected in trying times. It was a great pl...

  6. 08/18/2021 ·  Bonus

    Dr. Luc Julia: Creator of Siri, CSO of Renault, Former CTO of Samsung, Inventor

    Dr. Julia is one of the most accomplished technologists I'll ever be lucky enough to meet. He is well known as the creator of Siri, but he has driven innovation in some of the biggest companies on the planet, making contributions so significant that he was awarded the Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur (the highest French order of merit) by his country of origin. We cover tech culture in France vs. Silicon Valley, the necessity of listening to the weird guys, using discomfort to spark in...

  7. 02/01/2020

    Imperfect Foods CEO Philip Behn

    Imperfect Foods delivers fresh, delicious produce and other groceries to your door for up to 30% less than what those same groceries would cost you at a traditional store. They do it by recovering apples that are too giant, carrots that are too twisty, lentils from a surplus harvest, or olive oil with out-of-style packaging — in other words, food that would otherwise to go waste.   Philip Behn joined Imperfect Foods as CEO last year, and is carrying forward their mission to reduce food waste and deliver great value to each customer they serve. He brings a long career in food retail, along with a personal passion for serving customers.   Press play on this episode, and then go find and follow them on social media immediately — you’ll be glad you did. In addition to their excellent mission and product, their brand is exceedingly charming.   Topics by time stamp:   0:40 — Philip’s background, and what he brings to his role at Imperfect Foods. What are some practices he uses to keep his teams focused on the customer? (Including examples!)  6:30 — An agile, experimental approach within large companies: Some examples from Philip’s Walmart and consulting experience.   10:48 — What’s a digital factory? Philip and his team do what had possibly never been done before in any major retailer, and it changes culture.   16:07 — Philip previews a potential TED talk on the future of food retail, and why now is the perfect time for Imperfect Foods.   21:47 — How does a mission-driven company like Imperfect Foods keep an eye on the risk of doing more harm than good?   24:56 — Imperfect does supply chain differently: ugly foods literally don’t fit in at supermarkets.   28:30 — Traditional grocery stores: who designed the self-service grocery experience and why? Plus, the ways in which big retailers have mastered tech, and the ways in which they can’t compete.   34:00 — How Imperfect Foods customizes your shopping cart for you, and balances staples with new foods.   38:15 — Imperfect Foods as a Silicon Valley startup: What’s typical and what’s unique 41:20 — Once just produce, now many other groceries: What was 2019 about, and where is Imperfect Foods headed next?

  8. 02/01/2020

    Vitamin Shoppe CTO/COO Andrew Laudato

    Andy Laudato has an incomparable level of experience in retail tech. In addition to developing groundbreaking customer-facing tech, he has the superpower of being able to understand the overall business and design solutions to optimize for it.   He’s a business leader first, and a technologist second. Accordingly, he has recently stepped from the role of Chief Technology Officer into Chief Operating Officer at Vitamin Shoppe.   Topics by time stamp:   0:45 — Andy and technology at Pier One: Where they started, and how did he lead the tech team to have a greater impact (apparently winning Halloween is a good start!)  8:04 — Leadership as a CIO: What’s at the heart of it, and what’s unique about leading in tech as opposed to other areas?   10:25 — For developers: how do I know if I should stay a developer and pursue growth as an expert, or pursue growth as a manager and move up that way?   14:40 — Advice for non-technical people working with development teams  17:32 — What makes the best teams?   21:15 — 4000 years of retail, in 2 minutes or less. As a tech leader, who is Andy’s customer and what makes them brag about his team? Plus, Andy ribs Colleen about still writing checks.   28:35 — Andy’s prediction of what retail tech will be in 2050 (think Minority Report, but in a good way?)   38:35 — What’s 2020 about for the Vitamin Shoppe? Plus, Andy talks about reducing online order time to reach the store from 45 minutes to a matter of seconds.   43:39 — Great advice for both tech and business-oriented people early in their career  46:10 — What does the Vitamin Shoppe do better than anyone else in the world, and what does that mean for its tech?

  9. 02/01/2020

    Former Dave Ramsey Head of Digital Products Jon Shearer

    Jon Shearer served as head of digital products at Dave Ramsey, creator of Financial Peace University and numerous other products designed to teach healthy personal financial practices and get out of debt. This was during Ramsey’s migration as a company from a content producer and radio show, to a digital-first brand that can meet people where they are and support them practically. Jon talks about the highs and lows of leading a digital transformation, and how great technology had imme...

  10. 01/31/2020

    Lonely Planet CEO Luis Cabrera

    Lonely Planet is an iconic brand within the travel industry, with their blue travel guidebooks serving as a staple in adventurers' backpacks for decades. So how does a company with that history to connect with a digital-first generation? CEO Luis Cabrera discusses leading the company in building awesome products that travelers love, and that provide the same level of local expertise on any travel destination you care to visit, with a more diversified editorial perspective. Follow Lonely Planet on Instagram, and learn more about the Pathfinders program at pathfinders.lonelyplanet.com/  0:00 — Intro and Luis' professional story (including what working in Web 1.0 was like and how he got big corporations to start to think digitally) 4:45 — Technology-first vs. user-first mindsets: How to flip the process from, how can I implement a cool feature, to how can I solve a problem for my user and give them an experience that they love? Including real-life example in flashmob ecommerce UX research.  14:10 — User-first, innovative processes in large corps, aka, how to get your boss or client to take a risk… and when maybe you shouldn’t? 18:45 — Luis joining Lonely Planet: What he fell in love with (spoiler alert: it’s the power of the brand), and how he’s tackling transformation.  29:28 — Pathfinders program: Lonely Planet taps into social media and influencers to modernize and broaden content available to users. Here’s some of the story behind it.  38:40 — What’s the moonshot: What can Lonely Planet be in Luis’ wildest imagination?

  11. Trailer

    Build Better Tech Trailer - Season 1 Coming January 2020

    Launching January 2020, Build Better Tech brings you into the room with technology leaders at influential companies, talking about how to do hard work really well. We'll have upbeat conversations about how they've leveraged excellent tech as business strategy to craft their companies' futures, and we'll share both war stories and proudest moments, all with an eye towards doing great work and building great teams. This show is for everyone seeking to build better in their own work world, rega...

Trailer

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About

Build Better Tech brings you into the room with technology leaders at influential companies, talking about how to do hard work really well. We'll have upbeat conversations about how they've leveraged excellent tech as business strategy to craft their companies' futures, and we'll share both war stories and proudest moments, all with an eye towards doing great work and building great teams.This show is for everyone seeking to build better in their own work world, regardless of technological expertise, interested in hearing from the top leaders at companies they love.

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