1709546347
40% Better - Engineering Leadership

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Rating
★★★★★
5
from
2 reviews
This podcast has
136 episodes
Language
English
Publisher
Bill
Explicit
No
Date created
2023/09/28
Latest episode
2026/10/23
Average duration
53 min.
Release period
4 days

Description

Every week, we invite 1 expert on employee engagement and deep-dive into unlocking previously unheard of performance levels in teams and leaders. 40 Percent Better https://40pb.com

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Check latest episodes from 40% Better - Engineering Leadership podcast


The Human in the Loop: Leading and Building With AI
2026/10/23
“If you’re already good at what you do, AI is great. If you’re not, don’t expect it to do everything for you.” Bill talks with Kam Low, a self-taught technical founder who left school early, started and exited several startups while traveling the world, and only became a leader when a team of juniors was handed to him. They dig into why you can’t lead people like machines, staying lean with AI, why fully automated engineering raises warning bells, and whether teenagers should still learn to code. Plus: what Claude said when Kam asked what it thought of him. Connect with Kam: https://nitrosend.com Connect with Bill / 40% Better: https://40pb.com
From 45 Days to 20 Minutes: What Happens When You Empower the Front Line with Chad Harris
2026/10/23
Rank and authority aren’t the same as respect, and you don’t need a title to lead. Bill talks with Chad Harris, a software engineering leader from Melbourne, Australia, whose first leadership lessons came from the Australian Air Force Cadets. They dig into leading as an individual contributor, running weekly experiments backed by data, building allies instead of blindsiding people, and getting past imposter syndrome. Plus: how a small team with one rule, “don’t break the law,” cut a 45-day hardship withdrawal process to 20 minutes. Connect with Chad: https://factorhouse.io Connect with Bill: https://40pb.com
You Are Capable of More, with Chris Sund
2026/10/22
Success is what you build; significance is who is better because of you. Bill talks with Chris Sund, a healthcare staffing leader and author of You Are Capable of More. Chris started leading in his early twenties at a restaurant where everyone was older than him.  They dig into why recruiting is a leadership role, how to stand out when hiring is competitive, what really holds people back, and why younger employees asking “why” is a chance to lead better. Plus: the holiday-party thank-you that inspired Chris’s book, and Bill’s four-question script for networking events. Connect with Chris: https://chrissund.com Connect with Bill: https://40pb.com
Success Is a Matter of Time, with Harshit Omar
2026/10/22
You can wait for the waves to stop, or you can just jump in. Bill sits down with Harshit Omar, co-founder and CTO of cloud cloning platform Fluid Cloud. They talked about what the CTO role really demands, why failed startups are stepping stones, and Harshit's belief that success is a matter of time. They dig into how AI shortcuts can wear down engineering skills, why culture is caught rather than taught, and how to run a team as a system. Plus: the vibe-coded login bug that an engineer spent two days on and Harshit found in five minutes. Connect with Harshit: https://fluidcloud.com/ Connect with Bill: https://40pb.com
Why That Coworker Drives You Crazy (It’s Not Them): with Kenny Whitelaw-Jones
2026/10/22
Ever notice that one coworker who drives you crazy? It might have less to do with them than you think. Bill talks with Kenny Whitelaw-Jones, co-founder of infrastructure finance firm Gridlines and now a shadow work therapist, about his upcoming book The Shadow at Work. They explore how the parts of ourselves we hide show up as triggers and projection, why leading a team is its own kind of shadow work, and why psychological safety drives performance. Plus: the workshop exercise that showed Kenny how projection works, and Bill’s two-minute Starbucks recipe for beating social anxiety. Connect with Kenny: https://www.deepprocesstherapy.com/ Connect with Bill: https://40pb.com
Be Uncomfortable Figuring It Out, with Joseph Martin
2026/10/21
What if the standard startup playbook is just a pattern someone else invented? Bill talks with Joseph Martin, a Marine Corps veteran and anti-money laundering expert who founded a regtech company for the gaming industry after finding an $8 billion casino company fighting financial crime on spreadsheets. They dig into learning anything new by being willing to be uncomfortable, why Joseph skipped “start small” and went straight for the biggest operators, smart capital, and why engineers in the AI era need people skills. Plus: how growing up as military kids taught both of them to be comfortable with discomfort. Connect with Joseph: https://www.kinectify.com/ Connect with Bill / 40% Better: https://40pb.com
Be Intentional With Your Words, with Ely Delaney
2026/10/20
Every time you speak, you create an emotional response, so why not do it on purpose? Bill Lennan talks with communication coach and The Follow-Up Code author Ely Delaney, who learned leadership running crews for major-label rock shows. They dig into why intentional communication is the first step of leadership, how recording yourself reveals your real voice, why AI-written content often doesn’t stick, and practical tricks for networking when you’re anxious. Plus: the story behind Ely’s “Meet Cool People” wristbands and why you should wear one on your phone hand. Connect with Ely: https://connectwithely.com Connect with Bill: https://40pb.com
Why Your Beliefs Drive Your Leadership, with Marilyn Rosa-Green
2026/10/19
What if the thing holding you back as a leader isn’t a missing skill, but a belief you can’t see? Bill Lennan talks with leadership coach and licensed professional counselor Marilyn Rosa-Green about identity, burnout, and her Pressure Paradox approach, including the “internal audit” she uses to help clients observe their own behavior without judgment. Bill shares how DBT skills he learned by accident as a teenage athlete became his secret weapon for managing fear and networking at work. Plus: leading across generations, life on the food manufacturing floor, and why behavior is always driven by belief. Connect with Marilyn: marilynrosaconsulting.com (and take her free Pressure Paradox Assessment) Connect with Bill / 40% Better: https://40pb.com
The Art of Technology Leadership I Anand B Narasimhan
2026/09/18
In this episode of the 40 Percent Better podcast, Bill Lennan sits down with Anand B Narasimhan, CTO at S-Docs, to explore technology leadership, communication, servant leadership, and the journey from hands-on engineering to executive leadership. Anand shares how he went from being an individual contributor and programmer to becoming a technology leader, consultant, architect, and CTO. He explains why the ability to translate complex technical ideas into language that executives and non-technical audiences can understand has been one of his most important leadership skills. The conversation covers servant leadership, building trust with engineering teams, effective communication, problem definition, product thinking, execution, and the transition from having great ideas to actually turning those ideas into products and results. Anand also discusses his 15 years at Salesforce, his experience working with Fortune 100 companies, and the lessons he learned while moving from consulting and technology architecture into product and technology leadership. Key topics discussed: * Technology leadership and engineering leadership * Servant leadership * Communicating complex technology to non-technical audiences * Building trust with engineering teams * Leadership lessons from Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar * Problem solving vs. problem definition * Product thinking and execution * Turning ideas into MVPs and minimum lovable products * Building and motivating high-performing teams * Visual communication and presenting technical ideas * Helping engineers become better communicators * Creating safe spaces for teams to practice communication * Career growth from engineer to CTO * Lessons from 15 years at Salesforce * Leadership, technology, and customer impact Whether you're an engineering leader, CTO, technology executive, product leader, software engineer, or someone looking to improve your leadership and communication skills, this episode offers practical insights into becoming a more effective technology leader. Hosted by Bill Lennan. Guest: Anand B Narasimhan CTO, S-Docs Connect with Anand B Narasimhan on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/anandbnarasimhan/ Learn more about Anand B Narasimhan and S-Docs through their LinkedIn profiles. #40PercentBetter #BillLennan #AnandNarasimhan #TechnologyLeadership #CTO #EngineeringLeadership #ServantLeadership #TechLeadership #SoftwareEngineering #ProductLeadership #Leadership #Communication #SDocs #Salesforce #Technology I hope you enjoy this episode! Give it a like, share, and subscribe to not miss the content coming your way weekly. – Bill and the 40 % Better podcast team Connect with Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wblennan/ Visit the 40 Percent Better website here: https://40pb.com/ Listen to 40 % Better on these podcast platforms: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6qkqdMPkR9BqYPM7UPa4P0 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/40%25-better---engineering-leadership/id1709546347 Amazon Podcasts: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/01ad162e-7a33-4df4-8c29-04c4af0405fc/40-better---engineering-leadership #40PercentBetter #BillLennan #Leadership #TeamPerformance #EmployeeEngagement #PsychologicalSafety #BusinessGrowth #Kaizen #EngineeringLeadership #Coaching The 40% Better podcast with Bill Lennan unlocks previously unheard-of performance levels in teams and leaders. Bill Lennan, founder of 40 Percent Better, interviews experts on employee engagement, psychological safety, engineering leadership, and actionable mental models. Learn how to foster high-performing teams, improve team productivity, and achieve sustainable success in business through a focus on human-centered systems. #technologyleadership #productmanagement #engineeringleadership #leadershipdevelopment #careergrowth #podcast
Software Architecture, Optimizing People, and Writing Books
2026/09/17
The world of technology is ever-evolving, and with it comes the need for effective leadership. In this episode we delve into the unexpected journey of leadership within the tech industry, highlighting insights from a recent conversation on the 40% Better Podcast with Lee, a seasoned technology leader. This discussion reveals how leadership often emerges not from a deliberate pursuit but rather through unique experiences and opportunities. f you are curious about Lee's book - The Software Conductor, fine it here: https://thesoftwareconductor.com/?utm_source=40-percent-better&utm_medium=podcast Want to contact Lee Atchison for consulting or services? https://leeatchison.com/?utm_source=40-percent-better&utm_medium=podcast
Cybersecurity, Leadership, and the Power of People I Chase F.
2026/09/16
In this episode of the 40% Better Podcast, Bill Lennan sits down with Chase F., Chairperson of the National Privacy Council, to discuss leadership, cybersecurity, privacy, career growth, failure, and the importance of building strong teams. Chase shares his unique journey from a 20-year career in law enforcement to cybersecurity, IT leadership, teaching, entrepreneurship, and privacy advocacy. He explains how his experience as a detective, undercover officer, dive master, and field training officer shaped his approach to leadership and helped him transition into the technology and cybersecurity space. The conversation explores why cybersecurity is ultimately a people and culture problem, not just a technology problem. Chase explains why organizations need to focus on cybersecurity education for everyone, not just IT teams, and why executive buy-in is critical to building an effective security culture. Bill and Chase also discuss the human side of cybersecurity, incident response, AI adoption, critical thinking, and why organizations should focus on people rather than relying solely on expensive security tools and technology. Chase shares lessons from running multiple companies and ventures, including why leaders need to recognize their own strengths and weaknesses, build teams with complementary skills, and find the right people to help achieve a shared mission. He also discusses the importance of self-awareness and why leaders should avoid trying to imitate someone else's leadership style. The conversation also dives into career advancement, networking, hard work, company culture, and why being known as a reliable and hardworking professional can open doors throughout your career. Chase explains why companies should treat employees with respect and dignity, listen to their people, and create environments where teams are motivated to go the extra mile. Bill and Chase also explore the value of failure and why some of the most important lessons in leadership and life come from mistakes. Chase shares why he believes leadership is a skill that can be learned and developed through dedication, practice, passion, and self-awareness. Topics covered in this episode: * Chase F.'s journey from law enforcement to cybersecurity leadership * Leadership lessons from law enforcement * Cybersecurity and privacy leadership * Building a strong cybersecurity culture * Why cybersecurity is a people problem * The importance of employee cybersecurity training * Executive buy-in and security culture * Cyber crisis response and incident preparedness * AI, critical thinking, and the human factor * Leading multiple companies and ventures * Building teams with complementary strengths * Self-awareness in leadership * Finding your own authentic leadership style * Career advancement and professional growth * Networking and the importance of relationships * Hard work, accountability, and building trust * Company culture and treating employees with respect * Learning from failure * Taking risks and overcoming fear * Why leadership can be learned * Building leadership skills through practice and experience Learn more about leadership, cybersecurity, privacy, AI, technology, and career growth on the 40% Better Podcast. Connect with Chase F. on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chaseprivacy/ #Leadership #Cybersecurity #Privacy #TechnologyLeadership #CybersecurityLeadership #AI #Management #LeadershipDevelopment #CareerGrowth #ChaseF #NationalPrivacyCouncil #40PercentBetter I hope you enjoy this episode! Give it a like, share, and subscribe to not miss the content coming your way weekly. – Bill and the 40 % Better podcast team Connect with Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wblennan/ Visit the 40 Percent Better website here: https://40pb.com/ Listen to 40 % Better on these podcast platforms: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6qkqdMPkR9BqYPM7UPa4P0 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/40%25-better---engineering-leadership/id1709546347 Amazon Podcasts: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/01ad162e-7a33-4df4-8c29-04c4af0405fc/40-better---engineering-leadership #40PercentBetter #BillLennan #Leadership #TeamPerformance #EmployeeEngagement #PsychologicalSafety #BusinessGrowth #Kaizen #EngineeringLeadership #Coaching The 40% Better podcast with Bill Lennan unlocks previously unheard-of performance levels in teams and leaders. Bill Lennan, founder of 40 Percent Better, interviews experts on employee engagement, psychological safety, engineering leadership, and actionable mental models. Learn how to foster high-performing teams, improve team productivity, and achieve sustainable success in business through a focus on human-centered systems. #technologyleadership #productmanagement #engineeringleadership #leadershipdevelopment #careergrowth #podcast
Technology leadership and building better teams I Zach Stein
2026/09/11
In this episode of the 40% Better Podcast, Bill Lennan sits down with Zach Stein, Director of Information Technology at RuffleButts®, to explore his leadership journey, the transition from individual contributor to technology leader, and the lessons he has learned along the way. Zach shares how he grew from being the first developer at a company into a leadership role, building teams and taking on greater responsibility over a decade-long career. He discusses why communication, teamwork, problem-solving, and empathy can matter more than technical skills when hiring and leading software engineers. The conversation also dives into building a blame-free engineering culture, creating psychological safety, practicing reflective listening, leading with gratitude, and developing the self-awareness needed to become a better leader. Zach explains how therapy, reading, and personal growth helped shape his leadership approach and why accountability is essential to building high-performing teams. Bill and Zach also discuss communicating with executives and non-technical stakeholders, connecting technology decisions to business objectives, managing cloud infrastructure, and the challenges of balancing technical leadership with business priorities. For individual contributors considering a move into technology leadership, Zach offers practical advice on demonstrating leadership before receiving the title, taking on increased responsibility, and understanding that leadership means stepping away from the keyboard and empowering others to succeed. Topics covered in this episode: * Zach Stein's leadership journey * Transitioning from developer to engineering manager * Leadership in technology and software engineering * Hiring for communication and team fit * Problem-solving and the XY problem * Building a blame-free engineering culture * Psychological safety in engineering teams * Self-awareness and accountability * Leading with gratitude and reflective listening * Communicating with executives and stakeholders * Connecting technology to business goals * Cloud infrastructure and DevOps * Moving from individual contributor to leader * Why leaders need to empower their teams * Advice for aspiring technology leaders Learn more about leadership, technology management, engineering culture, and personal growth through the 40% Better Podcast. Connect with Zach Stein on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/zach-stein-90654b5/ #Leadership #TechnologyLeadership #EngineeringLeadership #SoftwareEngineering #ITLeadership #Management #TechLeadership #PsychologicalSafety #EngineeringCulture #ZachStein #40PercentBetter I hope you enjoy this episode! Give it a like, share, and subscribe to not miss the content coming your way weekly. – Bill and the 40 % Better podcast team Connect with Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wblennan/ Visit the 40 Percent Better website here: https://40pb.com/ Listen to 40 % Better on these podcast platforms: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6qkqdMPkR9BqYPM7UPa4P0 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/40%25-better---engineering-leadership/id1709546347 Amazon Podcasts: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/01ad162e-7a33-4df4-8c29-04c4af0405fc/40-better---engineering-leadership #40PercentBetter #BillLennan #Leadership #TeamPerformance #EmployeeEngagement #PsychologicalSafety #BusinessGrowth #Kaizen #EngineeringLeadership #Coaching The 40% Better podcast with Bill Lennan unlocks previously unheard-of performance levels in teams and leaders. Bill Lennan, founder of 40 Percent Better, interviews experts on employee engagement, psychological safety, engineering leadership, and actionable mental models. Learn how to foster high-performing teams, improve team productivity, and achieve sustainable success in business through a focus on human-centered systems. #technologyleadership #productmanagement #engineeringleadership #leadershipdevelopment #careergrowth #podcast
The Power of Curiosity in Leadership I Dr. Debra Clary
2026/09/04
In this episode of the 40% Better Podcast, Bill Lennan sits down with Dr. Debra Clary, Founder & Leadership Advisor at The Clary Group, to explore the powerful connection between curiosity, leadership, performance, and personal growth. Dr. Debra Clary shares why curiosity is not simply an innate personality trait, but a skill and mindset that can be encouraged and developed. They discuss how curiosity impacts leadership performance, why organizations often unintentionally discourage curiosity, and how leaders can create a culture where asking questions, exploring ideas, and challenging assumptions are encouraged. The conversation also explores the neuroscience behind curiosity, learning, fear, and dopamine, including why curiosity can help reduce fear and unlock better thinking. Dr. Debra explains practical ways leaders can build curiosity into meetings, encourage teams to ask better questions, and create environments where people feel safe sharing their perspectives. Bill and Dr. Debra also discuss the role of curiosity in education, parenting, conversations, social anxiety, and personal development. Bill shares his own journey of overcoming social anxiety through a structured system of small, repeatable steps and explains how learning to talk with strangers transformed his approach to networking, job interviews, public speaking, and everyday conversations. Whether you're a leader, entrepreneur, manager, educator, or simply someone interested in becoming more curious and confident, this episode offers practical insights into how curiosity can help you learn faster, lead better, and improve performance. In this episode, you'll learn about: * Why curiosity can be learned and developed * The connection between curiosity and leadership performance * How curiosity influences the brain and learning * Why fear and curiosity cannot easily coexist * How leaders can create a culture of curiosity * Practical ways to encourage questions in teams and meetings * Why leaders don't need to have all the answers * How curiosity can improve resilience and problem-solving * The importance of curiosity in children and education * How to encourage better conversations in a screen-driven world * The connection between curiosity and social confidence * How small, repeatable habits can help overcome social anxiety * Why experimentation and failure are essential for innovation * How curiosity can help individuals and organizations perform better About Dr. Debra Clary: Dr. Debra Clary is the Founder & Leadership Advisor at The Clary Group and an expert on curiosity, leadership, and organizational performance. She is also the author of The Curiosity Curve, exploring how curiosity can transform leadership, culture, and performance. About the 40% Better Podcast: The 40% Better Podcast explores leadership, technology, personal growth, performance, and the ideas that help people and organizations become better at what they do. Connect with Dr. Debra Clary on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdebraclary/ #Leadership #Curiosity #LeadershipDevelopment #DrDebraClary #TheClaryGroup #CuriosityCurve #OrganizationalCulture #LeadershipSkills #PersonalDevelopment #40PercentBetter I hope you enjoy this episode! Give it a like, share, and subscribe to not miss the content coming your way weekly. – Bill and the 40 % Better podcast team Connect with Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wblennan/ Visit the 40 Percent Better website here: https://40pb.com/ Listen to 40 % Better on these podcast platforms: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6qkqdMPkR9BqYPM7UPa4P0 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/40%25-better---engineering-leadership/id1709546347 Amazon Podcasts: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/01ad162e-7a33-4df4-8c29-04c4af0405fc/40-better---engineering-leadership #40PercentBetter #BillLennan #Leadership #TeamPerformance #EmployeeEngagement #PsychologicalSafety #BusinessGrowth #Kaizen #EngineeringLeadership #Coaching The 40% Better podcast with Bill Lennan unlocks previously unheard-of performance levels in teams and leaders. Bill Lennan, founder of 40 Percent Better, interviews experts on employee engagement, psychological safety, engineering leadership, and actionable mental models. Learn how to foster high-performing teams, improve team productivity, and achieve sustainable success in business through a focus on human-centered systems. #technologyleadership #productmanagement #engineeringleadership #leadershipdevelopment #careergrowth #podcast
Building Trust and Psychological Safety in Engineering Teams I Brandon Rockhold
2026/09/02
In this episode of the 40% Better podcast, Bill Lennan sits down with Brandon Rockhold, VP Engineering at Aquia, to explore the principles of effective leadership, psychological safety, trust, emotional intelligence, and building high-performing technology teams. Brandon shares his journey from software engineering to leadership and explains how he stepped into management to protect and strengthen a team culture he deeply valued. The conversation explores why low ego and high support environments help teams collaborate, learn, and perform at their best. They also discuss how leaders can build trust by leading by example, creating psychological safety, embracing vulnerability, and recognizing their own emotional reactions before responding. Brandon shares practical insights on handling difficult conversations, staying calm under pressure, developing patience, and creating space between stimulus and response. The episode also dives into the idea of unconscious competencies and how leaders can identify the skills people naturally excel at, break those skills down into teachable parts, and help others develop them. Bill and Brandon discuss curiosity, self-awareness, confidence, continuous learning, servant leadership, and how technology leaders can reduce friction so their teams can do their best work. Key topics covered: * Brandon Rockhold's journey from software engineer to VP Engineering * How to build psychological safety within technology teams * Why low ego and high support create high-performing teams * Building trust through consistent leadership and leading by example * The role of vulnerability in effective leadership * Emotional intelligence and managing reactions under pressure * How to handle heated conversations and difficult situations * The importance of patience, curiosity, and active listening * Understanding unconscious competencies and making skills teachable * Building confidence as a new engineering leader * Creating a culture of continuous learning * Servant leadership and reducing friction for your team * Stoicism and the space between stimulus and response * Self-awareness and identifying where you lack confidence * How leaders can help people unlock their strengths and potential If you are an engineering leader, technology executive, manager, software engineer, or aspiring leader looking to improve your leadership skills, build stronger teams, and create a culture where people feel safe to learn and contribute, this conversation offers practical insights you can apply immediately. Guest: Brandon Rockhold VP Engineering @ Aquia Connect with Brandon Rockhold on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-rockhold/ #Leadership #EngineeringLeadership #TechnologyLeadership #PsychologicalSafety #EmotionalIntelligence #EngineeringManagement #ServantLeadership #LeadershipDevelopment #SoftwareEngineering #HighPerformingTeams I hope you enjoy this episode! Give it a like, share, and subscribe to not miss the content coming your way weekly. – Bill and the 40 % Better podcast team Connect with Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wblennan/ Visit the 40 Percent Better website here: https://40pb.com/ Listen to 40 % Better on these podcast platforms: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6qkqdMPkR9BqYPM7UPa4P0 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/40%25-better---engineering-leadership/id1709546347 Amazon Podcasts: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/01ad162e-7a33-4df4-8c29-04c4af0405fc/40-better---engineering-leadership #40PercentBetter #BillLennan #Leadership #TeamPerformance #EmployeeEngagement #PsychologicalSafety #BusinessGrowth #Kaizen #EngineeringLeadership #Coaching The 40% Better podcast with Bill Lennan unlocks previously unheard-of performance levels in teams and leaders. Bill Lennan, founder of 40 Percent Better, interviews experts on employee engagement, psychological safety, engineering leadership, and actionable mental models. Learn how to foster high-performing teams, improve team productivity, and achieve sustainable success in business through a focus on human-centered systems. #technologyleadership #productmanagement #engineeringleadership #leadershipdevelopment #careergrowth #podcast
Leadership Without Authority I Kevin Dias
2026/08/31
In this episode of the 40% Better Podcast, Bill Lennan sits down with Kevin Dias, Founder of Ambiki, to explore leadership, remote teams, customer-driven product development, and the unexpected paths that lead to leadership in technology. Kevin shares how his leadership journey began by starting a college ski team and how that early experience shaped his approach to solving problems, building relationships, and taking initiative without waiting for authority or permission. The conversation covers practical leadership lessons, including why leadership is about trust and relationships, how to make better decisions, the importance of Nemawashi, and why great leaders don't always need to have all the answers. Kevin also discusses leading a 100% remote and distributed team, managing communication across time zones, building psychological safety, and using async communication effectively. He explains how his team uses video in GitHub pull requests to improve communication and even catch bugs before they reach production. A major focus of the conversation is the importance of listening to customers. Kevin shares how Coffee with Kevin helped his development team work directly with speech-language pathologists and how staying close to customers shaped Ambiki's product development. He also explains why teams should understand the problem behind a customer request instead of immediately building the requested solution. Bill and Kevin also explore the value of human customer support, why companies should not rush to replace customer service with chatbots, and how exceptional customer experiences can create loyal customers and long-term business value. Topics covered in this episode: * Leadership in technology * Kevin Dias' leadership journey * Building leadership skills through problem solving * Leading without formal authority * Trust and relationships in leadership * One-way and two-way door decisions * Nemawashi and building team buy-in * The importance of internal networking * Helping teams solve problems without giving all the answers * Building ownership within engineering teams * Managing 100% remote and distributed teams * Async communication and time zone management * Psychological safety in remote teams * Over-communicating in distributed teams * Video pull requests and better developer communication * Software quality and QA * AI and the future of software development * Voice of the customer * Customer-driven product development * Talking directly to customers * Human customer support vs AI chatbots * Building customer loyalty * Exceptional customer experience * Leadership lessons for technology teams Kevin Dias is the Founder of Ambiki, a platform built to help speech therapy private practices manage their business, documentation, billing, scheduling, and more. Connect with Kevin Dias on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-dias-ambiki/ Subscribe to the 40% Better Podcast for more conversations about leadership, technology, engineering, team building, and the practical lessons that help leaders become 40% better. #Leadership #TechnologyLeadership #KevinDias #Ambiki #EngineeringLeadership #RemoteTeams #CustomerExperience #ProductDevelopment #TechLeadership #LeadershipLessons I hope you enjoy this episode! Give it a like, share, and subscribe to not miss the content coming your way weekly. – Bill and the 40 % Better podcast team Connect with Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wblennan/ Visit the 40 Percent Better website here: https://40pb.com/ Listen to 40 % Better on these podcast platforms: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6qkqdMPkR9BqYPM7UPa4P0 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/40%25-better---engineering-leadership/id1709546347 Amazon Podcasts: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/01ad162e-7a33-4df4-8c29-04c4af0405fc/40-better---engineering-leadership #40PercentBetter #BillLennan #Leadership #TeamPerformance #EmployeeEngagement #PsychologicalSafety #BusinessGrowth #Kaizen #EngineeringLeadership #Coaching The 40% Better podcast with Bill Lennan unlocks previously unheard-of performance levels in teams and leaders. Bill Lennan, founder of 40 Percent Better, interviews experts on employee engagement, psychological safety, engineering leadership, and actionable mental models. Learn how to foster high-performing teams, improve team productivity, and achieve sustainable success in business through a focus on human-centered systems. #technologyleadership #productmanagement #engineeringleadership #leadershipdevelopment #careergrowth #podcast

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