The Engineering Leadership Podcast

Redefining profit, centering human flourishing, and building an incorruptible mission-driven roadmap w/ Eric Ries #260 26.05.2026 41min

In this episode, we’re joined by Eric Ries, creator of The Lean Startup, to discuss insights from his latest book, Incorruptible: Why Good Companies Go Bad… and How Great Companies Stay Great. Eric shares what inspired him to write the book and why we need to move beyond and redefine what true profit looks like. He shares the history behind businesses transitioning from serving public interests to shareholder primacy and why leaving behind a people-first business approach can actually reduce profitability. Additionally, Eric discusses financial gravity, the “harder is easier” principle, and how these practices connect to AI & current engineering leadership challenges.

Affirm’s AI-native transformation & how it’s driving operational excellence w/ Geddes Munson #259 19.05.2026 45min

In this episode, Geddes Munson (SVP of Engineering @ Affirm) joins us to discuss operational / engineering excellence, scaling, and AI-native transformation! We explore Affirm’s approach to operational and engineering excellence and how a 2024 outage became a turning point in refining that focus. We deconstruct “AI retooling week”, the internal tools it inspired (including an incident tracing system), how the AI-native transition is impacting operational / engineering excellence, and how to connect these projects to business goals. Plus, we take a look at their early work building in agentic commerce, infrastructure decisions they made years ago setting them up for success now, how they’re thinking about designing for agent-first experiences.

Building reliable and proactive agentic systems at scale: how Shopify’s reflexive AI culture was instrumental in their development of Sidekick w/ Andrew McNamara #258 12.05.2026 37min

Andrew McNamara, Director of Applied Machine Learning @ Shopify, joins the ELC podcast to share insights on building agentic platforms at scale, like Sidekick, that must keep reliability for its users at the forefront. Andrew describes the building philosophy behind Shopify and what it means to cultivate a culture of prototype-first while prioritizing hiring early-stage talent. We cover Sidekick’s development journey and how user feedback impacted its product vision, why evaluation is so important for determining ground truth sets, and the benefit of user-driven use cases. Andrew also dissects how they went about making product design decisions, such as building proactive agents and identifying subagent specializations.

How the R&D Org at Twilio Drives Business Strategy and Transformation w/ Inbal Shani #257 05.05.2026 47min

Inbal Shani (CPO and Head of R&D @ Twilio) deconstructs the transformation of the R&D org at Twilio! We explore the shift from a GM-led model to a unified platform strategy and “why structure must always follow strategy.” Inbal shares her framework for moving from output-focused metrics to input goals, prioritizing “time-to-value,” and the nuances of measuring AI products. We discuss using "R&D roadshows" as a strategic company transformation tool and why engineering leaders must master product positioning. We also dive into mental models for future-proofing your business, from "working backwards" to solve customer problems, to embedding systems thinking into the DNA of your engineering team, and critical questions to identify and optimize decisions around your company’s moat.

Scaling TensorFlow, Navigating Startup Pivots, ML Edge Infrastructure and AI Inference Strategy w/ Rajat Monga #256 28.04.2026 40min

Rajat Monga, CVP AI Frameworks @ Microsoft, joins the podcast to discuss his leadership and founder journey, from Google Brain / Tensorflow to [inference.io](http://inference.io/) and back to Microsoft. He dissects what it means to refound vs. start from scratch, the value of the open source community, and strategies for discovering what problem to solve when going the startup route. We also cover how to determine your users’ hidden incentives and what that means for both product development & marketing, along with navigating the balance between a product’s usefulness and consumers’ willingness to pay for it. Additionally, Rajat shares about what he’s currently up to at Microsoft and the emerging ML / AI technologies he’s most excited about.

How Enterprises Actually Win with AI: Operationalizing Responsible AI, Engineering Guardrails, Trust Controls, and Systems Thinking at Scale w/ Murali Swaminathan #255 21.04.2026 44min

Enterprise customers demand 99.9% availability, regardless of how the underlying software is built. In this episode, Murali Swaminathan (CTO @ Freshworks) discusses how enterprises actually win with AI! We explore the “Architecture of Predictability” – proactive architectural safeguards to scale “responsible AI by design” across a global organization serving 75,000 customers. Murali shares his leadership playbook for implementing the technical safeguards and product trust controls that empower hundreds of engineers to build safely. We also dive into the shift from deterministic flowcharts to “workflows with a brain” and why backend systems engineers are the secret bedrock of agentic products. Plus, Murali deconstructs the dual evolution required of modern leaders: mastering strategic thinking at the business level while cultivating systems thinking at the engineering level.

Shifting Eng Leaders to Think Like GMs, Building an AI-Driven Visionary Roadmap & Braze’s Product Health Initiative w/ Jon Hyman #254 07.04.2026 48min

Jon Hyman (CTO & Co-Founder @ Braze) returns to the podcast to share how he balances a mature, public-company roadmap with visionary AI innovation! We deconstruct Braze’s quantitative "Product Health" framework - a scoring system used to resolve competing prioritizations and mandate technical remediation. We also discuss shifting engineering leaders to think like GMs, how to realign teams by connecting abstract “vision” to specific releases, goals & outcomes. Plus, Jon’s three-tier mental model for AI products, how to identify AI features that actually drive revenue, and reimaging your product for future channels, teams and skills.

Leading effectively across company archetypes: product, business and design-led leadership w/ Sebastiano Armeli #253 31.03.2026 39min

We discuss what effective leadership looks like across three organizational archetypes: product-led, business-led, and design-led companies with Sebastiano Armeli (Engineering Leadership @ Meta). Drawing from his leadership journey at places like Meta, Spotify, Snap, and PayPal, Sebastiano deconstructs the situational leadership frameworks required to thrive in different environments. Plus we discuss how AI is moving managers from implementation to architecture, why the next bottleneck is managing the overhead of high-velocity experimentation, and the future of team topology where AI enables a single leader to oversee high-scale teams of 30–50 people. Whether you are scaling a design-driven startup or navigating a complex business-led enterprise, this conversation provides a framework for aligning your leadership style with your organization's core incentives.

Changes in engineering management craft, career growth and all hands demos for inspiration and context w/ Lindsey Simon #252 24.03.2026 45min

Live from the Vercel recording studio, Lindsey Simon (VP Engineering @ Vercel) joins us to deconstruct the evolution of management craft and career growth strategies! We dissect the practice of live all-hands demos as a tool for context, accountability and inspiration. Plus, Lindsey’s "vote with your wallet" framework for career strategy, how Lindsey’s open source project inspired him to apply to Vercel, and why the most effective VPs are building hobby projects to maintain AI competency and empathy for non-technical users.

Career growth for engineering leaders in the AI era: Building your thesis, the “running framework” & developing technical depth w/ Chris Chiu #251 19.03.2026 43min

Career progression is rarely a straight line. More often, it only makes sense in hindsight. Chris Chiu (VP of Engineering, Agentforce @ Salesforce) joins us to deconstruct how to navigate these non-linear career paths! We talk about identifying the mismatch in your current role, building a personal "career thesis," how to engineer a productive exploration phase and leverage your relationships / VC networks to understand the market. Plus, how to apply the "Running Framework" to ensure success in your next role and why technical depth is no longer optional for modern engineering leaders.

How OpenAI’s engineering org is reshaping teams, roles and workflows w/ Sulman Choudhry #250 10.03.2026 43min

In this episode, recorded live at the OpenAI studio, Sulman Choudhry (Head of ChatGPT @ OpenAI) pulls back the curtain on how they structure engineering teams! We talk about shifting from silos to fluid mission-driven teams, vertical vs. horizontal teams, maximizing cross-functional collaboration between research, engineering, product and design. Plus we cover “directly responsible individuals” for high accountability, managers as systems designers, scaling decision-making to prevent leadership from becoming bottlenecks, frameworks for mentoring junior engineers, why “problem framing” is the most critical skill, and how managers can stay close to problems and maintain technical intuition.

The innovation engine behind Samsara driving real-world impact: compounding feedback loops, data flywheels and embedding engineers in customer problems w/ Kiren Sekar #249 17.02.2026 43min

Kiren Sekar (CPO @ Samsara) joins us to deconstruct the "Innovation Engine" behind Samsara, and how this system drives real-world impact and ROI across their products. We explore Samsara’s decade-long compound product strategy and the mechanics of accelerating feedback loops in an era where the primary bottlenecks shift from code generation to customer feedback and absorption of change. Kiren details how their data flywheel expands the aperture of what is possible to build and we dive into the system of customer-driven innovation: advisory boards, “spark sessions” to test hypotheses and gain unfiltered feedback. Plus we talk about the power of embedding engineers in frontline environments (from truckyards to construction sites) to cultivate “taste,” customer empathy and trigger non-linear ideas.

Why founders should invest in coaching, communication & leadership mechanisms before you scale w/ James Birchler #248 10.02.2026 50min

Founders often delay leadership coaching until a major crisis hits, leading to significant costs in productivity, team churn, and poor decisions. In this episode, James Birchler (Technical Advisor & Executive Leadership Coach) argues that early coaching is a game-changer for a startup's success. We explore the hidden costs of waiting and the benefits of intentionally installing leadership and communication systems before you scale. James shares specific self-awareness mechanisms, like advisory groups and feedback loops, to help founders design their day and create accountability. You'll also learn practical strategies like the "5-Minute Alignment Loop" for spotting communication breakdowns & for reinforcing clarity. Plus insights on how to "install your leadership OS" so it can scale with your company.

Cultivating product thinking, cross-functional leadership & the future of AI agent infrastructure w/ Jaikumar Ganesh #247 05.02.2026 49min

In our latest ELC episode, we are addressing some of the biggest challenges facing engineers today: identifying your scaling thesis, putting that thesis into practice, and addressing implementation challenges. Jaikumar Ganesh, Head of Engineering @ Anyscale, shares insights from his experience working at top tech companies like Android and Uber, and how to apply those lessons within your own orgs. We also cover strategies for identifying what to build, using data effectively when it comes to understanding AI agents, and keeping your intent (and customer success) top of mind. Additionally, Jaikumar discusses his experience as a GM and why all orgs should adopt cross-functional skillsets as part of their company culture.

Scaling from point solutions to a unified, AI-powered product ecosystem w/ Vineeta Puranik #246 27.01.2026 36min

How do you transform a collection of individual tools into a cohesive, AI-powered symphony? Vineeta Puranik (CPTO @ SmartBear) dissects the strategy behind evolving a product vision from point solutions to a unified multi-product ecosystem. We explore the critical architectural distinction between "AI bolt-on" and "AI native" strategies, frameworks for seamless M&A integration, and how to design for varying levels of customer AI readiness. Vineeta also discusses the shift to test “does it match intent”, using “jobs to be done” to drive solving entire workflows not just tool capabilities, and designing user experiences for both human personas and AI agents.

From localized to systematic speed: How Spotify deploys AI in prototyping, strategy & maintenance w/ Tyson Singer #245 21.01.2026 44min

Tyson Singer (Head of Tech & Platforms @ Spotify) joins us to unpack how Spotify is transforming its product development lifecycle across creation, experimentation and maintenance to shift from "localized speed" to "systematic speed." We explore why the industry’s current obsession with the "Build It" phase of development is shortsighted, and how Spotify is aggressively deploying AI in the "Think It" (prototyping/strategy) and "Maintain It" (fleet management) phases. Tyson also details the internal tools driving this shift, including AiKA and Honk, and shares why the future of engineering relies on moving from I-shaped specialists to T-shaped generalists.

Inside ELC’s 1st Hackathon: Deconstructing the operational playbook, implementation lessons & future of the program w/ James Tyack #244 13.01.2026 32min

It started with a simple idea from James Tyack: “What if we hosted a hackathon at ELC Annual?” The result was a unique experiment where 14 senior engineering leaders stepped away from strategy to build and ship functioning apps in one weekend, unlocking new insights on AI-native workflows, "vibe coding," and the future of engineering. In this episode, we deconstruct the entire hackathon operational playbook, sharing lessons on everything from “best failure awards” and async collaboration structures to structuring ideation periods for maximum business alignment. Beyond the logistics, we explore how getting hands-on helped these leaders overcome imposter syndrome and why "rolling up your sleeves" is now a prerequisite for leading effective engineering teams. Plus, James shares how he plans to evolve the hackathon format at ELC and beyond. If you’ve been curious about leveraging hackathons to drive innovation, expose your team to new tools, or evolve how your org builds, this episode provides the blueprint for successful implementation.

What is leadership in the AI Era? w/ Bill Coughran & Bret Reckard #243 06.01.2026 20min

This is a special episode, highlighting a session from ELC Annual 2025! Bill Coughran (Partner @ Sequoia Capital & former SVP of Engineering @ Google) and Bret Reckard (Talent Partner @ The General Partnership) deconstruct the evolving role of engineering leadership in an era dominated by AI hype. Bill is a legendary leader who joined Google right after the .com bubble and has seen every major industry shift since. Drawing on his experience scaling Google and advising world-class startups, Bill shares why the best leaders are "catastrophic thinkers," how to balance servant leadership with the need for decisive action, and why AI is forcing every leader to return to their technical roots. Plus they cover enduring companies and real value capture in the AI era, the nuances of organizational design, the "apprentice model" for mentorship and the dangers of over-layered hierarchies that stifle speed. Bill also provides a candid look at leadership transitions, offering a tactical guide for those moving from Big Tech to early-stage startups.

From Research Lab to Record-Breaking Product: How OpenAI Engineered for Unprecedented Scale w/ Sulman Choudhry, Samir Ahmed & Lawrence Bruhmeller #242 30.12.2025 25min

This is a special episode, highlighting a session from ELC Annual 2025! OpenAI evolved from a pure research lab into the fastest-growing product in history, scaling from 100 million to 700 million weekly users in record time. In this episode, we deconstruct the organizational design choices and cultural bets that enabled this unprecedented velocity. We explore what it means to hire "extreme generalists," how AI-native interns are redefining productivity, and the real-time trade-offs made during the world's largest product launches. Featuring Sulman Choudhry (Head of ChatGPT Engineering) and Samir Ahmed (Technical Lead), moderated by Lawrence Bruhmeller (Eng Management @ Sigma).

The AI Distribution Shift, Navigating PMF Collapse & Building AI-Native EPD Systems w/ Brian Balfour #241 23.12.2025 46min

In this episode, Brian Balfour (Founder & CEO @ Reforge) deconstructs the two core, interconnected challenges leaders face in the AI age: deciding what to build and evolving the Engineering, Product, Design workflow to deliver it. We cover why you should avoid “the local maxima trap” and siphon off "skunkworks" teams to take high-risk, AI-native bets. Brian provides the blueprint for the "Great Distribution Shift," detailing how to reshape your product from the ground up to avoid being left behind as platforms close, and how to emerge as a winner in the new AI landscape. Plus, learn how to rethink what to build, avoid commoditization, compress product discovery from weeks to hours, scale feature variations & prototypes, evolve products to solve harder classes of problems and shift specialist roles from "inboxes" to system builders.