DevReady Podcast

Build a Happy Tech Team with Alexandra Andrews - Episode 76

In this episode of the DevReady Podcast, Andrew Romeo sits with his coach, Alexandra Andrews, Managing Director and Executive Coach Director of My Personal Coach and over the duration of a little more than half an hour, they discuss the difference that getting the right coach can make to not just one’s business but also to one’s other projects and relationships.
Many in the business are either driven by ego or are victims to paralysis by analysis, and Alex’s advice to those is, first and foremost, to work out the ‘Whys’: why are you making a certain business decision, why are you thinking a certain thing.
She furthers, the key then is to never settle for the first answer because that is the ‘safe answer’, the filter that we all use, either knowingly or unknowingly. She emphasizes that there is a need to dig deeper and to keep on asking until one gets to that fundamental, heartfelt ‘Why’.
Topics Covered:
· Overcoming ‘Paralysis by Analysis
· The Process of Building a Happy-Team
· Understanding Team Dynamics
· Right People for the Right Roles
· Assessing and Reflecting

Expanding the support community with The Pitch Portal with Amanda Fay - Episode 75

In this episode of the DevReady Podcast, Andrew Romeo sits with Amanda Fay, Founder & CEO, The Pitch Portal, a platform through which she helps connect business ideas and opportunities with expert service providers who have the skills to make them fly.
During the course of the episode, the two cover a lot of ground: connect between venture capitalists and startups; vetting of experts and also the pitches, tools used by The Pitch Portal to ensure an efficient and effective support system; access to information and mentors early on in the startup journey, among others.
While the three tools (the lab, the interface, and my pitch) have been put to use since The Pitch Portal was set up, the survey tool is a new addition and would help startups and businesses have a much-rounded idea of their goals before putting in all they’ve got into something that might or might not yield the returns they seek. Having seen people lose everything in the startup journey, Amanda’s goal was to expand the support economy and make profits along the way—basically, a win-win for all parties involved.
Topics Covered:
· The life of venture capitalists and startups
· The process of vetting the experts
· Tools used by the Pitch Portal
· The importance of flexible payment arrangements for service providers
· How to vet the pitches

Why Don’t Kids Run Companies with Andrew Grant (Creativity in Start-ups Series Part 3) - Episode 74

Andrew starts by adding on to the topics of the previous podcasts and how the book and game can be used as a diagnostic tool to try and discover what blocks our creativity. By using a crime scene investigation, he wants users to play detectives to hide behind safe characters to try and work out what the things that block creativity are. He believes that understanding the blockers to creativity is a pre-requisite for creative thinking.
Having left the listeners with a question to ponder over: ‘Why are children not CEOs of companies when they are great at creative thinking?’, he answers the same by saying that children might be great at creative thinking but they are not good at critical thinking—a balance of which is needed to run successful businesses. While creative thinking is the thinking we do when we generate ideas, critical thinking is the thinking we do when we judge those ideas. He believes the problem here lies in the fact that not many people have both.
Topics Covered
- If children are so creative why are they not the CEOs of companies?
- The ability to think both creatively and critically.
- Connecting two seeming unrelated things to create something that is spectacularly creative.
- Prototyping and implementation.
- Playing the devils' advocate.
- Importance of embracing diversity

Tools to foster creativity with Andrew Grant (Creativity in Start-ups Series Part 2) - Episode 73

On this episode of the DevReady Podcast, Andrew and Anthony continue their conversation with Andrew Grant, Director of Tirian International Consultancy, and co-author of ‘Who Killed Creativity?... And How Can We Get it Back?' and ‘The Innovation Race’.
Andrew talks about how our workplaces are not built to foster creativity and are in fact characterized by blockers. So, in order to deal with the blockers of creativity, the suspects as he calls them, he and his team developed a game, not necessarily a competitive game, but one with a theme and a metaphor that people can hide behind so that they have a safe place to talk about some of the issues they are facing.
Topics Covered
- Need to set up an environment that encourages creative thinking
- How to use the CSI board-game and digital-game to understand creativity blockers
- How to ask the right questions and find ambiguity within the questions
- How to ideate, brainstorm and map out creative ideas
- How to connect seemingly distant things and find solution to a wicked problem
- How to figure out what works and then implement it

Who Killed Creativity with Andrew Grant (Creativity in Start-up Series Part 1) - Episode 72

On this episode of the DevReady Podcast, Andrew and Anthony talk to Andrew Grant, Director of Tirian International Consultancy, and co-author of ‘Who Killed Creativity?... And How Can We Get it Back?' A keynote presenter at TEDx (HK), in this episode of the podcast, he talks about what kills creativity and how to get it back, much along the lines of his acclaimed book.
 
Andrew talks about his being in the business for over 2 decades along with his partner, Gaia Gates and how they started in Asia working with cross cultural teams, expats and locals. Both of them often got invited to attend conferences and soon discovered that such gatherings were very boring in the mornings with lots of keynote talks and childish in the afternoons with silly team building games and everyone getting drunk.
Thinking that continuing to do so was a waste of people’s money, they came up with lots of creative ideas on how to make the mornings more interactive and afternoon sessions more intelligent. That got them started on the importance of how creativity can help solve problems. That’s what later went from being the contents of a book to workshops to a game around who killed creativity. (To find the CSI Board-game, go to https://whokilledcreativity.com/game-board/intro-game/) When researching on why people would want to read yet another book on creativity, they came to a conclusion that the actual issue of what’s blocking people’s creativity was something that wasn’t explored. There was no diagnostic tool to explore one’s journey from childhood to adulthood and to fill that gap they partnered with a neuroscientist and psychologist to try and really understand all that was going on inside a person’s brain, and from that was born the book-‘Who Killed Creativity?... And How Can We Get it Back?'
Andrew then goes to explain why he decided to use the metaphor of a crime scene where creativity is killed. That’s what makes the book memorable; these questions: who killed creativity, with what weapon, and how do we get it back? In the book, the authors basically, distil it down to seven key suspects. (To read more on the suspects, go to https://whokilledcreativity.com/articles/csi-7-suspects/)
The Control Crew
The Fear Family
The Pressure Pack
The Insulation Clique
The Apathy Clan
The Narrow-Minded Mob
The Pessimism Posse
The essence of the podcast being that creativity doesn’t happen magically over a hack-a-thon, that people first need to be aware of the fact that there’s much in their culture and environment that can block creativity, and use this diagnostic tool allows people to talk about issues in a safe environment.
Topics Covered:
- Need for creativity in the workplace.
- The memorable concept of who killed creativity, with what weapon and how to get it back.
- Difference between creativity in the artistic sense and business sense.
- Why does creativity decrease as one grows up?
- The seven suspects that block creativity
- The growing importance of creativity in the workplace as AI becomes more prevalent.
- How to foster creativity?

Intuition: Make Your Business Successful With Your Gut with Sunil Godse - Episode 71

We often don’t know where a “gut decision” comes from, but the feeling is unmistakable.
This episode of DevReady demystifies that little voice in the back of our heads that can so influence our choices, for good or ill. Sunil Godse explains why we should listen, but not without doing the work to understand fully the elements of intuition. As an “Intuitionologist,” he has learned to decode the many ways in which life experience impacts our brains and shapes a whole spectrum of decisions, particularly in the realm of business.
An author, branding expert, coach and consultant, Sunil has devoted thousands of hours to researching the neuroscience behind the reflexive choices we make. He traces the roots of trust and shares real-world case studies that reveal the influence of powerful subliminal signalling, including:
○ Experiential Intuition
○ Situational Intuition
○ Relational Intuition
○ Creative Intuition
When properly leveraged, intuition (and the trust upon which it is based) can transform entrepreneurial ventures, employee morale and customer experience alike. Sunil takes us from his early career path (often dictated by influences that didn’t align with his gut) through the many examples of intuition as a tool for honouring core values and building sound relationships based on self-awareness and understanding.
Enjoy the many “knowledge bombs” Sunil has to share in this episode, including additional reading and further resources.
Topics Covered:
- What differentiates entrepreneurial success from failure?
- Follow your instinct.
- 4 types of intuitive signalling that impact decision-making.
- How to define your signals?

From Surfboard Salesman to Software Innovator with David Pillinger - Episode 70

On this episode of the DevReady Podcast, Andrew and Anthony sit down with David Pillinger, a serial entrepreneur who took his experience running a surfboard company and transitioned it into managing multiple software companies.
David started out making and selling surfboards when he left school early, eventually launching an online real estate company called Property Gallery and then a software company called Safesoft in 2018. David now heads up his software as a service company, Venture Capital Exchange (VCEX).
Throughout their conversation, David tells Anthony and Andrew about how he started VCEX and the practical side of running the company technology-wise. Together the three discuss how David sources talent from LinkedIn, David’s motivations for getting up and continuing to innovate every day, and how the internet is changing the way we do business.
David believes that anything is possible for anyone—a mindset he draws from his own life and struggling with school, only to go on to become a successful business owner.
The episode wraps up with a look at where David sees himself in five to ten years, and how leaders have to be constantly looking out for “icebergs” on the horizon that could hinder their progress and continued innovation. David’s childlike wonder at opening up the “present” under the Christmas tree that is waking up every day serves as a motivation for all entrepreneurs and innovators alike to keep moving forward.
Topics Covered:
• The story of surfboard seller turned to software innovator.
• How do some regulations tend to make expanding software technology harder?
• How David developed the technology platforms for his different businesses.
• Building the best team.

The road to success in business: Changing your mindset & heartset with Leigh Eggins - Episode 69

On this episode of the DevReady podcast, Andrew engages Leigh Eggins, founder of the Million Dollar Business Club, in a fascinating exploration of holistic coaching.
In what amounts to a paradigm shift, Leigh asks clients to reconsider assumptions and dig around in the shadows to unearth self-limiting beliefs. The result? Tremendous growth not only from a business perspective but in myriad other aspects of life. “At the end of the day, it is a person running the business,” says Leigh, “and if that person’s not performing at their best then the business won’t be performing at its best.” Makes sense!
The question is: How do we get there? Leigh shares some of the tools he recommends to clients, including out-of-the-box ideas like meditation and “heart set.”
If you’re ready to break with received wisdom and get comfortable being uncomfortable, then this is the episode for you. It’s all too easy to get “addicted” to outmoded systems or patterns of thoughts long overdue for re-examination and change.
But we don’t have to stay locked into counterproductive stressors or false beliefs. Leigh and Andrew share tips and illuminate a path towards not only business success but also personal growth and fulfilling life.
Topics Covered:
● Leigh unspools how he came to his coaching philosophy.
● How to get out of our comfort zones?
● What is heart-set and how does heart-set affects brain function and outcome?
● When stress goes up, intelligence goes down.
● Leigh shares the art and science behind a transformational tool “Smile-Posture-Breath/Thank-Trust-Receive.”

How to shorten your sales cycle with Rashid Kotwal - Episode 68

In this episode of the DevReady Podcast, Andrew and Anthony interviewed Rashid Kotwal, a sales coach and mentor, about how companies can optimize their teams for proficiency and profitability.
Through his consulting firm, Revealed Resources, Rashid is sharing lessons gleaned over 30 years. He has over his career executed complex deals, bringing to bear expertise in both tech engineering and identifying key patterns of human behaviour.
While technologists love to sell technology, Rashid explains that it’s “a huge mistake” to shift the focus away from what is ultimately the heart of solution selling: Making the business case.
Sales cycles can be short or long, but in all cases, it’s important to identify the right decision-makers, articulate their pain points and propose a strategic response.
Enjoy this fascinating conversation about all things sales. Rashid Kotwal provides a template, explaining what it takes to set the stage for your company’s long-term growth and bottom-line numbers that will keep improving … year over year.
Topics Covered:
● The importance of buy-in.
● The art of identifying opportunities and key players to accelerate sales cycles.
● Marketing and sales: Two sides of the same coin.
● Are salespeople born not made?
● The 3 pillars to growth
● Go to strategies for engaging stakeholders, locating pain points and creating a win-win-win scenario that closes sales.

How to Build High-Performance Start-up Teams with Nicola Steel - Episode 67

On this episode of the DevReady Podcast, Andrew and Anthony speak with Nicola Steel, IT recruiting expert and founder of JJP Talent Solutions.
During the conversation, Nicola shares her knowledge about how to bring your talent scouting resources in-house to build high-performing teams.
At the heart of building good teams are the people themselves. In order to build a high performing team, you need to attract high performing people. But what a lot of companies get wrong is that they don’t have their own values nailed down first.
The best teams are driven by values and principles, so you must design the values of the company as early as possible. If you have the foundation of principled people, your teams will be set up for success.
Nicola believes in the power of a people-first attitude. When companies place the emphasis on their own people first and their fears, their personalities, their strengths, they will be much more capable of guiding their teams through to victory.
Topics Covered:
● How High-performing teams are values-driven.
● Why being people-first is better than numbers first.
● Creating psychological safety.
● How to celebrate wins as a team.
● Why remote work needs to be looked at on an individual basis.
● The rise of Zoom fatigue.