Black Girl Ventures began with a tipi in Shelly Bell’s living room and a call to a psychic in California. Shelly Bell chats with Paul and Gina about how she went from building that tipi to building a platform that has now funded over 100 Black and Brown woman-led businesses. Shelly also shares what goes into a strong investor pitch and talks about the importance of giving honest feedback. Links: Black Girl Ventures SheRaise Kai XR See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Pr...
Feb 02, 2021•32 min•Ep. 266
The goal of the vaccine rollout is to first protect the most vulnerable in society. But what happens when the system keeps out those who need it most? Rich walks us through his frustrating experience navigating New York’s vaccine website. He breaks down the design barriers causing accessibility issues and offers fixes to reduce friction in the process. Links: NY Vaccination Website See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-s...
Jan 26, 2021•30 min•Ep. 265
The pandemic has made people crave simple, digestible information even when the information they need is not-so-simple. This week, Rich and Paul draw similarities to technology and the conspiracy theories that have mastered messaging and used it to spread harmful misinformation. How can we counter it? Tell a clear, simple story and tell it again and again. Links: QAnon Gov. Cuomo shows off festive turkey mask for Thanksgiving See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy...
Jan 19, 2021•30 min•Ep. 264
Technology is an accelerator that helps people share ideas and connect. But last week, people in power used that same accelerator to harm others. Likely too little too late — but banning Trump from social platforms hugely impacts the spread of misinformation. This week, Paul and Rich break down the four hacks that contributed to dangerous conspiracy theories and discuss the laws that need to be put into place to protect the future. Links: Live Event : Should Twitter Delete Donald Trump Regulatin...
Jan 12, 2021•35 min•Ep. 263
Since its beginning, WordPress has won the hearts and computers of millions. This week Paul and Gina are joined by WordPress creator Matt Mullenweg as he talks about the expansion of WordPress and his love for open source. He shares controversial opinions on open source and explains why we’ll all be headed there in the future. Links: Matt Mullenweg Twitter Automattic WooCommerce Simplenote Yoast Chromium Gutenberg See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at h...
Jan 05, 2021•44 min•Ep. 262
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is North America’s most expansive mass transit system — and Postlight partnered to take it digital. This week, Gina Trapani and Chris LoSacco discuss shipping such a large and sprawling project, from the importance of engaging with stakeholders to furthering team leadership opportunities along the way. All aboard! Links: MTA Case Study - Postlight See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/pri...
Dec 15, 2020•29 min•Ep. 261
It’s been a rough year — but the web still has Easter eggs, and tech is not all evil. This week, Paul and Rich briefly ignore 2020 to focus on the Pleasant Internet Things that bring them joy. From their favorite sites to their favorite tech, they share a few insights to help finish the year on a high note. Links: Waxy.org Archive.org OldNYC.org Poolside FM Electoral-vote.com New York Times Election Distractor See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https...
Dec 08, 2020•23 min•Ep. 260
A little while back we made gentle fun of Google’s hamburger menu. Well, Google responded! This week Paul and Rich sit down with Google’s Senior Director of Product Management, Ben Wilson, to discuss the hamburger menu and so much more. We chat about the importance of good research and why it’s vital to promote diversity in your teams. Also, Ben shares what it’s like designing product at such a large scale — think trillions of API calls a day. Links: Active Assist Ben Wilson - Twitter Google Dup...
Dec 01, 2020•37 min•Ep. 259
In October, we released Catalyst, a Postlight whitepaper on driving digital transformation within an organization. This week we release the audio from our first of a four part presentation series on Catalyst. In this first live recording, we explain the importance of defining your mission, we share some industry trends and we answer all of your questions. Links: Introducing Postlight’s New Whitepaper: Catalyst Postlight - Careers See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Pri...
Nov 24, 2020•41 min•Ep. 258
A little while back Mailchimp approached Postight for some help. They wanted to improve their developer experience and rebrand their APIs. This week we are joined by two Postlight employees, Liz Tan and Adam Pash, who helped make that happen. They share their reflections on the process and talk about what it was like doing design and content strategy for such a well known and beloved company. Links: Introducing Mailchimp Developer Introducing Postlight’s New Whitepaper: Catalyst Say This Three T...
Nov 17, 2020•29 min•Ep. 257
What happens when software eats the world? Industry veterans Paul Ford and Rich Ziade chat with their friends about technology, design, and business from a distinctly East Coast point of view. Decades of experience inform their no-BS, quick-witted patter about what digital transformation really means. Created by Postlight, the digital product studio they co-founded in New York City. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-...
Nov 11, 2020•2 min•Ep. 410
If you’ve ever struggled to build software in a large organization, you know how many obstacles can get in the way. To help you through the process, look no further than Catalyst, Postlight’s new whitepaper. This week Paul and Rich discuss the whitepaper and the different organizational aspects of shipping software that are often overlooked. Be sure to join us on November 12 at our live (remote) recording of the Postlight Podcast where we'll talk about all things Catalyst and give more insights ...
Nov 10, 2020•27 min•Ep. 256
Postlight is going to Kindergarten! It’s been a wild ride these past five years and we’ve learned a lot. This week we share some useful lessons that we’ve learned since our inception. We talk about the importance of being generous, keeping your contracts short, keeping your employees happy and never forgetting that revenue comes first. Here’s to five more happy years! Links: Postlight - Driven By Strategy, Wired To Deliver Also, we're hosting a Postlight Podcast Live (remotely, obviously) on Nov...
Nov 03, 2020•29 min•Ep. 255
Flying is all about giving up control, trusting your instruments and staying the course. This week Paul and Rich break down the similarities between piloting a plane and piloting a company. We talk about the concept of instrument flying and explain why navigating cross winds in a plane is not so different from an agency navigating their business. Links: Microsoft Flight Simulator See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sel...
Oct 27, 2020•21 min•Ep. 254
As someone who has worked both in Silicon Valley and in The White House, Jason Goldman has a unique perspective on tech regulation. This week he shares his thoughts on the rise of monolithic social media platforms and how they’ve been used to advance political agendas and promote hate. He shares what he’s learned about regulation while working in the White House and reminds us that there’s hope in younger generations. Links: Jason Goldman Twitter Dune Pod Podcast Blogger Potential Policy Proposa...
Oct 20, 2020•36 min•Ep. 253
It feels like every week a new software as a service project management tool pops up. This week we discuss if these spreadsheet-like project management tools can act as a good template for shipping products. We discuss the power dynamics related to project management and talk about whether these notification driven tools are actually effective or if they are instead just a bit annoying. Links: Monday.com Pendo Todoist NPR: All Things Considered Smartsheet Asana Dash for Slack Airtable Postlight ...
Oct 13, 2020•30 min•Ep. 252
This week Paul & Rich discuss what’s in a name, or more specifically a job description. We read some recent job postings and try to understand how tech culture got to the point of needing DevSecOps and Happiness Engineers. We talk about how the industry creates specialized skills and share our experience evolving within our own jobs. Links: Techmeme Memeorandom Mediagazer WeSmirch See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-no...
Oct 06, 2020•20 min•Ep. 251
It’s 2020. You can buy just about anything on your phone, you can do banking on your phone, so why can’t you vote on your phone? This week, Paul & Rich discuss the various security concerns that could come with online voting. We talk about the possible vulnerabilities in an online system and the danger of removing the people, checks and balances that come with traditional voting. Most importantly, be sure to go vote! Links: Register to Vote See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and...
Sep 29, 2020•15 min•Ep. 250
Microsoft used to be all about Windows but in recent years we’ve seen a huge transformation in the company. They went from thinking monolithically to branching out and making new connections with users on several different devices. This week we break down how Microsoft’s failures and new leadership led to a more diversified list of products and how humility helped them move forward. Links: Wreckfest Witcher Flight Simulator X-Plane Introducing Mailchimp Developer See Privacy Policy at https://ar...
Sep 22, 2020•30 min•Ep. 248
We’ve been seeing a lot of questionable data being thrown around recently — think Trump’s interview with Jonathan Swan. As the election approaches, we can’t help but notice how data is being used to manipulate people. This week we dive into conspiracy thinking and talk about how tech today is being used to spread what were once fringe opinions to the masses. Links: The Paranoid Style in American Politics - Richard Hofstadter How to Lie with Statistics - Darrell Huff See Privacy Policy at https:/...
Sep 15, 2020•27 min•Ep. 248
There are two types of tech stakeholders, the detente and the dreamer. One is more reactive and is just trying to keep the peace while the other loves the possibility and potential in innovating. So which is best? Do you focus on stability and mitigating risk or do you make big bold moves? This week we discuss these two types of stakeholders and talk about the best ways to pitch software investments to CEOs and CFOs, which is no small feat. Links: The Dreamer and the Diplomat: Who Buys Software ...
Sep 08, 2020•28 min•Ep. 247
We recently launched a huge project with New York’s public transit system, The MTA. Like the transit system the project was big and complex. This week we are joined by Product Manager Jojo Giltsoff who kept the MTA project running smoothly. She shares her tips and tools for managing big and busy teams and projects. She also teaches us how to find a healthy balance between being hypercritical and being an advocate for your team and explains why you should be writing down all the positive things p...
Sep 01, 2020•28 min•Ep. 246
Paul tells us about his new project, Ephemeralist, a web page that gives your brain a break from the heaviness of social media. It pulls archives from places like the MoMA and the Smithsonian, and allows you to scroll through history—from books and fossils, to pictures of donkeys from the 1700s. We go through Paul's experience with hosting his new project on Google Cloud and how these massive hosting platforms have become increasingly convoluted and geared towards engineers. Links: Ephemeralist ...
Aug 25, 2020•25 min•Ep. 245
Enterprise software is a behemoth. It’s expensive, confusing and takes forever to learn. On this week’s episode of Postlight Podcast, Paul & Rich continue to break down why enterprise software is such a mess. We get into this confusing world of caked-on features and mysterious sales pitches. Links: Don’t Let the Backlog Drive Your Product - Rich Ziade Introducing Mailchimp Developer - Postlight See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com...
Aug 18, 2020•18 min•Ep. 244
In the wise words of Elbert Hubbard “logic is a tool for furthering prejudice.” On this week’s episode of the Postlight Podcast, Paul & Rich unpack this quote and talk about how best to communicate facts and logic. We share some tips on how to communicate facts in a way that actually engages people and talk about why using rhetoric rather than fact is a better way to get your point across. And in the end, we of course tie this all back to software. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/pri...
Aug 11, 2020•23 min•Ep. 242
The past 6 months have forced everyone into a new working situation, a situation that could continue for a while yet. This week Paul and Rich share some tips for coping with the ongoing pandemic. We discuss why you should be gathering your team more often and keeping clear and frequent communication about what’s happening across the company. We also talk about ways to be a source of stability for your employees and, of course, about the importance of humor. Links: Whimsical Airtable Renderforest...
Aug 04, 2020•22 min•Ep. 242
We regulate cars so why not regulate tech? This week on the Postlight Podcast, Paul & Rich get philosophical. We ask the big questions about how to regulate our own creations and how sometimes infringing on someone’s freedom can actually be a good thing. After all, without red lights the streets don’t work. Links: John Perry Barlow - A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-no...
Jul 28, 2020•27 min•Ep. 241
In this final episode of our 3 part series, Paul & Rich check back in with Managing Partner Chris LoSacco on the two final mistakes you’ve likely been making with your product. We talk about the importance of marketing your products within your own organization. Chris also explains his controversial opinion on why you shouldn’t be listening to your customers (don’t worry it’s not as scary or irresponsible as it sounds!). Links: Goldman Sachs - Postlight Chris LoSacco See Privacy Policy at ht...
Jul 21, 2020•26 min•Ep. 240
In Part 2 of this 3 part series, Paul, Rich & Postlight Managing Partner Chris LoSacco talk about two more mistakes you’re making with your product, neglecting your tooling and single sourcing your Quality Assurance (QA). We discuss how you can optimize your tooling setup to be more productive and catch errors early in the development process. We also talk about how product managers can help select the right tools and why QA should be baked into the whole process. Links: Clubhouse Basecamp S...
Jul 16, 2020•17 min•Ep. 239
Keeping your timeline super flexible may sound like a good idea when developing software, after all software is always changing, but Chris LoSacco is here to tell you why that’s a mistake. This week we dig into the 6 common mistakes people make in product development. In Part 1 we go over the first two mistakes, being vague with your timelines and waiting too long to ship. Chris gives some solutions to these common problems and walks you through some tips for structuring a better product release...
Jul 14, 2020•25 min•Ep. 238
