Tech Teams Today: Rethinking Engineering Leadership in the AI Era w/ Susan Reilly (VP Eng, Checkatrade)AI isn't an arms race - it's a tool belt. In this episode, Susan Reilly shares how she's deploying AI across a 100-person org, why "don't reinvent the wheel" no longer fits 2025, and how simple rituals like Async Fridays and Innovation Week can unlock both velocity and trust.What you'll learnAI as a tool belt: How leaders should pick the right tool for the job - and teach teams to guide, not blindly accept, AI output.Rollout that actually works: Where AI saves real time (tests, bug hunts, doc review) and where human judgment must stay in the loop.Hiring in 2025: Why adaptability and curiosity have eclipsed "I'm a X-stack dev," and how Susan assesses true technical depth.Culture that scales: The surprising productivity gains from meeting-free Fridays and why rituals matter more in hybrid orgs.Two contrarian takes: Retire "don't reinvent the wheel," and stop making big decisions behind closed doors.Mentorship beats management: Practical ways to build empathetic teams that ship better software.Key takeawaysYou get what you put in. AI accelerates grunt work, but only if engineers learn to prompt, critique, and iterate on results.Adaptability beats narrow labels. Hire for boldness, curiosity, and collaboration; stacks change, fundamentals don't.Rituals create flexibility. Clear communication and consistent ceremonies enable fewer meetings and more deep work.Experiment time isn't a perk - it's required. Create space to play with new tools or teams will "adopt" nothing.Reinvent selectively. In fast-moving domains like AI, clinging to "the old wheel" is riskier than rethinking it.About our guestSusan Reilly is VP of Engineering at Checkatrade. She's led distributed teams across the UK and Ireland and writes about pragmatic engineering leadership in the age of AI. Best place to connect: LinkedIn (search "Susan Reilly Checkatrade").About the showTech Teams Today is hosted by Lucas Mendes, CEO & Co-founder of Revelo - helping companies build elite engineering teams and improve AI-generated code with expert data. New episodes weekly.AskIf this helped you lead better:Subscribe for more conversations with hands-on leaders.Comment: What's one AI workflow your team won't give up?Share with a peer who's rolling out AI across their org.Keywordsengineering leadership, AI in software engineering, developer productivity, GitHub Copilot, hybrid teams, async work, mentorship, team rituals, system design interviews, innovation week, meeting-free Fridays, leadership mantras, hiring engineers 2025, tool belt not arms race
AI is upending traditional hierarchies in engineering teams. In this episode of Tech Teams Today, we sit down with Robert Egglestone, SVP of Engineering at Trilogy, to explore why junior to mid-level engineers leveraging AI often outperform seasoned seniors, what this shift reveals about hiring and leadership, and how engineering leaders can adapt.
The conversation dives into the move from writing code to orchestrating AI agents, the danger of over-relying on ceremonies instead of focusing on outcomes, how to raise the hiring bar without slowing down growth, and the new skills leaders need in an AI-driven environment.
Packed with actionable insights for anyone leading (or aspiring to lead) modern engineering teams, this episode is a must-listen for staying competitive in the age of AI.
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In this episode of Tech Teams Today, host Matthieu McClintock welcomes Nan Guo, SVP of Engineering at Zendesk, for a wide-ranging discussion on building high-performing engineering organizations in the era of AI.
Nan shares hard-won lessons from leading teams through hypergrowth and global transformation—covering everything from operationalizing AI infrastructure to building trust across time zones. She opens up about her leadership philosophy, including why psychological safety and a blameless culture are non-negotiables at Zendesk.
Listeners will also hear how Zendesk approaches AI model redundancy, why trust isn’t a feature but a foundation, and how engineering metrics must evolve to reflect modern development realities. Nan gets candid about the rise of AI coding tools, the risks of “vibe coding,” and what she looks for in engineering hires today.
Whether you're navigating distributed teams, hiring in a post-Copilot world, or scaling AI-powered products, this episode delivers both inspiration and tactical insight.
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Ivan Herndon, VP of Engineering at Branch, joins Tech Teams Today to share a raw and insightful look at what’s broken in engineering leadership and what needs to change.
In this conversation, Ivan unpacks how high performers are quietly burning out, why unpaid interview work is still far too common, and how AI tools are reshaping the future of junior developers, sometimes for the worse.
He also shares his take on what great leadership actually looks like in 2025, why the “leaders eat last” philosophy may be flawed, and how he’s thinking about the next generation of senior engineers in a world with fewer apprenticeship opportunities.
Whether you’re leading a team today or preparing for your first leadership role, this episode offers grounded, practical advice from someone who’s been in the trenches.
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From challenging the value of junior dev roles to redefining what hiring really means, Gene Linetsky (CTO of Embroker) brings a contrarian perspective to engineering leadership.
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, host Matt McClintock and Gene Linetsky dive into:
If you’re looking for straight talk, sharp insights, and a different way to think about leadership in engineering, this episode delivers.
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What makes a great engineering leader in 2025? And are you sure you actually want the job?
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, host Matt McClintock chats with Ross Williams, Director of Application Engineering at Aqfer, about the shifting landscape of engineering leadership.
From the decline of traditional full stack roles to the rise of AI-powered development tools, Ross shares what’s changing, what still matters, and what many engineers overlook when they step into leadership roles.
You’ll hear insights on:
This one’s for every engineer thinking about taking the next step and every leader trying to stay ahead of the curve.
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Kazuki Nishiura’s engineering journey has spanned the polished halls of Google, the breakneck scaling of Bolt, and the unpredictable world of startups.
Now CTO of an AI-powered fraud and compliance platform, he’s rethinking how teams hire, scale, and build in the AI era.
In this conversation on Tech Teams Today, Kazuki shares:
Whether you’re an engineering leader, a developer, or just curious about how AI is reshaping tech teams, this episode is packed with practical insights.
Listen now and subscribe to Tech Teams Today for more conversations with engineering leaders redefining the future of software.
Want to learn more about what Kazuki is working on? Check out www.sardine.ai for more.
Scaling a tech team isn’t just about hiring fast — it’s about building trust, clarity, and calm leadership as you grow.
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, Logan Connors (VP of Technology and CISO at Healthyr) shares how he’s scaled product, engineering, and security orgs across multiple industries — and what he looks for in engineers and leaders today.
We talk about:
A great listen for engineering leaders, startup operators, and anyone scaling remote teams in 2025.
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In this episode of Tech Teams Today, we’re joined by John Van Vranken, CTO at Mobile Pricecard, for a deep dive into building AI systems that scale—with trust, transparency, and velocity.
John shares hard-won lessons from his work across Wall Street, healthcare, and early-stage startups. We explore how to navigate stakeholder inclusion, when not to use ML, migrating legacy systems, and why the best teams aren’t necessarily the ones with the fanciest résumés.
Whether you’re leading a distributed team or evaluating your AI roadmap, this is a must-listen for engineering leaders navigating what’s next.
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, host Matthieu McClintock sits down with Hongbo Tian and James O’Brien, co-founders of Ducky.ai, to explore what it really means to build an AI-native startup, from engineering stack decisions to team structure and GTM strategy.
Hong shares key lessons from his time at Scale AI, while James brings a founder-operator lens on building fast, lean teams in high-stakes environments.
They dive into how AI is reshaping the traits we look for in engineers, what it takes to ship production-ready LLM systems, and why startup leadership must evolve to keep pace with rapid AI cycles. They also share bold predictions for the future of infra, team design, and agent-based systems.
It’s a candid look at what works—and what doesn’t—when building tech teams in 2025.
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Yassine Açoine, Co-Founder and CTO of North.cloud, joins Tech Teams Today to explore the intersection of AI, DevOps, and engineering leadership in 2025.
In this conversation, Yassine breaks down how LLMs are transforming the role of solutions architects, why the line between DevOps and engineering is blurring, and what the new full-stack engineer needs to own. He shares lessons from building across continents, hiring with a generalist mindset, and leading teams through constant change.
Whether you're navigating cloud cost optimization or rethinking team structure in the AI era, this episode is packed with tactical insight for engineering and product leaders.
🎧 Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.
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What happens when one person owns both product and engineering?
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, we talk to Prabhu Inbarajan, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Colibri Group, about what it really takes to lead in the AI era.
We explore how simplicity scales, why product and engineering alignment matters more than ever, and how generative AI is reshaping everything from infrastructure to hiring.
With 20+ years leading global teams at Intuit, eBay, PayPal, and Blackhawk Network, Prabhu shares hard-earned lessons on:
Whether you’re scaling, rebuilding, or just trying to keep up—this episode offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at modern tech leadership.
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Learn more about what Prabhu is doing at the Colibri Group by checking out: https://www.colibrigroup.com/
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, we’re joined by Arun Shankar, Director of Engineering at Tubi, to talk about what it takes to lead engineering at scale in one of the most complex environments in tech.
We cover:
Read Arun’s blog on Tubi’s Super Bowl architecture: https://code.tubitv.com/scaling-tubi-for-the-super-bowl-implementing-a-multi-cdn-strategy-for-web-and-tv-apps-1dc0ed267cdf
Want more? Watch Arun speak at our T3 Live panel in Downtown SF: “Building and Leading High Performing Teams in the AI Era” -> https://youtu.be/oHgir8Si-nU
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In this episode of Tech Teams Today, Lloyd Hsu (CTO at Roofstock) shares practical lessons from leading engineering, data, and IT through a major post-merger integration.
We explore how to unify teams and processes without losing momentum, and what it really takes to evolve from execution-focused leadership as an SVP of Eng to a strategic CTO mindset.
Topics covered:
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Join the T3 Exchange — a private community for engineering leaders to share ideas, solve real-world problems, and grow together: t3-live.com/exchange
What does it actually take to lead a product org through AI disruption, acquisitions, and scale?
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, we sit down with Jose Maldonado, VP of Product at ProcessMaker, and discuss how his team:
This one’s for product and engineering leaders dealing with pressure to move fast, stay relevant, and make AI real—without burning out the team.
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Want to stay connected with other engineering leaders?Register for our exclusive community for eng leaders at T3-Live.com/exchange
Robert Gonzalez didn’t follow a traditional path—he taught himself to code, said yes to high-risk projects, and kept learning fast. Today, he’s the VP of Engineering at SugarCRM, leading a global org powering $100M+ in annual product revenue.
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, hosted by Lucas Mendes, Robert shares:
Want to connect with other senior engineering leaders?
Join the T3 Exchange: https://T3-Live.com/exchange
Watch Robert’s T3 Live panel on building high-performing teams:
https://youtu.be/oHgir8Si-nU?si=pQ42P4GX-4p-x0MU
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Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.
How do top engineering leaders navigate hypergrowth, cultural change, and the rise of AI?
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, we talk with Jim Meyer, a Fractional CTO and founder of Meyer4Hire, who’s led engineering teams at Slack, LinkedIn, Salesforce, DreamWorks, and more.
Jim shares practical insights on:
Whether you’re managing 5 engineers or 500, this episode will help you lead with clarity, conviction, and impact.
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🔗 Learn more about Jim at meyer4hire.com
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, Mauricio Cardenas—Director of Technology at Orchest Automation—joins host Lucas Mendes to share hard-earned lessons from his global journey through engineering, AI, and product leadership.
Mauricio discusses:
From leading tech at the United Nations to scaling low-code automation platforms at ProcessMaker, Mauricio shares a wealth of insights for engineering and product leaders navigating the AI-driven future of work.
Want to stay in touch with Mauricio? He has a newsletter where he drops the unspoken truths of Product Management on "Product Quintessential Pulse" every Monday. Subscribe at the URL below! https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7120438421092724737/?displayConfirmation=true
In this episode of Tech Teams Today, we sat down with Jordan Nemrow, Co-Founder and CTO of Woflow, to explore how a single Facebook post led to a Chrome extension, a co-founder, an investor—and eventually a scalable AI-powered data platform used across food delivery and commerce.
Jordan shares how Woflow tackles the massive challenge of structuring unstructured data at scale, and why automation + human-in-the-loop remains their competitive edge. He also reflects on the hardest part of engineering leadership—delegation, and how they rebuilt team culture from the ground up in a remote-first world.
Some topics covered include:
Whether you're scaling a product, leading engineering teams, or building AI into operations—this episode is packed with insights that go beyond the usual playbook.
Register for our Tech Teams Today Live event for engineering leaders on April 16th in San Francisco
https://hirewith.revelo.com/event/future-engineering-leadership
Join Lucas Mendes, CEO of Revelo, as he interviews Kevin Roche, Co-Founder and CTO of Wellthy, on Tech Teams Today. In this insightful episode, Kevin discusses his transition from a career on Wall Street to founding Wellthy, a care concierge service that helps families balance work and caregiving. They delve into the challenges and rewards of building a mission-driven company, the impact of AI on tech and caregiving, and the evolving role of tech leaders.
Learn about Kevin's experiences navigating startup challenges, scaling an engineering team, and the significance of maintaining hands-on coding expertise even for senior engineering leaders.
Tune in for valuable advice for aspiring tech founders and insights into the future of technology and caregiving.