Episode Archives

Episode 28: How design systems help create an inclusive user experience at Github

October 13, 2020 michaela 00:45:12

In this episode, I talk to Diana Mounter, the Director of Design Infrastructure at GitHub. Diana traveled the world and lived in many different countries – even continents. She started as a print designer and spent some time in government before she got into web and design. Now, she leads the design systems at GitHub.

We talk about:

what design systems are and why we need them,
how GitHub deals with legacy code and refactoring.
how the designer role interplays with other roles at GitHub,
how and why designers do code reviews,
and how GitHub strives for inclusive designs that make everyone feel like an expert.

How to get a job at Spotify during a pandemic – Emma Bostian

September 29, 2020 michaela 00:43:51

In this episode, I talk to Emma Bostian, who recently started as a software engineer at Spotify. And Emma is the kind of person, that not only applies and interviews for jobs, but at the same time writes a complete book about her interviewing experience hunting for this dream job. This book sold so well, that she could pay back all her medical debt. Before joining Spotify, she worked for LogMeIn, and IBM. She won competitions and moved countries several times.

We talk about:

her interview experience with Spotify and Google,
her experience moving countries during a global pandemic,
what makes for a great onboarding experience and
how we can take action to make sure workplaces are friendly and welcoming.

Episode 26: Software success through community building

September 15, 2020 michaela 00:48:02

In this episode, I talk to Chris Biscardi, an independent software consultant about how he became successful through open source and community building.

We talk about

how he niched down to only work with open source companies
how he build the Party Corgi community by showing up and leading by example
and what he thinks it takes to start your own successful software business in 2020.

Links:

Michaela’s awesome code review workshops
Digital Garden of Chris
Twitter profile of Chris
Party Corgi Comunity
Description of missing stairs

Special Episode 25: From art school to Microsoft Research

September 1, 2020 michaela 00:28:56

In this episode, I talk to myself. Yeah, to celebrate the one year anniversary of the podcast, I tell you about my own journey into tech, and my experiences working at Microsoft and Microsoft Research. I share with you the turning points in my career and also how and why I started my own business.

I talk about:

how I got into tech without any previous computer knowledge,
how my dream of becoming a researcher in the industry became true,
and why I transitioned to remote work.
Finally, I talk about starting my own business because of the need for more flexibility to combine family and work.

Episode 24: Why you should double down on integration tests with Kent C. Dodds

August 18, 2020 michaela 00:58:00

In this episode, I talk to Kent C. Dodds, a software engineer, and teacher. Before starting his entrepreneurial journey, Kent has been working for PayPal. He is a major open source contributor and also the creator and maintainer of the widely used open-source testing-library.

Code that he writes is used by millions of people around the world, and he also teaches thousands of engineers how to test their JavaScript systems, and how to work with React.

We talk about:

best practices in testing modern software systems,
the testing pyramid and it’s “successor” the testing trophy,
why integration tests might be more beneficial than unit tests,
how you should avoid testing implementation details,
and how testing sentiments have changed over the last 10 years.

Episode 23: Wearing many hats – From Sysadmin to Developer to Solution Architect at Red Hat

August 4, 2020 michaela 00:52:34

In this episode, I talk to Angela Andrews, a solution architect at Red Hat. Angela is a curious learner who has worn many hats over the last +20 years in the tech industry.

We talk about:

her experiences as a sysadmin,
how she learned to program,
and how she transitioned into becoming a solution architect at Red Hat.
She also shares why she has a wall of different certifications,
and started a bunch of different learning circles and communities that help people learn to program and reach their goals.

Episode 22: Becoming a Machine Learning Engineer at Twitter

July 15, 2020 michaela 00:41:53

In this episode, I talk to Jigyasa Grover, a machine learning engineer at Twitter. Jigyasa is my first data engineer, and so it’s great to learn from her about what her day to day work entails. But in addition, she is also very ambitious and tells me about her successful career path through internships and research projects.

We talk about:

what a machine learning engineer does,
how to get started as a machine learning engineer,
open source and Google’s summer of code projects,
and her role at Facebook combing data and software engineering.

Episode 21: Inside Doist – The Bootstrapped Market Leader

June 23, 2020 michaela 00:50:12

In this episode, I talk to Amir Salihefendić, CEO and Founder of Doist, the company behind the widely successful productivity app ToDoist. Amir shares with me his entrepreneurial journey and talks with me about the company and engineering values lived at Doist.

We talk about:

bootstrapping from idea to market leader,
how asynchronous communication helps create better products,
why he believes in the vitality of recharging,
and how to get a job at the remote-first company Doist.

Episode 20: Fundamentally Changing How We Develop Software

June 9, 2020 michaela 00:45:04

In this episode, I talk to Tudor Gîrba, CEO and co-founder of Feenk, a software consultancy. Over the last 10 years, Tudor researched new ways to develop software – called moldable development. In this interview, I did deep to understand what that exactly means, and how he started to work on a novel IDE that enables moldable developments.

We talk about:

how reading code slows down software productivity,
building developer tools,
starting your own software company,
transitioning from consultancy to product company,
and applied research.

Getting hired at Apple Despite a Bipolar Disorder with Cher Scarlett

May 26, 2020 michaela 00:58:28

Cher Scarlett talks about how she was open about her bipolar disorder when interviewing at Apple. In this part, we deep-dive into her interview experience at Apple and how she worked her way up to a Staff engineering position.

This episode is part 2 of my interview with Cher Scarlett, where we cover more of her early life and how she worked hard to make it to a staff engineering position at Apple.

We talk about:

the hiring process at Apple
the tasks and responsibilities of a Staff engineer
how to handle mental health, and bipolar disorder during job interviews
and how the “disability” box can be a life-changer for getting accommodations for your special needs.

Check-out also part 1 of this interview, in which Cher talks about how she overcame poverty and hardship.

Episode 28: How design systems help create an inclusive user experience at Github

How to get a job at Spotify during a pandemic – Emma Bostian

Episode 26: Software success through community building

Special Episode 25: From art school to Microsoft Research

Episode 24: Why you should double down on integration tests with Kent C. Dodds

Episode 23: Wearing many hats – From Sysadmin to Developer to Solution Architect at Red Hat

Episode 22: Becoming a Machine Learning Engineer at Twitter

Episode 21: Inside Doist – The Bootstrapped Market Leader

Episode 20: Fundamentally Changing How We Develop Software

Getting hired at Apple Despite a Bipolar Disorder with Cher Scarlett

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