Teach the Geek: Public Speaking and Communication Skills for Technical Professionals

Orla Daly is a CIO and technology leader with a proven track record of partnering with the business to lead strategic technology initiatives, improve processes, establish governance models, and deliver lasting organizational value. In our conversation, we discuss where communication between IT and the business breaks down, how to explain complex technology decisions to nontechnical stakeholders, and why strong communication skills ...

Bindya Dhanekula: Engineering Communication Drives Business Value

Bindya Dhanekula, Senior Director of Engineering and Product Development, is an engineering leader with extensive experience leading medical device and biotechnology products from concept through commercialization while aligning engineering, product, and operations to deliver measurable business value. In our conversation, we discuss how engineering leaders bridge com...

Dr. Andrew Omidvar: From Complexity to Impact

Dr. Andrew Omidvar is a Vice President of R&D with more than 25 years of experience leading cross-functional teams, securing funding for breakthrough innovations, and bringing AI, big data, and medical technologies from concept to market. In our conversation, we will discuss how R&D leaders communicate complex research and development efforts to diverse audiences, and why strong ...

Jonathon Thompson is a technology leader with 25 years of experience designing and implementing compliant solutions in regulated industries. We explore where technical and business teams most often miscommunicate, how those misunderstandings influence leadership decisions, and how technical professionals can better communicate trade-offs and ideas to decision makers. We also discuss how AI is changing technical communication and wh...

Marc Brooker: How Technical Communication Drives Decisions

In this episode, I’m joined by Marc Brooker, a VP and distinguished engineer who has worked on large-scale systems and now focuses on safety and policy for agentic AI. We explore how his approach to communicating complex technical work has evolved as his responsibilities have changed. We also discuss what works and what doesn’t in technical presentations, how org...

Danielle Prilepskiy: Teaching Machine Learning through Tennis

Danielle Prilepskiy is a Statistics and Machine Learning student who is exploring what happens when technical knowledge meets the human side of communication. After teaching tennis to kids and learning how to break down complex physical mechanics into simple analogies, she now applies those lessons to explaining machine learning to people who are trying to understand what...

Lisa Hornschemeier: When Engineers Fail to Communicate

Lisa Hornschemeier is a Vice President of Engineering with a career spanning software development, enterprise systems, cloud platforms, and engineering leadership. In our conversation, we will discuss how engineering leaders bridge communication gaps across the organization, explain complex technical decisions to diverse stakeholders, use storytelling to build support for engine...

Michael Jones: When Engineering and Business Miscommunicate

Michael Jones sits at the intersection of artificial intelligence, systems engineering, and stakeholder communication. He leads multidisciplinary teams developing LLM-powered tools, researches AI hallucinations, and regularly helps decision makers understand complex technical trade-offs. In our conversation, we discuss where engineering and business teams miscommunicate, ho...

Rob Kalwarowsky: When Technical Teams Meet Business Leaders

Rob Kalwarowsky is a former engineer whose journey from high achievement and burnout to human-centered leadership has shaped the way he helps executives, entrepreneurs, and elite performers lead more effectively. We'll discuss where technical and business teams miscommunicate, how technical professionals can communicate trade-offs and influence decisions, and why strong com...

Mark Castleberry: Technical Communication that Works

In this episode, I’m joined by Mark Castleberry, a Director of Enterprise Applications with more than two decades of experience leading HR technology, ERP, and cloud transformation programs across both consulting and industry roles. In our conversation, we explore where communication breaks down between technical teams and business stakeholders, how those gaps impact outcome...

Kelly Schroeder: Communicating IT Tradeoffs With Confidence

Effective communication is critical for IT leaders who must bridge the gap between technical teams, executives, and stakeholders across the organization. In this episode, Kelly Schroeder shares lessons from leading large-scale technology transformations, guiding organizations through major change initiatives, and helping decision-makers understand the tradeoffs behind IT in...

Robert Monroe: Casting Engineering Stories in Steel

Cast in Steel is the competition where minds meet metal, as student teams from across the country take on the challenge of recreating George Washington’s sword through design, casting, and rigorous testing. Each week, they are pushed through a grueling qualifying round where creativity, engineering skill, and durability are tested, all while competing for a $25,000 grand priz...

Jigar Thakkar is a technology leader who has helped drive large-scale cloud, data, AI, and investment platform initiatives. We discuss where technical and business teams most often miscommunicate, how those misunderstandings affect leadership decisions, and what technical professionals can do to communicate trade-offs, influence strategy, and earn a stronger voice in business discussions.

To learn more about Jigar, visit https://ww...

Nick Schmidt: Technical Communication that Drives Decisions

Nick Schmidt is a global entrepreneur, veteran, and technology leader who has scaled businesses across renewable energy, defense, aviation, manufacturing, and enterprise software. As a CTO, Nick has built high-performing teams and architected AI-driven and enterprise-scale systems that turn complex ideas into measurable business results. In our conversation, we explore the ...

Bob Hankins: Speaking Engineering to Business Leaders

Bob Hankins is Director of Engineering with more than 20 years of experience in engineering leadership, product development, and medical technology. Bob has built a career translating complex technical challenges into practical business outcomes while also serving in executive leadership roles, including interim Medical CTO. In our conversation, Bob shares insights on bridging co...

Thomas Mazzaferro: Helping Technical Professionals Influence Decisions

Thomas Mazzaferro is a globally recognized executive who has led AI, data, and digital transformation initiatives at several companies. We discuss how communication gaps between technical and nontechnical stakeholders can shape decision-making, trust, and business outcomes. We also explore the role of storytelling, leadership, and presentation skills in helping t...

Venkat Sivaramakrishnan: From Battery Research to Leadership

Venkat Sivaramakrishnan is an accomplished R&D leader who brings together deep technical expertise and strong people skills, currently working at the intersection of research, innovation, and business development in the battery technology space. He has also led global virtual teams and built international academic collaborations across India, China, and the UK. In this...

Kishore Ravilla: How CTOs Influence Business Decisions

Kishore Ravilla is a CTO with 25 years of leadership across healthcare, insurance, and financial services. In this episode, we explore how technology leaders can better communicate with business stakeholders, why storytelling matters in digital transformation, and how strong execution and operational excellence create lasting business value.

To learn more about Kishore, visit ht...

Justin Windle: Bridging Data and Business Communication

Justin Windle has more than 20 years of leadership experience across major financial institutions. In this episode, we explore why communication often breaks down between technical teams and business stakeholders, how storytelling shapes data-driven decision making, and what leaders get wrong about analytics, AI, and governance. We also discuss the communication skills data pro...