Half Geek Half Human

John Wark founded Nashville Software School in 2012. He believed that Nashville's technology talent shortage would never be solved by only importing experienced developers from other cities or by waiting for colleges and universities to start graduating enough students. He also had faith that Nashville had an ample supply of motivated adults with aptitude who, if offered a chance, would eagerly pu...

Today we're joined by Dr. Donita Brown. After more than 20 years of corporate management experience leading teams of 2 to 102, Dr. Donita Brown now serves as a professor of management at Lipscomb University's College of Business in Nashville . She is an author, speaker, and habit coach. She also hosts a podcast called The Management Minute with Dr. Donita Brown. On the show we'll speak with Dr. Br...

In this episode of the Half Geek Half Human podcast, we speak with Steve Rucker, a musician, college music professor, and programmer, who is also the former drummer for the Bee Gees. Steve shares his unique perspective on how technology is reshaping the world of music, covering topics from digital tools to live performances and the creative fusion of code and composition. Steve Rucker is a lecture...

In this episode of the Half Geek Half Human podcast, we are joined by one of Atiba's top Software Developers, Ashton Bailey. We speak with Ashton about what it takes to build a mobile app - everything from how to choose a framework and overall technical approach to what goes into creating the timeline and budget. We also cover how software development, and mobile development in particular, are con...

In this episode of the Half Geek Half Human podcast we are joined by Katie Ritter who oversees the Edge•U Badges program. Learn how the program helps students, teachers and dristricts – and how Covid changed everything. Dr. Katie Ritter is the Chief Learning Officer at Forward Edge. Katie was named one of the Top 100 Influencers in Edtech in 2023, and a finalist in the Visionary category for The E...

In this episode of the Half Geek Half Human podcast, we are joined by three legends from Nashville's early tech scene: Tim Moses, Thomas Conn e r, and Bill Butler. Together, they founded Telalink – Nashville's first internet provider – back in 1993. Listen as they reminisce about Telalink's origin story and reflect on how the tech landscape has changed in Nashville over the last 30 years.   In thi...

In this episode of the Half Geek Half Human podcast, we are joined two senior software developers from Atiba, Caleb Scholze and Greg Matsick who discuss what it takes to move from a junior to senior position in tech.   Caleb Scholze is a graduate of the Nashville Software School and a senior developer and team lead on Atiba's mobile team. Greg Matsick, another senior developer at Atiba has a bache...

In this episode of the Half Geek Half Human podcast we are joined by product ownership and audience guru Josh Oakes - Principal and Creator of the Who First framework. Joshua Oakes spent years consulting with organizations to help them solve product marketing and customer acquisition challenges. He would help them repair broken processes, connect disjointed systems, remove roadblocks, get visibili...

Matt Abbott is a data scientist at UltraSignup and an avid trail runner. Matt has worked on a wide range of data problems - from figuring out why people skip over the word "the" when they read while working on his PhD in Psychology - to identifying the language you should or should not use in your job posts to attract the right candidates - to solving organizational challenges at scale in Amazon's...

Kicking off season two of the Half Geek Half Human podcast is Michael Utley of GoEpps Digital Marketing. As CEO and founder of the company, Michael is primarily involved in digital marketing strategy, sales, product development, and operations. While he oversees the effectiveness and efficiency of the company, he is also intentional about connecting directly with clients. His days are typically fi...

In this episode of the Half Geek Half Human podcast, we are joined by Jennifer Poythress, Founder and Corporate Metaverse Advisor and Mitchell Poythress, Founder and Chief Futurist at The Rabbit Hole. Jennifer and Mitchell founded The Rabbit Hole VR, Tennessee's premier virtual reality provider in 2016. They later expanded to include The Rabbit Hole Virtual Marketing, a niche digital marketing age...

In this episode of the Half Geek Half Human podcast, we are joined by Jen Spencer of SmartBug Media. Over Jen's career, she has built several demand generation and sales enablement programs from the ground up and has experience working within tech startups, publicly traded companies, mid-market organizations, and the not-for-profit space. Jen subscribes to the notion that "we're all in this togeth...

This episode features Angela Crane-Jones, CEO of the Nashville Business Incubation Center (NBIC) who is focused on cultivating the growth and development of small business owners for women, minorities, and veterans. Mrs. Crane-Jones has served NBIC since 2003, being appointed to this role, after progressive experience with the organization, in 2013. Previously, she served as Interim CEO, where she...

As it turns out, being half geek, half human runs in the family. In this episode we welcome Michael Rosen, Esq., Partner and Cofounder of Provider Trust, a company simplifying storage management and the ongoing monitoring of credential information. Michael also happens to be the cousin of Atiba's JJ Rosen. Learn how he turned publicly available information into a lot of money. This episode will co...

Introducing some of Atiba's best and brightest women in tech. Amy Rochelle is a Senior Software Engineer and Team Lead; Rachael Ghobrial is Director of Project Management and Website Services; and Ashton Bailey is a Software Developer at Atiba. Enjoy a candid conversation about their experiences in technology, some of the challenges they've encountered, and how they came into their roles at Atiba....

Today we are joined by Janet Ivey, CEO and Creator of Janet's Planet – an organization committed to enriching the lives of children via education and live performances, TV, and online programming. With over 25 years in the children's entertainment and education, Janet has captivated Nashville and beyond with her work. She has received 12 Regional Emmys and five Gracie Awards for her children's ser...

We are joined by John Bass and Les Wilkenson, who are respectively CEO and Chief Development Officer of Hashed Health, an innovation firm focused on accelerating the meaningful development of blockchain and distributed ledger technologies for the industry. Hashed Health works to build solutions which leverage blockchain to solve some of the most important challenges facing this sector. John and Le...

Who better to kick off Atiba's podcast than its founder JJ Rosen. In this episode , It's Not Business, It's Personal , JJ reveals his journey building Atiba and why in business, it is always personal.  JJ Rosen founded Atiba circa 1992 in Nashville, TN as a one-stop-shop for IT services, software development services, website design, and tech consulting. Since then they have worked for over 1600 c...

Welcome to the Half Geek Half Human Podcast, powered by Atiba. Join us on our journey as we explore the intersections between technology, business, and life with Annakate Ross and Joey Baggott. Are you half geek, half human, or a little of both?