Convergence.fm

When Andrew Stein stepped into the CEO role at the Children's Foundation, he inherited a bloated tech stack, misaligned systems, and a looming CRM renewal with a steep price hike. With no in-house tech experts and only 15 staff, Andrew faced a critical decision point: how to make a smart technology pivot without draining his team's energy—or the organization's resources. In this conversation, he b...

Strong teams and transformed product practices drive growth. In order to drive outcomes using software and build great product teams, you need to drive speed to value and adapt quickly. The problem is, technology teams and business teams are often disjointed and lack clarity around each other's "why." Unlock the full potential of your product team with Integral's player coaches, experts in lean, h...

In this episode, Ashok sits down with Josh Seiden, author and product management expert , to explore key insights from Josh's latest book, "Who Does What by How Much." The conversation centers around using OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) to align teams and improve organizational outcomes. They examine the challenges many teams face when implementing frameworks like OKRs or Agile and emphasize th...

Derek Ferguson from The Fitch Group returns to share how his team of 600+ developers leverages generative AI tools like Amazon's CodeWhisperer and implements DORA metrics to boost productivity and team health. In this second part of the conversation, he delves into the transformative impact of these tools and the innovative strategies driving adoption and success at scale. Listen to Derek's experi...

Great developer experience isn't just about clean docs or helpful error messages—it's about intentionally delighting your user at every step. In this episode of Convergence.fm , host Ashok Sivanand is joined by Kenneth Auchenberg—former product leader at Microsoft and Stripe—for a masterclass on what it really takes to design and scale developer-centric platforms. The Convergence.fm podcast team i...

As former Chief Product Officer at Whoop, Ben Foster had a front-row seat to one of the boldest product decisions in wearables: selling hardware as a subscription. In this encore episode, Ashok and Ben explore what it takes to align hardware, firmware, and software teams to create a seamless membership experience—and how that strategy set the stage for Whoop's continued success, including the rece...

If you've ever wondered how to make test-driven development more than a coding technique, this episode is for you. Ashok Sivanand and producer Doug Branson answer listener and Reddit-sourced questions about building better product teams—covering everything from mindset shifts to hard truths about performance reviews and strategic alignment. Ashok connects TDD to the principles of Essentialism by G...

What happens when your lead engineer leaves and takes the product knowledge with them? In this episode, Ashok Sivanand tackles some of the most pressing product and engineering questions straight from the community—including how to prevent panic-inducing knowledge loss, when founders should or shouldn't vibe code, and how to choose between building full-service or self-serve platforms. Ashok is jo...

Dan Berger led Social Tables through a $100M exit and now he's focused on something even harder to build: belonging. In this vulnerable conversation, he shares what most leaders miss about culture, how his board almost ousted him due to a toxic exec hire, and why belonging should be treated as a leadership choice — not an HR initiative. He also unpacks why rituals matter, why alcohol doesn't belon...

AI can make therapy more accessible—but only if it's done right. In this episode, ex-Google and Amazon product leader Seth shares his journey from panic attacks to building Volo Health, an AI-powered tool for anxiety, depression, and addiction. He breaks down how most therapy tools get it wrong, what makes human-centered AI actually safe, and how product teams can reconnect with the humans they se...

Karthik Suresh has seen the software industry from all sides — high-frequency trading, Meta's product teams, early-stage startup trenches, and now the frontier of AI agents. As co-founder of Double-O, he's building a platform that helps non-technical teams automate complex business processes using AI agents described in plain English. In this episode, Karthik shares hard-won lessons about what it...

Some of the biggest product breakthroughs didn't come from startups — they came from intrapreneurs. In this episode, we speak with Scott Jones, a career intrapreneur who has launched new lines of business at Lenovo, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and Realeyes, a computer vision AI company serving some of the world's most influential platforms. Scott shares a detailed, experience-backed look at what i...

Joshua Graves, founder of Lost Horse Labs and author of We Need to Talk, joins the show to unpack what happens when product leaders ignore hard conversations — and what it takes to build an environment where teams can truly thrive. Drawing from two decades in product design, civic tech, and leadership coaching, Joshua brings practical, deeply human guidance on navigating organizational tension, pr...

Most PMs still think velocity = impact. They're wrong. If no one on your team owns adoption, retention, or revenue—then growth isn't anyone's job. Jayson Robinson joins Convergence.fm to unpack why most product teams are built to ship—but not to grow. From leading growth at Toptal and BairesDev to advising SaaS companies and launching enterprise products at M&S, Jayson has seen where traditional p...

Large language models are helping developers move faster than ever. But behind the convenience of AI-generated code lies a security vulnerability: package hallucinations. In this episode, Ashok sits down with U.S. Army cybersecurity officer and PhD researcher Joe Spracklen to unpack new research on how hallucinated package names—fake libraries that don't yet exist—can be weaponized by attackers an...

Most companies have a mission statement. But few are truly mission-driven in practice. In this episode, Jason Fraser joins Ashok to unpack what it actually means to prioritize mission over profit — and how the best organizations are able to do both. Jason reflects on the differences between performative mission language and the kind of operational decision-making that aligns tightly with purpose....

How do you move from dabbling with AI and vibe coding to building real, production-grade software with it? In this episode, Austin Vance, CEO of Focused returns and we transition the conversation from building AI-enabled applications to fostering AI-native engineering teams. Austin shares how generative AI isn't just a shortcut—it's reshaping how we architect, code, and lead. We also get to hear A...

What does it actually take to build agentic AI applications that hold up in the real world? In this episode, Ashok sits down with Austin, founder of Focused, to share field stories and hard-won lessons from building AI systems that go beyond flashy demos. From legal assistants to government transparency tools, Austin breaks down the concrete criteria for identifying where AI makes sense — and wher...

What do candy bars, couches, and car dealerships have in common? For Andrew Glaser, they're all opportunities to understand how real people make decisions — and why most product teams get those decisions wrong.   In this episode, Andrew shares his journey from hedge fund manager to product strategist, and now founder of Swizzle, an AI product built around Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) thinking. He opens...

A frustrated CEO, a legacy system no one liked, and a looming contract deadline — this episode unpacks the story of how one team broke out of vendor-driven inertia and took back control of their tech strategy. What started as confusion and friction turned into clarity and confidence, all through the power of intentional facilitation and a tightly structured two-day workshop. You'll hear how a grou...

When Shopify CEO Tobi Lütke issued an internal memo calling AI a "baseline skill," it sent rippiles across the industry. In this solo episode, we break down what the AI mandate actually says, why it's happening now, and how teams can apply the same principles to drive smarter, faster product development. Whether you're skeptical or inspired by the move, there's plenty to unpack about leadership, c...

What if the real reason your team isn't thriving isn't them—it's you? In this episode, Ashok sits down with Sel Watts, founder of Wattsnext and a trusted advisor to growth-stage executives, to talk about the blind spots that derail team performance. Sel shares why leaders often overengineer HR systems while neglecting the basic needs of their people—and why getting back to the fundamentals starts...

What if the key to building better teams and products is hidden in our brain chemistry? In this episode, Brad Nelson joins us to break down the neuroscience behind motivation, happiness, and productivity—especially for Agile teams. From dopamine and serotonin to stress hormones like cortisol, we explore how brain science can inform leadership, team culture, and workplace habits. Plus, we connect t...

Some of the most successful technology companies—like AWS, Stripe, Twilio, and GitHub—have built platforms that developers don't just use but genuinely love. So, what sets these platforms apart from those that developers avoid? In this episode, we break down three key trends that make a platform indispensable: deep customer empathy, an iterative approach to product management, and a culture of emp...

Building effective platforms and structuring teams for success is no small feat, especially in large enterprises. Henri van den Bulk joins the show to break down the intersection of platform architecture and team topologies, sharing insights on how organizations can create systems that enable innovation without introducing unnecessary friction. He and Ashok discuss strategies for balancing standar...