Tech for Non-Techies

Success in tech consists of two parts: making great products and using them to build a business. No matter how brilliant an app or algorithm is, if people do not want to pay for it, it is unlikely to live for long. This is why all tech innovators need to learn the core skills of commercialising innovation. Listen to this episode to learn how Salesforce, Starbucks and Xero commercialise their tech...

The terms coding and programming are ubiquitous, yet many non-technical professionals do not know what they mean in practice. Why are there different coding languages? What do developers actually do? This is what you'll learn in this episode. Learning notes: Data is information that you can use to do something with . For example, your  shopping list  is information that you use to remember what fo...

Nasi Rwigema doesn't have a background in software, but that didn't stop him from building his tech platform:  Umwuga , a social network for blue collar workers in South Africa. To his surprise, he found that figuring out what people want is much harder than learning about tech. Nasi  is one of Sophia's students from London Business School. He took her course three years ago, and used his knowledg...

"Most people make the mistake of thinking design is what it looks like. People think it's this veneer — that the designers are told, 'Make it look good!' That's not what design is. It's not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works,"  - Steve Jobs  In this episode, you''ll hear from Sarah Doody, a UX designer who has worked for the likes of Vice Media and Dow Jones. Today Sara...

If you have an idea for a new product in a traditional business, you will probably have to work on an extensive plan before you do anything else.   This is not how it works in tech companies. When the likes of Airbnb and Slack bring new apps or features to market, they use the Sprint Method. It is a methodology developed by Google Ventures to bring new ideas to life and test them quickly and cheap...

Agile is now a ubiquitous management term, but few people understand what it means in practice. For some products, agile is THE BEST system, for others, it is THE WORST. Listen to this week's episode to find out what it is, how it works in practice, when to use it and when to avoid it. You'll hear how WhatsApp used this methodology to release its first product, and learn how to use it yourself. Le...

It's easy to put the tech sector on a pedestal, as we're constantly bombarded with its power and profits. But "technology is just a tool to affect business outcomes," says prop tech entrepreneur Sebastian Rivas. Sebastian runs Andes STR , a which uses machine learning algorithms to find property investments for short term rentals. If you want to invest in a property and rent it out on Airbnb, Ande...

The tech sector is massive and is set to get even bigger in 2022. As it matures, the number of non-technical roles increases. Listen to this episode to prepare for the non-techie jobs boom. Learning notes from this episode: According to research by Glassdoor,  54% of all jobs in tech companies are for non-technical roles. As the tech sector matures, it becomes more open to non-techies.  When a tec...

No code apps and outsourced product studios mean that there is more opportunity than ever for non-technical founders and traditional businesses to get into tech and succeed. But, as more companies enter the market, they'll be competing for a finite resource: our attention. Listen to this episode how to make the most of this opportunity and avoid costly mistakes. Learning notes: The prevalence of N...

"Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action"  - Peter Drucker.  As 2021 comes to a close, it's useful to reflect on what worked, what didn't and how your industry evolved.  In this episode, you'll hear from  Sang Valte , Senior UX Director at international design agency Jellyfish, and Design Standards Board Member at General Assemb...

Did you know that 54% of all jobs in tech companies are non-technical, according to research by Glassdoor. This means there is plenty of opportunity for non-techies who want to transition into the world's most lucrative and exciting sector. Avoid these mistakes if you want to transition into a career in tech: Don't sign up to a 6 month coding course,  you probably won't need this level of detail....

Creating a successful business is a huge feat, but even founders with profitable exits struggle when they first break into tech. Bryan Clayton co-founded Greenpal, the Airbnb for lawn mowing, after he sold his first business. But, his first business was a landscaping company, which meant that even as an experienced entrepreneur, he was a newbie in tech. Learning notes from this episode: Non-techni...

Money isn't enough to hire the best product teams. If you want to hire great people to build your product, you need to convince them that your vision has potential. To do this, techies and non-techies alike need to come prepared. Learning notes: A product is a solution to a problem  someone is experiencing. You use Uber to get from A to B, not because you want to use an app. Great outsourced produ...

Jennifer Byrne studied Psychology at university and went on to become the Chief Technology Officer of Microsoft US. Listen to this episode to learn how this liberal arts graduate transitioned into tech and became one of the most senior people in the industry.  Learning notes from this episode: " You have to understand the difference between acquiring digital context versus digital fluency. Context...

Lots of smart people want to transition into careers in tech, but don't know how to get started. If that sounds like you, then listen to how Alexandra Soroko went from finance to tech leadership. Today, Alexandra is Head of Merchant Sales at Visa in France, and connects fintech companies, banks and Visa's technologies to help some of the world's largest companies process payments. In her role, she...

The number of technology oriented jobs is predicted to rise to 190 million in 2025, according to Microsoft. But, if you're a non-techie, how do you get in on that? In this episode, you'll hear how three people transitioned into successful careers and tech, and learn how to apply their tactics to your career transformation. Learning notes from this episode: To succeed in tech as a non-techie, you n...

Consumer facing tech businesses like Uber aren't just competing with other firms that provide a similar service. They're competing with everything that vies for your attention. This is why B2C tech businesses tend to be more innovative, better at design thinking and take inspiration from a wider pool than their enterprise tech counterparts. Learning notes: The Attention Economy refers to products...

95% of new products fail, according to Harvard Business School professor Clayton Christensen. But, usually this isn't because they are badly made, but because they don't solve the right problem. Before you delve into product development, define the problem you are solving. In this episode, you'll learn from Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg, author of What's Your Problem and Innovation As Usual, about how...

Working in innovation at a large company can be a great way to join the tech boom for non-techies. But what do you do when you get there?  Innovation leaders have a wide range of backgrounds. Some have deep tech expertise, and others are marketing pros. The innovation path a company has chosen determines the background of the person who'll lead it. Learning notes:  There are  6 paths to innovation...

What's technology for? Tech products can make our lives better and make businesses a lot of money. But, without a focus on the user and on the business, technology is an academic project at best, or just an expensive hobby. In this episode, you'll hear from Elisabeth Bohlmann, VP of strategy at December Labs, a product and development studio that works with corporates like Google, and start-ups to...

Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, and Ben Horowitz, the co-founder of VC fund A16Z, both started their careers as Product Managers (PMs). PMs rise to leadership positions in the tech sector, because the job combines user perspectives, business needs and technological capabilities.  Whatever you want to do in the tech sector, learning how product managers think will help you succeed. Learning no...

You've probably heard the term cloud computing, but like most non-techies, you're not sure what it means. In this episode, you'll learn what it is and how businesses use it to solve problems. You'll learn from DJ Johnson, who works at Microsoft Azure. DJ started his career as an NBA player and transitioned into a career in tech. Learning notes from this episode: Cloud computing allows businesses t...

Many investors view non-technical founders as more risky. Sometimes this is plain silly, but there are legitimate investor concerns that non-techie founders will make costly mistakes that technical founders will not. The answer is not to learn to build the product with your bare hands, but to know enough about tech to have a product strategy and relate it to business goals.  Learning notes from th...

Product managers combine user perspectives, business needs and technology capabilities in one job. But, what they do day to day varies widely. In this episode, you'll hear how what PMs do differs between Apple and Amazon from Souvik Bhattacharya, who has worked at both. This episode is for product managers, founders, investors and those who want to understand tech companies from the inside.  Learn...

Every app and site is made up of lots of different tech tools and languages. Like a house, one part is built on top of another and they need each other to function. If one part of the structure breaks, the rest can fall down too.  These are called dependencies. To keep a product working, all the dependencies need to work together. This is part of the invisible work that software engineers do. Lear...