The Blind Ambition with Jack Kelly

Whitnie Narcisse, Operating Partner at First Round Capital Whitnie shares how you can work in venture capital without having an investing or finance background. We explore the world of venture capital platform and all the functions and professionals that make a venture capital firm successful for the firm and its portfolio companies. She also explains why venture capital firms hire their own engin...

Monty Fowler, Vice President, Revenue Strategy and Enablement at Kentik Monty reveals that at many companies, the most highly paid professionals are often the salespeople, and in some cases, they might make as much as a Fortune 500 CEO. We break down the total compensation and pay structures most common in tech sales roles and a possible blueprint to earn $100,000 or more in an entry-level tech sa...

Marta Munk de Alba, Former Director, Talent Acquisition EMEA at Netflix Marta takes us to a world where people haven't heard of Netflix. She recalls what it was like to recruit for Netflix in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, when the streaming giant was first expanding outside of the U.S. We also ask Marta to reveal everything you might want to know about how Netflix hires and what the comp...

Dan Black, Global Leader, Talent Attraction and Acquisition at EY Dan leads talent attraction and acquisition at EY and is responsible for the "Big Four" firm's recruiting strategy. We get the inside details into what he and his recruiters look for when hiring and how somebody can get on their radar. Notably, we dig into the diverse roles and backgrounds EY considers and hires, inclu...

Valerie Beaulieu, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer at The Adecco Group Valerie explains her secret to a remarkable career journey, what she calls her "career backpack," which landed her in the c-suite and on the boards of various public companies and organizations. We look at when Microsoft was a startup and what it was like working in the tech industry when everyone was unsure if it wo...

Senior Director, U.S. Business Acceleration and Integration at RBC Annette tells us how to communicate with executives and what it takes to influence them and drive impact. She also shares how to get started, including everything from networking and meeting CEOs and other c-suite executives at your own company to what to say when you want to get their attention. We also find out what it was like a...

Ben Morss, Product Manager at Zocdoc Ben shares his nontraditional career path, from studying computer science and music to working as a software engineer, developer advocate, and now product manager. Ben also reveals that many of his colleagues at Google had nontraditional work experience or had to apply multiple times before landing a role at the Internet giant. He shares their common traits and...

Ginnie Carlier, Americas Vice Chair, Talent at EY Ginnie reflects on the best professional advice she's ever received: You need to have an adventurous mindset. We explore how adventure and a willingness to step outside your comfort zone can unlock new career opportunities. Ginnie explains how she put the advice into practice and how it landed her hot roles in Silicon Valley, working on high-te...

The Honorable Mark Takano of the U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Mark Takano recently introduced a bill called the Thirty-Two-Hour Workweek Act, which would amend the definition of the workweek in the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. If passed into law, it would require overtime pay for anyone who works more than 32 hours in one week, down from the current 40. Congressman Takano...

Jack Kelly and Rick Chen react to news that Glassdoor wants your real name. We explore the company's privacy practices and whether company reviews and other information posted to Glassdoor are really anonymous. Jack explains the real-life repercussions of being outed about posts made on Glassdoor and social media and why anonymity matters. Finally, Rick gives Glassdoor some PR advice about how...

Rick Chen, Senior Director, Head of Public Relations at Blind Rick never set out to work in public relations or communications. Instead, he took his teachers' feedback about disrupting class and combined it with a willingness to take on the tasks and jobs few others want to do. We explore how Rick became a PR executive from the very beginning when he taught himself how to write a press release...

Disha Patel, Head of Shopping Product at Cash App Disha explains why finding a craft and refining it over time is essential. It's how she's evolved her career, first as an engineer and then as a management consultant and a product head. We dig into what practicing a craft looks like and how to know if you have the right network and role to thrive. Disha also shares how she earned her most...

Heather Inocencio, Founder and CEO of The Product Consult Heather is a sought-after product management consultant with more than 30 years of product management experience at large public companies and high-growth consumer startups, including The RealReal and HauteLook. We got her to share the details about how the product management discipline has evolved and what it was like to be a product manag...

Jack Kelly, Founder and CEO of Compliance Search Group In this episode, we flip the script and interview our co-host, Jack Kelly! Jack did not always know he wanted to be a recruiter. Instead, he stumbled upon it after visiting a recruiting agency and having a friend recommend he meet someone in the business. We look into the economics of recruiting and how many recruiters get their jobs. Then, we...

Jack Kelly and Rick Chen explore what happened with Google's well-publicized blunders with its Gemini AI model. Rick explains what likely happened behind the scenes that resulted in the image generator creating odd illustrations and distorting the reality of historical events. Next, Jack asks if Big Tech and the "Magnificent Seven" group of stocks—Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Micro...

Arvind Jain, Founder and CEO of Glean Arvind spent more than 10 years at Google, going from one of the company's first engineers when it was a startup to becoming a distinguished engineer. We find out just how he earned the promotions and what it took to land the title fewer than 1% of all engineers ever earn, including the tips and tricks many senior engineers try to take and why they might n...

Justin Zhu, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Stand with Asian Americans Michelle Lee, Counsel at Stand with Asian Americans Asian Americans make up a large proportion of the U.S. professional workforce, but often, they are one of the least represented groups at every leadership level. Justin and Michelle describe how Stand with Asian Americans is fighting back and advocating for Asian American...

Bonnie Dilber, Manager, Business Recruiting at Zapier Bonnie leads the business recruiting team at Zapier, focusing on roles in the finance, sales, marketing, people, operations, support, legal and leadership teams. We dig into her untraditional background and why teachers might make the best recruiters and business leaders. Bonnie also shares her hot takes and best tips about how to get hired at...

Mark Dixon, Founder and CEO of IWG When Mark founded Regus, now known as IWG, he was the first to offer co-working space on a large scale. We explore how workplaces, offices, and even commercial real estate have changed since he started in the company in 1989. Mark explains how companies are increasingly choosing hybrid or flexible work schedules, which mix working from home and in-office time, re...

Neil Dhar, Vice Chairman, Co-Head of Consulting at PwC We explore the secrets and advantages of longevity in the professional services industry, focusing on the advisory and consulting profession. Neil has spent more than 30 years at PwC and has held various leadership roles across the firm's different service lines—everything from M&A deals, risk assurance, advisory and consulting. We lea...

Katya Laviolette, Chief People Officer at 1Password Katya gives us a sneak peek into how recent mass layoffs in the tech, banking and finance industries have impacted the job market. She reveals that 1Password receives as many as 12,000 resumes every month and job postings for internships can add another 20,000. We ask Katya to break down how to polish your resume and improve your candidacy to sta...

Michelle Gonzalez, Corporate Vice President and Global Head of M12, Microsoft's Venture Capital Fund Michelle explains how to really network and why most people think it's so artificial, transactional, or even cringe-inducing. She tells us about the cold emails she would send to entrepreneurs, investors, professors and other notable figures and what it was like to have dinner with Sam Altm...

Gleb Yushin, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer of Sila Nanotechnologies Gleb has long been sought out for his background in materials sciences and physics background. Now, he's taken his expertise to clean energy and industries as diverse as connected devices and electric vehicles. We explore how Sila Nanotechnologies was born and how Gleb transitioned from his life in academia as a prof...

Jack Mardack, Co-Founder of Oyster Jack began his career as an "accidental" marketer before working in banking and finance. Then, he had enough and decided to move to the San Francisco Bay Area to join the startup scene. There, he met like-minded, smart people who shared his interests in entrepreneurship and finding a way to create a human-centric sustainable business that aligned its bu...

Amanda Richardson, CEO of CoderPad Amanda says her career has been a windy journey. She admits that, at times, she didn't have a clear career path and has primarily created opportunities for herself. It's paid off, as she was hired to become the CEO of a high-performing startup she didn't start. We learn how she became CEO and how a frank conversation with a recruiter proved to be a si...