The Imposter Syndrome Network Podcast

Join Chris Grundmann and Zoe Rose in the poignant and heartfelt final episode of the Imposter Syndrome Network podcast.  As they wrap up an incredible journey with their 100th episode, Chris and Zoe take a nostalgic look back at the episodes that made an impact, the lessons learned, and the experiences shared. They delve into the recurring themes of community, overcoming self-doubt, and the realiz...

Today, we have a special treat for you as we delve into the life and career of our own Chris Grundemann. Known for his insightful interviews and technical expertise, Chris takes the hot seat to share his remarkable journey. Chris takes us through the diverse career roles and paths he's navigated, and shares how his passion for technology led him to take on various positions, balancing employm...

Today, we have a very special episode featuring our own Zoë Rose. You've heard her interview multiple talents in the industry, and now it’s her turn to share her story. Zoë takes us through the diverse roles and paths she's navigated in her career. She shares how the ironies of life led her to pursue a field she thought would require minimal social interaction, only to realize the critic...

In this episode, Zoe is back with a one-on-one with Troy Hunt. He is the founder of the pivotal cybersecurity resource “Have I Been Pwned”, the Microsoft regional director, MVP, Pluralsight instructor, and an active member of the security community. Troy shares his unexpected journey from aspiring pilot to tech influencer, revealing how a simple blog post evolved into a career-defining move. He di...

In this episode, we have the pleasure of hosting Nathaniel Todd where we talk about his humble start in a farming community near Chicago, tearing apart old VHS to working at Colorado’s largest Internet exchange providers. Rather than pursuing a traditional college education, Nathaniel chose a different path: he joined the army. His decision led to a long and prosperous career, filled with valuable...

In this episode we are accompanied by Simone Spinelli, a seasoned network and system engineer, as he delves into his inspiring career trajectory. From his academic roots at the University of Pisa to his role in the ISP sphere in the Netherlands, Simone’s journey is a testament to the power of growth and learning in the tech industry. He’ll explain to us what is the difference between users and cus...

In today’s extraordinary episode, we continue our series of tech-adjacent guests, and we are honored to talk with Marisol Sepulveda, a double board-certified physician in occupational and preventive medicine. Currently, she serves as a medical director for Optum United Healthcare. During our conversation, we delve into her experiences with workplace discrimination, the importance of resilience in...

In this episode, we sit down with Mark Calkins, a visionary in the tech industry whose early love for technology led him to run a BBS at the tender age of 12. Mark has navigated the highs and lows of the tech world, starting his career amidst the internet bubble and quickly advancing to work on AS 1 by 18. His journey took a pivotal turn at Time Warner Telecom, shaping his future endeavors. He sha...

In this episode, we’re thrilled to feature Glenn Dekhayser, a tech virtuoso whose career spans over 28 years, marked by a relentless pursuit of simplicity in technical solutions for complex business needs. Glenn takes us back to his roots, where a computer gifted by his mother ignited a lifelong passion for technology, leading him to an early job at Radio Shack. His knack for sales, honed by his e...

In this episode, we’re joined by Arjan Timmerman, a distinguished IT architect and analyst whose career has flourished over 25 years across the European tech landscape. Arjan recounts his early days, from his first summer job dealing with tulip bulbs to his “real” job involving AutoCAD drawings, which led him to pioneer a computer backup system for storing these designs. This marked the beginning...

In this episode, we chat with Steve Dodd, a seasoned network engineer with a career spanning over two decades. Steve shares his accidental stumble into networking, his growth through working on increasingly larger networks, and his current role at Slack, where he navigates the complexities of cloud-based networking. We explore the parallels between his passion for skiing and his approach to networ...

Today we chat with Professor Gihan Dias, who is widely regarded as the father of the Internet in Sri Lanka. He brought the Internet to his country, starting from his post-graduate studies in California, where he first encountered the technology. We dive into his career journey from setting up the first e-mail system, the Lanka Education and Research Network (LEARN), and the LK domain registry, to...

In this episode, we chat with Josh Snowhorn, the founder and CEO of Quantum Loophole, a data center company that is building the biggest data center campus in the world, with the most amount of power and fiber. Josh shares his career journey, from how skipping work to go surfing accidentally got into telecom and data center sales, to becoming a leader and innovator in the interconnection industry,...

Today we chat with Phil McKinney, a successful business person and innovator who has been the CTO of HP and the CEO of Cable Labs. We explore Phil’s career journey from starting as a software engineer and working on projects such as the original Mac, biometric security, and computer graphics, to leading the innovation program at HP and creating products that earned HP a spot on Fast Company’s list...

Our guest today is Doug Madory, the director of Internet analysis at Kentik. He shares his journey from being a curious kid who transcribed games from magazines to becoming a world-renowned expert in Internet measurement and data analysis. Doug explains what Internet analysis is and how he uses data to uncover the secrets and mysteries of the Internet infrastructure. He also talks about his work a...

Our guest today is Stan Barber, a veteran IT professional with 40 years of experience in networking and internet technologies. He shares his journey from being a computer systems administrator at a medical college to working for various internet service providers to joining Google Fiber and beyond. From a rather non-technical background of studying biochemistry and psychology in college, he explai...

Today we chat with Slim Hamouda, a freelance network automation engineer from France who works with various clients to help them automate their network operations and workflows. We explore Slim’s career path from studying telecommunications engineering, to earning Cisco certifications, to becoming a network automation expert. He reveals some of the difficulties and rewards of working as a freelanc...

Today we chat with Leslie Daigle, CTO at Global Cyber Alliance, where she works on addressing cyber security challenges that require collective action and coordination among different stakeholders in the internet ecosystem. We peek into Leslie’s career journey from being a computer science student to a programmer, a manager, a leader, and a collaborator in various internet-related organizations an...

Today we chat with Doug Kay, a self-branded security-minded network engineer with past roles at multiple networking companies. We tackle Doug's career journey from starting as a Novell and Windows administrator, to working at Juniper, Cisco, Gigamon, Nokia, and Arista, in various roles such as pre-sales, post-sales, and government contractor. He shares some of the challenges and opportunities...

Today we chat with Maxie Reynolds, a former underwater robotics pilot, cybersecurity expert, and founder of Subsea Cloud. We cover Maxie’s diverse and adventurous career path, from working offshore in oil and gas to studying computer science and cybersecurity, to starting her own company that combines her passions for the ocean and technology. Maxie explains the concept and benefits of Subsea Clou...

In this episode, we chat with Sagi Brody, co-founder and CTO of Webair, the predecessor of the current Opti Tech. Sagi talks about his over 20 years of IT experience and his journey from starting Webair in the late 90s, and how it grew to the point where it evolved to today’s Opti. We talk about Sagi’s current projects, his role as a consultant, and how he overcame his imposter syndrome and manage...

In this episode, we have a conversation with Nick Buraglio, a network engineer and a board member of the Route Views Project, a public service that provides a view of the global routing system. Nick tells us how he went from being an art student and a skateboarder to becoming one of the leading experts on IPv6, the latest version of the internet protocol that enables communication across the netwo...

In this episode, we have a conversation with Du’An Lightfoot, a senior cloud networking developer advocate at AWS and the founder of LabEveryday, a popular YouTube channel that helps aspiring IT professionals pursue their dreams. Du’An tells us how he started his tech career in the Air Force and how he overcame his fear of making mistakes and his imposter syndrome along the way. He also shares his...

In this episode, we chat with Darren Fulwell, a chief evangelist at IP Fabric, a network assurance platform. Darren has been working in networking for more than 25 years and is passionate about network design, automation, and operation. He’ll share his journey from being a computer science student to becoming a network architect and consultant. He’ll also tell us how he got involved with Cisco’s c...

In this episode, we chat with Dave Siegel, a visionary technology leader who specializes in product strategies, network planning, business planning, network architecture and design, and leadership and management. Dave has been helping build the Internet since 1993 and has been self-employed since 2018. Dave shares his journey from starting his own ISP in Tucson to working at Global Crossing and Le...