The Tech Leader's Playbook

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Marcus East—Tech Executive and Author of Working with Dinosaurs—for a candid and thought-provoking conversation on the realities of digital transformation. With a career spanning leadership roles at...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan In this compilation episode of the Tech Leaders Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan brings together three powerhouse voices from the world of elite sports and leadership: Rex Kalamian, assistant coach in the NBA and head coach of the Armenian National Basketball Team; Dr. Jen Welter, the f...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Drew Sechrist, an early Salesforce leader who helped scale the company from its earliest days into a multi-billion-dollar enterprise, and the founder of Connect The Dots. Drew brings listeners insid...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Isabelle Tashima, a growth equity investor at Volition Capital, to cut through the AI hype and unpack what truly drives breakout success in internet and consumer technology companies. Isabelle bring...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Vijay Rajendran, investor and venture builder at gAI Ventures, UC Berkeley instructor, and author of the bestselling book The Funding Framework. Vijay brings a deeply grounded perspective on how the...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Allison Shapira, a Harvard faculty member, global keynote speaker, former opera singer turned communication expert, and author of AI for the Authentic Leader. Together, they explore what it truly me...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan⁠ In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Tamara Laine, investigative journalist turned two-time tech founder and the CEO and co-founder of MPWR. Tamara brings a rare blend of storytelling, emotional intelligence, and problem-spotting ins...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan⁠ In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Melanie Nabar, Vice President at Volition Capital, to uncover what truly makes a company fundable—and what silently kills deals. With a background in growth-stage investing, Melanie brings sharp i...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan⁠ In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan welcomes back bestselling author and communication expert Chris Fenning, whose latest book Effective Meetings offers leaders a refreshingly simple framework to cut meeting time by 30% or more. Chris unpacks the...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan⁠ In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Valerie Jackson — Harvard College and Georgetown Law alum, former securities lawyer turned C-suite people leader — to explore what it really takes to scale companies without breaking leaders or cu...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan⁠ In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Erik Huberman, founder and CEO of Hawke Media, to unpack why the old marketing playbook is broken—and what actually scales in 2025. Erik shares how AI has collapsed the product moat, making distri...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan⁠ In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Sam Goodner, the serial entrepreneur and former CEO of Catapult Systems — Microsoft’s top-ranked consulting partner at the time of its acquisition. Sam shares his 30-year journey from starting a s...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan⁠ In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan is joined by Christian Ulstrup, founder of Powerline, to explore how AI is transforming business practices. Christian, with over a decade of experience in applied AI, discusses the evolution of AI technologies a...

For more thoughts, clips, and updates, follow Avetis Antaplyan on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/avetisantaplyan⁠ In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan lays out a wartime CEO playbook for thriving in downturns, drawing on the same strategies his team used to scale HIRECLOUT and help clients grow through multiple recessions. He argues that recessions do not kill...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Jossie Haines—executive coach, fractional engineering leader, and former engineering leader at Apple, Zynga, Tile, and Life360—to unpack how great leaders build inclusive, high-performing teams and adopt AI with intention. Jossie shares pivotal moments from leading Siri teams at Apple (including award-winning Apple...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Radhika Dutt—MIT-trained engineer, entrepreneur, and author of Radical Product Thinking, to rethink how high-growth companies set direction and measure progress.  Radhika explains why traditional goal systems (KPIs/OKRs) often incentivize “performance theater,” tracing their lineage from Drucker’s MBOs to Andy Grove...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Dr. Reece Akhtar, CEO and founder of Deeper Signals — a leading organizational psychologist and data scientist helping companies unlock human potential through AI-powered talent insights. Together, they explore how the future of leadership is being shaped by behavioral science, soft skills, and the rise of AI in the...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Ari Galper, the world’s #1 authority on trust-based selling and creator of the One Call Sale methodology and Ari AI, an AI-powered sales coaching platform built on decades of proven frameworks. Together, they explore why traditional relationship-building and persuasion tactics often fail in today’s crowded marketpla...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Susan Ruediger, Founder and Chief Mission Officer of the CMT Research Foundation (CMTRF), and Laura MacNeill, the organization’s CEO. Together, they explore how patient-led research is revolutionizing drug development and catalyzing billion-dollar outcomes. Susan shares the remarkable story of CMTRF’s $128,000 seed...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Andrew McVeigh, veteran technology leader and Chief Architect, whose career spans transformations at Hulu, Riot Games, and beyond. Andrew has navigated multi-billion-dollar shifts across industries from finance to gaming and healthcare, leaving behind architectures that still power companies today. The conversation...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Chris Hallberg, entrepreneur, business coach, and former military and police leader, known for creating the Business Sergeant Leadership Philosophy. Chris brings decades of experience transforming teams, sharpening execution, and implementing EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) to help companies achieve breakthro...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Michelle Niemeyer, a former high-powered attorney turned burnout expert, certified health coach, and creator of The Art of Bending Time. With 33 years in law and a personal journey of reinvention, Michelle shares her path from the pressures of litigation and entrepreneurship to becoming a sought-after advisor on sus...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Mark Monchek, founder and Chief Opportunity Officer of Opportunity Lab. A seasoned author, speaker, and advisor, Mark has guided leaders from top global organizations through times of radical disruption. Drawing from his books Culture of Opportunity and the forthcoming Opportunity Intelligence, Mark shares how to un...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with Joel Benge, a strategist, author, and the mind behind "Message Therapy." With a rich and unconventional background that spans theater, video game testing, cybersecurity, and federal communications, Joel helps technical founders transform complex jargon into messaging that actually connects. Joel unpacks th...

In this episode of The Tech Leader's Playbook, Avetis Antaplyan sits down with the legendary NFL coach and Hall of Famer, Dick Vermeil—a Super Bowl champion, Rose Bowl champion, and one of the most respected leaders in football history. Known for orchestrating one of the greatest turnarounds in NFL history with the St. Louis Rams, Coach Vermeil shares the leadership principles that drove his caree...