Catalyst

Latest Episodes:

Not Much Has Changed: Rich on Programming in Python Jun 22, 2021

Show notes

As the Co-Founders of Postlight, Paul and Rich don’t often hack away and engineer anymore. This week though, Rich shares a little side project he’s been working on. He breaks down why he’s programming in Python and shares his realization that although the languages may change, the problems stay the same.

Links:

Flask

Frozen Flask

Flutter

What is Code? - Paul Ford

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Painless Project Management: With Clubhouse.io’s Andrew Childs Jun 15, 2021

Show notes

Throughout his engineering career, Andrew Childs used his fair share of project management tools. None of them felt quite right, so he quit his job and built his own — Clubhouse.io. Andrew joins Paul and Rich to discuss why the tool has become so popular at Postlight, and how it’s managed to survive in such a crowded project management marketplace.

Links:

Clubhouse.io

Whimsical

Mural

Don’t Let the Backlog Drive Your Product - Rich Ziade

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Assume Positive Intent: With Postlight's Michael Shane Jun 08, 2021

Show notes

Michael Shane began his career as a classical musician, and now he’s Director of Digital Strategy at Postlight. This week, Michael takes Paul and Rich on his journey from the orchestra to the land of tech. He shares what he's learned along the way from what makes a great digital strategist to why strategy isn’t the same as sales — and gives tips on how to write a proposal that will win over any audience.

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Friendly Competition: With Robots & Pencils’ Tracey Zimmerman Jun 01, 2021

Show notes

When you’re a small but growing company, sometimes the best people to learn from are the big fish in your industry pond — the friendly ones that don’t eat you. This week Paul and Rich speak with Tracey Zimmerman, President and CEO of Robots & Pencils, a digital innovation firm working on similar projects as Postlight but at double the size. They compare notes with Tracey on what makes a successful innovator, how to build the right teams for your clients, and how to scale your organizational culture.

Links:

Tracey Zimmerman Twitter

Robots & Pencils

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Managing Product Managers: With Postlight’s Vicky Volvovski May 25, 2021

Show notes

This week Paul and Rich are joined by a new Postlight team member, Director of Product Management Vicky Volvovski. Vicky talks all things product management and breaks down the differences between agency work and product org work. She also shares the six things she looks for when hiring product managers and gives Paul and Rich some solicited feedback.

Links:

Postlight Careers

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Show — Don’t Tell: Presenting to the C-Suite May 18, 2021

Show notes

This week Paul and Rich respond to a mailbag question! A listener reached out seeking advice on how best to deliver a project pitch to higher-ups at a company. From keeping your presentation short to showing up with deliverables, Paul and Rich break down the best ways to make your idea land with the C-suite.

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Facebook’s Oversight Board: On Policing the Platform May 11, 2021

Show notes

What does Facebook’s Oversight Board actually do? This week Paul and Rich discuss the immense power that the Oversight Board holds. They talk about what type of oversight should exist and whether the current measures are enough. Also, Rich gets to flex his law degree breaking down the difficulties of translating policy into product.

Links:

Drudge Report

Techmeme

Facebook’s Oversight Board

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Alternate Reality: What We Would Have Done Differently May 04, 2021

Show notes

Hindsight is 20/20. This week Paul and Rich look back at Postlight’s beginnings. Knowing what they know now, they share insights on what they wish they’d done when founding the company. From embracing marketing to betting more chips on design, they reflect on some of the things they missed.

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A Love Letter to the Office: On the Pros of In-Person Work Apr 27, 2021

Show notes

After over a year away, Paul and Rich are vaccinated and back in the office. From the Postlight recording studio, they discuss their experience of returning to the office — overwhelming at first, but ultimately a refreshing reset. They also reflect on the importance of in-person work for effective communication, connection, and planning for the future.

Links:

Postlight - Digital Transformation for the MTA

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No FOMO: Why You Don’t Need to Worry About Those Tech Trends...Yet Apr 20, 2021

Show notes

It feels like every week there’s a new tech trend that’s being touted as the next big thing: from the Internet of Things to augmented reality to machine learning. This week Paul and Rich break down some of these trends and tell you if and when you should worry about adopting them.

Links:

Ghost

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