Innovation For All - Diversity in Tech and Business

Latest Episodes:

Starting a business at age 66 with Paul Tasner Nov 20, 2019

Show notes

Paul Tasner, Co-founder and CEO of PulpWorks and more recently, Co-founder of Sort, has more than 40 years of operations experience. He has held leadership positions in ventures ranging from start-up to Fortune 100. For the past decade, his focus has been on sustainability. Paul’s corporate affiliations include The Clorox Company, Clif Bar, Method Products, and Hepagen Vaccines. He has authored numerous papers and presentations on supply chain sustainability and currently lectures on this subject in the MBA Programs at San Francisco State University and Golden Gate University as well as the Packaging Engineering Department at San Jose State University. He holds a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from the New Jersey Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. in Mathematics from Boston University.

In this episode you will learn:

How PulpWorks manufactures packaging for consumer goods using fiber waste
The story of Paul Tasner starting his first business at age 66
The perks of being your own boss as an entrepreneur
The specific challenges PulpWorks faces in securing new customers
How to pursue investors in the competitive city of San Francisco
Critical questions to consider for people nearing retirement that want to start a business
How recycling is an answer but not the answer
Why Paul is envious of the millennial mindset
How rejecting plastic can make a difference
What Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is and how EPR regulations could impact society
Paul’s new tech-based recycling business

Get shownotes for this an every episode at innovationforallcast.com or find us on Twitter @inforallpodcast.

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Voice Recognition for Kids with Kaveh Azartash of KidSense.ai Nov 06, 2019

Show notes

Kaveh Azartash holds a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from University of California, Irvine with a focus on Vision Science. Kaveh's career has been focused on innovating software applications in the neuroscience and now artificial intelligence domain. He co-founded KidSense.ai in 2015 after realizing children are unable to effectively communicate with the technology around them through voice.
In this episode you will learn:

The story of how KidSense.ai was started
Kaveh's professional and academic background
The key components of voice recognition software for kids
How AIs can recognize changes in kids' speech patterns over time
How KidSense.ai's model can be applied to other challenges in voice recognition, like speech impediments or non-native English speakers
How KidSense.ai maintains privacy and data security
The data collection process required to develop complex AI models that mature overtime
Both the acoustic and language components that are behind a voice recognition software
Why these new AI technologies are considered valuable
The future business goals of KidSense.ai

Get shownotes for this an every episode at innovationforallcast.com or find us on Twitter @inforallpodcast.

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Invisible women: data bias In a world designed for men with Caroline Criado Perez Oct 19, 2019

Show notes

Caroline Criado Perez is a writer, journalist and feminist campaigner. She has written two books: Do It Like A Woman and Invisible Women. In her most recent book Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men she describes how very old data bias can affect women today. In this episode, Sheana learns about the different ways data bias is affecting women today, from trivial things such as phone size to not so trivial things such as seat belt safety. Caroline tells all this and more in this episode of Innovation For All Podcast.

In this episode you will learn:

What is male default thinking?
What are the consequences in tech?
Why the market is so bad at providing for women?
What is low hanging fruit for those of us who want to make money by providing solutions for women?
A stove example of male default thinking.
What can entrepreneurs and consumers do about these issues?

Get shownotes for this and every episode at innovationforallcast.com.

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Technology changes our social interactions. Why? with Alex Wolf Oct 16, 2019

Show notes

A self-made entrepreneurship coach, Alex Wolf is the founder of BossBabe INC., an online community that helps millennial women start their own businesses. Members receive a host of advice from the successful social media coach. She is also the author of the book Resonate, a book for entrepreneurs who want authenticity with their audience: for those who want to really connect.
In this episode of Innovation for All Podcast, Sheana speaks with Alex on how social media is changing human interactions, how companies contribute to the problem, and what needs to change.
In this episode you will learn:

Alex’s background in technology
How technology changes interactions among millennials
Why texting has become so prolific and what else is changing our interactions
Should social media platforms go away from the advertisement business model and why
Do consumers need to change the relationship with social media platforms
Why millennials feel misaligned with their age

Get shownotes for this an every episode at InnovationForAllcast.com or find us on Twitter @inforallpodcast.

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Teaching kids how to interact with the Internet, feat. Diana Graber Oct 02, 2019

Show notes

What is digital literacy and why is it important for our kids to learn these skills? Founder of Cybercivics.com and Cyberwise.org, Diana Graber, joins the show to discuss theses topics and more. Diana is the author of “Raising Humans in a Digital World: Helping Kids Build a Healthy Relationship with Technology.” In this episode of Innovation for All Podcast, we take a look at Diana’s book and the Cyber Civics course she developed for schools.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:

How the Cyber Civics course came to be.
What is Digital Literacy?
What the Cyber Civics curriculum looks like and why it is important
Does the Internet really make new problems?
Relationships and development online
What to find in the book not covered in the podcast

Get shownotes for this an every episode at innovationforallcast.com or find us on Twitter @inforallpodcast.

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Giving women more fertility options with Anne Hogarty, CEO of Extend Fertility Sep 18, 2019

Show notes

Egg freezing startups like Extend Fertility may be a democratizing force to give women more child-bearing options. CEO Anne Hogarty discusses how Extend Fertility is giving women more choice through affordable egg freezing. As with any business designed to give women more choice, controversy abounds! Critics have a lot of questions: Is it ethical? Manipulative? Safe? Gimmicky?

You’ll hear:

Why are fertility treatments like in vitro fertilization (IVF) so expensive?
What are the unique advantages of egg freezing? What are the limitations?
Is egg freezing a “bandaid?” Should we, instead, make it easier for women to have children while having a career?
Should we be concerned that egg freezing businesses prey on women’s concerns about having children? Or is it unfair to suggest that women can’t assess their situations for themselves?
Why has there been pushback from making egg freezing more affordable?
Why did Extend Fertility upset so many when they advertised their services on Instagram?
What are typical success rates for egg freezing?

Get shownotes for this an every episode at innovationforallcast.com or find us on Twitter @inforallpodcast.

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Placing the Displaced: Running a Refugee Staffing Company with Chris Chancey Sep 11, 2019

Show notes

Chris Chancey is the founder of Amplio Recruiting, a company that helps companies hire people from the refugee and immigrant communities. How does Chris help refute and calm the fears potential employers? How does he ensure that vulnerable people aren’t being taken advantage of? And what has made his business so successful? Find out with Sheana in this episode of Innovation for All Podcast.

In this episode you will learn:

How Chris started Amplio Recruiting and why?
What were some of the challenges in starting the business?
How are companies vetted to ensure that the refugees are protected?
What are the assumptions about the refugee community and are they true?
What are the challenges with finding opportunities for women refugees?
What is Amplio Ventures?
What are some of the success stories?
How has this work in diversity and inclusion influenced Chris’ personal views?

Learn more about Amplio Recruiting at https://ampliorecruiting.com/. Get shownotes for this and every episode at innovationforallcast.com or find us on Twitter @inforallpodcast.

Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/innovation-for-all/message
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How Propel and the Fresh EBT app are battling poverty with CEO Jimmy Chen Aug 21, 2019

Show notes

Jimmy Chen is the Founder and CEO of Propel, a software company that aims to fight poverty through technology. They are the creators of the Fresh EBT mobile app, which enables EBT cardholders to manage their benefits, save money through grocery coupons, and find jobs. Fresh EBT is used by over 2 million low-income Americans across the country. In this episode of Innovation For All Podcast, Sheana learns why Jimmy decided to start Propel and use the tools of Silicon Valley to address social issues around poverty.

In this episode you will learn:

Why Jimmy Chen decided to focus on building inclusive tech for low income families
What is Propel and Fresh EBT
Why start with the food stamp program to battle poverty
How does Propel get the diversity and empathy to solve problems they might not understand
What is the process for getting usable information from users
What are the logistical and general obstacles faced by Propel and how are they overcome
What are some misconceptions about the food stamp program
Where else can the private sector make a difference and what are the challenges

Get shownotes for this an every episode at innovationforallcast.com or find us on Twitter @inforallpodcast.

Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/innovation-for-all/message
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Take a seat: helping women of color advance their careers with Minda Harts Aug 07, 2019

Show notes

Minda Harts is the author of The Memo: What Women Need to Know to Secure a Seat at the Table. Minda describes why "Lean In" didn't resonate with her workplace experience. Learn how women of color can break through workplace barriers and have a more active voice in their careers.
In this episode you’ll learn

What diversity and inclusion issues look like for women of color
Mind’s take on the book Lean In
Things that women of color need to be doing to advance their careers
Should women of color practice self-advocacy more?
How to obtain and secure a seat at the table
Networking and career advice from Minda

Get shownotes for this an every episode at InnovationForAllCast.com or find us on Twitter @InForAllPodcast

Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/innovation-for-all/message
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Is "intuition" a dirty word at work? with Kara Dake Jul 24, 2019

Show notes

Kara Dake is a social impact innovator who is using a combination of wellness practices, community, media and exponential technologies. Her goal is to bring emotional and collective intelligence to the forefront of business and society. In this episode of Innovation for All Podcast, Sheana learns what this feminine energy is and how it can look in the workplace. Kara takes us through the value of feminine intelligence and intuition in the workplace and explains how it fits in with our technology and advances.

In this episode you will learn:

Are traditional workspaces really inclusive of “female energy?”
How Kara brought her MBA finance experience into bringing intuition and emotional intelligence to the workplace.
Is there value in having more emotion in our workspaces?
Why Kara decided to pursue an MBA?
How Kara ended up in the tech space.
Kara’s current projects: FI and FeelTankTV and how you can use them.
Skills that can be learned at FeelTankTV.
What is Co-Creation and why is it important?
What are some of the assumptions we make in business everyday?
What could a middle manager do to bring these practices into a company or system today?