Explore every episode of the podcast Dev Leader Podcast
Dive into the complete episode list for Dev Leader Podcast. Each episode is cataloged with detailed descriptions, making it easy to find and explore specific topics. Keep track of all episodes from your favorite podcast and never miss a moment of insightful content.
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Title
Pub. Date
Duration
Is Developer Relations Right for You? An Honest Breakdown With Fred Harper
19 Jan 2026
00:53:33
In this episode, I sit down with Fred Harper, Developer Relations Manager at TinyMCE, for a deep dive into what developer relations actually is -- and what it is not. Fred shares his 20+ year journey from software developer to DevRel, how his extroverted personality shaped his path, and why introverts can be just as successful in this role.
Quitting the Plan: How One Developer Reinvented His Career from Scratch
13 Jan 2026
00:54:04
In this episode of the Dev Leader Podcast, I sit down with Simon Stern to unpack a career journey that cuts across far more than just writing code. Simon started out in biochemistry on a path toward medicine, walked away from it entirely, taught himself to code, became a boot camp instructor, worked in big tech, and is now leaning hard into entrepreneurship.
Construction, Coding, and Work Life Balance - Jamon's Journey in Software Development
24 Nov 2025
01:14:42
In this episode, I sat down with Jamon Holmgren, co-founder and CTO of Infinite Red, to talk about his unconventional journey from framing homes in the rain to building a thriving software consultancy. Thanks so much for the discussion, Jamon!
Imposter Syndrome, Grit, and Growth: How Bhavya Rebuilt Confidence
11 Nov 2025
01:17:15
In this episode, I get to catch up with Bhavya Kashyap, Engineering Manager at Chime, AND a former classmate of mine from the University of Waterloo. We hadnāt spoken in years, but this conversation was an AWESOME catch-up!
Her story is a powerful reminder that failure isnāt final and that sometimes the best engineers are those whoāve had to fight the hardest to prove they belong.
Theme Parks, Bakeries, and G-Code: Samanthaās Unexpected Path Into Software
28 Oct 2025
01:14:15
In this episode, I talk with Samantha Lopez, whose path into software development is anything but typical -- and thatās exactly what makes it so inspiring.
Whether youāre just starting out or pivoting mid-career, Samanthaās journey proves that your past experiences can be your biggest asset in tech -- you just have to connect the dots and keep going!
From Frying Chicken to This Dot Labs - Career Stories With Danny Thompson and Rob Ocel
23 Oct 2025
01:02:21
In this episode, I sit down with Danny Thompson and Rob Oel from This Dot Labs -- two developers with wildly different paths into tech. If youāve ever doubted your path or wondered whether you belong in tech, this one is for you!
From Dial-Up to Data Engineer: How Claire Beat Imposter Syndrome
13 Oct 2025
01:13:16
Claireās story is both honest and inspiring -- from growing up with dial-up internet and believing she wasnāt āsmart enoughā to code, to now teaching thousands of aspiring developers how to build real projects and overcome self-doubt.
We dig into how helping others can become one of the best ways to learn, why adults often thrive through applied learning over theory, and how sustainability and community can make or break your learning journey.
Firefighting to Flow: Forecasting For Developers - Interview with Tom Ridge
08 Oct 2025
01:20:57
I was really grateful to have Tom Ridge join me for a deep, honest conversation about leadership, agile delivery, and what it really takes to help engineering teams succeed.
Tom shared how his team turned things around after projects fell behind schedule -- using data, reducing scope, and applying Littleās Law to make forecasting less about guesses and more about measurable flow. We also dug into the human side of engineering: having difficult conversations, building psychological safety, and creating team environments where people feel supported instead of pressured.
Leading Engineering Teams Without Burning Out - Interview with Ray Nicholus
01 Oct 2025
01:08:22
Today's guest on the podcast is Ray Nicholus! We got candid about leading as introverts, when to say yes (and when to say no), and how to balance hands-on code with real people leadership. We dug into startup versus big-company impact, remote-first habits that actually work, and why impostor syndrome can be a signal for growth.
If youāre navigating the IC-to-manager path (or debating it) this one will hit home! Thanks so much for the chat, Ray!
Context is King in Software Engineering - Derek Comartin of CodeOpinion
18 Sep 2025
01:05:57
Derek Comartin of CodeOpinion is one of my favorite YouTubers and content creators. Derek is able to talk through all sorts of software engineering tradeoffs and is one of the best at answering the "it depends" question.
That's because Derek knows that context is king. If we are making decisions in software engineering, it's all about the circumstances that we're operating in. Derek brings this front and center whenever he's talking about development choices.
How To Build Teams That Actually Care - Interview With Ryan Varley
15 Sep 2025
00:57:19
Building highly effective teams sometimes feels as complicated as rocket science -- but that's no problem for today's guest, Ryan Varley!
Ryan Varley was en route to have a career in astrophysics, but software engineering got the best of him! In our chat, Ryan shares his career journey and how he looks to build development teams that are highly engaged.
From Spanish Teacher to GREAT Software Engineer - Interview With David Weiss
13 Sep 2025
00:53:05
Spanish teacher?! Yeah, my guest today is a career-switcher coming over to software engineering from being a Spanish teacher!
David Weiss is an awesome guy to know with a great story about making a career switch into software development. I thoroughly enjoy his software engineering content online, and it was great to chat with him about how content creation helps him have a bigger impact in the developer space.
How to Structure to Data with AI: Interview With Kirk Marple of Graphlit
11 Sep 2025
00:57:26
I sat down with Kirk Marple of Graphlit to talk about his career journey and the awesome AI platform that he's building.
One of the things I thought was awesome was the fact that they "dogfood" their platform by building solutions on top of it -- one of the BEST ways to know the ins and outs is to use it yourself!
Huge thanks to Kirk for sharing his insights and I'm very excited to see the future of Graphlit!
Why System Failures Make The Best Learning Opportunities! - Interview With Michael Kill
07 Sep 2025
01:09:50
In this talk with Michael Kill, he shares his perspective on why the high-priority P0 scenarios are some of the best to learn from... despite being high pressure and high stress!
Everyone has something to bring to the table, and everyone has something they can learn -- regardless of your title or your seniority.
Engineer to Manager and Back Again: Interview With Lee McKeeman
03 Sep 2025
01:40:40
He's worked at Amazon, Meta, and Google... But that's not what I found most interesting about Lee McKeeman!
While Lee has lots of awesome experiences (in AND outside of work), one of them that really got me interested was becoming an engineering manager and transitioning back to a software engineer. It's not that this is unheard of, but it's not a common one that I get to talk to others about!
Lee shares some of his ups and downs on his extensive career journey, and I'm super thankful that I had the opportunity to chat with him!
People-First Software Engineering - Interview With Hassan Habib
02 Sep 2025
00:59:35
This is a very special episode for me because I really look up to and admire today's guest. Hassan Habib does an incredible job of combining technical insight with philosophy -- something that I don't see done so elegantly by many others.
But one thing that REALLY sets Hassan apart is his focus on putting people first in software engineering. It's something that's so very obvious when talking with him and in his approaches to building and describing software systems.
I think you'll have a LOT to take away from this one, and I thank you very much, Hassan, for making the time to chat with me today!
This Guy Switched From Helicopters to Tech! - Interview With Mike Akins
14 Aug 2025
01:06:33
Mike Akins made the move from flying helicopters in the military to tech -- an AWESOME career switcher story! He has attended Oregon State and walks us through the challenges of searching for jobs as a student, from internships to applying for those first jobs.
We discuss imposter syndrome and working alongside a different generation of developers -- overall, a very enlightening discussion!
How AI Changed Our Dev Jobs FOREVER - Interview With Brian Jenney
12 Aug 2025
00:51:44
Brian has one of my favorite career-switcher stories, and I'm glad that he sat down with me again to share it. In our conversation, we get to see what it was like for him to go from a low place to crushing it as a software developer.
But we're not done there, because Brian and I get into our AI tool usage. Is it safe to vibe code? Let's find out...
Data Replication Ain't Easy: Interview With Josh Hicks of Jumpmind
05 Jul 2025
00:52:34
Josh Hicks of Jumpmind knows a thing or two about just how complicated data replication can get.
On the surface, it's a simple problem. Data in one spot needs to get to another spot. Add a new location in? No problem.
... But it gets complicated FAST, and that's a problem they solve at Jumpmind.
Big thanks to Josh for sharing his career journey, featuring AWESOME networking opportunities that really demonstrate just how important it is to keep up those relationships.
----
Josh Hicks is a senior technical sales engineer at Jumpmind, a leading retail technology company in Columbus, Ohio. Jumpmindās cloud-native, mobile POS platform empowers retailers like American Eagle Outfitters, Build-A-Bear Workshop and Petco to streamline operations, enhance customer experience and achieve sustainable growth. As one of the first senior-level developers to join Jumpmind, he has played a significant role in the companyās growth since 2014. He quickly found himself involved in SymmetricDS, Jumpmindās open-source database replication software. Today, he still writes software and also works in a customer success capacity, helping customers in their first six months of their deployments. Before Jumpmind, Josh held developer roles at Abercrombie & Fitch and Blue Cross Blue Shield Michigan. He has a B.A. in Systems Analysis from the University of Miami. Outside of work, he loves spending time with his three kids, especially watching them play sports.
Leadership Principles for Software Engineers: Interview With Adrian Stanek
01 Jun 2025
00:49:23
If you think leadership topics only apply to managers and above, think again! In this video interview, I was joined by Adrian Stanek. We got chatting about leadership principles, and they're all applicable to different roles and levels.
I really like how Adrian framed his four pillars. The concepts rang very true for me, and I think there's a lot of value here for software engineers.
Engineering Management, Burnout, and Finding Purpose: Interview With Michael Greenspan
11 May 2025
00:55:17
My podcast guest went from engineer to manager to career coach -- and what a journey it's been!
In this video interview, Michael Greenspan joins me to share his career journey and shed some light on what engineering management looks like to him. We bridged into topics of burnout as well as the importance of finding purpose in the work we do.
Thanks so much for the perspective, Michael! Great chat!
- His viral post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/michael-greenspan-devmanager_becoming-engineering-manager-used-to-be-a-activity-7325155624181235712-GVFM
- Book a coaching discovery call: www.thecompleteengineer.com/bookings/discoverycall
Sales, Rejection, And Founding an AI Startup - Interview With Amer Tadayon
21 Apr 2025
00:55:49
Sometimes our original plans don't work out -- but what a masterpiece when our different paths come together for something awesome!
I was happy to sit down with Amer Tadayon and discuss his journey leading up to the creation of Lucihub.
One of the most important parts of this story I found was that not every path we pick will be perfect -- and that's 100% okay. What matters is that we keep adjusting and moving forward.
For Amer, all roads led to Lucihub! Thanks for the awesome chat!
Psychology To Software Engineering - Interview With Sofia Sarhiri
20 Apr 2025
01:09:30
One of my favorite things about interviewing developers is hearing their stories! And Sofia had a great story to share about her career switch into software development!
I really enjoyed this conversation and the focus on just how valuable soft skills are. You'll hear about Sofia's experiences and how communication plays a big role!
Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences, Sofia!
From IT Call Center to Expert DotNet Software Engineer - Interview With Dan Patrascu
21 Oct 2024
01:39:48
This is a special interview for me -- and I'm really excited to be able to share it with you.
I had the pleasure of sitting down with Dan Patrascu-Baba, also known as Codewrinkles, in this video chat.
Especially if you're a DotNet developer, you probably know Dan! He's got a ton of amazing content that he puts out regularly, and I'm always very appreciative of how he shares perspective.
When my channel had only a couple of hundred subscribers, Dan featured it in a video and it nearly doubled my subscribers over night. I was blown away!
In the time since then, I've come to appreciate and learn a lot from what Dan shares online. So for me, this was such a rewarding experience.
How To Refactor Your Brain - Interview With Dagna Bieda
21 Oct 2024
01:00:00
Software engineers are no strangers to tech debt and the power of refactoring.
But what if you could refactor your brain?
I had the pleasure of sitting down with Dagna Bieda to go over just that! We discussed some awesome passages from her new book, Brain Refactor!
From burnout to imposter syndrome to all things software engineering, hear about how you can clean up some of the legacy code that controls how you think.
Crucial Coachability Lessons In Software Engineering - Interview With Noah Cantor
08 Oct 2024
00:54:59
What's one sure-fire recipe for disaster when it comes to coaching?
Not being coachable.
This could come from a lack of self-awareness or not being willing to be coached -- but if you're not ready for it, it's going to feel like friction.
In my conversation with Noah Cantor, we walked through the various considerations that come into play when it comes to getting coaching and mentorship.
Noah's framing certainly helped me see how you can try to take all the right steps, but the order and reason behind the steps can REALLY make a difference.
From Astronaut Dreams To API Development - Interview With Sophia Willows
08 Oct 2024
01:04:03
There are product teams, platform teams... But what about...
Developing APIs for other developers to use?
In this interview with Sophia Willows, we got to chat about how she's focused on that very thing!
It turns out that when you're building a system when you own the calling and serving side of an API you can get away with a few more luxuries. However, when your customers are developers who spend time getting their own code to work with yours -- you better think twice before changing that API!
Big thanks to Sophia for this talk -- I learned a lot!
Acting, Improv, And Software Engineering - Interview With Rita Iglesias
20 Sep 2024
00:53:41
What do theater, improv, and acting have to do with software engineering?
I'll be honest: I thought not a whole heck of a lot.
But when I sat down to talk to Rita Iglesias, I couldn't help but realize how her curiosity, problem-solving, and previous experiences truly enabled her to kick butt at being a software engineer.
This conversation was AWESOME -- and Rita even stuck around while I experienced a power failure during our call! A legend!
Thank you so much for the opportunity to chat about your career journey, Rita!
Unleashing Engineering Teams With Recognition Culture - Interview With Dan Silivestru
06 Sep 2024
00:59:56
It's the people that make the workplace a fun place to go to.
These are words from Dan Silivestru in our interview that we did together -- and I couldn't agree more.
Software engineers are incredible at solving complex problems and innovating in difficult domains.
But at the end of the day, we're all still human. We all have things that motivate us. We can all get burnt out. We all want to feel valued for the work we do.
Dan and his team at Chocolate Soup are on top of all of this by focusing on employee recognition packages. Dan knows first-hand how valuable it is to have a team that feels valued.
Key Values and Dealing With Clients - Interview With Emily Jowers
25 Aug 2024
01:07:19
It's all about delivering value to the customer. But do they even know what they want?!
I was fortunate to sit down and chat with Emily Jowers where we talked about her career journey up to staff software engineer.
We chatted through her core values that she aims to embody and promote in software engineering teams -- and life in general. We also got a glimpse of how to navigate user requirements between groups of users that are hands-on and hands-off!
Work Life Balance, AI Tools, and Junior Devs - Interview With Andrew Peacock
25 Aug 2024
00:58:04
Woodworking, building a side-SaaS, having a full-time job, helping educate others, and supporting a happy family... This is a full plate.
Not only full in terms of time allocation, but also a sense of fulfillment.
How could your heart not also be full from focusing on the things you're passionate about?
In this video interview, I sat down with Andrew Peacock who shared his (un)fortunate journey to becoming a software developer and how he balances EVERYTHING going on in his world.
There are many actionable tips for junior developers and senior devs who find their plates are full. Something for everyone!
Be The Luck For Other Software Engineers - Interview With Scott Hanselman
16 Aug 2024
00:42:30
Arguably the coolest thing I've been able to do in my content creation journey for software engineers to date:
I got to sit down and chat with Scott Hanselman.
I bet that the overwhelming majority of my audience knows Scott. It's almost impossible to be in this area of tech and not know him! If you've seen a 3d printer online you definitely know Scott.
Scott is the VP of Developer Community of Microsoft -- but if you ask him, he's happy to simply say "I'm a teacher".
For those of us who know him, we've all learned a great deal from him. If this is your introduction to Scott, then I'm sure you'll be hooked on his content.
Thanks for being the luck that so many software engineers need, Scott.
License To Code With The People Whisperer - Interview With Taha Hussain
03 Aug 2024
01:09:37
I laughed FAR more than I have in any interview so far. But I also managed to pocket more lessons along the way.
In this interview with Bond, James B... wait. Wait no. That's the infamous Taha Hussain!
Taha was an absolute pleasure to talk with for this interview. Truly, I spent so much time laughing and being engaged by his amazing story-telling.
But it's not just some fictional tale -- These are lessons from Taha's impressive career journey. Group Engineering Manager at Microsoft. Senior Director. Head of Engineering.
And now -- Career Coach.
You're going to love this one. Thanks so much, Taha!
Remote Work And Being A Better Dev - Interview With Eric Roby
19 Jul 2024
01:05:23
There's one thing for sure that I know about Eric Roby.
This guy knows how to do remote work.
He also:
- Understands how to navigate customer interactions
- Knows the benefits of soft skills for developers
- Has success with digital courses
- Is an awesome content creator
- Has my next haircut
Eric was an absolute pleasure to talk to in this interview, and I'm sure you'll learn a lot from his experiences. Many engineers go most if not all of their careers without ever having to directly interact with customers.
It's a shame.
You can hear first-hand from Eric what these experiences are like along with all of his great advice!
Fuel that brain with interesting topics to stay on top of! And that's exactly what Alex Zajac does with his approach for Hungry Minds!
I had the pleasure to sit down with Alex and hear his story about how he found an interest for coding. He was able to take that interest and transform it into starting his career at Amazon with some of his close friends.
Not only that!
Alex is a successful content creator focusing on software engineering and artificial intelligence! He's been doing an awesome job with his newsletter, Hungry Minds, so make sure you check it out!
The Secret To Deploy on Fridays - Interview With Vasilii Oleinic
06 Jul 2024
01:08:21
You fear Friday Deployments. We live for them.
We are not the same.
I had the pleasure of sitting down to talk with Vasilii Oleinic about his career journey, his focus on software architecture, and how he approaches testing.
He had many interesting perspectives that I really enjoyed hearing about, including how to frame up a proof-of-concept vs software systems that need to be robust. Of course, Vasilii also explained his testing philosophies and how his career has helped shape them.
Stay tuned and learn how you can deploy on Fridays! Thanks for the talk, Vasilii!
Unlock Your Engineering Confidence - Interview With Maria Glazunova
28 Jun 2024
01:01:56
I've said it a million times and I'll say it a million more: Communication is a critical skill for software engineers. And if you don't want to listen to me, listen to Maria Glazunova who I had the pleasure of interviewing in this video!
Maria coaches many software engineers and tech professionals on how to improve their communication skills. Many of these people have English as their second (or third) language -- but the fundamentals of what we discuss regarding communication apply to EVERYONE.
Should You Join A Coding Bootcamp? - Interview With Brooke Sweedar
28 Jun 2024
01:01:13
My journey through software engineering was pretty traditional: go to college/university directly after high school to study... then go into the workforce. But it's important that we keep an open mind about the different paths that aspiring software engineers can take to get into the industry.
In this video, I was joined by Brooke Sweedar who shared with me her journey through coding Bootcamp. It's great to hear about her successes going through such a program and understanding what made this such a valuable experience for her.
Software Engineering, Big Tech, and Agile - Interview With Jade Wilson
28 Jun 2024
00:59:14
I was joined by Jade Wilson in this video interview! Jade is not only a senior software engineer at Microsoft, but a successful content creator. When we got to talking, it was really cool to hear that we have very different experiences with how our teams approach building software:
- My teams go through a pseudo-agile / waterfall hybrid (i.e. we try to be agile but commitments are done on larger horizons)
- Jade gets to work DIRECTLY with customers quite regularly
A huge takeaway from Jade in this video was that it's *NOT* just about picking Scrum or Kanban... The entire point is to find things that work well for your team. Copy+pasting some process and blindly following it without adapting things is probably not going to be ideal.
Imposter Syndrome and YOU - Interview With Julia Hohenadel
28 Jun 2024
00:53:18
Imposter syndrome is something that affects many people -- especially software engineers! But imposter syndrome is not just limited to aspiring programmers or junior software engineers... In fact, the more success you have, often the more imposter syndrome that you encounter.
In this video, I was joined by a previous intern of mine (Woohoo Magnet Forensics!), Julia Hohenadel, who knows allllll about imposter syndrome. Julia is a great speaker on imposter syndrome, and I've even had her come to speak at Microsoft for us!
Senior to Principal Engineer in Big Tech - Interview With Bhavana Hindupur
28 Jun 2024
00:43:22
In this interview, Bhavana Hindupur enlightened me with some different perspectives about the challenges going through tech. She explained how cultural background and expectations from society can create additional barriers when navigating how to progress in the workplace.
One of the great points that Bhavana brought up was about her turning point in her career going from senior to principal level -- You need to be the one driving the change!
It's An šøAlien Invasionšø In Blazor! - Interview With Mohamad Dbouk
28 Jun 2024
01:04:31
Don't worry though -- the aliens won't hurt you. I confirmed this with Mohamad Dbouk when we sat down to discuss his journey in software engineering and he surprised me with an awesome little demo of a Blazor game!
Not only was this the very first show-and-tell code we got to see from a guest on the channel, but Mohamad had other very insightful things to share.
One of my biggest takeaways?
You can have an amazing and fulfilling career without having to chase down higher and higher levels. In fact, by being honest with yourself about where your passion is and how skilled you feel you are, you can have an excellent trajectory AND have a very rewarding career.