Leadership Launchpad – Details, episodes & analysis

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Leadership Launchpad

Matt Gjertsen - Better Every Day Studios

Business

Education

Frequency: 1 episode/7d. Total Eps: 198

Welcome to the Leadership Launchpad where we help technical managers improve themselves, their teams, and their organizations. Host Matt Gjertsen — former Air Force instructor pilot and head of training and development at SpaceX — brings hard-won lessons from the world's most demanding organizations to help new managers lead with clarity and confidence. Each episode cuts through the noise with practical frameworks, real stories, and straight talk on what it actually takes to build high-performing teams in aerospace, defense, and beyond. Whether you're managing engineers, navigating organizational chaos, or just trying not to let your team down, Leadership Launchpad gives you the tools to get better every day.

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Data updated on 09/09/2026

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Score global : 49%

Publication history

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Mastering Organizational Development w/ Gabrielle Rufrano

Episode 206

Tuesday, September 8, 2026 • Duration 30:31

In this episode, Gabrielle Rufrano, a doctoral candidate in Industrial and Organizational Psychology at Clemson University, shares insights from her experiences in both large organizations like NASA and fast-paced startups in the energy sector. She discusses the fundamentals of industrial and organizational psychology, emphasizing the importance of evidence-based practices and organizational culture. Gabrielle compares the structured, mission-driven culture at NASA with the more flexible but less unified environment of a startup, highlighting how organizational maturity and resources impact the implementation of research-backed development practices. She also explores the gap between academic research and practical application in industry, and how both sides can improve collaboration for better workplace outcomes.

Timestamps

00:00 – Introduction to Gabrielle Rufrano and discussion of organizational culture
02:17 – Explanation of industrial and organizational psychology
03:17 – How research is conducted and validated in the field
06:08 – Example of experimental research with workplace bias
10:14 – Comparison of NASA and startup cultures
14:21 – Details of organizational development work at NASA
19:54 – The value of organizational culture and its real-world impact
22:25 – Challenges in applying research in fast-moving industries
27:02 – Key lessons for bridging academia and industry

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Empowering Teams in Fast-Growing Startups w/ Shan Mohta

Episode 205

Tuesday, September 1, 2026 • Duration 31:47

In this episode, Shan Mohta, co-founder and CEO of Vendra, discusses his journey building a manufacturing platform aimed at streamlining the process of ordering custom parts in the US, with a focus on aerospace and defense. Shan Mohta shares how Vendra leverages software to match customer designs with the best-fit suppliers, improving supply chain resilience and reducing lead times. He provides insights into his leadership style, shaped by experiences at major tech companies and startups, emphasizing accessibility and decision-making empowerment for his team. The discussion also covers the early pivots in Vendra’s product direction, the value of direct and constructive feedback, and lessons learned from collaborating with both large and small manufacturing customers.

Important Timestamps

00:00: Shan Mohta shares how brutal early feedback shaped Vendra.
00:45: Introduction to Vendra’s mission and customer base.
03:00: How Vendra streamlines custom parts manufacturing.
04:19: The importance of supply chain resilience.
06:16: How Vendra scales from prototypes to large production runs.
10:24: Lessons from large companies vs. startups and impact on Vendra’s culture.
13:32: Empowering teams to make decisions and developing a coaching mindset.
18:30: Creating clear decision-making constraints for team members.
23:33: What inspired Shan to found Vendra.
25:50: The importance of honest feedback and Vendra’s pivotal moments.
30:00: Building a culture of customer feedback and continuous improvement.

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Navigating Career Paths as a Team Leader w/ Rich Phipps

Episode 204

Tuesday, August 25, 2026 • Duration 37:01

In this episode, Rich Phipps, former manager of technicians and development tests at SpaceX’s McGregor test facility and a veteran submariner, shares his leadership journey from the Navy to SpaceX. He discusses transitioning from a technician to a leadership role, the differences and similarities between leading in the military and in a high-tech environment, and the importance of influence, communication, and trust. Rich outlines how his teams tackled challenges such as team integration, career progression, and minimizing workplace distractions. He also provides a definition of leadership that has guided his approach, emphasizing aligning diverse skills towards a shared mission. Listeners gain practical insights into fostering collaboration between engineers and technicians, building meaningful workplace relationships, and creating clear career development paths in dynamic, fast-paced organizations.

Important Timestamps

[00:00:00] Introduction to influence as the essence of leadership
[00:02:08] Rich Phipps describes his career path and experiences at SpaceX
[00:04:00] Transitioning from technical expert to formal people leader in the Navy
[00:08:42] Challenges moving from military leadership to entry-level technician at SpaceX
[00:12:13] Comparing leadership and management: skills versus position
[00:16:31] Strategies for bridging the engineer-technician gap
[00:21:12] Addressing career progression as a workplace distraction
[00:25:08] Developing clear technician career paths at SpaceX
[00:29:04] Rich’s guiding definition of leadership and five key leadership concepts

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Top Leadership Lessons for Technical Managers w/ Matt Gjertsen

Episode 203

Tuesday, August 18, 2026 • Duration 22:05

This episode of Leadership Launchpad celebrates a milestone: surpassing the 200th episode mark.

The conversation features a recap of top insights and leadership lessons from previous standout guests, including Steph Bertmer (Pinterest), Megan Galloway (EverLeader), Matt Kuda (Voyager Technologies), Holly Betke (StockX), General John Teichert (Edwards Air Force Base), Jesse Kleekamp (K2 Space), Brian Manning (ZonaSpace), Ian Marrone (Apex), Paul Cotillion (Applied Atomics), and Casey Hanrahan (Terraform Industries).

Key topics include leading through change, the importance of transparency, building influence, the challenges of management, hiring rigor, coaching conversations, and embracing autonomy as a leader.

Important Timestamps

00:00: Introduction and episode milestone
02:02: Lessons from Steph Bertmer on leading through change and communicating with teams
04:02: Megan Galloway on centers of influence in organizational change
05:50: Matt Kuda's analogy on pushing limits and accepting mistakes in leadership
08:45: Holly Betke on getting buy-in and identifying team misalignment
10:45: General John Teichert on fostering innovation and closing the feedback loop
12:29: Jesse Kleekamp’s approach to rigorous hiring at K2 Space
14:17: Brian Manning’s advice on the transition from engineer to people manager
15:36: Ian Marrone’s introduction to the GROW model for coaching conversations
17:49: Paul Cotillion on transparency and financial reality in startups
19:11: Casey Hanrahan on the core challenge of management and prioritizing team success
21:57: Closing remarks and final thoughts on the new book

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Leading Without Authority in Tech Teams w/ Lindy Elkins-Tanton

Episode 202

Tuesday, August 11, 2026 • Duration 33:30

In this episode of Leadership Launchpad, Lindy Elkins-Tanton, Director of the Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory and Principal Investigator of NASA’s Psyche mission, shares insights on leading high-stakes, technical teams. She explains the objectives and significance of the Psyche mission—humanity’s first deep exploration of a metal-rich asteroid—and offers a detailed look at her role as principal investigator. The discussion covers leadership challenges, including leading with responsibility but limited authority, fostering open communication, and the value of surfacing problems early. Elkins-Tanton also addresses the unique pressures placed on teams during COVID-19 and strategies for maintaining effective collaboration across dispersed workforces. The episode concludes with reflections on the scientific mysteries of asteroid 16 Psyche and the excitement of pioneering new frontiers in space science.

Timestamps for Key Moments:

02:34: Explanation of the Psyche mission’s goals and significance
04:36: The principal investigator role defined
07:00: Leading without formal authority
10:24: Transition from technical work to leading teams
14:42: The importance of surfacing bad news early
17:45: Creating a culture where junior team members can speak up
25:20: Leadership challenges during COVID-19
31:16: Scientific questions guiding the Psyche mission
32:33: Upcoming mission milestones

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Why Ownership Is the Foundation of Great Engineering w/ Seth Kovnat

Episode 201

Tuesday, August 4, 2026 • Duration 31:30

Everyone talks about ownership.

Very few people can actually explain what it looks like.

Seth Kovnat spent six years at SpaceX helping scale Falcon launches from 24 to 148 missions a year before joining Impulse Space as Director of Vehicle Engineering. Along the way, he developed a way of thinking about engineering that goes far beyond technical ability.

At the center of that mindset is the Responsible Engineer.

Not someone who owns a part.

Someone who owns the outcome.

We get into why ownership isn't about protecting your work. It's about bringing in the right people, inviting criticism early, and doing whatever gives the mission the best chance of succeeding. That sounds simple, but it's a very different way of leading technical teams than most organizations practice.

We also talk about what changes when engineers become leaders, why letting go of technical control is one of the hardest transitions to make, and how great engineering organizations create cultures where responsibility grows with every level of the organization instead of getting bottlenecked at the top.

If you lead engineers, build products, or care about creating teams that move fast without sacrificing quality, this conversation is packed with practical lessons from someone who's helped build at the highest level.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

[00:00] Introduction
[00:03:13] Why Seth wrote an engineering children's book
[00:08:00] Building vehicles at Impulse Space
[00:10:10] The responsible engineer mindset
[00:12:18] What SpaceX got right about ownership
[00:18:16] Building a culture of ownership
[00:21:19] Why planning beats reacting
[00:23:00] Failing smart instead of failing busy

The Leadership Shift Every Engineer Has to Make w/ Ashley Chang

Episode 200

Tuesday, July 28, 2026 • Duration 29:44

Most engineers become leaders because they're great at solving problems.

Then they get promoted... and suddenly the thing that made them successful starts getting in the way.

If you've ever struggled to delegate, found yourself jumping in to fix everything, or wondered why your team keeps bringing every problem back to you, this conversation will probably hit close to home.

Ashley Chang started her career as an engineer and now leads training and development at Anduril. She talks about what really changes when you move from individual contributor to leader, and why leading isn't about having all the answers anymore. It's about asking better questions, setting clear expectations, and creating an environment where your team can solve problems without depending on you.

We also get into why so many companies confuse "don't micromanage" with "don't lead," why coaching is a skill that has to be developed, and why technical experts don't automatically become great teachers just because they're the best at the job.

If you're leading engineers, manufacturing teams, or any technical organization, this episode is a practical conversation about what actually changes when your job shifts from doing the work to helping other people do it well.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

[00:00] Introduction
[00:02:38] Why engineers struggle when they become managers
[00:05:48] Finding the right balance between delegation and micromanagement
[00:09:16] What makes technical training different
[00:11:32] Breaking old habits and creating new standards
[00:14:00] Why great performers don't always make great trainers
[00:17:12] Asking better questions instead of giving answers
[00:22:28] Why training should be treated like a product
[00:25:57] Overcommunication beats undercommunication

Why Most Leadership Training Doesn’t Translate to the Floor w/ Craig Coyle

Episode 199

Tuesday, June 23, 2026 • Duration 44:37

Most companies say they’re developing leaders.

But when you look at what actually happens on the floor, or inside a new manager’s first real team, it doesn’t line up.

Craig Coyle spent years as an Army aviator and now works with frontline leaders in manufacturing and defense environments. What he saw in both worlds is the same gap, people are promoted into leadership, then left to figure it out in real time, without the structure they were used to as operators.

In aviation, that doesn’t happen. You don’t just become a pilot in command and get told to figure it out. There’s progression, there’s repetition, there’s instructor pilots inside the mission, not outside of it.

That contrast is what drives this conversation.

We talk through what changes when leadership is treated like a skill that needs structured training instead of something people just “grow into.” And why most development programs fall short, not because the content is wrong, but because it’s removed from the environment where the work actually happens.

There’s also a deeper problem underneath it all, most organizations don’t have a clear definition of what “good” looks like for a manager. So people default to whatever worked for them personally, or whatever their last boss did. That inconsistency is what creates the gap between intent and execution.

Craig breaks down what he’s building now, a model that treats leadership development less like theory and more like progression inside a system, similar to how pilots are trained over time, not in isolated workshops.

If you lead people, or you’re responsible for people who lead people, this episode is really about one thing, what it would take to make leadership actually show up on the floor, not just in training materials.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

[00:00] Introduction

[00:01:00] Most people don’t know what training actually is

Building a Training Program for a Technical Team with Roy Samson

Episode 198

Tuesday, June 16, 2026 • Duration 49:59

Most technical training programs fail before the first technician ever sets foot in the room. Not because the content is wrong. Because the entire design is wrong.

Traditional training asks: did they understand it? Technical training asks something harder: can they actually do it? And in aerospace, where it takes a million things to go right and one thing to go wrong.

In this first ever live episode of the Leadership Launchpad, Matt sits down with Roy Samson, a technical training veteran from the aerospace industry. Together they break down what it actually takes to build a training program for a technical team.

What you'll learn:

Why "passing the course" isn't the same as being ready — and how to handle the gap
How to decide how much theory a technician actually needs (and when to skip it entirely)
What "building an OS for quality" means and why it matters more than any curriculum
How to build credibility with subject matter experts when you don't have a technical background
Why training will happen in your org whether you plan it or not — and why that should scare you

For engineering managers, technical leads, and L&D professionals trying to build real capability in hard tech environments.

New episodes weekly. Subscribe and drop a comment if you want us to go deeper on any of these topics.

Learn more at BuiltLeaders.com

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How Great Leaders Build Alignment Without Slowing Down Execution

Episode 197

Tuesday, June 9, 2026 • Duration 35:50

Most leaders talk about speed. Ian Walsh doesn’t.

In this conversation, he separates speed from what actually matters in leadership: velocity, meaning speed with direction. Ian has spent his career in aerospace and defense, from flying Marine Cobra attack helicopters to leading companies through scale and transformation. Now as CEO of FDH Aero, he is operating inside an industry that is growing fast and getting more complex.

He starts every new role in listen and learn mode. No immediate changes, no playbook, just understanding how the business actually works. That mindset carries through how he thinks about scaling. Fixing a business is about rebuilding capability. Scaling is about making sure the core can support growth without breaking when conditions change.

A big part of his approach is how decisions move through an organization. Push them closer to the work, but keep clear guardrails and one accountable owner for each outcome. He also focuses on a few simple questions: do people know where they are going and how fast, are decisions stuck at the top, and do people actually feel accountable.

At the center of it all is communication. When people are guessing, alignment breaks. And when alignment breaks, everything slows down, even if it looks like progress. This episode is a grounded look at leadership inside complex environments where clarity and ownership matter more than anything else.

If you are early in your career, this is a blueprint for how leaders think. If you are more experienced, it is a check on whether you are still getting the basics right.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

[00:00] Speed is dangerous, velocity requires direction
[00:02:49] Aerospace as a constantly evolving global industry
[00:06:36] Starting any new role in listen and learn mode
[00:10:24] The difference between fixing and scaling a business

Leadership Launchpad – Details, episodes & analysis

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Leadership Launchpad – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

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Apple Podcasts

Spotify

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Other56

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LinkedIn54

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