Andy Pai

Are Return-To-Office Mandates Really Just Mass Layoffs In Disguise? -- Amazon's Recent RTO Mandate Is Not Going Over Well. Or Is It? https://lnkd.in/eJTxUPKr #startup #technology #work #rto

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Starting a company is one of the boldest moves anyone can make, and after a decade of working with early-stage founders from Google to Sequoia, I’ve learned the hardest part is often taking that first leap. It’s terrifying to share your idea and face the question, “Is this worth working on?” But that initial feedback is what transforms uncertainty into action, and every great company began with someone brave enough to ask for it. That’s why I’ve teamed up with Afore Capital (the folks who originally popularized the "pre-Seed" category) to launch a Rapid-Fire Idea Pitch Session—a chance for tech builders to get quick, actionable feedback and build the confidence to move forward or pivot. If you’re tinkering on an idea, waiting for the right moment to share it—this is it. Apply here: https://lu.ma/3bt43xi5

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👀 Hidden jobs! 👀 (Sorry/NotSorry for the clickbait title) 😎 I recently learned that there are many VC (Venture Capital) firms out there that maintain their own job boards for open positions at the companies that they invest in. This is a great resource to find openings at startups (and some pretty well established companies, too) that may not be listed here on LinkedIn or other boards. I thought it would be useful to put together a list of the ones I have found so far. If you are looking for work, check out my list! (A work in progress, but please repost and share). https://lnkd.in/gnQsb3H8 Oh and did I mention that I am #opentowork and looking for a new role in Engineering Management? Check out my profile and HMU if you've got something interesting! 🙏 Thanks!

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AI and the Workforce (Your and My job) of the Future One of the most frequent questions I hear is, "What will happen to employees like John or Susan if we implement AI solutions for tasks like pricing or demand planning?" These concerns often come from managers or VPs who might be thinking about: - Employee reduction - Replacing retiring staff - Helping current staff adapt to future changes We need to shift our mindset. Instead of viewing technology as a job destroyer, let's see it as a job re-definer. For instance, companies new to AI will quickly realize that automation can handle routine tasks. Remember the early 2000s when coordinating a meeting required countless emails? Today, tools like Gmail, Microsoft Outlook, and Calendly automate this task, freeing up time for salespeople to write better emails or contact prospects. For high-skill tasks, AI complements professionals. Employees like John and Susan won't need to manually run reports or update Excel models. AI will automate data cleaning and model updates, allowing them to focus on strategic decision-making. In this way, AI saves time on repetitive tasks, enabling employees to tackle more valuable work. The future workforce will enjoy more interesting and meaningful work because AI will complement what we do. Let's rethink how we approach technology in the workplace. #FutureOfWork #AI #WorkforceTransformation #Innovation Ilustration Qianhui yu (wired.com)

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A few weeks ago I posed a question. How many members should the board of directors of a "typical" company have? The overwhelming response was 4-5 (67%). Generally - this number makes sense for a lot of private companies. If we define "typical" as an early-stage or growth-stage startup, 4-5 seems about right. 5 is probably a good number for an established company with 7-figure revenue in a mature industry. Maybe a case can be made for 7 when there's deep expertise or industry connections required... or a lot of money has been raised in a short time. The topic of board size and composition came up recently in the context of startup companies. When you raise money, are you adding board seats? If so - who do those seats go to, and how does that ultimately impact the company? It's important to balance the board for the interests of the business. How awkward is it to have the founder and largest shareholder standing alone against 3 large investors when money is tight? I found this article to be an excellent run through of several topics impacting startup boards. In a startup company, your board of directors can be a tremendous asset if considered, managed and grown strategically. https://lnkd.in/gDbzV_C9

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Sitting at the airport on my way out for some well deserved R&R, so I’m catching up on some reading. This ProdPad blog post on growth strategies reminds us that, “a hybrid approach might be your golden ticket.” Take a look. Remember, one size does not fit all! #strategy #product #productledgrowth #productmanagement #salesledgrowth

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Urgency is the heartbeat of high-performing teams and companies. Without it, even the most talented teams risk falling into a plateau of low-level productivity. Leaders must consistently drive tempo and intensity to avoid this trap—aligning everyone towards ambitious goals and maintaining focus on what matters most. At the No Priors podcast, Frank Slootman of Snowflake says it best: urgency isn’t just about speed. It’s about setting higher standards, fostering alignment, and ensuring the team thrives under a shared mission. It’s the fuel that powers extraordinary outcomes and defines a company’s culture. At Magento, this mindset wasn’t just a guiding principle—it was an expectation. We fostered momentum and drive—setting ambitious milestones and encouraging the team to move fast and deliver results. Complacency wasn’t an option, and we worked hard to avoid it. The result? A team that consistently delivered exceptional outcomes by staying focused. Each milestone wasn’t just a win—it reinforced our culture of high performance and collaboration. For leaders, the plateau is a choice. ➡️ What strategies do you use to avoid the productivity plateau? https://lnkd.in/gmEFnWCw

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Great insight from Christian Ulstrup on AI as the Founder Mode enabler. Here is the Founder Mode definition for the uninitiated: https://lnkd.in/dmXZpCSw Founders are directly responsible for the grand vision and for the daily grind. Gen AI is the force multiplier. Those who use it will get ahead.

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You don't need an ROI calculator to see how the right data can pay for itself a thousand times over. In this detailed case study at Purdue University, Rob Wynkoop demonstrates how occupancy data supports the university's objectives and helps navigate politics and personalities on the path to real savings. #spaceplanning #campusmanagement

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My $.02 🙁 Is it just me but does naming professional industry events "speed dating" seem: 1) inappropriate; 2) degrading to both startup or large vendors trying to solve public sector issues by trying to address a solution within a finite amount of time; and 3) minimize the challenges the government is try to address with 5-10 minute speed 'discovery' sessions? 💡 In my experience, the government should dictate the requirements and if they have the requirements, they need to have someone at these events who understand the mission. Of those government representatives to "talk to small businesses" usually do not understand the problems needing to be solved, are not decision-makers nor stakeholders in the problem and do not have budget to discuss whether the small business is a good fit. ⏱ For everyone, time is the most important, and limited, resource we all have. Blocking off an entire day hoping to 'make a connection' is incredibly frustrating and inefficient. If you really care about making the connection, you would be thoughtful and mindful about the hours these event take out of a team's schedule. Think of a new way to approach this. Maybe identify the agency priorities, put out a call to industry (both large and small companies), have them submit against those requirements, then hold a smaller event for . Compound that by calling it "speed dating" diminishes the professional nature of the relationship. Can't we just call these events industry days and state that there will be prime vendors to discuss small business partnerships and potential opportunities with DIA? And if this is a real problem you want to solve, you want more than 5-30 minutes to discuss, scope and clearly articulate and describe your goal.

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Great article from Melissa Perri on getting clarity from “fuzzy company strategy”. https://lnkd.in/gJg_WH-y Navigating a company strategy that feels vague or unclear can be frustrating. The good news? By focusing on how your company creates value and asking the right questions, you can cut through the confusion.   Clarify Strategy with Value Drivers - Focus initiatives on how they create value: * Increase or protect revenue. * Reduce or avoid costs. Key Questions to Gain Clarity - Business Impact: “What do we hope to achieve?” - Customer Focus: “Which customers and needs are we addressing?” - Trade-offs: “What’s more important between competing priorities?” - Success Metrics: “How will we measure success?” Steps to Navigate Unclear Strategies - Document patterns, priorities, and measurable outcomes. - Highlight gaps and present findings to spark strategic discussions. - Take initiative to align strategies, positioning yourself as a leader. Even without perfect clarity, you can move forward with confidence.

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So many exciting updates coming to WunderGraph Cosmo in the next couple months. If you are in the #API space / #GraphQL space, I'd appreciate if you can comment or like this post for reach. Really looking to expand my network with other API Fanatics. I mean look at this Advance Request Tracing? Can you imagine if you could see the path visually all your API calls make 👀👀 Fully understand a request and why your queries be slow or behave unexpectedly.

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The reason I co-founded Storytell.ai is to build AI with integrity. But what does that mean and how do we do it? Excited to share my first substack to touch on this more deeply. One thing I'm sure about: we have to get on the same side of the table to create the world we want to see.

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Disclaimer: This post does not include any political commentary! After watching last night’s US Presidential debate I found that it offered valuable presentation and communication lessons. I find them especially relevant for product and tech leaders. Here are my five key takeaways: 1. Two minutes is plenty of time to convey your point.  Being a concise communicator is a skill. When you speak for too long you risk losing your audience’s attention. 2. Always answer the question before delving into anecdotes or tangents.  If you take too long to respond to the question you run the risk of frustrating your audience and even forgetting your point. 3. Maintain your composure.  While passion for your opinion or topic is good, avoid sounding defensive or argumentative. Take a breath before answering to slow yourself down and gather your thoughts. 4. Be credible.   Your audience needs to trust you. Everything you assert should be something you are confident you can back up with data or evidence. Unlike the debate you always have opportunity to provide your audience with follow-up information after the meeting. 5. Tailor your content to your audience.  Presidential candidates know the issues their constituents care about, and they insert them into their answers (while not always subtle, it’s certainly entertaining). They also don’t dive too deep into the details. The average American doesn’t need to be an economics major or an expert in foreign policy to follow the debate; nor should your colleagues or customers need to be software engineers to understand your product presentation. Until next time… happy presenting!

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As AI reshapes our industry, I'm proud of the thoughtful approach our team at Vanilla is taking. Our CTO, Amjad Hussain, recently shared our guiding principles for AI integration:  - Productivity: Simplifying workflows to focus on high-impact work  - Accuracy: Ensuring transparency and user control  - Customer Trust: Prioritizing security without using customer data to train models These principles aren't just words - they're the foundation of V/AI, our purpose-built AI engine for estate planning. What excites me most is how these innovations are already enhancing our ability to serve clients. We're seeing faster onboarding, deeper insights, and more time for advisors to focus on strategic planning. But we're not stopping here. As Amjad emphasized, we're committed to building in partnership with our customers and the broader wealth management industry.  #justvanilla https://lnkd.in/gf2Wfe44 

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Curious about what Layr is up to? Learn more about our plans and why we’re the go-to solution for small brokerage firms looking to grow their small book profitability.

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How do you get from bootstrapping and maxing credit cards to $100M ARR? Every aspiring founder and executive can hear first hand from Huntress' CEO, Kyle Hanslovan, what the journey has been like during this gritty and raw interview with Huntress investor, Kleiner Perkins. #grit #growthmindset #CEOs #startup #bootstrap #cybersecurity

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Work is distributed, but most leaders struggle to get it right. 😱 It’s costing their business and creating opportunity for the competition. "Our results suggest that return to office policies can lead to an outflow of senior employees, posing a potential threat to the productivity, innovation, and competitiveness of the wider firm." Our conversations with leaders are unlocking a new cycle of work that engages company, team and employees. ----------------------------------------------------- Help us build a better world of team connection! 👋 Hi! I'm Sophie, Co-Founder of WorkTripp. We're pioneering new ways to enhance team connectivity and are seeking 100 beta testers for our latest platform update. Interested in making teamwork better? Get involved here: https://lnkd.in/eSMGGAuj #TeamConnection #EmployeeEngagement #FutureOfWork

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Dear Gentle Readers, A Misguided Approach to SOEs: More Chaos, Less Clarity Transferring shareholder responsibility for state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to line ministries may exacerbate existing dysfunctions rather than resolve them. This approach risks deepening political interference and complicating governance structures, as evidenced by global best practices such as Singapore’s Temasek, where SOEs are commercially viable and operate free from political manipulation. Such organizational restructuring lacks a data-driven rationale. Analyzing the available data would likely reveal that without addressing core inefficiencies, such as poor management, lack of clear mandates, and unprofitable business models, any structural adjustment is unlikely to produce positive outcomes. The failure to specify performance metrics, a clear path to financial viability, or a framework for minimizing political interference suggests a gap between theory and implementation. Ultimately, adding another corporate layer could centralize corruption risks rather than foster transparency and accountability. A thorough analysis would consider these factors, demonstrating that without fundamental reform in management practices and financial oversight, reshuffling SOEs merely shifts responsibility without solving the underlying issues. To truly improve performance, a clear, evidence-based policy framework is essential. Until then, the proposed changes risk being a recipe for further chaos.

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