Benny Wong

What is the ideal career path for managers? I recently had the pleasure of speaking with Jen Dary on the Scaling Tech Podcast. Apple Podcasts - https://lnkd.in/egKeE9hy YouTube - https://lnkd.in/e3GWsU7H In this episode of the Scaling Tech podcast, Jen and Arin discuss essential leadership qualities and tackle some of the most common challenges managers face today. Whether you’re a seasoned tech leader or just starting your journey, this episode is packed with practical advice that will help you become the leader your team truly needs. Check it out now!

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Boston friends who work in an office building: I want to rent some of your office space. Just a desk or three. For the last year, Max Metral and myself—and the occasional Sesame friend or two—have been working out of a co-working space. It's been great! Human interaction! Pairing live on problems! The occasional game of "guess what some hooligan microwaved in the common kitchen!" Having a forced-reason to change out of pajamas more often! All lovely. But we got to thinking the other day. Like most metropolitan areas, there's _a ton_ of empty office space in Boston. It's a bit of a problem. There has to be some opportunity without relying on a co-working business. It seemed worth a try to broadcast this out to see if anyone had any space just sitting around that they'd prefer be used in exchange for some income. Because I know some of you work in buildings around here. In fact, I know some of you work in buildings where your company name utterly dominates the Boston skyline and is likely visible from space (cough Ryan Aghdam cough)! How many Harry Potter "room under the stairs"-esque desks are just sitting there all cold and lonely? We could be your Harry Potters. We could put those undesirable desks to good use. If this sounds like you, we want to work near you! Look at it this way: for the low, low price of negative whatever we're able to pay you, you too can work near a certified* genius! And I'll be there, too! Sometimes I even bring in donuts (so, you know, there's my value-add). So what do you say? Have a few desks burning a hole in your office layout? Want to eat donuts sometimes? Want to hear Max (respectfully and at a reasonable volume) absolutely school me on some obscure technical thing that means little to nothing to most well-rounded humans? Let me know! * - Max is a certified genius according to me, the guy who brings the donuts.

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Experts say LLMS have delayed the arrival of true AGI. But lets face it- most work tasks dont need that intelligence anyways. As AI agents (say LLamaIndex React agents) get smarter, they will automate most routine tasks like following up over email, setting meetings, reading email/documents and comparing them and alerting on key points). I think this will lead to less hiring at some point. The remote work culture will actually facilitate this as there is no difference between a person emailing or doing a chat vs a bot/agent. Skills like empathy, perseverance and patience , aligning people, attention to detail and mastery over subject matter will always be in demand while anyone without this will not survive this change.

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𝗡𝗲𝘁𝗳𝗹𝗶𝘅’𝘀 𝗟𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀: 𝗔 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 Netflix stock is soaring over 11% after its latest earnings report. The company exceeded expectations with EPS of $5.40 (vs. $5.12) and revenue of $9.83 billion (vs. $9.77 billion). Looking ahead, Netflix projects 15% revenue growth and a six-point improvement in operating margins. By 2025, they expect revenue to hit $43-44 billion—$4-5 billion more than 2024. Here are 𝟯 𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻𝘀 we can all learn from Netflix’s approach: 1. 𝗙𝗶𝘅𝗲𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 Netflix spreads its fixed content costs over a growing audience, with 14% subscriber growth and increasing engagement. Whether it's hit series or sports offerings like NFL games, their content model scales profitably with each new viewer. 2. 𝗚𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄 Netflix’s strategic moves, like offering free sports events, and a lower priced ad tier prove that giving value leads to growth. As Co-CEO Ted Sarandos stated in the Q3 earnings call, “Engagement drives retention and acquisition, which in turn places more value on a Netflix subscription”​. This strategy keeps users engaged and drives new signups. 3. 𝗡𝗼 𝗡𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗕𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗲—𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗲 Unlike other platforms, Netflix doesn’t rely on traditional bundles. With a wide range of content, including live sports, they are the ultimate bundle, growing through value-driven engagement without complex packaging. While other companies raise prices or experiment with aggressive strategies, Netflix shows that 𝗳𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗲𝘅𝗲𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 lead to sustainable growth. Full transcripts: https://lnkd.in/g3mEDWcH #Strategy #BusinessGrowth

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The bunny narrative (aka outcome-oriented writing) is also a precondition to influencing at higher organizational levels in larger organizations, i.e. everywhere you see deciders who do not have enough context about the problem and the outcomes. The main difference is that when you propose a solution, you describe the current problem, what should be done, and the impact you expect to have. It is also harder and more work than it looks to be able to write a good bunny narrative.

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The goal we’re trying to get to as an industry is autonomous advertising. That means media planning, bidding, measurement, and optimization are automated. The first jump in automation was direct IOs to electronic buying (DSPs). We’re about to experience another quantum leap from today’s DSPs to autonomous advertising driven by AI. People will say, “You can’t just give me start date, end date, budget, and goal and hand it off to the machines.” Except… you can. This is already what Google and Meta do for SMBs via PMax and Advantage+. Of course, the largest brands will want more control. But as they see how effective this technology is, they will adopt it — and humans will stop doing the grunt work of programmatic doom scrolling. Very soon, creating a media plan, bidding, and optimizing manually will seem ridiculous. A trader will enter instructions into an LLM to create a media plan in minutes. An AI bidding agent will work on your behalf to get the cheapest possible price from the publisher. The religion of attribution will give way to a more simplified approach of measurement that flips the scales toward incrementality. And optimization algorithms will break out of the current rules based system to give way to autonomous decisioning. Yes there will be humans who orchestrate all of this. It’s the humans that provide the context. AI can generate machine driven insights but it’s the human that turns it into a strategic insight. Advertising is about to experience its greatest leap since the dawn of programmatic.

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My partner came to me distraught the other day and wanted to ask me about being consistent. She's the editor in chief and primary author of a local magazine about art in Philly called AMAT. She has subscribers who pay for the magazine to be delivered to their homes. She's basically crushing it. But she was upset. She was worried that she's not publishing frequently enough. She said "Rhoen, it's hard living with you when you're so consistent! You publish to your Substack every month. You publish to LinkedIn every day. You're literally writing a book, about being consistent! How do you do it! It's intimidating living with you!" My reaction was that it was an unfair comparison. You can't compare your own work and processes to other people. Her writing process is completely different from mine. She had described to me that she needs about a month to actually process and synthesize the art before she can start writing. The type of art critique she does isn't about an instant reaction to an experience, it's about explaining the impact and significance that art has over time. And it takes time to process those ideas and feelings. And that's not to mention that she literally prints and mails the magazine to her subscribers in addition to posting online. That's a whole entire process that I've never had to think about with my writing. The lesson from this story, in my opinion, is to be more generous with yourself. You really don't know the struggles or ease that other people go through to have the output that they do. You only see the results. So focus on your own results. Go at your own pace. Be hell bent on quality. And don't get distracted by the perceived success of others. Who knows, they might be thinking the same thing about you! Do those things, and over time, you'll see the consistency start to build. The other thing I told her is that giving up on something you care about is never an option. It's always better to be late than never. You can view the first issue of AMAT here: https://lnkd.in/eWVa-ATc, be sure to subscribe to be notified when the next issue drops. It's going to be a banger.

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Can probabilistic models, like LLMs and Nate Silver's election forecast model, ever truly be perfect, with no errors? According to Nate Silver: "We don’t talk about it much, but there’s a small amount of error introduced into the model because it’s probabilistic rather than deterministic. The margin of error on 40,000 simulations is about ± 0.5 points of win probability for either candidate; after 80,000, it declines, but only to ± 0.35." Sounds like a familiar refrain around Infactory as we discuss the limitations of LLMs... P.S. Vote!

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This is a great use case for Gen AI—removing the tedium from software developers’ jobs, especially for tasks that are formulaic and pattern-based, like software upgrades. These types of tasks often involve identifying deprecated approaches that need to be replaced with new methods in large codebases. This requires a lot of manual lookup, identification, repetitive substitution and testing. In addition, this type of task does not requiring complex reasoning, making it a perfect fit for today’s generative AI. The ability to automatically identify, modify and verify isolated changes is a game changer for developers. It frees them from routine, time-consuming work, allowing them to focus on new improvements and creative tasks that push the product forward. Net net - faster iterations and better output. I firmly believe AI will elevate engineers, not replace them. Just as garbage collection freed developers from low-level memory management, AI is now helping engineers focus more on solving business problems rather than getting bogged down in routine tasks. The acceleration AI brings to the table will only make software development more exciting and efficient. This is true for EVERY professional, creative role in existence. Humans can spend more time doing what we do best - thinking. Let's build the tools to handle the repetitive tedium.

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This old post from Ben Horowitz highlights a common struggle among entrepreneurs – expecting the team to perform seamlessly without investing in training. People are not plug-and-play; they bring diverse backgrounds and perspectives. You gotta spend time training and educating on your business, the way you want to talk to customers, and the right experience you want for them. Training is a powerful tool and needs to be done regularly! https://lnkd.in/ekv8c6WD #Entrepreneurship #Training #BusinessSuccess

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Looking for advice to handle tough times? 🚀  📕𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝘼𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 by Ben Horowitz isn't your typical business book—it's a raw, no-nonsense guide to surviving the toughest moments in entrepreneurship, leadership and business. Whether you're making gut-wrenching decisions or leading through crises, this book gives you the playbook for the problems no one else talks about. As a professional navigating today's business landscape, this book has been invaluable to me. #BusinessLeadership #EntrepreneurshipChallenges

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"Probably the worst decision that I made as CEO of Loudcloud was to take ona. 10-year lease with a $30M letter of credit. We leased the space right before the dot-com crash. Rents dropped 10-fold in Menlo Park... worse yet, due to the recession, we couldn't hire so the space we already had was sufficient and we never ended up moving into the new building. So I basically lost $30M for nothing." This is from Ben Horowitz's recent interview with Big Think. Even a quarter century ago the typical office lease construct is misaligned with how a company needs to operate. Our industry could get away with this when office spaces had a monopoly on how and where work got done, but those days are dead. As global markets are crashing, we'll be looking at another disruptive cycle for businesses which will create more cost cutting pressure and the first thing to go when they roll will be inflexible leases. CRE needs to develop new offerings and fast. https://lnkd.in/ePuZgzkU

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tl:dr: Tech for Good Organisers Network May Retreat - sign up here - https://lnkd.in/eyPmE6yn i don't know if you know the Tech for Good Organisers network? if not - they're a fine and varied group of humans, who support those who help run the networks that share good practise and build connections amongst those digital folk who want to do good with tech. They really helped in developing https://lnkd.in/eMbSK65J particularly the attitude we take towards DEI - more here: https://lnkd.in/eYrbRgcY And they have the following question and offer... Are you a passionate organiser building or dreaming of building a thriving Tech for Good community in the UK? Join us for the Tech for Good Organisers Network May Retreat - a one-of-a-kind unconference designed by and for you! Date: Saturday 18 May Time: 10am - 5:30pm - and a community dinner afterwards! Location: London What is it? This unconference is your chance to connect, collaborate, and share your experiences with fellow Tech for Good community organisers and leaders from across the UK, with a focus on building Just and Regenerative Futures. What's an unconference? Unlike traditional conferences, you set the agenda! This is your opportunity to propose sessions, spark discussions, and dive deep into the topics that matter most to you and your community in relation to creating a just and regenerative future. Here are some things you might want to discuss: Leveraging tech to tackle social and environmental challenges Building inclusive and equitable Tech for Good communities Exploring the tech ethics and tech justice considerations of using tech to promote sustainability and regeneration. Measuring impact for a just and regenerative future Collaboration between communities to achieve a common goal The agenda is entirely up to you! Why attend? Connect with fellow Tech for Good community organisers and leaders who share your passion for a just and regenerative future Learn from each other's successes and challenges in building a better future Share best practices and develop new ideas for using tech for good Collaborate on future initiatives and projects that create positive change Be part of a growing movement of Tech for Good in the UK Lunch and dinner refreshments will be provided. If you are travelling from afar, we also cover travel and accommodation costs. Sign up here - https://lnkd.in/eyPmE6yn We can't wait to see you there!

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This is a cool project, and another example of the emerging "replace stateful storage with S3" trend. I do wonder at what point someone will package this sort of thing up into a FUSE filesystem to make it generally usable across existing services. Or maybe every service has unique enough needs that it's better to handle it custom each time. https://lnkd.in/etcVBfVf

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It’s eye-opening to see how AI model businesses are dealing with tight margins despite big investments. 🤯 Aidan Gomez’s comments about the “zero margin business” highlight the fierce competition and price cuts in the industry. 💸 With giants like OpenAI and Anthropic lowering prices to stay ahead, it’s a tough time for startups. The future of AI might depend on finding new ways to make these technologies profitable. 🚀 #AI #MachineLearning #TechTrends #Startups https://lnkd.in/ejkDu_wT

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Workflows v2 just dropped including multiple paths, multiple charts, loops, and a brand new refined UX. Grab more details at https://lnkd.in/gEN_9Gvy and come give it a try! Observability reimagined just keeps getting better. 🚀

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It had been far too long since I last caught up with Andrew Lau, CEO & Co-Founder of Jellyfish, to get the latest on the company. We also discuss the results from their State of Engineering Management Report. In this video, we chat about: * Details about Jellyfish * Customer examples & use cases * Finding from their State of Engineering Management Report * The culture at Jellyfish * Why Jellyfish should be on your radar for your career

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🔥🎙️The Blind Ambtion Podcast with Jack Kelly and Rick Chen🎙️🔥 Ashwinder (Ash) Ahluwalia, Former Head of Product Management at Google talks about what it's like to be a Product Manager. Check out the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/exANDH9u

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Polls can be a cheat code for earned media, and a great way to build authority. But there are levels to this. Here's how one of the best I've seen - Capital One - does it. (And what I'd do differently to increase earned coverage). Led by Shena Ashley, PhD, Capital One's Insights Center is a masterclass in leveraging polls to create unique insights that would do incredibly well via earned syndication. Here’s what they do great: ✅ Content that sticks: Crucial issues > fleeting trends. Focusing on topics like financial stability, mobility, and entrepreneurship, it's easier to rationalize investment on topics with a longer shelf life. Their insights + stories can drive coverage for months to come. ✅ Visual storytelling: Data doesn’t have to be dry, and Capital One presents original insights through clear and eye-pleasing visuals that are easy to understand. Publishers like charts, they love colorful charts, and they LOVE colorful charts that are easy to understand. Check, check, check. ✅ Strong methodologies and extensive polling numbers: Capital One frequently involves 7k+ participants in their studies - they are not half a**ing it. Well explained methodologies are table stakes to get your polls covered, and Capital One does a great job outlining their data collection process, sample size, and research methodologies.   ✅ Easy to steal: Each report has multiple easy to take stories/soundbites, and are also written as full pieces of content, which can be taken as whole. Finally --- if I could change one thing... Add a byline. Brand publishing NEEDS a byline - no news outlet wants to cover a story that can't be credited back to a human. All in all, polls can be incredibly valuable for driving earned syndication - check out Capital One's Insights Center in comments for killer examples.

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