VP Engineering at WOW! Shares Playbook: Leading through M&A, Culture Clashes, & Deadlines

When a company doubles overnight, leadership gets real.Ryan Mitchell, VP of Engineering at WOW! Internet, TV & Phone, shares the playbook for leading through mergers, culture clashes, and impossible deadlines—without losing your team’s trust or your sanity.SummaryIn this episode, Ryan Mitchell, VP of Network Products and Service Engineering at WOW, shares insights from his extensive career in technology leadership. He discusses the importance of understanding one's value system, the challenges of leading teams through mergers, and the significance of emotional intelligence in management. Ryan also delves into the transition to agile methodologies, the journey towards becoming a data-driven organization, and the balance between reliability and innovation in the telecom industry. He emphasizes the role of AI in future network innovations and offers advice for engineers aspiring to leadership roles.TakeawaysUnderstanding your value system is crucial for leadership.Switching roles can provide growth opportunities.Letting your work speak for itself is important, but self-promotion is necessary.Time and patience are essential in driving change during mergers.Emotional intelligence is key in motivating teams, especially in hybrid settings.Transitioning to agile requires overcoming resistance and fostering transparency.Building a data-driven organization starts with improving data quality.Balancing reliability and innovation is a challenge in telecom.Security and compliance are critical in managing hybrid cloud environments.AI presents significant opportunities for innovation in the telecom industry.Chapters00:00 Navigating a Long Career in Tech Leadership02:56 Leadership Principles and Rethinking Approaches05:56 Driving Change: Mergers and Cultural Integration08:47 Emotional Intelligence in Team Management11:47 Transitioning to Agile Methodologies14:23 Building a Data-Driven Organization17:23 Balancing Reliability and Innovation in Telecom20:29 The Hybrid Cloud Journey and Cost Management23:35 Future of Engineering: AI and Talent Development29:25 Opportunities in Network Innovation and Leadership Advice