Build & Break Through

In this episode, Host Hunter Harris interviews Ellie Fields, CEO and Co-Founder of Ridge AI.This episode begins with a discussion about AI, before moving on to Ellie's journey through various startups. We discuss her experiences with both data and startups, and talk about Ridge AI's most recent fundraising announcement and future plans.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Ellie Fieldshttps://www.linkedin.com/in/elliefields/https://www.ridgedata.ai/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Host R. Hunter Harris interviews Kevin Walkup on early sales to enterprise sales, and building an effective culture that underpins success in Sales.Kevin and Hunter chart Kevin's growth through B2B SaaS sales, starting with the mayhem of a young startup on through to enterprise and exit. Special focus is given to SalesLoft's culture and how it drove success - connecting employees across departments, developing a mix of camaraderie and competition, and pushing individuals to be better. AI adoption in Sales is also discussed, and how companies like Fastlane are empowering the individual with AI to drive their customers forward.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Kevin Walkuphttps://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinwalkup/https://fastlaneai.com/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Host R. Hunter Harris interviews Ivan Stefanovski about Customer Success & Sales.In this episode, Ivan and Hunter dig into Customer Success, Sales, AI, compensation, and more. They discuss best practices, challenges, and future trends in scaling customer success operations. Ivan advocates that CS should be the advocate for the customer within the organization, and the wisdom he has to share flows out from there.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Ivan Stefanovskihttps://www.linkedin.com/in/ivanstefanovski/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Host R. Hunter Harris interviews Shane H Tepper of Resonate Labs & Retina Media.In this episode, Shane and Hunter dig into GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), covering what it is, how it differs from SEO, and how founders can go about making sure their products show up in LLM queries. With the rise of LLMs and their increasing use for queries, especially in the B2B space, founders won't want to miss out on this foundational knowledge.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Shane H Tepperhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/shanehtepper/https://resonatelabs.co/https://a.co/d/07odYWq9 (Cited: How B2B Brands Win in the Age of AI-Generated Answers)By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Host R. Hunter Harris interviews Scott Mitchell of ATL CTO.In this episode, Scott Mitchell and R. Hunter Harris explore how engineering principles can be applied to human systems, focusing on bottleneck detection and scaling challenges in software development. Special focus is given to the evolving nature of the CTO role, and culture's importance in building an engineering organization.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Scott Mitchellhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/smitchelus/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Host R. Hunter Harris interviews Doug Kling of Ratio Recruiting.In this episode, Doug Kling, founder of Ratio Recruiting, discusses the impact of AI on hiring, recruitment strategies for startups, and how founders can leverage technology to optimize their talent acquisition process. The conversation covers guardrails for AI use, the evolving landscape of recruitment, and practical tips for scaling teams effectively.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Doug Klinghttps://www.linkedin.com/in/douglaskling/https://ratiojobs.io/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Host R. Hunter Harris interviews Jing Deng, founder of Sparkl one. Product management is a critical function in any organization, yet many still struggle to understand its true value. In this episode Jing Ding shares her insights on product management, its connection to engineering, and the importance of user behavior analysis. Jing also shares her journey of evaluating various product ideas before focusing on Sparkl One.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Jing Denghttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jingdeng/https://www.sparkl.one/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Host R. Hunter Harris interviews Sharon Meltzer, an ATL based revenue leader, investor, and strategic advisor. Succeeding in the app store requires a multifaceted approach that includes understanding market dynamics, pricing effectively, polishing onboarding experiences, and crafting moments that highlight the app's value.By applying Sharon's insights, founders can significantly improve their chances of success in the highly competitive app landscape. Her insights into revenue strategy and app store dynamics are invaluable for any founder looking to succeed in today’s competitive landscape.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Sharon Meltzerhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/sharon-meltzer-486958399/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Host R. Hunter Harris interviews Aubrey Flynn, founder of GOALS Media Group. Topics range from the Atlanta tech community, validation before building, and searching for product market fit.Aubrey emphasizes the importance of market validation early, leveraging community and network knowledge, and timing technology adoption with industry shifts. His experience highlights the power of focusing on core pain points, rapid prototyping, and strategic pivots - valuable lessons for founders at any stage.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Aubrey Flynnhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/aubreylflynn/https://goalsapp.ai/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Host Hunter Harris and guest Makayla Greathouse discuss the critical role of HR in startups, focusing on hiring, onboarding, and building a strong company culture. They explore the concept of 'people debt' and the challenges that arise from ad hoc hiring processes.The conversation emphasizes the importance of competency models, the need for effective onboarding, and the significance of trust and vulnerability in leadership. They also highlight the necessity of conducting post-mortems for hiring mistakes and the role of core values in shaping company culture.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Makayla Greathousehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/makaylagreathouse/https://www.elevateintent.co/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Host R. Hunter Harris interviews Phil Thornton, co-founder of Paydax. They discuss the intersection of AI and software engineering, exploring the challenges and opportunities that arise when using AI tools for coding.Phil shares his journey from sales to software engineering, emphasizing the importance of curiosity, community, and open-source resources in learning to code. The conversation also touches on the common pitfalls in software development, the role of AI in debugging, and the significance of sharing ideas within a community.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Phil Thorntonhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-thornton-a27b041b5/ (Contact for AI Finance Podcast Access)https://paydax.io/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

Guest Kolin Simon, founder of Pursue Networking, joins host Hunter Harris to discuss vibe coding as a non-technical founder. Kolin has recently started vibe coding to bring real changes to his engineering team, and we discuss his experiences, approach, and views on the subject of AI.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Kolin Simonhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/kolin-simon/https://pursuenetworking.com/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv

In this episode, guest Brian Autumn joins to share his take on Fractional CTOs, and niching down. We also discuss the impact of AI on the technology field, and the importance of culture on teams you build.Host: R. Hunter Harrishttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rhunterharris/Guest: Brian Autumnhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/brianautumn/https://codeandcoffee.org/By Hunter Software Consultinghttps://huntersoftwareconsulting.com/Created with Riverside: https://riverside.sjv.io/vDz6nv