design – Boulder Tech Podcast

Episode 61: Jonathan Woodard, Director of Engineering, SugarWOD + Tabletop Game Designer

Boulder Tech Podcast

Episode 61: Jonathan Woodard, Director of Engineering, SugarWOD + Tabletop Game Designer

00:00 / 00:47:56

Our guest for Episode 61 is Jonathan Woodard, Director of Engineering at SugarWOD. They make workout software for coaches and everyday athletes. He’s also a Tabletop Game Designer.

Jonathan and I touch on a number of topics, from software to games, Boulder to Europe, and get into:

his twin passions for software engineering and analog game design — and what the two have in common
the role tabletop games play in Jonathan’s life
how a year living abroad reshaped his relationship to work
Jonathan’s efforts to see and experience Boulder through fresh eyes

Follow Jonathan on Twitter @woodardj

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The Boulder Tech Podcast is made possible in part by Glider, a Colorado-based Community movement and non-profit that produces Boulder’s Ignite and TedX events, as well as Boulder Startup Week. Learn more and consider a donation at glider.com

Thanks to dojo4 for providing space for our podcast HQ, and to KGNU Community Radio for recording gear and studio usage.

Our intro music is by Eccodek. Hear more at eccodek.com (that’s E-c-c-o-d-e-k).

Our outro music is by EarthRise SoundSystem. You’ll find them at earthrisesoundsystem.com

The Boulder Tech Podcast is produced by Joel Davis. Your feedback, criticisms, comments and guest suggestions are welcome. Don’t hesitate to send a note to joel@dojo4.com

Thanks for listening. We’ll see you back here for the next episode of the Boulder Tech Podcast.

Episode 039: Susan Crouse, CEO, Traxart Toys

Boulder Tech Podcast

Episode 039: Susan Crouse, CEO, Traxart Toys

00:00 / 00:29:23

This is one of 20 interviews recorded in a popup backroom studio at dojo4 during the 10th annual Boulder Startup Week. When it started in 2009, Boulder Startup Week was the first event of its kind, anywhere. Now, Startup Weeks are held around the world. It’s a great example of Boulder’s position on the leading edge of tech — and the future.

Our guest for Episode 39 is Susan Crouse, CEO of Traxart Toys – a company founded to get kids back on the ground and playing with toys.

Among many things, Susan and I chat about:

What drew a long time, high-end product development manager to toys
Why being a product developer is great prep for becoming a CEO
Susan’s enthusiastic advocacy for rapid prototyping
And the cruel irony underlying the fundraising challenges faced by women in tech

Follow Susan on Twitter @CEOTraxartToys.

SPECIAL NOTE: Traxart Toys is running a Kickstarter campaign through June 19, 2019. Learn more here.

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The Boulder Tech Podcast is presented by Boulder Startup Week 2019 Title sponsor, Techstars. At the core, Techstars is a company founded by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs. With more than 300,000 alumni and 10,000 mentors across 150 countries, Techstars is a worldwide network that helps entrepreneurs succeed. To learn more, go-to techstars.com.

Episode #39 of the Boulder Tech Podcast is presented by Boulder StartUp Week Product Management track sponsor, SOVRN.

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The Boulder Tech Podcast is made possible in part by Boulder StartUp Week platinum sponsors Honey, Matter and Zayo.

We’re also supported by Glider, a Colorado-based Community movement and non-profit that produces Boulder’s Ignite and TedX events, as well as Boulder Startup Week. Learn more and consider a donation at glider.com

Thanks to dojo4 for providing space for our podcast studio, and to KGNU Community Radio for recording gear and studio usage.

Our intro music is by Eccodek. Hear more at eccodek .com (that’s E-c-c-o-d-e-k).

Our outro music is by EarthRise SoundSystem. You’ll find them at earthrisesoundsystem.com

The Boulder Tech Podcast is produced by me, Joel Davis. Your feedback, criticisms and comments are welcome. Reach me at joel@dojo4.com

Thanks for listening. We’ll see you back here for the next episode of the Boulder Tech Podcast.

Episode 035: Daniel Scrivner, CEO, Flow

Boulder Tech Podcast

Episode 035: Daniel Scrivner, CEO, Flow

00:00 / 01:05:05

Our guest for episode #35 is Daniel Scrivner, former Creative Director at Square, and current CEO of Flow. Our wide-ranging discussion covers many topics, including

Our wide-ranging discussion covers many topics, including:

His journey from a high school grad to being a major creative contributor at companies like Apple and Square to his current role as a CEO.
How intuition fits into the investing process.
Things he does to avoid ruts, stay refreshed and broaden his world view.
Why there’s no Alexa or Echo in Daniel’s home.

All of that and more, as the Boulder Tech Podcast speaks with Flow’s Daniel Scrivner.

Follow Daniel on Twitter @DanielScrivner.

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Thanks to dojo4 for providing space for the Boulder Tech Podcast HQ, and to KGNU Community Radio for studio usage.

Our intro music is by Eccodek. Our outro music is by EarthRise SoundSystem.

The Boulder Tech Podcast is produced by Joel Davis. Your feedback, criticisms and comments are welcome. Reach me at joel@dojo4.com.

Thank you for listening.

Episode 033: Jeremy Fields, Front End Development Director, Viget

Boulder Tech Podcast

Episode 033: Jeremy Fields, Front End Development Director, Viget

00:00 / 00:46:20

Our guest for episode #33 is Jeremy Fields, Front End Development Director at Viget, a design agency dedicated to building a better digital world.

Jeremy and I talk about:

How the fast-paced world of web design isn’t really so fast-paced.
Why and how he set about instilling accessibility in design into Viget’s company culture
The tradeoffs involved in balancing good design with accessibility (spoiler: there don’t have to be many, if any)
Why accessibility should be taken into account even when it’s not specifically required or requested by the client
The common design/front end function whose demise Jeremy most looks forward to

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The Boulder Tech Podcast is presented by iolo.com, developers of the award-winning software suite System Mechanic, which repairs, optimizes, and protects Windows PCs. With a global sales presence in 33 countries and products in 11 languages, tens of millions of people have used iolo’s products for their PC optimization, security, and data recovery needs since 1998. Today, iolo is widely recognized by both consumers and industry experts as a worldwide leader in the system utility software market.

iolo is offering all Boulder Tech Podcast listeners a 60% discount off either Phoenix 360, System Mechanic Pro, or System Mechanic through the coupon code: BOULDERTECHPODCAST. Simply go to iolo.com, decide which product works best for you, and enter the coupon code BOULDERTECHPODCAST at checkout. The 60% discount will be automatically applied to your order.

Thanks to dojo4 for providing space for the Boulder Tech Podcast HQ, and to KGNU Community Radio for studio usage.

Our intro music is by Eccodek. Our outro music is by EarthRise SoundSystem.

The Boulder Tech Podcast is produced by Joel Davis. Your feedback, criticisms and comments are welcome. Reach me at joel@dojo4.com.

Thank you for listening.

Episode 027: Kim White, Co-Founder, Zimbowties

Boulder Tech Podcast

Episode 027: Kim White, Co-Founder, Zimbowties

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00:36:04

Our guest for Episode #27 is Kim White, a participant in Watson Institute’s Semester Incubator in Boulder, and Co-founder of Zimbowties, a Zimbabwe-based startup making bowties from recycled fabrics. Proceeds from sales go towards putting Zimbabwean kids through school.

Kim and I touch on a number of things, such as:

his inspiration for creating a business with a social impact
Kim’s experience in Boulder and at the Watson Institute
the concept of Design Thinking
what he’s gained from working with Zimbabwean children

Follow Kim on Twitter @zimbowties.

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The Boulder Tech Podcast is presented by Bonusly: a fun, personal recognition and rewards program that enriches company culture and improves employee engagement.

Used by thousands of companies, Bonusly integrates with popular collaboration tools like Slack and Zappier, as well as HR software like ADP and BambooHR.

Bonusly is proudly made right here in Boulder, Colorado.

Learn more about employee recognition and try Bonusly free for two months at Bonus.ly/bouldertech.

The Boulder Tech Podcast is also made possible in part by Glider, a Colorado-based Community movement and non-profit that produces Boulder’s Ignite and TedX events, as well as Boulder Startup Week. Learn more and consider a donation at glider.com

Thanks to dojo4 for providing space for the Boulder Tech Podcast HQ, and to KGNU Community Radio for studio usage.

Our intro music is by Eccodek. Our outro music is by EarthRise SoundSystem.

The Boulder Tech Podcast is produced by me, Joel Davis. Your feedback, criticisms and comments are welcome. Reach me at joel@conduitmusic.co

Thank you for listening.

Episode 022: Bing Chou, Managing Director at MojoTech

Boulder Tech Podcast

Episode 022: Bing Chou, Managing Director at MojoTech

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00:33:18

Our guest for this episode of the Boulder Tech Podcast (our 22nd), is Bing Chou, Managing Director at MojoTech, a Boulder-based software development and design consultancy. Bing is also active in building relationships between Boulder’s tech community and the city.

We discuss a number of subjects, including:

the roots of his sense of activism and philanthropy
how the tech community might be misunderstood by Boulder’s non-tech populace
increased involvement among younger demographics in Boulder politics
and maintaining Boulder’s unique character in the face of rapid growth

Read Bing’s blog at virtuallybing.com. Follow him on Twitter at @virtuallybing.

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The Boulder Tech Podcast is presented by Glider, a Colorado-based Community movement and non-profit that produces Boulder’s Ignite and TedX events, as well as Boulder Startup Week. Learn more and consider a donation at glider.com

Thanks to dojo4 for providing space for the Boulder Tech Podcast HQ, and to KGNU Community Radio for studio usage.

Our intro music is by Eccodek. Our outro music is by EarthRise SoundSystem.

The Boulder Tech Podcast is produced by me, Joel Davis. Your feedback, criticisms and comments are welcome. Reach me at joel@conduitmusic.co

Thanks for listening. We’ll see you back here for the next episode of the Boulder Tech Podcast.

Episode 020: Ti Chang, Co-Founder and VP of Design, Crave

Boulder Tech Podcast

Episode 020: Ti Chang, Co-Founder and VP of Design, Crave

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00:29:02

Episode 20 of the Boulder Tech Podcast features Ti Chang, co-founder and chief designer at Crave, a San Francisco-based company designing and building sex toys with women in mind. Our conversation covers a lot, including:

how Crave’s first product became the world’s first crowdfunded sex toy
the difference between marketing products to women, as opposed to designing products for them
the evolution of sex toys from taboo to objects of empowerment
and the simple, elegant brilliance of converting an Airstream to a mobile vibrator factory

Follow Crave on Twitter @followcrave. Follow Ti at @designerti.

This is the last interview recorded for the Boulder Tech Podcast during Boulder StartUp Week. I’ve enjoyed speaking with a variety of people connected to Boulder’s tech and startup scene, and I’m excited to continue.

We’ll be back soon with new episodes, and are open to your suggestions on who we should speak with and what we should cover. Shout at us on Twitter at @bouldertechcast or shoot me a note with your ideas.

Episode #20 of the Boulder Tech Podcast is presented by Boulder StartUp Week Culture track sponsor, Pop Sockets.

NOTE: this episode is marked explicit due to talk about sex toys and a few f-bombs. It is otherwise pretty harmless.

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The Boulder Tech Podcast is presented by Honey. joinhoney.com

The program is also made possible in part by Boulder StartUp Week platinum sponsors Matter, Zayo, Google and Boulder Engineering Studio.

We’re also presented by Glider, a Colorado-based Community movement and non-profit that produces Boulder’s Ignite and TedX events, as well as Boulder Startup Week. Learn more and consider a donation at glider.com

Thanks to dojo4 for providing space for our podcast studio, and to KGNU Community Radio for the recording gear.

Our intro music is by Eccodek.
Our outro music is by EarthRise SoundSystem.

The Boulder Tech Podcast is produced by Joel Davis. Your feedback, criticisms and comments are welcome.