During my recent career break, I've been investing time in enhancing my Product Management skills through certifications (CSPO® etc) and personal development. However, I'm particularly excited to share a cool side project that's not only kept me engaged but also resulted in an unexpected success story.
I recently collaborated with Dr. Sunny Bains, UCL academic, science journalist and author, to create a podcast series complementing her upcoming book "Brains and Machines". This project allowed me to apply my product management and media production skills in a fresh context.
Drawing from my background in media production, and my creation of the award-nominated "Disruptive Social Care Podcast", we crafted a format that would serve dual purposes - providing content for Dr. Bains' book research and creating compelling listening experiences for the audience. We expanded our team to include Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia's Dr. Giulia D'Angelo and Johns Hopkins' Professor Ralph Etienne-Cummings, enriching the podcast with multiple global expert perspectives.
Check out the podcast here:
Leveraging an existing relationship of Dr Bains, we successfully pitched the concept to EE Times, securing a commercial contract for an 18-episode series, before recording even began. This early success demonstrated the project's potential and market appeal.
My role extended beyond strategic planning to hands-on execution:
Designed a user-friendly, portable recording setup for on-the-go location interviews.
Media training for Dr Bains, teaching interviewing techniques.
Researched and implemented an efficient post-production workflow using Descript audio transcript and editing software, and Riverside virtual studio.
Created a home audio-recording studio for Dr Bains, balancing professional quality with practicality.
Advised on the building of a complementary website and social media strategy.
The Brains and Machines Podcast has featured interviews with industry visionaries such as Dr. Tobi Delbrück (one of the original neuromorphic engineers from Caltech), and Professor Steve Furber (creator of the BBC Microcomputer).
The project's success is evident in its recommission for a second season, in which we're evolving the podcast to a more news and documentary style format, with features on companies and emerging research topics, and interviewees with major figures like Professor Carver Mead (known as "The Godfather of Modern Microchips").
This experience reinforces my belief in the transferability of product management skills across different domains. It's demonstrated how core competencies like stakeholder management, user-centric thinking, and agile development can lead to successful outcomes even in non-traditional product scenarios.
As I look towards my next career move, I'm excited to bring this renewed perspective and expanded skill set to new challenges in product management. This project has not only kept me professionally engaged during a career transition but has also opened up new avenues for creativity and innovation.
I'm always open to discussing how these experiences might add value to your team or projects. Feel free to reach out if you'd like to connect or learn more about this journey from tech to podcasting, and back again!
Dr Bains was kind enough to write the following testimonial:
"Stuart's media production expertise was instrumental in transforming what could have been dull academic interviews into a successful podcast series. Thanks to his help, we even got compliments from a BBC Science Correspondent. Stuart’s deep technical knowledge, coupled with an intuitive understanding of audience engagement, helped extend our reach and impact. His work has significantly enhanced the visibility of the podcast in the field of neuromorphic engineering."
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