Fame Host (https://fame.so) Signal to Noise https://podcasts.fame.so/signal-to-noise https://feeds.fame.so/signal-to-noise In a world overloaded with information, great leaders separate the signal, the most critical insights that drive success, from the noise of distractions and uncertainty. Signal to Noise by Riviera Partners is the podcast for tech executives, innovators, talent leaders, and investors who need to make meaningful moves, whether in moments of crisis, clarity, or opportunity. In each episode, we sit down with respected leaders to unpack the defining decisions of their careers. Our guests share powerful lessons from the first 100 days of high-stakes roles, bold organizational shifts, and pivotal bets on people, product, and strategy. Whether you're navigating a career-defining transition or simply looking for a sharper perspective, this show delivers the clarity, context, and confidence to help you make your next big move. Copyrights © 2025 All Rights Reserved by Riviera Partners en Mon, 16 Jun 2025 12:42:28 +0000 Fri, 17 Apr 2026 03:17:18 +0000 https://content.fameapp.so/uploads/86qywjzq/a3ff9cb0-4aac-11f0-813c-a737488cd0df/a3ff9db0-4aac-11f0-8c80-95b46ce0e852.jpg Signal to Noise https://podcasts.fame.so/signal-to-noise In a world overloaded with information, great leaders separate the signal, the most critical insights that drive success, from the noise of distractions and uncertainty. Signal to Noise by Riviera Partners is the podcast for tech executives, innovators, talent leaders, and investors who need to make meaningful moves, whether in moments of crisis, clarity, or opportunity. In each episode, we sit down with respected leaders to unpack the defining decisions of their careers. Our guests share powerful lessons from the first 100 days of high-stakes roles, bold organizational shifts, and pivotal bets on people, product, and strategy. Whether you're navigating a career-defining transition or simply looking for a sharper perspective, this show delivers the clarity, context, and confidence to help you make your next big move. Riviera Partners In a world overloaded with information, great leaders separate the signal, the most critical insights that drive success, from the noise of distractions and uncertainty. Signal to Noise by Riviera Partners is the podcast for tech executives, innovators, talent leaders, and investors who need to make meaningful moves, whether in moments of crisis, clarity, or opportunity. In each episode, we sit down with respected leaders to unpack the defining decisions of their careers. Our guests share powerful lessons from the first 100 days of high-stakes roles, bold organizational shifts, and pivotal bets on people, product, and strategy. Whether you're navigating a career-defining transition or simply looking for a sharper perspective, this show delivers the clarity, context, and confidence to help you make your next big move. No No episodic Riviera Partners In a world overloaded with information, great leaders separate the signal, the most critical insights that drive success, from the noise of distractions and uncertainty. Signal to Noise by Riviera Partners is the podcast for tech executives, innovators, talent leaders, and investors who need to make meaningful moves, whether in moments of crisis, clarity, or opportunity. In each episode, we sit down with respected leaders to unpack the defining decisions of their careers. Our guests share powerful lessons from the first 100 days of high-stakes roles, bold organizational shifts, and pivotal bets on people, product, and strategy. Whether you're navigating a career-defining transition or simply looking for a sharper perspective, this show delivers the clarity, context, and confidence to help you make your next big move. In a world overloaded with information, great leaders separate the signal, the most critical insights that drive success, from the noise of distractions and uncertainty. Signal to Noise by Riviera Partners is the podcast for tech executives, innovators, talent leaders, and investors who need to make meaningful moves, whether in moments of crisis, clarity, or opportunity. In each episode, we sit down with respected leaders to unpack the defining decisions of their careers. Our guests share powerful lessons from the first 100 days of high-stakes roles, bold organizational shifts, and pivotal bets on people, product, and strategy. Whether you're navigating a career-defining transition or simply looking for a sharper perspective, this show delivers the clarity, context, and confidence to help you make your next big move. product management, software engineer, software engineering, security design, technology, information technology, machine learning models, software, cybersecurity, product strategy, cybersecurity news, brand awareness, tech industry Kim Warchepa team-rvp@fame.so No No No Spiky Talent, Ruthless Performance, and the Future of Hiring with Nolan Church https://podcasts.fame.so/e/68r72q3n-spiky-talent-ruthless-performance-and-the-future-of-hiring-nolan-church Spiky Talent, Ruthless Performance, and the Future of Hiring with Nolan Church 15 No No 805r7wx1 What does it actually take to build world-class teams in a hypergrowth company? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Michael Newcomer, CEO of Riviera Partners, sits down with Nolan Church, Founder of Mafia Talent, to discuss the hidden realities of hiring at scale, why the best companies obsess over recruiting long after product-market fit, and how leaders like DoorDash CEO Tony Xu built extraordinary talent density through rigorous hiring discipline. What does it actually take to build world-class teams in a hypergrowth company? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Michael Newcomer, CEO of Riviera Partners, sits down with Nolan Church, Founder of Mafia Talent, to discuss the hidden realities of hiring at scale, why the best companies obsess over recruiting long after product-market fit, and how leaders like DoorDash CEO Tony Xu built extraordinary talent density through rigorous hiring discipline.

What You’ll Learn:
  • How to manage performance ruthlessly without corporate theater
  • Why spiky talent outperforms mediocrity during times of change
  • The founder's biggest hiring mistake
  • How to systematize trust during hypergrowth to avoid the ‘bad, stupid, lazy’ narrative trap
  • Why new grad hiring will disappear in the next five years

Nolan Church is the Founder of Mafia Talent and Host of HR Heretics, bringing over 16 years of experience at the intersection of talent, recruiting, and organizational scaling. With a background as a recruiter at Google, Head of Recruiting at DoorDash during its hypergrowth phase, and Chief People Officer at Carta, Nolan has developed rare expertise in building high-performing teams and managing talent density at scale. Known for his contrarian takes on performance management, compensation transparency, and AI's impact on recruiting, Nolan challenges conventional HR wisdom to drive real business outcomes.

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]]> Tue, 17 Mar 2026 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 3522 What does it actually take to build world-class teams in a hypergrowth company? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Michael Newcomer, CEO of Riviera Partners, sits down with Nolan Church, Founder of Mafia Talent, to discuss the hidden realities of hiring at scale, why the best companies obsess over recruiting long after product-market fit, and how leaders like DoorDash CEO Tony Xu built extraordinary talent density through rigorous hiring discipline. What does it actually take to build world-class teams in a hypergrowth company? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Michael Newcomer, CEO of Riviera Partners, sits down with Nolan Church, Founder of Mafia Talent, to discuss the hidden realities of hiring at scale, why the best companies obsess over recruiting long after product-market fit, and how leaders like DoorDash CEO Tony Xu built extraordinary talent density through rigorous hiring discipline. managing talent density, HR Heretics, Turpentine, hiring mistake, spiky talent, hiring discipline, product-market fit, Mafia Talent, Signal to Noise, Signal to Noise Podcast, Riviera Partners No No The Tech Leadership Compilation: Scaling Teams, Culture & AI with Leaders from Twitter, Sonos & Datadog https://podcasts.fame.so/e/rnkl11q8-the-tech-leadership-compilation-greatest-hits The Tech Leadership Compilation: Scaling Teams, Culture & AI with Leaders from Twitter, Sonos & Datadog 14 No No 70wj55q1 In this curated edition of the Signal to Noise Podcast, leaders from across technology, venture, cybersecurity, AI, and product share the real signals behind great leadership, talent, and company-building. From lessons on the rugby field to building hyperscale security teams, from AI-readiness at the board level to what separates good data scientists from great ones, this episode explores how top operators think when the stakes are high. In this curated edition of the Signal to Noise Podcast, leaders from across technology, venture, cybersecurity, AI, and product share the real signals behind great leadership, talent, and company-building. From lessons on the rugby field to building hyperscale security teams, from AI-readiness at the board level to what separates good data scientists from great ones, this episode explores how top operators think when the stakes are high.

What You’ll Learn:
  • How to leverage unexpected leadership laboratories
  • The reference-checking framework that reveals who candidates really are
  • Why humility and curiosity separate great leaders from competent ones
  • The bottom-up strategy approach that unlocks scaling at hyperscale companies
  • The non-negotiable requirement for AI readiness in organizations

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]]> Tue, 03 Mar 2026 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 871 In this curated edition of the Signal to Noise Podcast, leaders from across technology, venture, cybersecurity, AI, and product share the real signals behind great leadership, talent, and company-building. From lessons on the rugby field to building hyperscale security teams, from AI-readiness at the board level to what separates good data scientists from great ones, this episode explores how top operators think when the stakes are high. In this curated edition of the Signal to Noise Podcast, leaders from across technology, venture, cybersecurity, AI, and product share the real signals behind great leadership, talent, and company-building. From lessons on the rugby field to building hyperscale security teams, from AI-readiness at the board level to what separates good data scientists from great ones, this episode explores how top operators think when the stakes are high. Leadership Lessons, bottom-up strategy, AI readiness, leadership laboratories, technology, venture, cybersecurity, AI, Signal to Noise Podcast, Riviera Partners No No Why AGI Is Noise and Data Is the Signal in Healthcare Innovation with Laurent Bride https://podcasts.fame.so/e/0njylw78-agi-is-noise-and-data-is-the-signal-in-healthcare-innovation-laurent-bride Why AGI Is Noise and Data Is the Signal in Healthcare Innovation with Laurent Bride 13 No No 40pqrlw1 AI is everywhere in biotech right now. However, Laurent Bride's message is simple: the model is rarely the bottleneck; the data is. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Laurent, Chief Digital Officer at Revolution Medicines, joins host Matt Skiba to discuss what it really takes to innovate responsibly in healthcare. AI is everywhere in biotech right now. However, Laurent Bride's message is simple: the model is rarely the bottleneck; the data is. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Laurent, Chief Digital Officer at Revolution Medicines, joins host Matt Skiba to discuss what it really takes to innovate responsibly in healthcare.

What You’ll Learn:
  • Why data foundation beats AI capability
  • How to build hybrid teams that bridge tech and domain expertise
  • How to master trade-offs in compliance-heavy organizations
  • Why humans remain underrated in the AI era
  • The product mindset shift healthcare leaders must make

Laurent Bride is a seasoned digital and technology leader with deep expertise in enterprise software, data platforms, and AI-native systems, now applying that experience to the healthcare sector. He currently serves as Chief Digital Officer at Revolution Medicines, where he leads digital strategy at the intersection of cutting-edge science, data, and patient impact. Previously, Laurent built and scaled high-performance product and engineering organizations across B2B enterprise environments, specializing in big data, cloud, API management, and analytics. He also advises Bain Capital Ventures as a CTO Advisory Board member and serves on the board of Wiiisdom, bringing a strong perspective on data governance, compliance, and building trusted platforms at scale.

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]]> Tue, 17 Feb 2026 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 2579 AI is everywhere in biotech right now. However, Laurent Bride's message is simple: the model is rarely the bottleneck; the data is. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Laurent, Chief Digital Officer at Revolution Medicines, joins host Matt Skiba to discuss what it really takes to innovate responsibly in healthcare. AI is everywhere in biotech right now. However, Laurent Bride's message is simple: the model is rarely the bottleneck; the data is. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Laurent, Chief Digital Officer at Revolution Medicines, joins host Matt Skiba to discuss what it really takes to innovate responsibly in healthcare. product mindset, digital strategy, enterprise software, healthcare leaders, AI era, AI, AI capability, biotech, Signal to Noise, healthcare, Revolution Medicines, Riviera Partners No No From Strategy to Execution: How Tiama Hanson-Drury Gets Teams Rowing Together Part-2 https://podcasts.fame.so/e/r874mqrn-from-strategy-to-execution-tiama-hanson-drury-part-2 From Strategy to Execution: How Tiama Hanson-Drury Gets Teams Rowing Together Part-2 12 No No k08ywx81 In part two of this episode of Signal to Noise, Glenn Murphy continues his conversation with Tiama Hanson-Drury, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Opus 2, diving into the mechanics of execution at scale. Tiama unpacks how she bridges strategy and execution through the “messy middle,” aligns teams around the metrics that truly matter, and leads product and technology without being a traditional technologist. From navigating U.S. vs. European tech cultures to driving focus through a single success metric, this episode offers a practical masterclass in modern, commercially minded leadership. In part two of this episode of Signal to Noise, Glenn Murphy continues his conversation with Tiama Hanson-Drury, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Opus 2, diving into the mechanics of execution at scale. Tiama unpacks how she bridges strategy and execution through the “messy middle,” aligns teams around the metrics that truly matter, and leads product and technology without being a traditional technologist. From navigating U.S. vs. European tech cultures to driving focus through a single success metric, this episode offers a practical masterclass in modern, commercially minded leadership.

What You’ll Learn:
  • Why most organizations fail in the “messy middle” between strategy and execution
  • How MECE thinking helps non-technical leaders effectively run product and technology teams
  • Key differences between U.S. and European tech cultures and how to lead across both
  • How to reframe risk so teams prioritize growth over safe inaction
  • Why collapsing product, technology, and GM roles is becoming more common
  • How one defining metric can align an entire organization
  • The practical steps Tiama used to shift focus from adoption to success rate
  • How cross-functional operating cadences drive faster learning and execution
  • Why discipline and focus matter as much as timing in acquisition outcomes
  • How clarity of accountability creates psychological safety and trust
  • What it really takes to keep teams rowing in the same direction at scale

Tiama Hanson-Drury is an award-winning executive with a track record of scaling businesses and increasing enterprise value through product, technology, GTM, and AI innovation. She currently leads global product and technology at Opus 2. Previously, she served as CPO at Minna Technologies, where she led growth initiatives culminating in an acquisition by Mastercard, and held executive roles at Zappi and Dynata. Tiama is known for low-ego leadership, cross-functional execution, and her passion for building high-performing, diverse teams.

Glenn Murphy is Managing Partner and Head of Riviera Europe at Riviera Partners. With a career spanning London and New York, Glenn has deep expertise in executive search for engineering, product, and design leaders. He has completed over 400 executive-level searches and works closely with some of the world’s leading technology companies to help them build exceptional leadership teams.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

Episode Resources:

Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Tue, 03 Feb 2026 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 1509 In part two of this episode of Signal to Noise, Glenn Murphy continues his conversation with Tiama Hanson-Drury, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Opus 2, diving into the mechanics of execution at scale. Tiama unpacks how she bridges strategy and execution through the “messy middle,” aligns teams around the metrics that truly matter, and leads product and technology without being a traditional technologist. From navigating U.S. vs. European tech cultures to driving focus through a single success metric, this episode offers a practical masterclass in modern, commercially minded leadership. In part two of this episode of Signal to Noise, Glenn Murphy continues his conversation with Tiama Hanson-Drury, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Opus 2, diving into the mechanics of execution at scale. Tiama unpacks how she bridges strategy and execution through the “messy middle,” aligns teams around the metrics that truly matter, and leads product and technology without being a traditional technologist. From navigating U.S. vs. European tech cultures to driving focus through a single success metric, this episode offers a practical masterclass in modern, commercially minded leadership. increasing enterprise value, scaling businesses, clarity of accountability, MECE thinking, messy middle, Opus 2, Signal to Noise, Riviera Partners No No How Tiama Hanson-Drury Leads Product, Tech, and AI Through Change Part-1 https://podcasts.fame.so/e/6nr734q8-tiama-hanson-drury-leads-product-tech-and-ai-through-change How Tiama Hanson-Drury Leads Product, Tech, and AI Through Change Part-1 11 No No 815rx9w0 In this episode of Signal to Noise, Glenn Murphy sits down with Tiama Hanson-Drury, award-winning Chief Product and Technology Officer at Opus 2, to explore what it really takes to lead product and technology through moments of disruption. Drawing on her experience scaling businesses across legacy industries, Tiama shares how she tunes out AI hype, builds high-trust teams, and focuses relentlessly on competitive advantage. From rejecting traditional leadership advice to redefining what great talent looks like, Tiama offers a candid look at modern, low-ego leadership in an era of rapid technological change. In this episode of Signal to Noise, Glenn Murphy sits down with Tiama Hanson-Drury, award-winning Chief Product and Technology Officer at Opus 2, to explore what it really takes to lead product and technology through moments of disruption. Drawing on her experience scaling businesses across legacy industries, Tiama shares how she tunes out AI hype, builds high-trust teams, and focuses relentlessly on competitive advantage. From rejecting traditional leadership advice to redefining what great talent looks like, Tiama offers a candid look at modern, low-ego leadership in an era of rapid technological change.

What You’ll Learn:
  • How to cut through AI hype and focus on signals that drive real competitive advantage
  • Why low-ego leadership and high-trust systems outperform “smartest person in the room” models
  • The three traits Tiama looks for when hiring elite product and technology leaders
  • How to assess whether talent from big tech can thrive in smaller, high-impact environments
  • Why company stage matters more than brand names when building teams
  • What’s overhyped and underappreciated in agentic AI systems today
  • A practical framework for approaching your first 100 days in a new executive role
  • How deeply understanding your business model sharpens product and strategy decisions

Tiama Hanson-Drury is an award-winning executive with a track record of scaling businesses and increasing enterprise value through product, technology, GTM, and AI innovation. She currently leads global product and technology at Opus 2. Previously, she served as CPO at Minna Technologies, where she led growth initiatives culminating in an acquisition by Mastercard, and held executive roles at Zappi and Dynata. Tiama is known for low-ego leadership, cross-functional execution, and her passion for building high-performing, diverse teams.

Glenn Murphy is Managing Partner and Head of Riviera Europe at Riviera Partners. With a career spanning London and New York, Glenn has deep expertise in executive search for engineering, product, and design leaders. He has completed over 400 executive-level searches and works closely with some of the world’s leading technology companies to help them build exceptional leadership teams.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

Episode Resources:

Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Tue, 20 Jan 2026 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 1342 In this episode of Signal to Noise, Glenn Murphy sits down with Tiama Hanson-Drury, award-winning Chief Product and Technology Officer at Opus 2, to explore what it really takes to lead product and technology through moments of disruption. Drawing on her experience scaling businesses across legacy industries, Tiama shares how she tunes out AI hype, builds high-trust teams, and focuses relentlessly on competitive advantage. From rejecting traditional leadership advice to redefining what great talent looks like, Tiama offers a candid look at modern, low-ego leadership in an era of rapid technological change. In this episode of Signal to Noise, Glenn Murphy sits down with Tiama Hanson-Drury, award-winning Chief Product and Technology Officer at Opus 2, to explore what it really takes to lead product and technology through moments of disruption. Drawing on her experience scaling businesses across legacy industries, Tiama shares how she tunes out AI hype, builds high-trust teams, and focuses relentlessly on competitive advantage. From rejecting traditional leadership advice to redefining what great talent looks like, Tiama offers a candid look at modern, low-ego leadership in an era of rapid technological change. low-ego leadership, leadership advice, cross-functional execution, strategy decisions, company stage, agentic AI, AI hype, rapid technological change, Opus 2, Signal to Noise, Riviera Partners No No The Year In AI: What We Got Right and What Went Wrong in 2025 https://podcasts.fame.so/e/0njyx968-the-year-in-ai-what-we-got-right-and-what-went-wrong The Year In AI: What We Got Right and What Went Wrong in 2025 10 No No 40pqp851 It’s time to tie a neat little bow on 2025 and we’re doing it with a special, Best of AI edition of the Signal to Noise Podcast. In this one, we ask the question “What if the biggest opportunity in AI is actually having the right leadership and people in place to seize it?” Tune in for the perfect recap of 2025’s AI highlights as we explore why CEO commitment to AI strategy is non-negotiable, how the doubling of AI task capacity every seven months creates unprecedented competitive advantage and the critical role human creativity plays alongside intelligent systems. From healthcare breakthroughs to consumer trust, hear from industry leaders on how to build the infrastructure, governance and mindset your organization needs to stay ahead. Turns out the real differentiator will always be the people wielding these tools. It’s time to tie a neat little bow on 2025 and we’re doing it with a special, Best of AI edition of the Signal to Noise Podcast. In this one, we ask the question “What if the biggest opportunity in AI is actually having the right leadership and people in place to seize it?” Tune in for the perfect recap of 2025’s AI highlights. 

What You’ll Learn:
  • How to position AI as a first-class priority 
  • The seven-month AI capability doubling curve and why it’s critical to get it right
  • Why true agentic AI potential remains unrealized and the real reasons security and AI defense get overlooked 
  • How fragmented health data is finally becoming large and controlled 
  • How the model context protocol represents a fundamental shift in how AI systems will collaborate
  • Why trust is the biggest driver of AI adoption and democratization through AI removes false constraints
  • Why, fundamentally, creativity and taste remain the ultimate differentiator

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

Episode Resources:

Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Tue, 06 Jan 2026 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 782 It’s time to tie a neat little bow on 2025 and we’re doing it with a special, Best of AI edition of the Signal to Noise Podcast. In this one, we ask the question “What if the biggest opportunity in AI is actually having the right leadership and people in place to seize it?” Tune in for the perfect recap of 2025’s AI highlights as we explore why CEO commitment to AI strategy is non-negotiable, how the doubling of AI task capacity every seven months creates unprecedented competitive advantage and the critical role human creativity plays alongside intelligent systems. From healthcare breakthroughs to consumer trust, hear from industry leaders on how to build the infrastructure, governance and mindset your organization needs to stay ahead. Turns out the real differentiator will always be the people wielding these tools. It’s time to tie a neat little bow on 2025 and we’re doing it with a special, Best of AI edition of the Signal to Noise Podcast. In this one, we ask the question “What if the biggest opportunity in AI is actually having the right leadership and people in place to seize it?” Tune in for the perfect recap of 2025’s AI highlights as we explore why CEO commitment to AI strategy is non-negotiable, how the doubling of AI task capacity every seven months creates unprecedented competitive advantage and the critical role human creativity plays alongside intelligent systems. From healthcare breakthroughs to consumer trust, hear from industry leaders on how to build the infrastructure, governance and mindset your organization needs to stay ahead. Turns out the real differentiator will always be the people wielding these tools. AI removes false constraints, AI systems, AI adoption, AI, biggest opportunity in AI, Signal to Noise, Signal to Noise Podcast, Riviera Partners No No 2025 Highlights: The Real Playbook for AI Adoption in the Enterprise https://podcasts.fame.so/e/q80vjlx8-2025-highlights-the-real-playbook-for-ai-adoption-in-the-enterprise 2025 Highlights: The Real Playbook for AI Adoption in the Enterprise 9 No No p0knx2j1 In this special Best of the Year Highlights episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, we bring together the most insightful, thought-provoking, and future-defining conversations we’ve had with leaders shaping the AI transformation across the enterprise. From Datadog to Sonos, Nebula to General Motors, our guests have lived the operational reality of AI at scale. They’ve seen what breaks, what unlocks commercial value, and what organizations must change before AI delivers the outcomes boards are demanding. In this special Best of the Year Highlights episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, we bring together the most insightful, thought-provoking, and future-defining conversations we’ve had with leaders shaping the AI transformation across the enterprise. From Datadog to Sonos, Nebula to General Motors, our guests have lived the operational reality of AI at scale. They’ve seen what breaks, what unlocks commercial value, and what organizations must change before AI delivers the outcomes boards are demanding.

What You’ll Learn:

  • Why security leaders must shift from individual accountability to organizational risk alignment
  • The critical difference between asking for capital and asking for organizational focus
  • How to recognize when your leadership team has outgrown its structure
  • Why reference checks and relationship depth matter more than interview performance
  • How generative AI is redefining trust in authentication and consumer interactions
  • Why entry-level software roles will contract while AI-native developers accelerate their careers

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

Episode Resources:

Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Tue, 23 Dec 2025 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 1348 In this special Best of the Year Highlights episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, we bring together the most insightful, thought-provoking, and future-defining conversations we’ve had with leaders shaping the AI transformation across the enterprise. From Datadog to Sonos, Nebula to General Motors, our guests have lived the operational reality of AI at scale. They’ve seen what breaks, what unlocks commercial value, and what organizations must change before AI delivers the outcomes boards are demanding. In this special Best of the Year Highlights episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, we bring together the most insightful, thought-provoking, and future-defining conversations we’ve had with leaders shaping the AI transformation across the enterprise. From Datadog to Sonos, Nebula to General Motors, our guests have lived the operational reality of AI at scale. They’ve seen what breaks, what unlocks commercial value, and what organizations must change before AI delivers the outcomes boards are demanding. Signal to Noise Podcast, organizational risk alignment, generative AI, AI at scale, General Motors, Nebula, Sonos, Datadog, Riviera Partners, Best of the Year Highlights No No He Scaled BlackBerry to $20B. Then He Rebuilt Sonos from the Inside Out. https://podcasts.fame.so/e/p8m7mxq8-he-scaled-blackberry-then-rebuilt-sonos-patrick-spence He Scaled BlackBerry to $20B. Then He Rebuilt Sonos from the Inside Out. 8 No No 70v5r2v1 Here’s a question that should make every tech CEO uncomfortable: What if the single biggest competitive advantage your company can build costs nothing and requires the opposite of what you’re currently doing? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Josh Narva is joined by Patrick Spence, former CEO of Sonos, for a masterclass in leadership, recruiting, and organizational clarity. Patrick shares battle-tested insights on hiring with intention, building trusted advisor relationships in recruiting, and why clarity fuels innovation. Here’s a question that should make every tech CEO uncomfortable: What if the single biggest competitive advantage your company can build costs nothing and requires the opposite of what you’re currently doing? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Josh Narva is joined by Patrick Spence, former CEO of Sonos, for a masterclass in leadership, recruiting, and organizational clarity. Patrick shares battle-tested insights on hiring with intention, building trusted advisor relationships in recruiting, and why clarity fuels innovation.

What You’ll Learn:
  • How to shift from “speed to fill” to “quality of fit” as your primary hiring metric
  • Why organizational clarity and simplified roles drive product velocity and team performance
  • The three critical mistakes that cost BlackBerry its market dominance
  • How to design candidate experiences that signal company culture before the hiring day
  • The leadership qualities that separate good from great executives

Patrick Spence is an accomplished technology executive and board leader, best known for his tenure as CEO of Sonos from 2017 to 2025, where he guided the company through global expansion, major product innovation, and a successful IPO. Before joining Sonos, he spent 14 years at BlackBerry, rising to Senior Vice President and helping scale one of the most iconic consumer technology brands of its time. Patrick currently serves on the boards of Snap. and the Canadian Shield Institute, advising organizations at the forefront of consumer technology and digital experiences. He holds a B.A. in business administration from the Ivey Business School at Western University.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

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]]> Tue, 09 Dec 2025 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 2340 Here’s a question that should make every tech CEO uncomfortable: What if the single biggest competitive advantage your company can build costs nothing and requires the opposite of what you’re currently doing? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Josh Narva is joined by Patrick Spence, former CEO of Sonos, for a masterclass in leadership, recruiting, and organizational clarity. Patrick shares battle-tested insights on hiring with intention, building trusted advisor relationships in recruiting, and why clarity fuels innovation. Here’s a question that should make every tech CEO uncomfortable: What if the single biggest competitive advantage your company can build costs nothing and requires the opposite of what you’re currently doing? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Josh Narva is joined by Patrick Spence, former CEO of Sonos, for a masterclass in leadership, recruiting, and organizational clarity. Patrick shares battle-tested insights on hiring with intention, building trusted advisor relationships in recruiting, and why clarity fuels innovation. leadership qualities, simplified roles, organizational clarity, primary hiring metric, quality of fit, speed to fill, clarity fuels innovation, Signal to Noise, Signal to Noise Podcast, Sonos, Riviera Partners No No Why 95% of AI Projects Fail and How to be the 5% with Jon Krohn https://podcasts.fame.so/e/l8qwpr78-why-95-of-ai-projects-fail-and-how-to-be-the-5-with-jon-krohn Why 95% of AI Projects Fail and How to be the 5% with Jon Krohn 7 No No 80nv8jm0 As AI capabilities are doubling every seven months, organizations face a pivotal challenge: How do you successfully implement AI when 95% of projects fail? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Michael Newcomer is joined by Jon Krohn, Co-Founder and CEO of Y Carrot, to share groundbreaking insights on the evolving landscape of AI and data science. As AI capabilities are doubling every seven months, organizations face a pivotal challenge: How do you successfully implement AI when 95% of projects fail? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Michael Newcomer is joined by Jon Krohn, Co-Founder and CEO of Y Carrot, to share groundbreaking insights on the evolving landscape of AI and data science.

What You’ll Learn:
  • Why AI capabilities are doubling every seven months and how to prepare your organization
  • How to identify and prioritize high-ROI AI projects versus getting distracted by flashy front-end applications
  • The evolution of data science skills from coding expertise to experimental design and strategic thinking
  • Why back-office automation presents vastly more opportunity than customer-facing AI applications
  • How to balance digital transformation with maintaining real human connections and experiences
  • The framework for successful AI project implementation to be in the 5% that succeed rather than the 95% that fail

Jon Krohn is the Co-Founder and CEO of Y Carrot, a data science consultancy delivering AI solutions to Fortune 50 companies, startups, and government agencies. As the host of the globally recognized Super Data Science podcast and author of the #1 bestselling book "Deep Learning Illustrated," he brings vast expertise in AI education and practical machine learning applications. Currently serving as a Machine Learning Practice Fellow at Lightning AI, Jon combines his academic background with hands-on industry experience to help organizations implement effective AI solutions.

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]]> Tue, 25 Nov 2025 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 3478 As AI capabilities are doubling every seven months, organizations face a pivotal challenge: How do you successfully implement AI when 95% of projects fail? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Michael Newcomer is joined by Jon Krohn, Co-Founder and CEO of Y Carrot, to share groundbreaking insights on the evolving landscape of AI and data science. As AI capabilities are doubling every seven months, organizations face a pivotal challenge: How do you successfully implement AI when 95% of projects fail? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Michael Newcomer is joined by Jon Krohn, Co-Founder and CEO of Y Carrot, to share groundbreaking insights on the evolving landscape of AI and data science. machine learning, Machine Learning Practice, AI solutions, AI applications, AI project implementation, strategic thinking, data science skills, AI projects, AI and data science, Y Carrot, Signal to Noise Podcast, AI, Riviera Partners No No Rethinking Trust in the GenAI Era with Mahi Sethuraman https://podcasts.fame.so/e/vnwplxy8-rethinking-trust-in-the-genai-era-with-mahi-sethuraman Rethinking Trust in the GenAI Era with Mahi Sethuraman 6 No No 81x28l51 How do leaders navigate the delicate balance between rapid innovation and maintaining consumer trust? This question sits at the heart of a fascinating conversation between Mahi Sethuraman, the Vice President of Consumer Engineering at Credit Acceptance, and Kyle Langworthy, Partner and Head of AI, ML, and Data Practice at Riviera Partners. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Mahi shares insights about the transformative journey from traditional banking to AI-powered financial services. How do leaders navigate the delicate balance between rapid innovation and maintaining consumer trust? This question sits at the heart of a fascinating conversation between Mahi Sethuraman, the Vice President of Consumer Engineering at Credit Acceptance, and Kyle Langworthy, Partner and Head of AI, ML, and Data Practice at Riviera Partners. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Mahi shares insights about the transformative journey from traditional banking to AI-powered financial services.

What You’ll Learn:

  • How to navigate the evolution of consumer trust from early digital payments to AI-powered interactions
  • Why data fluency and hands-on technical expertise remain crucial for modern fintech leaders
  • How to identify and nurture talent that can drive rapid transformation while maintaining operational excellence
  • Why focusing on collaborative team dynamics yields better results than pursuing individual "10x engineers"
  • The strategic approach to implementing AI solutions beyond the hype

Mahi Sethuraman is the Vice President of Consumer Engineering at Credit Acceptance, bringing two decades of experience in building financial technologies that serve millions of consumers. With a vast background in fintech leadership, including executive roles at Affirm, Ally, and a 15-year tenure at American Express, Mahi has been at the forefront of digital transformation in financial services. Her expertise spans consumer banking, digital payments, data engineering, and AI implementation in financial services.

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Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Tue, 18 Nov 2025 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 1840 How do leaders navigate the delicate balance between rapid innovation and maintaining consumer trust? This question sits at the heart of a fascinating conversation between Mahi Sethuraman, the Vice President of Consumer Engineering at Credit Acceptance, and Kyle Langworthy, Partner and Head of AI, ML, and Data Practice at Riviera Partners. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Mahi shares insights about the transformative journey from traditional banking to AI-powered financial services. How do leaders navigate the delicate balance between rapid innovation and maintaining consumer trust? This question sits at the heart of a fascinating conversation between Mahi Sethuraman, the Vice President of Consumer Engineering at Credit Acceptance, and Kyle Langworthy, Partner and Head of AI, ML, and Data Practice at Riviera Partners. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Mahi shares insights about the transformative journey from traditional banking to AI-powered financial services. consumer banking, digital payment, AI implementation, financial technologies, Signal to Noise, AI solutions, AI-powered interactions, financial services, AI, Credit Acceptance, Riviera Partners No No How AI Is Cutting Healthcare Product Timelines in Half with Megan Rothney https://podcasts.fame.so/e/x8y75w38-how-ai-is-cutting-healthcare-product-timelines-in-half-megan-rothney How AI Is Cutting Healthcare Product Timelines in Half with Megan Rothney 5 No No l04ryk50 The intersection of healthcare and AI represents one of the most promising frontiers in medical innovation. But how do we balance rapid technological advancement with patient safety? This question lies at the heart of a fascinating conversation between Eóin O'Toole and Megan Rothney, the Vice President of Product at PictorLabs. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Megan dives deep into how AI is revolutionizing medical diagnostics, compressing development timelines, and democratizing access to quality healthcare. The intersection of healthcare and AI represents one of the most promising frontiers in medical innovation. But how do we balance rapid technological advancement with patient safety? This question lies at the heart of a fascinating conversation between Eóin O'Toole and Megan Rothney, the Vice President of Product at PictorLabs. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Megan dives deep into how AI is revolutionizing medical diagnostics, compressing development timelines, and democratizing access to quality healthcare.

What You’ll Learn:

  • How AI is compressing traditional product development timelines in healthcare by up to 50%
  • Why virtual staining technology is revolutionizing histopathology and accelerating cancer diagnosis
  • Balancing rapid AI innovation with FDA compliance and patient safety
  • How to build effective cross-functional teams in AI-driven healthcare companies by prioritizing values over pedigree
  • Why leadership in healthcare tech requires stewardship and mission-driven focus rather than just technical expertise

Megan Rothney is the Vice President of Product at PictorLabs, where she drives innovation in AI-powered virtual staining platforms for histopathology. With a PhD in biomedical engineering from Vanderbilt and extensive experience across diagnostics and precision medicine, she has held leadership positions at PathAI, Verily Life Sciences, and Turing Medical. Her unique expertise bridges technical innovation with strategic product development, particularly in bringing AI solutions to healthcare diagnostics.

Eóin O'Toole is a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, with over 16 years of experience in the executive search industry. In his role, he leads Riviera's Venture-backed practice, which focuses on the unique talent and expertise needs of emerging companies, from concept through go-to-market and emerging growth phases. As a former CEO and founder himself, Eóin is passionate about helping clients build their dream teams and enabling talent to reach their full potential.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Tue, 28 Oct 2025 10:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 2398 The intersection of healthcare and AI represents one of the most promising frontiers in medical innovation. But how do we balance rapid technological advancement with patient safety? This question lies at the heart of a fascinating conversation between Eóin O'Toole and Megan Rothney, the Vice President of Product at PictorLabs. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Megan dives deep into how AI is revolutionizing medical diagnostics, compressing development timelines, and democratizing access to quality healthcare. The intersection of healthcare and AI represents one of the most promising frontiers in medical innovation. But how do we balance rapid technological advancement with patient safety? This question lies at the heart of a fascinating conversation between Eóin O'Toole and Megan Rothney, the Vice President of Product at PictorLabs. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Megan dives deep into how AI is revolutionizing medical diagnostics, compressing development timelines, and democratizing access to quality healthcare. healthcare tech, healthcare diagnostics, AI solutions, FDA compliance, rapid AI innovation, AI innovation, quality healthcare, medical diagnostics, Signal to Noise Podcast, PictorLabs, patient safety, AI, Riviera Partners No No The Secret to Scaling Teams from 37 to 1000 Engineers with Ameya Kanitkar https://podcasts.fame.so/e/28xzp1v8-the-secret-to-scaling-teams-ameya-kanitkar The Secret to Scaling Teams from 37 to 1000 Engineers with Ameya Kanitkar 4 No No 60mk2lz0 What separates good engineers from exceptional leaders? According to Ameya Kanitkar, Co-founder and CTO of Larridin, it’s the ability to scale beyond individual contributions to build teams that create lasting impact. It’s an insight he learned during Groupon’s meteoric rise from 37 to 1000 engineers. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Ameya joins Eóin O'Toole, a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, to dive into scaling engineering teams, the reality of AI adoption in enterprises, and the delicate balance between processes and productivity. What separates good engineers from exceptional leaders? According to Ameya Kanitkar, Co-founder and CTO of Larridin, it’s the ability to scale beyond individual contributions to build teams that create lasting impact. It’s an insight he learned during Groupon’s meteoric rise from 37 to 1000 engineers. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Ameya joins Eóin O'Toole, a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, to dive into scaling engineering teams, the reality of AI adoption in enterprises, and the delicate balance between processes and productivity.

What You’ll Learn:

  • How to transition from building systems to building teams that create systems at scale
  • The framework for matching team composition to business needs
  • Why ownership is the key differentiator between good and great engineering talent
  • How to minimize process overhead while maintaining alignment in both startups and large organizations
  • The three-part approach to implementing AI in enterprises
  • Why successful AI adoption requires balancing technological capability with human-centered change management

Ameya Kanitkar is the Co-founder and CTO of Larridin, a Bay Area-based startup building an organizational fitness platform powered by AI. With vast experience scaling engineering teams at major tech companies, he previously led consumer trading engineering at Coinbase and built unified data analytics systems at LinkedIn. During his tenure at Groupon, he played a key role in the company's hyper-growth phase, helping scale from 37 to 1000 engineers.

Eóin O'Toole is a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, with over 16 years of experience in the executive search industry. In his role, he leads Riviera's Venture-backed practice, which focuses on the unique talent and expertise needs of emerging companies, from concept through go-to-market and emerging growth phases. As a former CEO and founder himself, Eóin is passionate about helping clients build their dream teams and enabling talent to reach their full potential.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

Episode Resources:
Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2025 09:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 2194 What separates good engineers from exceptional leaders? According to Ameya Kanitkar, Co-founder and CTO of Larridin, it’s the ability to scale beyond individual contributions to build teams that create lasting impact. It’s an insight he learned during Groupon’s meteoric rise from 37 to 1000 engineers. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Ameya joins Eóin O'Toole, a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, to dive into scaling engineering teams, the reality of AI adoption in enterprises, and the delicate balance between processes and productivity. What separates good engineers from exceptional leaders? According to Ameya Kanitkar, Co-founder and CTO of Larridin, it’s the ability to scale beyond individual contributions to build teams that create lasting impact. It’s an insight he learned during Groupon’s meteoric rise from 37 to 1000 engineers. In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, Ameya joins Eóin O'Toole, a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, to dive into scaling engineering teams, the reality of AI adoption in enterprises, and the delicate balance between processes and productivity. Scaling Teams, executive search industry, consumer trading engineering, go-to-market, implementing AI, Signal to Noise, Signal to Noise Podcast, productivity, AI adoption, Larridin, Riviera Partners No No Why Only 2% of Companies Are Ready to Win at AI with Bill Murphy https://podcasts.fame.so/e/qn0v1rwn-ready-to-win-at-ai-with-bill-murphy Why Only 2% of Companies Are Ready to Win at AI with Bill Murphy 5 No No p1knlq80 Here’s a shocking truth: only 2% of companies are genuinely AI-ready. What separates these leaders from the pack, and how can organizations bridge this critical gap? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Adam Zellner is joined by Bill Murphy, Managing Partner at Cresting Wave, to share what makes organizations truly AI-ready and how leadership can drive successful AI transformation. Here’s a shocking truth: only 2% of companies are genuinely AI-ready. What separates these leaders from the pack, and how can organizations bridge this critical gap? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Adam Zellner is joined by Bill Murphy, Managing Partner at Cresting Wave, to share what makes organizations truly AI-ready and how leadership can drive successful AI transformation.

What You’ll Learn:

  • Why AI differs from previous tech waves through unprecedented speed of adoption and implementation requirements
  • How to identify the characteristics of AI-ready organizations
  • The critical role of CEO commitment and resource allocation in successful AI initiatives
  • Why traditional organizational structures may need reimagining to effectively implement AI
  • How to balance technical expertise with business acumen when building AI leadership teams
  • The importance of clean data infrastructure as a foundation for AI success
  • Why creating flexible, adaptable AI strategies is crucial in a rapidly evolving landscape

Bill Murphy is the Managing Partner at Cresting Wave and the former Chief Technology Officer at Blackstone, bringing over three decades of experience in technology leadership and board advisory roles. As a veteran technology executive, he has vast expertise in enterprise technology transformation, AI integration, and strategic technology leadership. In his current role at Cresting Wave, Murphy helps curate innovative solutions for over 300 enterprises across various industries, while his tenure at Blackstone demonstrated his ability to implement large-scale technology initiatives and data-driven strategies.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

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]]> Tue, 30 Sep 2025 09:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 1498 Here’s a shocking truth: only 2% of companies are genuinely AI-ready. What separates these leaders from the pack, and how can organizations bridge this critical gap? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Adam Zellner is joined by Bill Murphy, Managing Partner at Cresting Wave, to share what makes organizations truly AI-ready and how leadership can drive successful AI transformation. Here’s a shocking truth: only 2% of companies are genuinely AI-ready. What separates these leaders from the pack, and how can organizations bridge this critical gap? In this episode of the Signal to Noise Podcast, host Adam Zellner is joined by Bill Murphy, Managing Partner at Cresting Wave, to share what makes organizations truly AI-ready and how leadership can drive successful AI transformation. clean data infrastructure, data-driven strategies, technology initiatives, AI integration, AI strategies, AI success, AI leadership teams, AI initiatives, AI transformation, AI-ready, Cresting Wave, Signal to Noise, Riviera Partners No No How Toufic Boubez Built 5 Startups Without Taking the Top Seat https://podcasts.fame.so/e/mn4lwx0n-how-toufic-boubez-built-5-startups-without-taking-the-top-seat How Toufic Boubez Built 5 Startups Without Taking the Top Seat 3 No No x06rvl70 Every modern company is, at its core, a technology company, and the founder's job is evolving just as fast as the tech they build. Few people have navigated this better than Toufic Boubez. A five-time founder and seasoned tech leader, Toufic has done it all: from two-person startups to tech giants like Splunk and IBM. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, Toufic joins Eóin O'Toole, a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, to share insights about building successful tech companies and making critical leadership decisions in today's AI-driven landscape. Every modern company is, at its core, a technology company, and the founder's job is evolving just as fast as the tech they build. Few people have navigated this better than Toufic Boubez. A five-time founder and seasoned tech leader, Toufic has done it all: from two-person startups to tech giants like Splunk and IBM. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, Toufic joins Eóin O'Toole, a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, to share insights about building successful tech companies and making critical leadership decisions in today's AI-driven landscape.

What You’ll Learn:

  • How to evaluate AI readiness and separate genuine opportunities from market hype
  • The framework for selecting co-founders based on values alignment and complementary skills
  • How to architect technical solutions that remain flexible amid business uncertainty
  • Why early recognition and action on team misalignments is crucial for startup success
  • The importance of maintaining consistent leadership behavior to build lasting trust
  • How to effectively balance founder and CTO responsibilities in early-stage companies

Toufic Boubez is the Co-founder and CTO of Catio, a cloud architecture platform specializing in tech stack evaluation, planning, and evolution. With over 20 years of experience in machine learning and AI, he has pioneered several innovative technologies throughout his career. Toufic is a serial entrepreneur with three successful exits, having founded and served as CTO at Metafor Software (acquired by Splunk), Layer 7 Technologies (acquired by Computer Associates), and Saffron Technology (acquired by Intel). With a strong foundation in Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) and a background at IBM as the Chief Architect for SOA, Toufic has been a key influencer in the development of technology standards and has authored numerous publications.

Eóin O'Toole is a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, with over 16 years of experience in the executive search industry. In his role, he leads Riviera's Venture-backed practice, which focuses on the unique talent and expertise needs of emerging companies, from concept through go-to-market and emerging growth phases. As a former CEO and founder himself, Eóin is passionate about helping clients build their dream teams and enabling talent to reach their full potential.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

Episode Resources:

Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Tue, 16 Sep 2025 09:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 2167 Every modern company is, at its core, a technology company, and the founder's job is evolving just as fast as the tech they build. Few people have navigated this better than Toufic Boubez. A five-time founder and seasoned tech leader, Toufic has done it all: from two-person startups to tech giants like Splunk and IBM. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, Toufic joins Eóin O'Toole, a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, to share insights about building successful tech companies and making critical leadership decisions in today's AI-driven landscape. Every modern company is, at its core, a technology company, and the founder's job is evolving just as fast as the tech they build. Few people have navigated this better than Toufic Boubez. A five-time founder and seasoned tech leader, Toufic has done it all: from two-person startups to tech giants like Splunk and IBM. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, Toufic joins Eóin O'Toole, a Managing Partner at Riviera Partners, to share insights about building successful tech companies and making critical leadership decisions in today's AI-driven landscape. technology company, startup success, consistent leadership behavior, tech stack evaluation, Catio, AI readiness, Signal to Noise Podcast, Riviera Partners No No Why Security Leaders Must Think Like Tech CEOs with Emilio Escobar https://podcasts.fame.so/e/lnqwl2wn-security-leaders-must-think-like-tech-ceos-emilio-escobar Why Security Leaders Must Think Like Tech CEOs with Emilio Escobar 2 No No 81nvwkv1 As every company evolves into a technology company, the role of security leadership is undergoing a dramatic transformation. Few understand this evolution better than Emilio Escobar, Chief Information Security Officer at Datadog. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, Emilio joins host Sean Cleary to share what it really takes to lead security at hyperscale. As every company evolves into a technology company, the role of security leadership is undergoing a dramatic transformation. Few understand this evolution better than Emilio Escobar, Chief Information Security Officer at Datadog. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, Emilio joins host Sean Cleary to share what it really takes to lead security at hyperscale.

What You’ll Learn:

  • How to identify and hire the right security talent
  • Why successful security leadership requires listening first and acting second in the first 6-9 months
  • The evolution of the CISO role from technical specialist to strategic business partner
  • How to build bottom-up security strategies that empower teams in hypergrowth environments
  • Why focusing on classes of problems rather than individual issues leads to better security outcomes

Emilio Escobar is the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at Datadog, where he leads the company's global security and SRE initiatives. With a background in software engineering and security consulting, including roles at Hulu, PlayStation, and the NSA, Emilio brings a unique perspective to enterprise security leadership. His expertise spans building and scaling security programs in high-growth environments, combining technical depth with strategic business alignment.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

Episode Resources:

Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Tue, 02 Sep 2025 09:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 2118 As every company evolves into a technology company, the role of security leadership is undergoing a dramatic transformation. Few understand this evolution better than Emilio Escobar, Chief Information Security Officer at Datadog. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, Emilio joins host Sean Cleary to share what it really takes to lead security at hyperscale. As every company evolves into a technology company, the role of security leadership is undergoing a dramatic transformation. Few understand this evolution better than Emilio Escobar, Chief Information Security Officer at Datadog. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, Emilio joins host Sean Cleary to share what it really takes to lead security at hyperscale. scaling security programs, security strategies, better security outcomes, strategic business alignment, CISO, Signal to Noise Podcast, technology company, security leadership, Datadog, Riviera Partners No No Behind the Fail Whale, GM, and Apple: Unfiltered Leadership Lessons from Mike Abbott https://podcasts.fame.so/e/r8klv0wn-behind-the-fail-whale-gm-and-apple-mike-abbott Behind the Fail Whale, GM, and Apple: Unfiltered Leadership Lessons from Mike Abbott 1 No No 71wjwp40 Exceptional tech leadership requires mastering both organizational transformation and sustainable scaling while maintaining empathy and cultural awareness. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, host Ali Behnam is joined by Mike Abbott, Co-Founder of Open Athena, to unpack what real tech leadership looks like when the stakes are sky-high. Exceptional tech leadership requires mastering both organizational transformation and sustainable scaling while maintaining empathy and cultural awareness. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, host Ali Behnam is joined by Mike Abbott, Co-Founder of Open Athena, to unpack what real tech leadership looks like when the stakes are sky-high.

What You’ll Learn:

  • How to lead transformational change by asking questions and listening before implementing solutions
  • The framework for scaling engineering teams sustainably without compromising culture or quality
  • Why mission alignment matters more than technical skills when building high-performing teams
  • How to navigate organizational resistance when joining large established companies
  • The critical balance between speed and stability when managing hypergrowth infrastructure
  • How to adapt leadership approaches across different company cultures and growth stages

Mike Abbott is a distinguished technology executive and leader with vast experience across major tech companies and startups. As a former VP of Engineering at Twitter, head of iCloud at Apple, and Global Head of Software at General Motors, he has demonstrated expertise in scaling engineering organizations and managing complex technological transformations. Throughout his career, Mike has led critical initiatives, including stabilizing Twitter's infrastructure during periods of hypergrowth, developing WebOS at Palm, and founding Composite Software.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube Podcasts. Instructions on how to do so are here.

Episode Resources:

Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Tue, 19 Aug 2025 09:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 2296 Exceptional tech leadership requires mastering both organizational transformation and sustainable scaling while maintaining empathy and cultural awareness. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, host Ali Behnam is joined by Mike Abbott, Co-Founder of Open Athena, to unpack what real tech leadership looks like when the stakes are sky-high. Exceptional tech leadership requires mastering both organizational transformation and sustainable scaling while maintaining empathy and cultural awareness. In this episode of Signal to Noise Podcast, host Ali Behnam is joined by Mike Abbott, Co-Founder of Open Athena, to unpack what real tech leadership looks like when the stakes are sky-high. leadership approaches, complex technological transformations, scaling engineering teams, hypergrowth infrastructure, technology executive, tech leadership, Open Athena, Signal to Noise Podcast, Riviera Partners No No Trailer https://podcasts.fame.so/e/xny71k0n-trailer Trailer 0 No No l14rlzp1 In a world overloaded with information, great leaders separate the signal, the most critical insights that drive success, from the noise of distractions and uncertainty. Signal to Noise by Riviera Partners is the podcast for tech executives, innovators, talent leaders, and investors who need to make meaningful moves, whether in moments of crisis, clarity, or opportunity. In each episode, we sit down with respected leaders to unpack the defining decisions of their careers. Our guests share powerful lessons from the first 100 days of high-stakes roles, bold organizational shifts, and pivotal bets on people, product, and strategy. Whether you're navigating a career-defining transition or simply looking for a sharper perspective, this show delivers the clarity, context, and confidence to help you make your next big move. In a world overloaded with information, great leaders separate the signal, the most critical insights that drive success, from the noise of distractions and uncertainty.

Signal to Noise by Riviera Partners is the podcast for tech executives, innovators, talent leaders, and investors who need to make meaningful moves, whether in moments of crisis, clarity, or opportunity.

In each episode, we sit down with respected leaders to unpack the defining decisions of their careers. Our guests share powerful lessons from the first 100 days of high-stakes roles, bold organizational shifts, and pivotal bets on people, product, and strategy.

Whether you're navigating a career-defining transition or simply looking for a sharper perspective, this show delivers the clarity, context, and confidence to help you make your next big move.



Signal to Noise is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
]]> Mon, 18 Aug 2025 09:00:00 +0000 Riviera Partners Riviera Partners 61 In a world overloaded with information, great leaders separate the signal, the most critical insights that drive success, from the noise of distractions and uncertainty. Signal to Noise by Riviera Partners is the podcast for tech executives, innovators, talent leaders, and investors who need to make meaningful moves, whether in moments of crisis, clarity, or opportunity. In each episode, we sit down with respected leaders to unpack the defining decisions of their careers. Our guests share powerful lessons from the first 100 days of high-stakes roles, bold organizational shifts, and pivotal bets on people, product, and strategy. Whether you're navigating a career-defining transition or simply looking for a sharper perspective, this show delivers the clarity, context, and confidence to help you make your next big move. In a world overloaded with information, great leaders separate the signal, the most critical insights that drive success, from the noise of distractions and uncertainty. Signal to Noise by Riviera Partners is the podcast for tech executives, innovators, talent leaders, and investors who need to make meaningful moves, whether in moments of crisis, clarity, or opportunity. In each episode, we sit down with respected leaders to unpack the defining decisions of their careers. Our guests share powerful lessons from the first 100 days of high-stakes roles, bold organizational shifts, and pivotal bets on people, product, and strategy. Whether you're navigating a career-defining transition or simply looking for a sharper perspective, this show delivers the clarity, context, and confidence to help you make your next big move. product management, software engineer, software engineering, security design, technology, information technology, machine learning models, software, cybersecurity, product strategy, cybersecurity news, brand awareness, tech industry No No