Nearly one in four Americans listen to podcasts on a monthly basis, and almost half of the nearly 68 million podcast listeners are millennials. Studies show podcast listening is on the rise. Increasingly, podcasts have become an unparalleled source of actionable advice and education for those looking to break into product in the technology industry.
Below is a list of my recommendations for the best new up-and-coming podcasts for women and underrepresented people in tech to learn how to break into product and build impactful products at scale. It is critical that we increase diversity in tech because of the preeminent role the industry plays in shaping the future of humanity. Technology innovation is a strategic imperative, and we must work toward creating a future where the people who imagine and build technology mirror the people and societies for whom they build it.
The first season of Product Decoded launched recently. The podcast shares advice and best practices on how to build and scale great products from the world’s top product experts. Product Leader Summit co-organizers Ha Nguyen, Dan Olsen and Gib Biddle, speak with seasoned product leaders from Facebook, Medium, Netflix, UserTesting, Jet.com, Box and more. The podcast is produced by Spero Ventures, an early stage venture capital firm that is helping entrepreneurs build a future that belongs to everyone, and Product Leader Summit, a community of founders and product leaders.
2. Tech Forward
Launched earlier this month, Tech Forward is a new podcast focused on improving diversity in tech by sharing advice for those seeking to enter the industry. Each week Tech Forward host Cheryl Chotrani invites tech founders, venture capitalists, industry leaders and diversity advocates to share their stories and explore ways to improve representation for women, minorities and other underrepresented groups in tech. Recent guests include Courtney Bass, HR Business Partner at Google; Lisa Cuesta, Principal at NextGen Venture Partners; and Dr. Herman Pryor, Jr, District Lead in the Career Services Division for Coding Dojo.
3. Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman
Masters of Scale, hosted by LinkedIn Co-Founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman, teaches listeners how companies grow from zero to a gazillion. The series unfolds like a music-infused detective story as Hoffman tests his theories with famous founders. Masters of Scale is the first American media program to commit to a 50-50 gender balance for guests. Guests include Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, Netflix’s Reed Hastings, Google’s Eric Schmidt, Spanx’s Sara Blakely. The podcast is a WaitWhat original series in association with Stitcher.
4. How I Built This with Guy Raz
How I Built This is a National Public Radio podcast hosted by Guy Raz about the greatest innovators, entrepreneurs, and idealists, and the stories behind the movements they built. Each episode is a narrative journey marked by triumphs, failures, serendipity, and insight—told by the founders of some of the world's best-known companies and brands. In 2016, it was named one of the top ten podcasts of the year by iTunes, and Inc Magazine called it "the best podcast to take on the new year."
Clearly Product is a podcast hosted by product managers Anna Marie and Sandi MacPherson with a mission to help listeners become well-rounded informed product people. Once a month they review and discuss one product-related book. The hosts expose different ways to think about the content and share their own real-life trials and tribulations as they work to strengthen product taste, strategy, and understanding.
