About this podcast
Are you a tech leader, architect, or engineer navigating the intricacies of building within the enterprise? Tech Council delivers the strategies and insights you need to succeed. Hosted by Duncan Mapes, an experienced leader from the startup and banking tech arenas, this podcast dives deep into technology strategy and enterprise dynamics. Learn how to drive innovation, understand the bigger picture, and build impactful solutions from the ground up. Subscribe to Tech Council and gain the knowledge to shape the future of your enterprise, no matter your role.
Episodes
The newest 20 of 39 episodes
- The AI Software Factory | Episode 38 · 40 min · Episode 38Software has traditionally been built around a familiar model: identify a market, define a product, assemble a development team, build the application, and sell it to many…
- AI Is Changing More Than How We Write Code | Episode 37 · 54 min · Episode 37The impact of AI on software development is often measured in lines of code, developer productivity, and the ability to automate repetitive tasks. But those measures only capture…
- How AI Is Disrupting Software Development in 2026 | Episode 36 · 37 min · Episode 36Everyone says AI is making software development easier. That’s only partially true. While AI accelerates the act of writing code, it also amplifies existing problems. Poor inputs…
- Why Enterprises Need DevGrid’s MCP Server | Episode 35 · 31 min · Episode 35The future of enterprise development will be defined by systems that can adapt, analyze, and respond in real time. That future requires infrastructure designed for AI. In this…
- AI Adoption at Scale: What Leaders Must Get Right | Episode 34 · 49 min · Episode 34AI adoption is accelerating across industries, but scaling AI successfully remains one of the hardest leadership challenges today. In this episode of Tech Council, we speak with…
- GitHub Codespaces, Codex, and the Future of Software Development | Episode 33 · 35 min · Episode 33Software development used to begin with local setup headaches, dependency mismatches, and “it works on my machine.” Now, the environment spins up in the cloud. The editor follows…
- How to Use Metrics Without Killing Engineering Culture | Episode 32 · 35 min · Episode 32Metrics influence outcomes by shaping incentives. When engineering metrics are poorly designed, they encourage short-term optimization, suppress risk-taking, and mask systemic…
- Why AI Changes How We Build Software, Not Just How Fast | Episode 31 · 46 min · Episode 31AI has changed the conversation in software development, but not in the way most people expected. While much of the industry focuses on speed, this episode of Tech Council…
- A Practical Guide to Observability in Enterprise Systems | Episode 30 · 45 min · Episode 30When engineering teams talk about observability, they often picture dashboards, alerts, and vendor slides. But inside real enterprise systems, observability is a story about…
- Is AI the Developer’s New Co-Pilot or Competitor? | Episode 29 · 58 min · Episode 29Viewed through the lens of systems thinking, AI introduces both leverage and fragility into the development lifecycle. In this episode, Duncan Mapes, Jason Ehmke, and returning…
- Engineering Leaders vs Tech Debt: A Realistic Conversation | Episode 28 · 39 min · Episode 28Tech debt exists at the intersection of engineering, business incentives, and system architecture. In complex organizations, it becomes a multidimensional problem involving…
- Platform Engineering Playbook: Autonomy + Standards | Episode 27 · 36 min · Episode 27Most engineering failures can be traced back to two weak points: unclear standards or excessive autonomy. This episode presents a structured examination of how platform…
- How to Build Resilient Systems in Complex Enterprises | Episode 26 · 35 min · Episode 26When systems fail, it’s rarely because no one saw it coming. It’s because no one planned for it. In this episode, Duncan Mapes and Jason Ehmke share real-world lessons from years…
- Stop Wasting Money on Conferences — Do This Instead | Episode 25 · 25 min · Episode 25Every year, companies spend thousands sending their engineers to conferences. Flights. Hotels. Per diems. All in the hope of “learning” and “networking.” But when they return?…
- Top Book Recommendations for Tech Professionals and Engineering Managers | Episode 24 · 35 min · Episode 24Every great leader has a few books that quietly shaped how they lead. For Duncan and Jason, those books go far beyond tech manuals. They’re the ones that teach you how to think…
- Habits That Make or Break Hybrid Teams | Episode 23 · 47 min · Episode 23The hybrid workplace has become the defining experiment of modern engineering, and most leaders are still figuring it out. In this Tech Council episode, Duncan Mapes and Jason…
- The ONLY Way App Managers Can Balance Velocity and Stability | Episode 22 · 34 min · Episode 22Let’s be real: app managers are stuck in the middle. On one side, business leaders want features yesterday. On the other, teams struggle under mounting tech debt. Duncan Mapes…
- Talent Acquisition in Tech: What Companies Get Wrong | Episode 21 · 47 min · Episode 21Every great product starts with people. But finding the right people, and keeping them, has become one of the hardest challenges in tech. In this episode, Jason Ehmke and Duncan…
- Six Pillars of a Mature API Practice | Episode 20 · 31 min · Episode 20APIs are everywhere, but maturity in API practices is rare. Buying a gateway doesn’t mean you have an API strategy. What matters is governance, security, and making life easier…
- What Is SRE? Site Reliability Engineering Explained | Episode 19 · 44 min · Episode 19Most companies are doing SRE wrong. Hiring SREs doesn’t make you reliable. Metrics dashboards don’t guarantee accountability. And cultural change doesn’t happen because you wrote…
