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PODCAST

Best Manager Ever

Best Manager Ever reveals the secrets of successful management and empowers leaders to build winning teams. Join a community dedicated to sharing insights and stories from the most successful and beloved leaders in the startup world. All guests have been nominated as the “best manager ever” by a recent direct report. Before each interview, we go behind the guest’s back to collect feedback and stories from their team about what they’re *actually* like to work for. Then we sit down with the guest to

business careers

All Episodes

13:19

Best Manager Ever: Santa

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/12/24

In this special holiday spoof episode of Best Manager Ever, Annie Riley, host and founder of Fort Light, chats with the one and only Santa Claus!Known for spreading holiday cheer and managing a diverse team at the North Pole, Santa gives a rare interview about life behind the scenes. His direct reports, including elves and reindeer, praise Santa for his leadership, though they note he's their only manager ever ;)We will dive into Santa's leadership style, the secrets behind the naughty and nice

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20:24

Best Manager Ever: Top Takeaways From Season 3

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/12/17

In this recap episode of Best Manager Ever, host Annie Riley reflects on standout lessons from Season 3.Annie discusses the six things our top manager guests have in common: high standards, clear communication, strong relationships with peers, a relentless focus on their own growth, a unique view of career management, and a human-first perspective.It’s a chance to pause, look back, and notice what makes our guests so exceptional— and then think about how to apply those lessons in your own

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52:09

Best Manager Ever: Jared Erondu – Hard Mode Leadership

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/12/10

Jared Erondu is a seasoned design and startup leader, and is currently the Head of Design at early-stage startup Span. Jared spent eight years at Lattice rising from a solo designer pulling all-nighters in the early days, to leading a 50-person design organization and serving as GM across product and GTM as the company scaled. Earlier in his career, he was a design leader at Teespring and Omada Health. Jared is known for his design mentorship and community-building, and is an active advisor and

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43:35

Best Manager Ever: Dana Lawson - Conquering Imposter...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/12/03

Dana Lawson is the CTO of Netlify. She’s been a technologist for decades, and was previously the VP of Engineering at Github and the Director of Engineering at New Relic, Heptio, InVision (acquired by Miro), and more. Dana has a diverse background, and served in the military.Dana's direct reports praise her for building confidence, providing autonomy support, for bringing honesty and compassion, and for sponsorship that goes beyond mentorship.In this episode, show creator and Fort Light founder

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48:46

Best Manager Ever: Amit Shah - Building Trust Through...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/11/26

Amit Shah is the COO of Virta Health, where he’s built the company from ~30 team members to over 800 colleagues working to reverse obesity and diabetes. Amit has 10+ years of experience in building and scaling entrepreneurial and high-growth healthcare organizations, with a focus on delivering financial and operational results while aligning on mission and values.Amit’s direct reports praise his ability to balance the needs of Virta’s members, business, and staff, describing him as incredibly kind,

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39:44

Best Manager Ever: Patrick Reynolds - Creating the...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/11/19

Patrick Reynolds is the Co-Founder and Head of Product at Office Hours, an expert marketplace.Patrick started his career as a software engineer, before becoming a self-taught product designer and making the leap into product leadership. He has worked at an array of tech companies and startups including Affirm, Sweep, and Adobe.Patrick's direct reports praise him for his exceptional thoughtfulness, noting his ability to remember personal details and small, meaningful actions that remove friction and

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40:12

Best Manager Ever: Sophie Ruddock – Showing Up for...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/11/12

Sophie Ruddock brings deep expertise in scaling mission-driven tech companies, and is now the COO at Empathy. Sophie was an early employee at Multiverse, where she grew with the company and ultimately became their global COO leading through rapid growth and market expansion.Sophie’s direct reports praise her empowering leadership style, her commitment to their development, and her unwavering advocacy. She hires people for their unique expertise and encourages them to bring their full selves to work,

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42:02

Best Manager Ever: Behavioral Science as a Leadership...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/11/05

In this expert episode, Annie Riley sits down with Matt Wallaert, an applied behavioral scientist who made the leap into the tech and startup worlds.Matt is currently the CXO at Oceans, and he’s previously held leadership roles at Clover Health, LendingTree, Microsoft, frog design, and more.Matt explains why all leaders should know and use the principles of applied behavioral science– because all startup leaders are in the business of behavior change with our customers, our teams, and ourselves.They

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16:50

Worst Manager Ever: Annie’s Scariest Manager Stories

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/10/29

In this special Halloween episode of Best Manager Ever, host Annie Riley recounts the top worst manager moments of her career.Tune in to hear scary manager stories, from tales of micromanagement to vague (and unsettling!) feedback… and even Annie’s own manager missteps.There’s value in learning from the best, and ALSO from the worst! You’ll finish this episode feeling less alone, and even with some actionable lessons to help you avoid the same manager mistakes.If you’re interested in sponsoring an

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37:22

Best Manager Ever: Amy Jenkins - Context and...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/10/22

Amy Yamner Jenkins is the Chief Operating Officer at Meadow, which is an early-stage fintech startup working to transform the financial experience for students and universities.Amy started her career as a classroom teacher, and pivoted into startups by working at NewSchools Venture Fund. Before Meadow, she had a long and successful chapter building Education Elements, and then led the partnerships team at Outschool.Amy’s direct reports describe her as an empowering leader, someone who provides

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45:16

Best Manager Ever: Adam Fishman - The Right Way to...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/10/15

Adam Fishman is a product and growth advisor with 20+ years of experience building and leading startup teams. Adam was on the early team at Lyft, where he served as Head of Growth. He then went on to lead Product & Growth at Patreon and Imperfect Foods, before launching his portfolio career. Adam has been an advisor and fractional leader at ResortPass, Mozilla, HelpScout, Peerspace and more. He is also the creator of FishmanAF newsletter and the host of the Startup Dad podcast.Adam’s direct

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39:46

Best Manager Ever: Lauren Gold - The Triple Goal:...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/10/08

Lauren Gold is the Chief Customer Officer at Kustomer, an AI-powered CX platform. Lauren began her tech career at Yahoo before joining the early team at Yext, where she rose from individual contributor to SVP of Enterprise Customer Success.Lauren’s direct reports and colleagues describe her as a leader who supports without micromanaging, fosters autonomy, and creates an environment where everyone feels comfortable sharing, learning, and growing. She’s recognized for her attention to detail,

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48:24

Best Manager Ever: Charlie Coglianese - The Struggle...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/10/01

Charlie Coglianese is the Chief Technology Officer at Paloma Learning, a VC-backed edtech startup using AI to improve student learning outcomes.Charlie started his career in finance, before making the leap into startups. He was the Founder & CEO of a startup called Schoolrunner, which was acquired by SchoolMint. Charlie served as the CTO at SchoolMint post-acquisition before returning to early-stage building in his current roleCharlie's direct reports describe him as a leader who invests deeply

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40:13

Best Manager Ever: Karin Simelaro - Scale Smarter:...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/09/24

Karin Simelaro is the Chief Revenue Officer at SchoolAI, an AI platform that supports teacher and student success.Previously, Karin served as the Revenue leader at BrainPOP, Pathful, and Seesaw. She was an early employee at Nearpod, where started as the first field sales rep when the company was fewer than 30 people and around $10M ARR, and ultimately grew the business to $100M ARR and a successful exit.Karin’s direct reports describe her as open, transparent, energetic, and having high expectations

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46:01

Best Manager Ever: Darius Contractor - Leading...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/09/17

Darius Contractor is the Chief Growth Officer at Otter AI.Darius has had a long and impactful career in the startup and tech worlds. Prior to Otter AI, he led engineering, growth and product teams at Vendr, Airtable, Facebook, Dropbox, Bebo and more. He is also an investor and advisor in multiple companies and funds.Darius’s direct reports describe him as a master of frameworks and analogies, someone who balances detail orientation with a big-picture vision, and a manager who pushes boundaries with

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43:25

Best Manager Ever: Stevie Case - Empowering Leaders...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/09/10

Stevie Case is the Chief Revenue Officer at Vanta.Stevie started her career as the world’s first female pro gamer, and then found her way into the tech and startup world through a self-described “winding path”. Prior to Vanta, Stevie had a successful chapter at Twilio, where she started as an individual contributor and then grew to be the VP of Mid-Market Sales.Stevie’s direct reports consistently describe her as an empowering leader who excels at identifying and nurturing the unique strengths of

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2:43

Welcome to Season 3 of Best Manager Ever

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/09/03

Best Manager Ever shares unfiltered leadership lessons and actionable advice from the most successful and beloved leaders in the startup and tech worlds.This season, you'll hear honest, insightful interviews with operators who’ve been nominated by their teams as the best manager they’ve ever worked for.And for the first time, we’re adding interviews with experts who’ve gone deep on the leadership topics that matter most to you.Each episode is designed to share actionable advice that helps you level

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13:56

Best Manager Ever: Standout Lessons from Season Two

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/06/25

In this solo episode of Best Manager Ever, host Annie Riley of Fort Light takes a moment to reflect on the standout lessons from Season Two.Annie revisits the powerful insights shared by this season’s guests—from hiring people who challenge you, to seeking out dissenting views, to nurturing both personal and team growth. It’s a chance to pause, look back, and celebrate the wisdom and warmth these leaders brought to the show.Whether you're a longtime listener or just tuning in, this episode offers a

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40:11

Best Manager Ever: Sruthi Lanka - Hire People That...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/06/18

Sruthi Lanka serves as CFO of Public, an investing platform that allows everyone to invest in stocks, ETFs, crypto, and alternative assets, like fine art and collectibles—all in one place. Prior to Public, she was VP Finance at MoneyLion, a consumer lending platform that listed on NYSE via SPAC in 2021. Her previous career was in investment banking at the Royal Bank of Canada and technology at Goldman Sachs.Sruthi's direct reports praise her coaching and context-driven leadership approach,

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47:37

Best Manager Ever: Asheesh Birla - Embracing Risk and...

Best Manager Ever ·

2025/06/11

Asheesh Birla is an Entrepreneur, Angel Investor and Ripple Board Member. Asheesh joined Ripple in 2013 when the team was fewer than ten people. He had a decade-long journey of building Ripple on the product team, and he continues to stay connected to the company as a member of the board.Asheesh’s direct reports admire his passion, strategic vision, and ability to cultivate a positive work culture. They praise his direct communication, commitment to personal development, and knack for making tough

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44 results

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