The TechEd Podcast
The TechEd Podcast sits at the intersection of technology, industry, innovation and the people who make progress possible. Hosted by Matt Kirchner, each episode features builders, executives, educators, and policymakers shaping what’s next—AI, automation, advanced manufacturing, energy, and the systems behind them.
If you care about the future of work, the future of tech, and how talent actually gets built, you’re in the right place.
Episodes
277 episodes
Talking Business, Social Media & Movies with Marcus Theaters CEO - Greg Marcus, President & CEO of The Marcus Corporation
Movie theaters have taken hit after hit, from streaming to COVID to fewer studio releases. But this is a case study for any business leader: organizations can survive disruption by knowing what business you're really in, adapting the model a...
America 250: Reagan, Kennedy and the Values That Built a Nation
On the eve of America 250, The TechEd Podcast steps away from its usual format to reflect on the American Dream, the values that built the nation, and the ideals that continue to bind us together.In this special episode, Matt Kirchner re...
12 Leadership Lessons from a Fortune 500 CEO - Bill Foote, former Chairman and CEO of USG Corporation
As chairman and CEO of USG Corporation, Bill Foote led one of the most remarkable Chapter 11 restructurings in American business — an achievement Warren Buffett called “the most successful managerial performance in bankruptcy that I’ve ever see...
UC Faculty Say Dropping the SAT Created a STEM Readiness Crisis. Now They Want It Back - Svetlana Jitomirskaya, UC Berkeley Professor of Mathematics
A Wall Street Journal op-ed about the University of California’s SAT ban sparked a national conversation about college admissions, academic standards and whether students are arriving on campus ready for rigorous STEM coursework.In this ...
Rockwell Automation’s $2 Billion Bet on the Future of Smart Manufacturing - Blake Moret, Chairman and CEO of Rockwell Automation
Smart manufacturing has moved past the pilot phase, and manufacturers that still treat AI and automation like side projects are running out of time.Rockwell Automation Chairman and CEO Blake Moret joins us to talk about the next e...
AI Is Coming for the Measurers, Not the Builders
What jobs will AI replace, and which ones will become more valuable?Matthew Prince, co-founder and CEO of Cloudflare, recently wrote an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal about how he chose which employees to replace with A...
Humanity-Centric Innovation: Where Purpose, Business and Technology Intersect - Pete Dulcamara, Author of High-Tech Heroes
Exponential technologies, humanity-centric innovation, ethics in AI, passion and purpose, and the intersection of business and technology all point to one urgent question: How do we prepare the next generation to build solutions that are bot...
The Educator, Employer and Student Perspective on Work-Based Learning - Live Panel at the ACTE WBL Conference
Work-based learning is only as strong as the ecosystem around it, and this panel shows what happens when educators, employers, and students each do their part.Recorded at ACTE’s National Work-Based Learning Conference in Providenc...
The Future of Work is Putting HR at the Center of Business Strategy - Dr. Peter Fasolo, Former CHRO, Johnson & Johnson | Boston University
As AI and emerging technologies reshape work, HR is being pushed into a bigger role: making sure the company’s workforce strategy keeps pace with its business strategy.▶️ ...
FANUC Partners with NVIDIA to Advance Physical AI in Robotics - Mike Cicco, President & CEO of FANUC America
Physical AI is the next major step for artificial intelligence, and FANUC’s collaboration with NVIDIA shows how that will look on the factory floor.Mike Cicco, President and CEO of FANUC America, highlights the partnership’s two major ap...
The Mission Generation Wants Impact. Must They Choose Between Tech and Public Service? — Arun Gupta, CEO of NobleReach Foundation
What if the future of technical talent is not Silicon Valley or public service, but a career path that moves fluidly between both?Arun Gupta sees that possibility from several angles: as a longtime venture capitalist, CEO of
Is Your Organization Drifting? The 9-Step System to Reset and Lead with Clarity - Jay Richards, U.S. Navy Senior Chief (Ret.) and Author of The Standdown Framework
What can organizational leaders learn from military-tested leadership practices to realign teams, sharpen execution, and move forward with greater clarity?In this episode of The TechEd Podcast, Matt Kirchner sits down with Jay R...
AI Can Lower the Floor in Automation. It's Raising the Ceiling, Too - Nikki Gonzales, Weintek USA & Co-Host of Automation Ladies
Nikki Gonzales has built a career at the intersection of industrial automation, software, and systems thinking, and in this episode, she makes the case that the next chapter of manufacturing won’t be defined by AI alone. It will be defined by h...
Technical Work Is Evolving. Soft Skills Matter, but Hard Skills Still Get the Job Done - Justin Allen, Bosch
What skills actually matter in technical careers now that the work is more digital, more automated, and more interconnected?Industrial employers are not asking schools to choose between hard skills and soft skills. They're asking for bot...
How to Stay Sharper Longer: The New Science of Brain Aging - Dr. Christin Glorioso, CEO of NeuroAge Therapeutics
Imagine being able to track your brain health before serious decline sets in, understand your personal risk factors, and intervene early enough to help prevent dementia rather than simply react to it.In this episode of The TechEd Pod...
The AI Boom is Forcing a Reckoning on Risk and Regulation - Patrick Sullivan, VP of Strategy & Innovation at A-LIGN
Artificial intelligence is moving from novel feature to core infrastructure, and that shift is forcing companies, schools and regulators to confront a harder question than how to use the technology: how to govern it.In this episode of
Ask Us Anything: STEM Access, Hard Skills vs. Soft Skills & Lessons from the Manhattan Project
Are employers hurting themselves by only asking for 'soft skills' and ignoring their real technical needs? How can homeschool students get the same access to STEM labs as students in traditional schools? And what can education leaders learn fro...
Design, Diagnosis and Data: Where AI Is Already Reshaping the Skilled Trades - Dr. Andrew Neuendorf, Associate Dean at DMACC
What does the rise of AI mean for technical programs? Surprisingly, it's not a new concept to CTE fields. It is embedded in robotics, automation, diagnostics, and data modeling across modern manufacturing facilities today.In this episode...
The Rise of Verified Skills: How Trusted Credentials Create Real Workforce Value - Kathleen McNally, CEO of NOCTI
The labor market is evolving faster than traditional signals of competence can keep up. Roles are shifting, technology is accelerating, and employers are searching for clearer ways to identify real capability. In that environment, degrees remai...
For Young Professionals, Workplace Courtesy Is No Longer a Given
Over the past several years, many leaders have noticed a subtle but meaningful shift inside their organizations: the erosion of basic workplace courtesies, particularly from younger employees new to the professional workplace. Not misconduct; n...
Career Exploration Without Barriers: A Middle & High School J-Term Experiment - Josh Davis & Melissa Phillips, Camanche CSD
Imagine giving middle and high school students a full week to explore careers without grades, homework, or “regular” classes. That’s the core idea behind Camanche Community School District's J-term: a dedicated pause in the academic grind that ...
You Don't Have a Data Problem. You Have an Intelligence Problem - The Hive Health
Your organization doesn’t have a data problem. It has an intelligence problem: the gap between having information and being able to act on it with speed, clarity, and confidence. That gap shows up everywhere: hospitals, schools, manufacturers, ...
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum on Energy Dominance, Critical Minerals, and Intelligence Factories
The U.S. Department of the Interior manages the nation’s most consequential assets—public lands and waters, energy resources, and critical minerals—making it a crucial center for AI capabilities, national security, and workforce opportun...
Cultural Mapping: How to Build Trust and Influence In Your Organization - Dr. Ben Johnson and Bobby Dodd
Most leaders have a vision, a plan, and the authority to move it forward, but real momentum shows up when you understand how culture is being shaped through trust and influence behind the scenes.Host Matt Kirchner sits down with Dr. Ben ...
Reframing Higher Education: A Connected Model for Colleges and Universities - Dr. Katherine Frank & Dr. Sunem Beaton-Garcia
Higher education is shifting toward a connected model where colleges and universities function as one learner ecosystem. The goal is simple: make credentials stackable, transfer predictable, and pathways flexible enough for learners to move in ...