The Catalyst by Softchoice
A podcast about unleashing the full potential in people and technology.
When people and technology come together, the potential is limitless. But while everyone is used to hearing about the revolutionary impact of tech, it can be easy to forget about the people behind it all. This podcast shines a light on the human side of innovation, as co-hosts Aaron Brooks and Heather Haskin explore and reframe our relationship to technology.
Episodes
93 episodes
Big moments in AI from Y2K to ChatGPT
The rise of AI isn’t just about smarter machines—it’s about reshaping the way we work, create, and innovate. In the season finale of The Catalyst by Softchoice, Heather Haskin sits down with Gil Press, senior contributor at Forbes, ...
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Season 6
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Episode 20
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20:47
From hard hats to high tech: Rachel Skaff’s journey to AWS and the importance of DEI
The future of tech isn’t just about speed and innovation—it’s about who gets a seat at the table. In this episode of The Catalyst by Softchoice, Rachel Skaff, AWS Managing Director of America’s Channel and Partner Sales, jo...
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Season 6
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Episode 19
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30:01
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How conversational AI is changing the customer experience
The future of business is a conversation. In this episode of The Catalyst by Softchoice, Heather Haskin and Craig McQueen, Vice President of AI Solutions at Softchoice, dive into how conversational AI is reshaping industries and redefi...
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Season 6
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Episode 18
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24:28
1-DEGREE/Shift: Small changes, big impact
What if your company could leverage AI to not only increase productivity but also improve your mental well-being? What if the secret to transforming your workplace culture and achieving extraordinary results lay in the smallest, most intentiona...
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Season 6
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Episode 17
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29:35
Bridging the digital divide: How Softchoice empowers nonprofits
A lot of charities are just trying to keep the lights on. They don’t have resources for tech infrastructure and training. That’s where Softchoice’s Charity Accelerator Program comes in. In this episode of The Catalyst by S...
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Season 6
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Episode 16
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30:37
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Google’s human-centric AI
What if your company could leverage AI to not only increase productivity but also improve your mental well-being? In this episode of The Catalyst, Heather Haskin speaks with Anna Baird, Chief Customer Officer for Generative AI Go-to...
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Season 6
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Episode 15
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31:56
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Copilot in action: a Softchoice success story
It’s one thing to hear about the speeds and feeds of a technology – and quite another to get a real human voice, to shine a light on the real value these tools can offer us. In this episode, host Heather Haskin delves into the pract...
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Season 6
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Episode 14
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23:43
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The quantum threat: preparing your business for the future of cybersecurity
Quantum computing promises to be one of the most disruptive technologies of our time. But it also brings the risk of unparalleled cybersecurity threats. In this episode of The Catalyst by Softchoice, we delve into the world of quant...
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Season 6
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Episode 13
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28:08
Microsoft Copilot – a year of transformation: Insights from Rekha Narang
In this special episode, host Heather Haskin dives deep into the world of AI-driven digital transformation with Rekha Narang, Director of Partner Technology at Microsoft. Rekha provides an inside look at the evolution of Microsoft Copilot, a to...
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Season 6
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Episode 12
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30:58
Navigating the end of Windows 10: Security, AI, and the road to Windows 11
Is your business ready for the end of Windows 10, or are you risking being left behind in the next wave of digital transformation? In this episode, host Aaron Brooks is joined by industry experts Cameron Allen from Intel, Kirk Sinc...
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Season 6
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Episode 11
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34:10
What’s next for IT? Looking beyond generative AI
In this episode, co-hosts Aaron Brooks and Heather Haskin take a break from the constant buzz around generative AI and ChatGPT to explore what else is shaping the future of IT. From cybersecurity threats in the age of quantum computing to the r...
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Season 6
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Episode 10
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17:21
Building the future of cybersecurity: Insights from the Chief Product Officer at Sophos
What's it like being at the helm of a security operation that safeguards thousands of businesses worldwide, with new cyber threats emerging every single day? In this episode, host Heather Haskin meets with Raja Patel, Chief Product...
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Season 6
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Episode 9
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29:05
Improv for leaders: mastering adaptability and communication in the boardroom
What if the key to becoming a more dynamic and effective leader lies not in boardrooms or business school – but on the improv stage? In this episode, host Aaron Brooks and guest Stephanie Malek, Corporate Director and Production Man...
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Season 6
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Episode 8
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32:57
Leading from afar: Strategies for success in a remote world
Can a leader effectively inspire and drive success without being physically present? As tech giants like Google, Amazon, Meta, and Apple mandate a return to the office, this question is top of mind. In this episode, host Heather Haskin intervie...
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Season 6
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Episode 7
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28:39
Bonus: After the outage
In this special bonus episode of The Catalyst, host Heather Haskin welcomes Greg McDonald, Senior Solutions Architect at Softchoice, to discuss the recent CrowdStrike outage that disrupted businesses globally. They focus on actionable steps bus...
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Season 6
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14:46
Untangling SaaS sprawl: strategies for efficient and secure software management
Across organizations, every team is driven by the desire to innovate and perform, adopting its own set of SaaS tools to help drive growth. But without a centralized strategy, suddenly you’re faced with mounting costs, redundant software, and se...
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Season 6
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Episode 6
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32:23
The case for open source AI: A conversation with Neural Magic’s Brian Stevens
There wasn’t anything in open source that was more than a toy a year ago, but that’s all changed according to today’s guest. Brian Stevens, CEO of Neural Magic and former CTO of Google Cloud, is helping redefine the landscape of AI.
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Season 6
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Episode 5
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33:51
Bonus: The Catalyst gets clear on Microsoft Generative AI – Adopt & Sustain
What if your team's full potential lay in the hands of an AI assistant that could learn from you, adapt to your needs, and streamline your daily operations? How do you sustain momentum through initial adoption to ongoing optimization? This conc...
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21:33
Bonus: The Catalyst gets clear on Microsoft Generative AI – Implementation
How do you integrate Microsoft Generative AI into the everyday workflow of your organization without making a mess of it? That's the question that drives the third episode in this miniseries, which focuses on the 'Implement' phase of the Copilo...
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18:15
“Neural processing units” and AI-on-the-go with Intel Canada’s Cameron Allen
The biggest architectural change to the humble chipset is underway. Its aim: deliver artificial intelligence to the PC. Host Aaron Brooks meets with Cameron Allen, partner account manager at Intel Canada, to get the details. We'll h...
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Season 6
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Episode 4
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31:51
Bonus: The Catalyst gets clear on Microsoft Generative AI – Getting ready
'Look before you leap' is often the difference between success and failure when it comes to adopting a new technology. When it comes to Microsoft Generative AI, the importance of assessing your organizational readiness before you i...
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16:01
Bonus: The Catalyst gets clear on Microsoft Generative AI – The business case
Businesses everywhere taking a good, hard look at Microsoft Generative AI are all wondering the same thing: is it really worth the hype? That's what we're here to find out.On the inaugural episode of this brand-new miniseries co...
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16:43
Overcoming leadership shock with Olympic coach Pete Steinberg
What lessons from elite athletic coaching can empower today’s business leaders? With the summer Olympics just around the corner, we asked Pete Steinberg, leadership consultant and celebrated rugby coach, that very question.He discusses h...
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Season 6
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Episode 3
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33:41
The productivity frontier: AI’s role in transforming digital tools at Adobe
How will Adobe’s foray into Generative AI impact how your team creates and collaborates? That’s what we wanted to find out. On the latest episode of The Catalyst Podcast, co-host Heather Haskin sits down with Adobe’s Principal Produ...
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Season 6
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Episode 2
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27:29
Power to the people: Eric Champagne, CIO of La Vie en Rose
Season 6 of The Catalyst by Softchoice kicks off with an episode that questions conventional wisdom about IT leadership. Aaron Brooks sits down with Eric Champagne, CIO of La Vie en Rose, to hear how Eric is flipping the script. Eric’s story is...
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Season 6
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Episode 1
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38:24
