Episodes

Max Guernsey, III - In this episode, Len Epp interviews Max Guernsey, III, co-author of Ready: Why Most Software Projects Fail and How to Fix It. They discuss Max’s nearly 30-year career in software, his consulting work at Producore, and why so many projects fail due to poor alignment between strategy and execution. Max shares insights on Agile practices, organizational learning, and how to create conditions for teams to thrive.

Luniel de Beer - In this Leanpub Podcast episode, Len Epp interviews Luniel de Beer, co-author of Ready: Why Most Software Projects Fail and How to Fix It and co-founder of Producore. Luniel discusses why many projects collapse under poor planning and unclear value. He highlights aligning business goals, creating resilient teams, and practical steps to improve project outcomes.

Romano Roth - In this Leanpub Podcast episode, Len Epp interviews Romano Roth, author of The Cybernetic Enterprise. Roth shares insights on building future-ready organizations through cybernetic transformation, enterprise evolution, and platform engineering. He explains how companies can overcome the “fast team, slow enterprise” problem to scale agile and DevOps successfully.

Klaus Haller - Len Epp interviews Klaus Haller, senior IT security architect and author of The Definitive Guide to Cloud Security Architecture. They discuss his career path, the four pillars of cloud security - architecture, network/perimeter, identity & access, and workload/SOC tooling - plus AI risks, quality assurance, and his writing process. Klaus shares insights on building resilient, secure cloud systems and the future of cybersecurity.

Andriy Burkov - In this episode, machine learning and artificial intelligence expert Andriy Burkov discusses his book The Hundred-Page Language Models Book, reflects on the evolution of AI and LLMs since his previous Leanpub bestseller, and explains why hype around AGI is premature. He also shares insights on the challenges of self-driving technology and writing a bestselling technical book.

Qiusheng Wu - Len Epp interviews Qiusheng Wu, author of Introduction to GIS Programming, about his journey from rural China to becoming a leading geospatial data scientist. They discuss his open-source Python tools, the rise of GIS and remote sensing, and his experience as a content creator and self-published author dedicated to making geospatial analysis accessible to all.

Ed Barnard - In this Leanpub Podcast episode, Len Epp interviews Ed Barnard, author of Beyond Prompt Engineering: The Revolutionary Way to Learn Augmented Thinking. Ed reflects on his dual 20-year careers in operating system and web development, his experience with Cray Research, and his passion for transforming computing through augmented thinking. The discussion explores Ed’s practical and philosophical insights into AI and software, learning, and the future of human-computer interaction.

Anne-Marie Charrett - In this episode of the Leanpub Podcast, Len Epp interviews Anne-Marie Charrett, author of The Quality Coach’s Handbook. They discuss quality in software engineering and change management. Anne-Marie shares insights from her coaching experience, the evolution of testing roles, and how to foster a quality-first culture in teams.

Jonathan B. Crossland - In this episode of the Leanpub Podcast, author Jonathan B. Crossland discusses his book The Software Developer’s Handbook: Volume 1, his unconventional journey from music and acting to software, and his passion for improving software engineering through values-based frameworks. He explores coding complexity, developer growth, and the importance of creativity, autonomy, and gatekeeper-free platforms like Leanpub.

Alex Telford - Len Epp interviews Alex Telford, senior pipeline and software engineer and author of Practical Python for Production Under Pressure. Alex discusses his career in VFX, the high-stakes nature of production environments, and how his book provides pragmatic coding advice for getting projects over the line amid constant change and pressure.

Ivan Krnic - Len Epp interviews Ivan Krnic, author of BizTech Evolution, about aligning business and technology teams, his role at CROZ, and the 0800-DEVOPS podcast. They discuss evolving collaboration models, the strategic role of technology in organizations, and insights from Ivan’s Leanpub book aimed at breaking silos and building shared goals between business and tech leaders.

Isaak Tsalicoglou - In this episode of the Leanpub Podcast, Leanpub co-founder Len Epp interviews Isaak Tsalicoglou, author of Phoenix Product Codex. Isaak shares how real-world challenges in his family business inspired him to build a production-ready REST API with Elixir and Phoenix. They discuss digitization, API design, and the benefits of small business tech adoption. Isaak also reflects on his evolving writing process as a Leanpub author.

Nicolas Brown - Agility expert Nicolas Brown, author of Real World Agility, joins Len Epp on the Leanpub Podcast to discuss his career journey from Royal Mail to ASOS, the real-world application of Agile methods, and his passion for data-driven coaching. They dive into flow, value, culture, and the challenges of writing a book that bridges theory and practice with evidence and impact.

Isaak Tsalicoglou - In this episode, Leanpub co-founder Len Epp interviews Isaak Tsalicoglou about his book Northwind Elixir Traders. They discuss Isaak’s journey from digitalizing his family business to diving deep into Elixir and Ecto, the joys and challenges of functional programming, and the psychological side of learning and writing technical books. The episode explores how curiosity, creativity, and persistence shaped Isaak’s engaging and educational approach.

Special Guest Dan Holloway - In this episode of the Leanpub podcast, Dan Holloway, host of the Self-Publishing News podcast, joins Len Epp for Leanpub’s year-end review of 2024 book industry trends, including AI’s role in publishing, evolving author income patterns, and key controversies like WordPress disputes and the Internet Archive case. Holloway also shares insights on cozy literature’s rise and predictions for 2025.

Joe Justice - Joe is the author of the Leanpub book Scrum Master: The Agile Training Seminar for Business Performance. In this interview, Joe talks about In this episode of the Leanpub podcast, Len Epp interviews Joe Justice, author of Scrum Master and a former Tesla employee. Joe shares his journey from South Bend, Indiana, to working at Tesla, Amazon, and with Bill Gates. He discusses Agile methodologies, modularity in manufacturing, and innovation.

Chris Pinnock - In this episode of the Leanpub podcast, Len Epp interviews Chris Pinnock, IT professional and author of Learning Russian Verbs. Chris discusses his career journey from a PhD in Mathematics to leading IT teams and working at the Tezos Foundation, where he manages blockchain infrastructure. He shares his experience learning Russian after marrying a native speaker and how he combined his technical skills and love of languages to create his book, which uses a programmatic approach to teach Russian verb conjugation.

Special Guest Josh Bernoff - Josh is a business book expert and author of the Business Book ROI Study. In this episode of the Frontmatter podcast Len and Josh discuss Josh’s background, career, and insights from his comprehensive study of business authors. The study reveals key motivations and returns for writing business books, including credibility and revenue. They also explore the challenges of AI in publishing, the value of social media for authors, and the evolving role of hybrid publishing.

Pete Zerger - In this episode of the Frontmatter podcast, Len Epp interviews Pete Zerger, cybersecurity strategist and author of CISSP: The Last Mile. Pete shares his journey from IT into cybersecurity, discussing key concepts like cloud and endpoint security, and the significance of the CISSP exam for security professionals. He explains how his book helps readers prepare for the exam through targeted learning strategies, offering both comprehensive coverage and practical advice for mastering cybersecurity fundamentals.

Leah Paulos - In this episode of the Leanpub podcast, Len Epp interviews Leah Paulos, founder of Press Shop PR and Book Publicity School. Leah shares her journey from magazine journalism to book publicity, discussing the evolving landscape of media and publishing, particularly in the digital age. She explains how Book Publicity School equips authors with essential skills for promoting their books, from building media lists to crafting effective pitches, emphasizing the importance of adaptability in today’s fast-changing world.

Maciej “MJ” Jedrzejewski - MJ is the author of the Leanpub book Master Software Architecture: A Pragmatic Guide. In this episode of the FrontMatter podcast, MJ shares his journey to becoming a software architect, his book, and his experience as an author.

In this episode of the Frontmatter podcast, Len Epp interviews Ryan Ripley and Todd Miller, authors of Fixing Your Scrum: Practical Solutions to Common Scrum Problems. Ryan and Todd share their career journeys and discuss how they co-wrote the book. They delve into the evolution of Scrum, the common issues teams face when implementing it, and how their book offers practical solutions to improve Scrum practices.

Eric Elliott - Eric is the author of the Leanpub book The Art of Effortless Programming: Unleashing the Power of AI Driven Development. In this interview, Eric talks about his early fascination with AI, his career working on AI projects like Adobe Firefly, and the transformative potential of AI in software development.

Michael Feathers - Michael is the author of the Leanpub book AI Assisted Programming. In this interview, Michael talks about his work on legacy code, and the evolving role of AI in programming. They also discuss the future of software development in an AI-driven world.

Eric Wise - In this episode of the FrontMatter podcast, Len Epp interviews Eric Wise, author of Effectively Learning to Code: A Brain-Based Approach. Eric shares his journey from being inspired by early gaming systems to becoming a software architect and education expert. The discussion covers his career transition from coding to management, his insights on teaching and mentorship, and the science behind effective learning. Eric also discusses

Gojko Adzic - Gojko is the author of the Leanpub book Lizard Optimization: Unlock Product Growth by Engaging Long-Tail Users. In this interview, Gojko talks about what he’s been up to since he was first on the podcast, managing hugely successful products with really small teams, and his new book about how to think about outlier customers.

Thad McIlroy - Thad is the author of the Leanpub book The AI Revolution in Book Publishing: A Concise Guide to Navigating Artificial Intelligence for Writers and Publishers. In this interview, Thad talks about his new book, and many of the important questions for both authors and books publishers in our current era of technological innovation in the area of artificial intellegence.

Peter Stevens - Peter is the author of the Leanpub book The Illustrated Guide to Scrum: Scrum Explained Through Infographics. In this interview, Peter talks about his background and career, manufacturing innovations and what it means to be a “Musk” company, Scrum, and about his approach to writing and illustrating for professionals.