Finance Guys In Tech

“THERE ARE NO RULES, ONLY THE ONES YOU SET FOR YOURSELF.”

Today Sid and I sit down with...ourselves. Sid flipped the script and peppered me with a few of the typical questions we usually ask our guests.

We chat leadership, hacking the Amazon recruitment process, and a little story about driving to the Arctic Ocean from New York via Mexico.

We thought that could tied you over until we come back next week with some new guests. We hope you enjoy!

8:00 | Sports + being a nerd growing up

13:45 | Being social vs. social media...a paradox?

17:45 | Thoughts on school

22:30 | Thoughts on Leadership – Employee Obsession

31:15 | Hacking the Amazon recruitment process, there are no rules

38:30 | Coming to AWS Infra

41:15 | NYU B-school application – an overland driving trip from New York to Mexico to the Arctic circle, and back...coming back different

Charlie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charleskunken/

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Subscribe to the newsletter: https://www.charleskunken.com/subscribe

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Sid on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dhodi/
Charlie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charleskunken

The blog | https://www.charleskunken.com/blogsummary (weekly posts exploring creativity & mindset)

Insta | https://www.instagram.com/cbkunk/ for #ThePlazaOfTruth, a daily 1 minute TV show
fb | https://www.facebook.com/cbkunk

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Theme music by Good Baby. ‘Rose Colored’ (instrumental version). You can peep the full music video here: https://www.goodbaby.band/musicvideos

*Special Episode* The Plaza Of Truth (TPOT) Episode 1
“It doesn’t matter who you are or how much money you make...maybe you’re driving a Ferrari home and I’m driving a Honda Accord but we’re at the same table, eating the same food...We’re all on the same level.”

The Plaza of Truth (TPOT) podcast is a new longer-form version of the 1 minute daily TV show from Instagram #ThePlazaOfTruth, @cbkunk
It's a project I’ve been thinking about for awhile now, and got jump started by the current situation going on with Corona. The show is about finding the stories within the turning points of life and this episode specifically is about our friends in the restaurant business during this time of crisis. Given the current situation it seemed timely.

In this first episode I talk to my good friend Phil Buttacavoli, a buddy of mine since middle school and a twenty year veteran of the restaurant biz about how the Corona virus is impacting the industry in New York City.

This is an important message we wanted to get out about a different industry that is heavily impacted, and one that we are all connected to in one way or another.
We talked about how it affects workers, what people can do, and why you should go follow his new Instagram account for his alter ego, @giovanni_bellafonte which brings raw and hilarious stories about life in the biz (you really should follow it, guaranteed laughs).

https://www.instagram.com/giovanni_bellafonte/

Thanks for tuning into the The Plaza of Truth and checking out this important inaugural episode of the project.
There will be plenty more 'Finance Guys In Tech' episodes coming as well as more episodes of 'The Plaza Of Truth'.

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CONTACT THE SHOW:

https://www.charleskunken.com |

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https://www.linkedin.com/in/charleskunken

Email us [email protected] (Hit us up! Questions, comments, requests for guests, etc) |

Or subscribe to the Friday newsletter | https://www.charleskunken.com/subscribe

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Theme music by Good Baby. ‘Trouble’. You can peep the full music video here: https://www.goodbaby.band/musicvideos

“Be conscious of your tradeoffs...if you’re perpetually doing things not aligned with your priorities, that’s a recipe for unhappiness.”

Today Sid and I got to sit down with our friend Brent Holley, Senior Finance Manager of Data Center Construction here at AWS Infrastructure.

This episode was like a fireside chat (a campfire actually). Brent talked to us about adding value as a finance partner and shared his philosophy on being conscious about how you spend your days. He told us a about a recent vacation too – no, not Cabo. Try, getting dropped off in the middle of the Alaska wilderness by a plane.

We left much wiser than we came! This is truly valuable. Please enjoy!

2:40 | Getting dropped off in the wilderness above the Arctic Circle

5:40 | a chemist business guy makes his way to Malaysia

8:30 | Life in Malaysia

12:20 | Returning to the states, MBA at Texas A&M, a good fit for finance

13:30 | What does finance do? Act like a business person with a broad perspective.

16:00 | Brent’s Leadership philosophy – empowerment

20:45 | First years at Amazon (2016). Learning & scaling the finance team for AWS

23:15 | 4 years experience in the role – investing in understanding the business, thoughts on rotating versus staying in one position: what do you want out of your career?

25:30 | Long term view of career & post-career life – being deliberate about how you want to spend your time

29:00 | Making transitions – you’ll figure it out

31:00 | Career philosophy – work from the end backwards, think about the future. Don’t kid yourself, you can only be in one place at a time, prioritize and be conscious of your tradeoffs.

34:55 | Focusing on ‘what’s next’, not spending time dwelling

36:30 | A culture of humility at Amazon is really useful

37:50 | Consuming content outside of work – Altering between Intense & Goofy. History (A cool recent book, “Empire of the Summer Moon”), sports, funny movies (‘Shawn Of The Dead’, ‘Hot Fuzz’)

41:30 | Big groups vs. small? Small.

Brent on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brent-holley-357692/
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CONTACT THE SHOW:

Subscribe to the newsletter: https://www.charleskunken.com/subscribe

Find us online: https://www.charleskunken.com/podcast or email the show with any questions, comments, requests for guests, etc: [email protected]
Sid on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dhodi/
Charlie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charleskunken

The blog | https://www.charleskunken.com/blogsummary (weekly posts exploring creativity & mindset)

Insta | https://www.instagram.com/cbkunk/ for #WritinAndRidin, a weekly 1 minute TV show
fb | https://www.facebook.com/cbkunk

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Theme music by Good Baby. ‘Rose Colored’ (instrumental version). You can peep the full music video here: https://www.goodbaby.band/musicvideos

“Make progress every day...even one small win can be enough.”
Today Sid and I interview Oisin Hughes, Head of Global Data Center Portfolio Management here in AWS Infrastructure.

Oisin has a really unique history. Long story short he once traveled around the world...on his motorcycle. That was his 2nd major overland trip on a bike, the first being the entire length of the Pan American highway. He is the author of 2 books documenting each adventure and made a documentary on Youtube about the last.

This was a ton of fun and we know you’ll enjoy! Here are the links to all of Oisin’s adventures:

Book 1: ‘That I May Die Roaming’ https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/0991489411/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Book2: ‘Not Dead Yet’ https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/099148942X/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwLW2IWJq4FES_no7MmpkjA

Episode Timestamps:

1:05 | Studying electronics ‘to get a few quid into me pocket’

1:56 | 15 years at Intel and then...the inspiration for a motorcycle journey around the world

3:00 | 2 adventures, in summary

6:00 | Writing book 1 in Columbia while on trip 2

7:55 | How did that 1st trip change you? .... Getting used to being on your own

9:40 | Why did you go on the 1st trip?

11:00 | The peaks and valleys of solo travel

13:04 | The difference between being alone vs. being lonely

17:15 | The adventure in uncertainty

19:25 | A moment when you felt like you would die?

23:30 | Turning off your phone...because no one was checking in

25:10 | A partnership breaks up

27:30 | Some characters you meet on the road

31:35 | Amazon origin story

35:00 | On the return to the work force - ready to build something big

36:28 | What makes someone successful at Amazon: starting fast, tolerance for ambiguity, self-starter

37:40 | Oisin’s leadership philosophy: honesty (with compassion)...and good hiring!

40:30 | Advice to your younger self: be an expert, get on with people, get results

42:30 | Life philosophy from the road? “Make progress everyday.”

46:45 | Should everybody go on a trip?

47:40 | You don’t have to make a perfect decision...take a baby bite

49:50 | Parting words - on karma

Oisin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oisin-hughes-0971a4198/

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CONTACT THE SHOW:

Subscribe to the newsletter: https://www.charleskunken.com/subscribe

Find us online: https://www.charleskunken.com/podcast or email the show with any questions, comments, requests for guests, etc: [email protected]
Sid on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dhodi/
Charlie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charleskunken

The blog | https://www.charleskunken.com/blogsummary (weekly posts exploring creativity & mindset)

Insta | https://www.instagram.com/cbkunk/
fb | https://www.facebook.com/cbkunk

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Theme music by Good Baby: https://www.goodbaby.band/musicvideos

“For the first 90 days here I would try to sit as much as I can, or literally just move your desk to where your business partners are.”

Today we have an interview with Karl Brenner Roman, Sid’s and my ‘cousin’ (by the org chart) here in AWS infrastructure finance. Karl is an energy guy and he’s got some great insights on how he has found success adding value in finance at Amazon.

1:00 When do you stop counting your Amazon tenure in months?

3:00 Karl’s gig before b-school included energy retrofitting sugar factories, mmm

5:45 The albums that were on replay in Cost Rica as a kid

8:33 Favorite music venues in Berkley & Seattle

12:00 What attracted Karl to Amazon – promoting renewable energy

14:20 Considerations for FinTech campus recruiting at business school – company focus vs. product/team focus

17:45 Visa considerations in business school recruiting – discover early which companies have sponsorship for international students

20:00 On finding your balance at Amazon

21:35 Karl’s advice for first 90 days at Amazon – spending time with the business team

22:45 How to add value in finance

23:50 The difference in perspective of finance vs. the business

25:55 Finance's obligation for long term thinking

27:40 Thoughts on career path, staying close enough to the business to ask good questions

29:10 Lighting round word association with Sid

30:00 Parting words for anyone interested in a career in tech finance – can you map your story and skills to the business’s need

32:20 What’s Karl doing this weekend?
Connect with Karl on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karl-brenner-rom%C3%A1n-6a963152/
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Sid on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dhodi/
Charlie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charleskunken

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