Leading Through A Crisis with GitHub’s CTO Jason Warner

07/30/20 • 25 min

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, companies around the world were asking the same question: How do I mobilize my workforce and give them the tools and skills they need to work from home? GitHub employs more than 1,000 employees, all of whom work remotely. So we invited their CTO, Jason Warner, back to the program to discuss how he advised companies on adapting to their new normal. And he gave some best practices he’s learned about leading through a crisis, and explained why GitHub is one step closer to achieving its mission.

Key Takeaways

In many cases, once a company and its leaders became comfortable with remote environments, they begin to embrace it
It’s important to be transparent and honest with your employees during a crisis — they are struggling and need to be given the truth of the situation in order to realistically set expectations
GitHub’s mission is to make sure every developer has access to its software, and as the company continues to expand its reach, it is getting closer and closer to achieving that goal

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Key Takeaways

In many cases, once a company and its leaders became comfortable with remote environments, they begin to embrace it
It’s important to be transparent and honest with your employees during a crisis — they are struggling and need to be given the truth of the situation in order to realistically set expectations
GitHub’s mission is to make sure every developer has access to its software, and as the company continues to expand its reach, it is getting closer and closer to achieving that goal

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Previous Episode

The New Way of Buying and Selling Your Home with Opendoor’s CTO Ian Wong

The process of buying and selling a home is one of the most strenuous and frustrating out there. Imagine this: You find a home and make an offer, but that home already has multiple bids so, after a long bidding war, you finally get the home of your dreams. But now after a clean inspection, the appraisal falls through and you ask yourself, ‘Why is this so frustrating? Ian Wong and Opendoor asked that same question. And on this episode of IT Visionaries, Ian discusses how his team built one of the biggest disruptors to the real estate market, and he gives some of the secret sauce to the science behind the Opendoor technology.

3 Key Takeaways

Opendoor uses both structured and unstructured data to help price their homes
The home buying process is stressful and Opendoor is streamlining the process
The real estate industry has not been disrupted because of the lack of frequency in the home-buying process

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Next Episode

Working To Streamline Authentication in Online Marketplaces

As more-and-more of people work from home and restrict their trips out of the home, eCommerce companies continue to be the ones reaping the benefits. One of those companies is The RealReal, a consignment giant with a focus on bringing luxury brands to everyone. Josh Schlanger, the Head of DevOps and Product Support at The RealReal, joined IT Visionaries to discuss how eCommerce sites operate, how The RealReal is working to sift out fake products, and why he thinks jobs will make a more permanent shift toward remote work moving forward.

Key Takeaways

Real or fake? Historically, the authentication of consigned products has mostly been done by humans. That’s changing, and Josh explains exactly how.
To go remote, or not to go remote. Until COVID-19 hit, The RealReal managed a hybrid model of part-remote, part-in-office. Josh shares the pros and cons of that model, and his recommendations to managers. (Pro tip: Don’t forget to set personal and professional boundaries.)
Is your infrastructure ready to weather the storm? The RealReal operates exclusively on the cloud, infrastructure that Josh and his engineering team are constantly improving. He touches on some of the things your systems should be prepared to handle, including why it’s so important to have a team able to make short-notice pivots.

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