Company & Culture

Listening to Digital Heroes on a New Podcast from AppDirect

By Dan Saks / September 29, 2020

For the past 10 years, I've been fortunate to go to work every day and do something I love. As the co-founder and co-CEO of AppDirect, I've had the privilege of traveling and talking to innovators at startups and enterprises, both large and small, around the globe.

I've learned a lot, but one of the most important lessons I've discovered is this: Every business has a story to tell, but all too often these stories go unheard. Even though innovators at different companies have the same goals—to pursue their vision, to change the status quo—they often speak past each other, or don't have a forum to share their stories at all.

That's why I'm excited to announce a new project that I've been working on, "Decoding Digital," a podcast about innovation in the digital era. Each episode, I interview a guest who "decodes" a topic that they have unique insight into. So far, we've been fortunate to have amazing guests, including Eric Ries, author of "The Lean Startup"; Michele Romanow, star of CBC's "Dragons' Den"; and startup investor and mentor Brad Feld. And we have many more on the way.

In talking to these individuals, what I realized is that innovators can be found at any company, at any stage of their professional lives. They can be first-time startup founders, or they can be long-time, industry veterans. You can also see patterns in their journeys, and that’s what we set out to break down and understand during our conversations. When you really start to listen, you hear the similarities in how these innovators achieved success, as well as the unique characteristics—vision, influence, compassion, courage, determination, and curiosity–that have allowed them to pursue a vision to make it happen.

At AppDirect, we call these people Digital Heroes, and with “Decoding Digital,” there's now a place where we can hear their stories first hand. I hope their insights encourage anyone who listens—no matter where they live, or what industry they work in—to feel empowered to embrace innovation at work, and love the journey of trying to build something new in the digital era.

Ultimately, "Decoding Digital" is geared to anyone who wants to learn, who wants to take risks and hear from others about how they did it. Beyond that, the podcast is for people who are willing to stop, ask themselves hard questions, and use the answers to transform their businesses and themselves. You can hear me talk more about the ideas behind “Decoding Digital” with a special guest host, Naomi Mbakwe, on a bonus “episode 0” of the podcast.

Since its official launch last week, the podcast has already created a lot of buzz, and we’re excited to see it continue to grow and reach new audiences. You can listen to "Decoding Digital" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or the podcast player of your choice, and you can learn more about the guests by visiting www.decodingdigital.com. Technology can be a game-changer, but only if we share our challenges and successes, and learn from one another.

Dan Saks is co-founder and co-CEO of AppDirect.