Accelerating & upskilling your AI learning journey w/ Maher Hanafi #211

The Engineering Leadership Podcast

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ABOUT MAHER HANAFI

Maher Hanafi is a seasoned technology engineering leader, driving digital transformation and delivering impactful SaaS solutions. As Senior Vice President of Engineering at Betterworks, he leads the AI vision and applications for their AI-powered performance management software, overseeing the integration of AI tools that enhance HR functions like performance reviews, goal setting and employee development.

Maher's passion for technology centers on the transformative potential of AI, particularly Generative AI. He views it as a powerful tool capable of learning, adapting and solving real-world problems, and champions its responsible development to empower individuals.

Maher's vision extends beyond technology, aiming to revolutionize tech workplaces by fostering human potential alongside cutting-edge solutions. He employs a people-centric leadership style, building collaborative environments that empower teams to excel. This commitment to empowerment extends to mentoring fellow engineering leaders and sharing his knowledge through public speaking.

ABOUT COREY COTO

Corey Coto is a creative, data-driven, and innovative executive. He founded Kaizen Insights to help enterprises create business intelligence with their people. Corey was SVP of Product, Design and Engineering at a Vista Equity Partners portfolio company and held engineering leadership roles at Amazon, CoStar Group, and Liberty Mutual. He is a Founder Institute Mentor, an ELC Seattle Chapter Lead, and a startup advisor. Software is his favorite artistic medium because of its power to quickly move the needle on big ideas that can benefit people and the planet. He believes there has never been a better time to build. The future is bright!

SHOW NOTES:

When Maher realized he needed to rethink his approach to AI & upskill quickly (3:38)
Milestones across Maher’s AI knowledge progression (7:42)
Set aside time for your eng team to experiment & apply AI learnings (11:09)
Why intentionally building different use cases leads to better outcomes (14:22)
The importance of revisiting AI decisions as a team (16:53)
Frameworks for determining how deep to go into each learning area (19:37)
How to navigate the challenges of going from proof of concept to production (22:43)
Evaluating the ROI of AI applications (26:47)
Strategies for deciding which resources / operating expenses go toward AI use cases (29:24)
Tips for developing stakeholder confidence in your AI strategy (32:36)
How non-technical experts can build AI awareness & confidence (36:22)
Betterworks’ AI roadmap for 2025 (38:48)
Rapid fire questions (40:58)

LINKS AND RESOURCES

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us - Drawing on four decades of scientific research on human motivation, Daniel H. Pink exposes the mismatch between what science knows and what business does—and how that affects every aspect of life. He examines the three elements of true motivation—autonomy, mastery, and purpose—and offers smart and surprising techniques for putting these into action in a unique book that will change how we think and transform how we live.

This episode wouldn’t have been possible without the help of our incredible production team:

Patrick Gallagher - Producer & Co-Host

Jerry Li - Co-Host

Noah Olberding - Associate Producer, Audio & Video Editor https://www.linkedin.com/in/noah-olberding/

Dan Overheim - Audio Engineer, Dan’s also an avid 3D printer - https://www.bnd3d.com/

Ellie Coggins Angus - Copywriter, Check out her other work at https://elliecoggins.com/about/

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