Hosted by Tech in the Hood
Episodes
24
Latest episode
Aug 2024
Language
EN-US
Tech in the Hood is a podcast that celebrates Chicago's contribution to the digital age by showcasing the personal and professional journey of its host, Ahmed "Flex" Omar, and conversations with innovators and old friends.
In “Episode Zero” of the podcast, Host Ahmed Flex Omar talks to our producer, Tom Brown, about the genesis of Tech in the Hood, and what listeners can expect from Season 1. We’ll hear about why Flex has chosen this moment to launch Tech in the Hood, and how his own journey has led to here.
Ahmed Flex Omar sits down with fine artist and Chicago native, Shawn Michael Warren, to talk about his journey as an artist, and how technology increasingly plays a role in the artistic process. The two also discuss the role of Shawn’s work in building equity and representation for marginalized communities, as well as confidence-building strategies for young Black artists, and why Chicago is such a unique creative environment.
This episode, we go back to where it all started, as Ahmed Flex Omar sits down with his friend and mentor, Bashir Muhammad, to talk about tech in the West Side of Chicago in the early 2000s. Their conversation covers the history of “internet deserts” and racial inequity in Chicago, the role of tech in community learning, and an honest conversation about our successes and lessons-learned over the past 20 years of innovation and services to the community.
In Episode 3 of Tech in the Hood we welcome Stephanie Yousif, whose dynamic journey in tech has spanned a variety of roles in the corporate sector and beyond. Flex and Stephanie talk about nontraditional careers in tech, social enterprise and entrepreneurship, and emerging positions and opportunities in technology. They also discuss gender disparities in tech and why diversity and inclusion are crucial to the advancement of the industry.
In the start-up world, we hear about B2B (business-to-business) and B2C (business-to-consumer) business models all the time, but what about B2G? Business-to-government is the central topic of this week’s episode with this week’s guest, Sara Agate, founder and CEO of Munitask. Sara and Flex talk about the barriers to access in government tech careers, and the challenges of engaging young people in this field. The conversation also covers Sara’s experience as a woman of color in the tech start-up environment; she shares her perspective on access and equity in the industry and shares wisdom for young women of color. We’ll also hear about self-care strategies, some of Sara’s favorite podcasts, and why Chicago is such a perfect environment for young tech companies.
This week’s episode is good for your health! We’re talking to physician, author, and community leader, Dr. Dominic Gaziano about everything from Medtech to meditation. Flex and Dr. Dominic talk about the rapid acceleration of telehealth during the Covid-19 pandemic, and discuss the intersection of mental and physical health in the workplace and at home. In addition to tech in healthcare, our conversation covers social media, healthy relationships, work-life balance, and combating what Dr. Dominic calls Global Loneliness.
What does it take to launch a successful startup? A great idea? A great team? A whole lot of tenacity? You need all three, according to this week’s guest Martina Matthews. Martina has helped to launch and build some serious businesses in her career, including Chegg, GetNectar.com, SitterCity.com, HelloChime.com, and many others.
Tech in the Hood is back with a special Juneteenth Bonus Episode! Flex sits down with Temitayo "Tayo" Ade-Oshifogun, an MBA entrepreneur and founder of Real Ppl, for a real talk about putting in the work. Flex and Tayo talk about centering intentionality and service in their professional lives, and the discipline it takes to become indispensable in any role.
In Season 2 of Tech in the Hood, Martina Matthews, Bashir Muhammad, and Flex recap Season 1, discuss their summer activities, and explore the theme of relationships in technological innovation, including maintaining long-term partnerships and the impact of technology on parent-child relationships, with a fun mention of AI-powered soccer-playing robots.
It's all about recruitment this week on Tech in the Hood with our guest, Kevin Davenport, Author, Founder, and CEO of The Ideal Candidate. On the show, Kevin and Flex discuss trends in recruitment, and dig into some of the biggest challenges facing young people entering the workforce. It's an inspiring conversation that covers everything from Kevin’s upbringing on the Southside, to his founder journey, and the unique challenges he faced writing his book, The Ideal Candidate, while struggling with dyslexia and ADD.
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