It Depends: Lessons in Technology Leadership

Host Kevin Goldsmith responds to six listener questions covering common leadership and career challenges in technology organizations.

Learning and Development on Limited Resources - A team lead in Lagos asks about fostering continuous learning without access to expensive training programs. Kevin discusses free resources, including con...

In this first post-book Q&A episode, host Kevin Goldsmith dives into the real challenges tech leaders face daily, answering questions from listeners around the globe.

The episode unpacks several critical leadership dilemmas:

Luca from Milan asks how to maintain clear accountability while fostering cro...

In this episode, Kevin shares the final chapter of It Depends: Writing on Technology Leadership, focusing on what it takes to grow with a scaling company, or recognize when it’s time for new leadership. Drawing on his real-world experience, he discusses succession planning, self-awareness, and cultivating a culture that fosters growth at every stage.

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In this special episode, Kevin Goldsmith is joined by longtime friend and peer Kevin Stewart, SVP of Engineering at Splice, to challenge the familiar but flawed narrative: that a team inside a big company can "operate like a startup." Drawing on their shared experiences at Adobe and divergent paths through startups, they explore why innovation often stalls inside large organizations and what makes real startup environments fundamen...

In this episode of the "It Depends" podcast, host Kevin Goldsmith discusses the lessons learned from creating Spotify's Technology Career Steps framework. Kevin shares insights from his experience leading the effort to build a structured career path for Spotify's technology team, discussing the process's challenges and successes.

The episode covers key topics such as balancing behaviors versus achievements in career growth, the imp...

In this episode of "It Depends: Lessons in Technology Leadership," host Kevin Goldsmith discusses Chapter 33 of his book, which details the career framework he helped develop at Spotify. Kevin emphasizes that a career pathing framework is the most critical document for engineering leaders. It serves as the backbone of organizational culture by reinforcing desired behaviors through promo...

In this episode of the "It Depends" podcast, host Kevin Goldsmith shares his unique experience designing Spotify's engineering career framework. As the leader of this initiative, Kevin provides a behind-the-scenes look at how Spotify's distinct career pathing system was developed, a system that reinforced its unique engineering culture rather than undermining it.

Kevin explains the delicate balance of timing when implementing a ca...

Are your hiring practices unintentionally limiting diversity in your organization? In this episode of It Depends host Kevin Goldsmith explores the critical changes that can help technology companies build more inclusive and high-performing teams. Drawing on his experience scaling engineering teams, Kevin challenges conventional hiring biases—such as prioritizing certain universities or requiring excessive pre-interview work—and off...

As major tech companies retreat from their commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion, startups can lead the way. In this episode, Kevin Goldsmith explores why diverse teams consistently build better products and create stronger, more effective workplaces. He reflects on personal experiences in leadership, shares insights on how startups can leverage the "law of small numbers" to make a meaningful impact, and explains why prio...

In Episode 27 of It Depends: Lessons in Technology Leadership, Kevin Goldsmith explores the process of creating a management training curriculum at Avvo. Reflecting on his journey as a manager and lessons learned from his early days at Microsoft and Adobe, Kevin highlights the importance of intentional training for engineering managers. This episode delves into the innovative approach used at Avvo, including collaborative exercises...

In this insightful episode of The It Depends Podcast, host Kevin Goldsmith, seasoned CTO and author, takes listeners behind the scenes of his first CTO role at Avvo, a legal tech company. Kevin shares his real-world experience in transforming the organizational structure by introducing journey teams—an innovative approach influenced by, but distinct from, Spotify’s model. He discusses the challenges of managing small teams, the nec...

In this episode of It Depends, host Kevin Goldsmith, a seasoned technology leader and CTO, explores the intricacies of Spotify's famed matrix organization model and its applicability to other companies. Drawing from his firsthand experiences at Spotify during its formative years, Kevin delves into the successes and challenges of implementing the Spotify model, addressing common misconceptions and the cultural nuances that influence...

In this episode of It Depends, host Kevin Goldsmith dives into Chapter 26 of his book It Depends: Writing on Technology Leadership 2012–2022. Kevin shares his firsthand experiences with the Spotify model—a revolutionary approach to team organization designed to foster agility, innovation, and collaboration.

Drawing on his years at Spotify, Kevin explains how the model allows teams to dynamically form, dissolve, and remix based on c...