HWMS Audio Theatre
100 episodes
Web <link> from RSS feed:
Database link:
RSS Feed:
https://managefeed.djaghe.com/feed/podcast
Creator: David Alan Grier
Slice of life Audio Drama
Synopsis:
Drama As You Have Never Seen It
Format: Audio Drama
Genres: Slice of life
Not tagged: [Framing device] [Continuity] [Voices] [Maturity] [Creator demographics] [Character demographics] [Country of origin] [Transcript] [Completion status] [Content warnings]
Click here to update these tags.
Episodes:
Mon, 24 Mar 2025 06:00:05 +0000
Small shows. A single vehicle and a couple of entertainers. But they were the ones who engaged the front line troops. They went to the battle, to the, places where the USO didn’t go. They saw the war as it was and helped the soldiers to their do their job. They also found themselves in […]
Your Results May Vary: Act 5 (Checkpoint with Sweet Tea)
Mon, 10 Mar 2025 06:00:27 +0000
The day has come. The hour has arrived. The troops are deployed against an insurgent stronghold. And Professor Effson has gone to the battlefield to study, to observe, to see how the residents behave in combat. One small change and with that change, her work hangs in the balance. Act 5 of “Your Results […]
Your Results May Vary Act 4 (The Junction)
Fri, 31 Jan 2025 06:00:31 +0000
A preliminary visit. A warning shot at an awkward time. A suggestion that the local population might not as welcoming as they might appear. An angry research director, who had to drag a research team to the battlefield when they claimed that they could do conflict research from the safety of their laboratories. Military and […]
Your Results May Vary Act 3 (End of the Town)
Tue, 31 Dec 2024 06:00:32 +0000
The end of the town. Don’t go down. Don’t ever go down, as the song says, if you don’t go down with me. Preparing to visit the battle. Learning to negotiate a small town only a few miles from the conflict. Two things that are not that different when the town is Kapu Varo. Alec […]
Your Results May Vary: Act 2 (Kindly Wishes to Inform)
Wed, 11 Dec 2024 06:00:36 +0000
The Dark Angel visits the battlefield. She carries her paperwork and her description of research to be done. How close does one ever come to death? Can we refuse to accept it just the way we refuse a mistaken delivery? Alec Effson has her own questions. Act 2 of “Your Results May Vary.” Cast, […]
Your Results May Vary: Act 1 (Closest I Came)
Tue, 19 Nov 2024 06:00:58 +0000
The story begins. A distance battlefield. A recent defeat. And a woman who needs an answer to the question “How close I have been to death?” First act from the show “Your Results May Vary.” Cast, in order of appearance: Zoe Anastassiou– Professor Alec Effson Ron Bianchi – Major C. O Beason […]
Sun, 10 Nov 2024 06:00:44 +0000
Professionals need professional help. Dr. May visits his colleague Dr. X-Tra over his psycholinguistic crisis that is driven by one, very specific word. Dr. X-Tra, in his turn, has many ways of thinking about this issue. A third scene from the practice of a San Franciscan Black Psychiatrist. Cast, in order of […]
Mon, 17 Jun 2024 06:00:45 +0000
For any mental health professional, one patient follows another. When the walls are thin enough, (as they often were for Black doctors in the 1960s, one patient can hear the session can hear the prior session. So now our psych faces a patient who objects to the advice given in the an earlier patient. He […]
Fri, 03 May 2024 06:00:26 +0000
San Francisco Once the Harlem of the West. Once a city with a vibrant and exciting Black culture. It then faces the Civil Rights movement. The Black Power Movement. And a pair of Black Psychiatrists trying to make sense of of this thing called racism Cast, in order of appearance: Phoenyx Rose – Office Assistant […]
Dawn (as viewed by Chaos and Old Night)
Fri, 09 Feb 2024 06:00:13 +0000
Rosy Fingered Dawn stretches her hand across the morning sky. As least that is what one of Chorus believes. (He’s kind of that way. The other is not so sure.) A little snippet of a classic story in a modern setting about a timeless conflict. “Life is a Dream (or at least a wee nap”) […]
Life is a Dream (or at least a wee nap)
Tue, 16 Jan 2024 06:00:01 +0000
What is real? When we’re awake? Or when we’re asleep. A Dublin business has spent twenty years carefully crafting her company, her position, her identity. No one questions her role. She gets the business. She gets the revenue. She pays the salaries. She is in control of all, until a memory from the past […]
Mon, 08 Jan 2024 06:00:41 +0000
Dublin. Rain. Business. Money. Power. Two lost souls wandering the streets and getting wet. A first look at a new show on an old subject with a classic approach. Cast, in order of appearance: Kota Fudauchi – Chaos Michelle Thomas-Hanson – Old Night [22671.p1]
Tue, 22 Aug 2023 06:00:00 +0000
Fancy Club. Fatty Foods. Formal Music in the Background. This is where business is done. Or where we believe business is done. Or perhaps where we pretend that something like business might be done on a good day with a favorable wind. Three investors try to out bluff each other. Cast, in order of […]
Thu, 15 Jun 2023 06:00:00 +0000
Bread Crumbs. Paths we find for ourselves. Paths we leave for others. The lessons we learn along the way. The gratitude we find with each step. A monologue of an African American Family history by Geoffrey Grier of San Francisco Recovery Theatre in collaboration with AfroSolo. A Studio Version of the live performance at Potrero […]
Tue, 02 May 2023 06:00:00 +0000
What holds friends together? Common background? Common history? A common vision of what they are? Three friends explore the different roles they have with each other. They are moving into adulthood. They are shaping their lives and their identities. They also suddenly realize how delicate their common bonds may be. A New Audio Drama From […]
A Bustle, A Corset, & The London Necropolis Express
Tue, 17 Jan 2023 06:00:00 +0000
We know the story. Three women. A London Office. A missing colleague. And a pandemic. Three women wake one morning to discover that a colleague has vanished in the night. Gone. Poof. Not a bit of a trace. The clue to the story lies in a play that has just opened in a London Theatre. […]
Mon, 02 May 2022 05:01:00 +0000
She could have been somebody. A real contender. If there hadn’t been a global economic depression. If the world hadn’t been engaged in a world war. And if she hadn’t been a woman. Through Fate or Good Fortune or the simple dedication of someone who was not discouraged by rejection, she came to lead the […]
Mon, 21 Feb 2022 06:00:00 +0000
New Drama. New Story. And it’s about arithmetic. And work relief. And Organizations. And Power. And National Security. Plus it’s a Love Story. A short preview of what is going to come. Told as only the HWMS Audio Theatre can do it. We’re Theatre Like You’ve Never Seen. Cast: Zoe Anastasiou – Computer Ron […]
Mon, 31 Jan 2022 06:00:00 +0000
A suitcase on the sidewalk. A weary traveller looking for an answer. A stage manager, looking for dessert. Introducing Kota Fudauchi to the audio drama Embisivle Friend. Cast: Kota Fudauchi – Himself Michelle Thomas Hanson – Stage Manager Skippy – Himself [21913]
Embisivle Friend: A Place for Innovation
Mon, 03 Jan 2022 06:00:00 +0000
A school. A slightly unusual school. (Business curriculum. Silicon Valley.) A principal, slightly stressed. A teacher. (ditto) Broken plumbing. A friend with a yellow car. A successful corporate leader offering advice to a young protégé while pulling the funds from another. And a little girl shall lead them all. Just another day […]
Waiting for Lillian Moller Gilbreth
Mon, 20 Dec 2021 22:48:00 +0000
What’s to be done? Waiting at an old train station. Not for a train of course. But will she come? Does she ever come? To New Jersey. Deepest New Jersey. A peek into the Audio Drama Embisivle Friend. Cast Zoe Anastassiou – Zoe Josh LaForce – Josh Michelle Thomas Hanson – Stage Manager Skippy – […]
Mon, 06 Dec 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Cermack Road, Cicero, Illinois Once it was the center of the high tech world. Now it is a shopping mall. A mall that is barely making ends meet. Not a promising future for Silicon Valley. But a useful place to introduce a new cast member. A peek into the Audio Drama Embisivle Friend. Cast […]
Embisivle Friend: Playing the Role
Mon, 08 Nov 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Every now and then you need to assess. Take a look backwards. Ask “who did that character become?” With this episode, we return to the world of the adult Madison Insullie and see her dealing with adult problems. The 11th episode of the Audio Drama Embisivle Friend. Cast Sahara Ale – Consuela Zoe Anastasiou – […]
Embisivle Friend: Additive Education
Mon, 25 Oct 2021 06:00:00 +0000
We’ve lost our faith in books. We’ve lost faith in texts. May may have even lost faith in problem sets. Learning by doing. Learning by interning. Learning by being mentored. It’s what you demand when you’re an 8 year old entrepreneur. And a plasma steel cutter, just for good measure. The 10th episode […]
Mon, 11 Oct 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Is a startup a startup if it doesn’t start up in a garage? That’s the myth. We start with nothing but our wits and a little empty space from our parents, or our aunt, or some unrelated person up the street. More companies have started in a garage than you might think. But at the […]
Embisivle Friend: Securing the Future
Mon, 27 Sep 2021 06:00:00 +0000
“Don’t let your kids take capital from strangers.” It’s the warning that parents should give their kids in Silicon Valley. But parents may reason “if the kids get the investment, could things really be that bad?” Aravinda finds herself tested in the newest episode of the audio drama that puts our business future squarely in […]
Embisivle Friend: The Hand That Rocks The Cradle
Mon, 13 Sep 2021 06:00:00 +0000
How does it feel? They made tup the first stair but not the second. And who is there to hold them when they fall? As we follow the story entrepreneurship and innovation, we start the story of a Investor’s Representative, a famous former CEO, who goes through the world doing the things that need to […]
The Stage Manager Explains Embisivle
Mon, 06 Sep 2021 06:00:00 +0000
The show is about the Stage Manager. Every show is. So our manager steps up to the microphone in the HWMS auditorium to explain this Audiodrama Embisivile Friend. Introduction to the next section of the drama Cast Michelle Thomas-Hanson – Stage Manager Skippy – Himself [21911]
Thu, 12 Aug 2021 06:06:00 +0000
Out Stage is Silicon Valley. Our actors are titans of Industry. Some titans. Fictional titans. And some kids who believe that they are titans and that the earth shudders when they walk. And a dog. And a school. And an actor who wants to give you a tour. Ana DeLoret talks about the audio […]
Embisivle Friend: The Job Suits You
Mon, 12 Jul 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Career Management. But it’s more than that. Manage plans. Manage hope. Manage accomplishments. And here’s the part you didn’t anticipate: Manage Boyfriend before the boyfriend manages you. An ambitious Principal faces an unexpected development in the 7th episode of the audio drama Embisivle Friend. Cast Sahara Ale – Lyra of Silent Partners Debbon Ayer – Penelope […]
Embisivle Friend: I Look Good in Yellow
Mon, 28 Jun 2021 06:00:00 +0000
What does it mean to help a friend? Listen to their problems? Give unwanted advice? Give them a ride in your yellow car? And what do you do, when they ask you to mentor a troublesome student? The 6th episode of the audio drama Embisivle Friend. Cast Zoe Anastasiou – Maddie, the 8 year old CEO […]
Embisivle Friend: The Picture Goes Everywhere
Mon, 14 Jun 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Where are Mom and Dad? Any drama that features independent kids have to answer that question. The reasons are not always pretty but with a little help, they can be “neatened up a bit.” “Neatening” doesn’t help here, as a friend of Maddie’s father tries to explain The story of independent kids on the 5th […]
Embisivle Friend: Where Deals Are Made
Mon, 31 May 2021 06:00:00 +0000
There’s a deal to be made here. If only all the parties would see it. One is looking for a crown. The other is hoping to find the exit. The problems of finding a common ground and a common agreement on the fourth episode of the audio drama “Embisivle Friend”. Cast: Zoe Anastassiou – Maddie, the […]
Embisivle Influence for an Embisivle Drama
Mon, 17 May 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Influencer A career that inspires the children of our age. Roughly equal in status to those of astronaut, video game designer, and ballet dancer. Tehya Merrit from our cast visits center stage of influence. The Twitter headquarters to explain our drama. A lovely lobby. A decent café. And a place where influence is born. A […]
Embisivle Friend: Only Hire The Best
Mon, 03 May 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Ordinary Day. Not so ordinary school. Not much happening. Though the fifth graders… that’s another story. And an aspiring CEO decides that Adam Smith might have something useful to say about her arithmetic quiz. Crowdsourcing an exam on the Third Episode of our series on Maddie, the 8 year old entrepreneur. Cast: Sahara Ale – Vice […]
Embisivle Friend: Friends and Family
Mon, 19 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Another day. Another chance for a Senior Executive Meeting. Held on the Playground of the Lillian Moller Gilbreth School for Disruptive Innovation. Another opportunity to fight over key resources. And one of those resources is the meeting table itself. Second Episode of our series on Maddie, the 8 year old entrepreneur. Cast: Zoe Anastasiou – […]
Embisivle Tech from an Embisivle Drama
Wed, 14 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Zeppelins. Silicon Valley was once the home of Zeppelins. Giant Airships would silently glide out of their hanger and rise into the sky, undertaking cutting edge missions for the U. S. Navy. It was a sign of the areas importance, a sign of its role in creating new technologies. And of course, that era is […]
Embisivle Friend: Angel of the Morning
Mon, 05 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Your attorney is sitting next to your bed. You knew it was going to be a peppy day, but maybe you thought that you would at least have time for a shower? So begins the story of Embisivle Friend. Once upon a time, there was an 8-year-old girl named Maddie who dreamed of becoming a […]
Mon, 29 Mar 2021 06:00:00 +0000
It was once a big part of Silicon Valley culture. It may someday be part of that culture again. For the moment, it’s merely a shuttered memory. Cast member Sahara visits the Bay Area Makers Faire to explain a new story for the Audio Drama “How We Manage Stuff.” It’s a story set on the […]
Embisivle Friend: Riding the Rails
Mon, 22 Mar 2021 06:00:00 +0000
We’ll do many things to get an audience. Many things. Cast member Noah Masur takes the Caltrans commuter train into Silicon Valley and tries to recruit a few new listeners for our new audio drama. At least he’s gotten you. That’s a positive thing. The rest? They’ll be coming soon, when we start releasing episodes […]
Embisivle Friend: Street Theatre
Mon, 15 Mar 2021 06:00:00 +0000
Ever tried to raise money in Silicon Valley? Our cast, led by Zoe Anastassiou, works the central intersection of the tech world – Page Mill Road and El Camino Real – while explaining the new series, Embisivle Friend. It’s a story about real places and real characters who are played by real actors. It’s Embisivle […]
Embisivle Friend: Dramatic Leadership
Mon, 08 Mar 2021 06:00:00 +0000
A new story is coming. And part of it takes place in the City by the Bay. Cast member Geoffrey Grier gives a quick tour of the landscape of the audio drama “Embisivle Friend” Cast: Geoffrey Grier – Himself Skippy – Himself [21906]
Mon, 01 Mar 2021 06:00:00 +0000
A little girl with big dreams. A hardened veteran of business who has taken his share of punches. And two actors talking about these characters. A little preview of our upcoming story line: Embisivle Friend. Cast: Zoe Anastassiou – Herself (& Maddie) Geoffrey Grier – Himself (& Vinny) Skippy – Himself [18804]
Mon, 15 Feb 2021 06:00:00 +0000
End of the line. The enemy is vanquished. The Office is packed. The Ship is riding on the outgoing tide. The Prodigal returns. If we may invoke multiple images to announce the last episode of this story. The final episode of the audio drama “Talking and Shopping” Cast: Sahara Ale – […]
Mon, 01 Feb 2021 06:00:13 +0000
There comes a time. A time when you have to face the bull. You can’t have a corporate leader who terrorizes employees, makes policy in public, and cuts unauthorized deals. And when the time comes. Only one person can do the job The episode 28 of the audio drama “Talking and Shopping.” Cast: Sahara […]
Mon, 11 Jan 2021 06:00:35 +0000
He’s a Tech Guy. He thinks he has something to tell the world, something the world doesn’t know. Little surprised that needs people to help him. Ed Kowalski, the CTO of the Tech Giant Talking and Shopping returns to Washington but discovers that no one really missed him while he was gone. And […]
Mon, 14 Dec 2020 06:00:00 +0000
He’s trying to do a good thing. A good thing with a drone. A good thing with a drone in the nation’s capital. It was supposed to be good. But now he is sitting in the station house of DC Police District 1 trying to explain what he is doing. […]
Thu, 03 Dec 2020 06:00:00 +0000
Intimate Knowledge. It doesn’t mean what it used to mean. And it doesn’t make things any easier. As Abby Alton, CEO of Talking and Shopping, prepares to meet Congress, two of her aides grappled with the fact that one of them knows a great deal about the other. A slow dance […]
Mon, 16 Nov 2020 06:00:00 +0000
There are so many moving parts. You think you have a strategy and then things fall apart. Successful coworkspace. Capitol Hill. A Center for women. Finally, a sitting Senator graces the facility with her presence but at the same time, a real estate agency makes a call. Episode 24 of the Audio Drama […]
Mon, 02 Nov 2020 06:00:00 +0000
Can’t things just get better? By themselves. When there is a market to disrupt. And money to be made. Ed Kowalski, the CTO of the hapless Internet firm Talking and Shopping is back in Silicon Valley. Tired of Washington. Tired of things he doesn’t understand. Tired of trying to get along with people. […]
Mon, 19 Oct 2020 06:00:00 +0000
A friend you support financially is a friend indeed. So you would think. Abby Alton, the CEO of the Tech Giant Talking and Shopping pays a visit a Trade Association, the National Information Market Brokers Institute. T & S pays their bills, so you would expect a little love. And love can be found […]
We Let You Decide (The Dockerly Report)
Mon, 05 Oct 2020 06:00:10 +0000
Chad Dockerly of the Dockerly Report You run a big name podcast. You deal with important issues. You can get big name guests. Maybe. Chad Dockerly asks his guest, Former Congressional Aide Rebecca Vogelson, to explain the EARN IT bill to his listeners. Episode 20 of the Audio Drama “Talking and Shopping”. Cast: Zoe Anastassiou […]
Mon, 07 Sep 2020 06:00:00 +0000
You must take the tide at its flood.
That is the sad lesson of organizational leadership.
You may like your colleagues. You may like where you work. You may even like what you do.
But there are times when you must loose the ropes that bind you to shore and start the journey afresh.
Vinny at the end of SidePocket
Seventh in our re-release of the AudioDrama: SidePocket
Cast:
- Sahara Ale - Jessie
- Zoe Anastassiou – Narrator: Maddie, the 8 Year Old Entrepreneur
- Ron Bianchi - San
- Geoffrey Grier - Vinny
- Josh LaForce - Carl the VC
- Jake Minevich - Julio
- Skippy - Himself
[18150]
SidePocket: Breaking with the Board
Mon, 24 Aug 2020 06:00:00 +0000
You see the need.
You found a way to get the money.
You make the move.
You're board doesn't like it.
But you're ok, right? I mean, you did the right thing? And your board will come along, don't you think? Afterall, you are innovating. But then comes the break.
Sixth in our re-release of the AudioDrama: SidePocket
Cast:
- Sahara Ale - Jessie
- Zoe Anastassiou – Narrator: Maddie, the 8 Year Old Entrepreneur
- Debbon Ayer - Karen from CalFed
- Ron Bianchi - Thomas from IBM
- Geoffrey Grier - Vinny
- Josh LaForce - Carl the VC
- Cariad O'Brien - Molly
- Skippy - Himself
[18145]
Mon, 10 Aug 2020 06:00:00 +0000
Your face on the cover of a magazine.
What does it matter? (Who knows what a magazine even is, anymore?)
Success has come to Vinny but how long will it stay?
Fifth in our re-release of the AudioDrama: SidePocket
Cast:
- Sahara Ale - Jessie
- Margaux Amie - Violet
- Zoe Anastassiou – Narrator: Maddie, the 8 Year Old Entrepreneur
- Ron Bianchi - Jim/Kim/Tim/HIM
- Geoffrey Grier - Vinny
- Cariad O'Brien - Molly
- Skippy - Himself
[18140]
Mon, 27 Jul 2020 06:00:05 +0000
They make you work.
They take your money.
They expect you to like it.
But sometimes. Sometimes. There is another option.
A chaotic trip through San Jose suggests a new strategy.
Fourth in our re-release of the audio drama: SidePocket
Cast:
- Sahara Ale - Jessie
- Zoe Anastassiou – Narrator: Maddie, the 8 Year Old Entrepreneur
- Debbon Ayer - Karen the Banker
- Ron Bianchi - Rick
- Geoffrey Grier - Vinny
- Josh LaForce – Carl the VC
- Cariad O'Brien - Molly
- Skippy - Himself
[18135]
SidePocket: Who is Represented?
Mon, 13 Jul 2020 06:00:02 +0000
Blame the bosses.
A tried and effective strategy.
And some times, it is actually true.
But grudges can blind our eyes, leaving us with a moment of self satisfaction and not much more.
Jessie misplays her hand
Third in our re-release of the audio drama: SidePocket
Cast:
- Sahara Ale - Jessie
- Zoe Anastassiou – Narrator: Maddie, the 8 Year Old Entrepreneur
- Geoffrey Grier - Vinny
- Josh LaForce – Carl the VC
- Cariad OBrien - Molly
- Skippy - Himself
[18130]
Mon, 29 Jun 2020 06:00:00 +0000
Things sometimes go well.
Or so we hope.
Our new tech entrepreneur is in a new city with a new company, a new investment and a new start.
Maybe.
Or maybe not.
Vinny and SidePocket start operations in Silicon Valley. The second episode in the audio drama.
Cast:
- Sahara Ale - Jessie
- Zoe Anastassiou – Maddie, the 8 Year Old Entrepreneur
- Geoffrey Grier - Vinny
- Josh LaForce – Carl the VC
- Cariad OBrien - Molly
- Skippy - Himself
[18125]
Mon, 15 Jun 2020 06:00:00 +0000
It's an ordinary story.
Perhaps a bit of a fantasy.
And maybe some romance.
But perhaps our time could benefit from an ordinary story.
A young African-American leaves Detroit in the mid-1980s to see what he might do in Silicon Valley and in the process, learns something about investment, governance and decisions (both good and bad). Vinny LeGoff and SidePocket
Cast:
- Zoe Anastassiou – Maddie, the 8 Year Old Entrepreneur
- Geoffrey Grier - Vinny
- Noah Masur – Curt
- Sahara Ale - Jessie
- Jake Minevich - Dennis
- Skippy - Himself
[18120]
We Read It So You Don’t Have To: Capital and Ideology
Mon, 01 Jun 2020 06:00:00 +0000
Thomas Piketty? Don’t get what he’s saying? Not sure you care? Zach, who is back, and Maddie, who has never left tell us what is important about the writings of this economist Or maybe not. Dr. Piketty wrote one of the more controversial book of the past 10 years. Maddie will tell you […]
Mon, 18 May 2020 06:00:00 +0000
Are you coming? Are you going? Do you have a place in this world? Or do you not? Roger. Yasmin. Existential questions. And the power of warm drinks. The nineteenth episode of the Audio Drama “Talking and Shopping.” Cast: Sahara Ale – Yasmin Zoe Anastassiou – Faith Ron Bianchi – Roger Geoffrey Grier – […]
Mon, 04 May 2020 06:00:00 +0000
Are you famous? Fame we court. Fame we try to wield (before it weilds us. But are you famous? Not the best question to hear when you are trying to understand what is happening. Even if you’re not famous. Not famous at all. The eighteenth episode of the Audio Drama “Talking and Shopping.” […]
Mon, 20 Apr 2020 06:00:00 +0000
He doesn’t visit often. When he does, there’s always trouble. Or he thinks there’s trouble. Or maybe heard that there might be trouble. The Producer comes to visit our Washington Office and faces a cast that thinks (or wishes or hopes) that things are better than they are. The seventeenth episode of the Audio […]
We Read It So You Don’t Have To: Innovators Dilemma
Mon, 06 Apr 2020 06:00:11 +0000
Life is busy. There’s no time to read. Or view YouTube videos. Or even listen to podcasts. So Maddie, the 8 year old entrepreneur an Bix, the Master Scrum Master, give you a thorough overview of Clayton Christensen’s masterwork, the Innovators Dilemma. It is perhaps the most influential business book of our age. […]
Mon, 10 Feb 2020 15:46:00 +0000
It was supposed to be easy. A way to build trust. A simple public talk at a sympathetic organization. But there were protestors. And a badly prepared speech. And a host who didn’t seem to realize what was happening. Abby Alton, CEO of Talking and Shopping, addresses the public and finds herself backed into […]
Mon, 27 Jan 2020 06:00:00 +0000
IAD? IDA? What’s the difference? What is the import of the flip of one letter? The expanded team gathers in Washington. Vinny from Washington. Karine from Brussels. Time to get the leaders of the tech giant Talking and Shopping ready for a Congressional Hearing. But there is that little issue. IAD vs IDA. […]
Mon, 13 Jan 2020 06:00:00 +0000
We’re an Audio Drama. We live on the Internet. We tell stories of work and tech and power and love and loss. Consultants in Germany. Artificial Intelligence in Seattle. A startup in Mountain View. Books that we read so you don’t have to. An little entrepreneur who knows things her elders never will. We tell […]
Mon, 30 Dec 2019 18:00:00 +0000
Gravitas. How important is gravitas, social authority, to a tech organization? Afterall, they are the ones who claim that they are trying to disrupt society, to remove older barriers, to build new structures that are more profitable to all. If that is the case, if their power comes from forces outside society, then […]
Mon, 16 Dec 2019 06:00:17 +0000
“Is this you?” Never be in haste to answer that question Facts are never just facts. There’s always a value, a judgement, an opinion. So when you’re asked “Is this you?” you need to be sure you know who is doing the asking. Journalist Chad Dockerly confronts Victor Numerov of T&S and cast members […]
Mon, 02 Dec 2019 06:00:00 +0000
It’s just physics, right? Set the ball in motion, it bounces off the cushion, hits another, falls into the pocket, just as you’d expect. Except it doesn’t The leadership of Talking and Shopping is frustrated with Washington and Washington is tired of them. There are problems on the horizon, balls on the table, and little […]
Mon, 18 Nov 2019 06:00:10 +0000
The questions are simple. The answers? We don’t know. At best, we have a senatorial aide who doesn’t know how to type. Or is incapable of being sociable. Abby Alton of T&S is preparing for an appearance before the Senate. Her consultants meeting with key staff members but don’t exactly leave satisfied. […]
Mon, 04 Nov 2019 06:00:46 +0000
Every job is middle management. Everyone is caught between someone above and someone below. And that hook that captures you is always tricky. Sometimes that sharp little tine is friendship. Sometimes, its money. Sometimes it’s merely the image that we would like to claim for ourselves. For a moment, we see the CTO Ed […]
Mon, 21 Oct 2019 06:00:07 +0000
Not everyone presents themselves well. Not everyone holds to the company policy. Not everyone is good at working the room. What skills do you need when your client presents themselves in the worst possible light? The Senior Management, Vinny and Evelyn, think that they need a more experienced member of the team. […]
Mother Comes Home from the War
Mon, 07 Oct 2019 06:00:34 +0000
Hardship means different things at different times. Abby Alton, the CEO of Talking and Shopping, finishes a long day of meeting members of Congress. In place of a moment of rest, she is faced with an obsequious assistant, an aide who has yet to understand the invasive nature of modern retail, and a […]
Mon, 09 Sep 2019 06:00:46 +0000
Swapping Gossip. A pair of old friends meeting for lunch. What is Talking and Shopping trying to do in DC? Is Big Tech vulnerable? Is there some agenda that they don’t see? And then there is the reporter. Did I mention the reporter? What they do see is a little meeting between congressional aides, […]
Tue, 06 Aug 2019 06:00:41 +0000
You’d think they’d be on the same side. Wouldn’t that be obvious? But the CTO has arrived in Washington and things that he should be the center, the center of attention. But that was never the plan. And not only will he have to convince his boss, he’s going to have to convince her […]
Mon, 22 Jul 2019 06:00:51 +0000
There’s a reason. A senatorial aide who seems inept at social media? There’s a reason. A trade association director who seems to be speaking in tongues? There’s a reason. An administrative assistant who has a little too much data about you, about your roommate, and about the stain on the carpet floor? There’s certain […]
Mon, 08 Jul 2019 06:00:55 +0000
Does this happen to you? Your Uber Driver knows more than you’re client? It’s embarrassing, yes? Big Tech spends millions, hundreds of millions, of dollars in Washington and what do they get for their money? A service. Nothing more. A service. That’s it. Why is that a problem you ask? It’s the […]
Tue, 25 Jun 2019 11:00:48 +0000
Speed. Disruption. Innovation. Not Duty. Not Deliberation. Not Honor. Tech let us reordered our virtues. Policy, if taken thoughtfully, makes us examine that reordering. It may not solve anything but it makes us wonder if we’re doing things the right way. Policy is never “Us” versus “The Government”. It’s “Us” […]
Mon, 10 Jun 2019 18:01:49 +0000
Money isn’t everything Ideas are surprisingly important But people carry the ideas. And promote the ideas. And analyze, and dispute, and contradict, and accep,t and reject, and all the rest of the things that you do with ideas. In the process, the people find themselves carrying, promoting, analyzing, disputing, accepting and rejecting each other. […]
Mon, 27 May 2019 12:00:56 +0000
Only rarely do you see the big picture. Most of the time, it is a nightmare. 15,000 people. Running through the tunnel that lie beneath the US Capitol. The share information, cut deals, plan strategies, and try to advance their own little agendas. Only once in while can they climb to the top […]
Wed, 15 May 2019 06:00:46 +0000
They don’t talk. They don’t write. They don’t really like dealing with each other. Yet, they need each other, need each other in a fundamental, all consuming way. We’re talking about Tech and Government, in case there was any question. And do you know how we know, how we know this? Because […]
Trail’s End: Following the Trail
Tue, 26 Feb 2019 06:00:17 +0000
It never ends well.
It really can't
There is an organization to renew.
There are new tasks, new demands, new technology to install, new procedures to develop.
So what do you get when a tech consulting job ends? You're supposed to get a new company, but perhaps all you get is a trail of beans.
The concluding episode in a series on the ins and outs of tech consulting.
Cast:
- Kit, Director of Consulting - Kit Kuksenok
- Evelyn, the Business Manager - Margaux Amie
- Ida, Friend of Florian - Debbon Ayer
- Peter, Friend of Florian - Ron Bianchi
- Sonja, BKL Operations Manager - Debbon Ayer
- Leena, Niece of Florian and BKL Director - Zoe Anastassiou
- Victor - Jake Minevich
Trail’s End: Delivering the Goods
Wed, 20 Feb 2019 06:00:14 +0000
It's not the slides.
It's not the words.
It's not the clothes you wear.
This doesn't determine your success. Or at least it doesn't determine it very much.
The bigger issue: What do your clients know? And when did the learn it?
In the consulting trip to Hamburg, our team is about to deliver its report. Lots of ideas. Lots of implications for the future of the client, Bohne Kaffe Logistiks.
But the report has become public. Or at least parts of it.
And everyone thinks they know what is in it. More importantly, they think they know what is in it for them.
The measure of success? Can they communicate the real message.
Tenth episode in a series on the ins and outs of tech consulting.
Cast:
- Kit, Director of Consulting - Kit Kuksenok
- Evelyn, the Business Manager - Margaux Amie
- Anna the Intern - Sarah Corbyn Woolf
- Rohit from IT - Noah Masur
- Florian Bohne, Owner BKL - Josh LaForce
- Sonja, BKL Operations Manager - Debbon Ayer
Trail’s End: Confront and Advise
Tue, 12 Feb 2019 06:00:10 +0000
"Complicated"
You don't talk. It's "complicated."
You don't act. It's "complicated."
You don't know what to do. It's...
You can see the pattern.
Our consulting at BKL Coffee Logistics has been strained. This owner had this grad idea to start the job and then vanish to a retreat in the Swiss Alps. He wanted to keep out of the way, he said. He wanted to let things take their course.
He may have had a plan.
He may have been improvising.
He may have been frightened.
But today, a brave niece tries to get an honest conversation started. A niece who has a career that is only vaguely related to coffee.
Ninth episode in a series on the ins and outs of tech consulting.
Cast:
- Kit, Director of Consulting - Kit Kuksenok
- Klara, niece of owner of BKL - Sahara Ale
- Peter, Friend of Florian - Ron Bianchi
- Florian Bohne, Owner BKL - Josh LaForce
- Ida, Friend of Florian - Debbon Ayer
Trail’s End: Controlling the Decision
Tue, 29 Jan 2019 12:01:17 +0000
If they wanted the same thing, then the decision would be easy.
But they don't.
So it isn't.
Our drama probes the decision making process in this episode. It uncovers two, maybe three, sharp disagreements. A split in the family. An employee with her own agenda. A consultant trying to do his best and to control the noise of the discussion.
Eighth episode in a series on the ins and outs of tech consulting.
Cast:
- Evelyn, The Business Manager - Margaux Amie
- Kit, Director of Consulting - Kit Kuksenok
- Leena, niece of owner of BKL - Zoe Anastassiou
- Rohit from IT - Noah Masur
- Fritz-Bernard from GCL - Ron Bianchi
- Victor, from BKL - Jake Minevich
- Arndt from Coffee Logistics - Noah Masur
- Sonja, manager of BKL - Debbon Ayer
- Anna the Intern - Sarah Corbyn Woolf
Trail’s End: The Fatal Mistake
Tue, 15 Jan 2019 12:00:49 +0000
When do they make the mistake?
When do they make a decision that limits - radically limits - options?
Our consulting team is working on a project that is only stumbling forward in the best of light. So what has happened, we ask. Has someone made a mistake?
Has our team done something wrong? Has the client chosen the wrong strategy? Have the managers failed to support the work? Any one of these might constitute the "Fatal Mistake."
Seventh episode in a series on the ins and outs of tech consulting.
Cast:
- Evelyn, The Business Manager - Margaux Amie
- Kit, Director of Consulting - Kit Kuksenok
- Florian, owner of BKL - Josh LaForce
- Rohit from IT - Noah Masur
- Vinny, the CTO - Geoffrey Grier
- Victor, from BKL - Jake Minevich
- Sonja, manager of BKL - Debbon Ayer
- Anna the Intern - Sarah Corbyn Woolf
Wed, 26 Dec 2018 00:00:23 +0000
A young entrepreneur.
A new technology.
All the temptations to make bad decisions.
In the series of on the startup SidePocket, we explored the challenges posed by organizational governance, the authority wielded by investors. Our central character, Vinny, walks away from a company that was unable to make a decision and forms a new company, SidePocket, that will be under his leadership. He guides it to success but in the process has to face choices that have no obvious or unequivocally good answers. He builds a profitable firm but in the process, alienates his closest friend, reluctantly accepts guidance he would prefer to ignore and decides to sell the firm against the wishes of his board.
A series that makes you feel the problems of organization governance and appreciate the issues at stake.
Cast:
- Vinny, CEO of SidePocket - Geoffrey Grier
- Molly, of G&P Capital - Caraid O'Brien
- Carl, Partner of G&P Capital - Josh LaForce
- Max, friend of Florian - Jake Minevich
- Jessie, the first CEO - Sahara Ale
- Karen from CalFed- Debbon Ayer
- San, Thomas, and Rick - Ron Bianchi
- Kurt and a different Rick - Noah Masur
- Dennis and Julio - Jake Minevich
- Violet, Director of Marketting - Margaux Amie
- Maddie the Entrepreneur - Zoe Anastassiou
Trail’s End: Why Did You Do It This Way?
Wed, 19 Dec 2018 12:00:23 +0000
A business owner.
A group of good friends. And an underlying controversy that simply won't go away.
Florian Bohne, the owner of Bohne Coffee Logistics is holding a party in the Swiss Alps while his friends believe that he should be back with his company.
So we have a fight, a disagreement among friends. Yet it is a disagreement that seems to be about one thing - how Florian is dealing with consultants - while it is really about something deeper, more profound.
Sixth episode in a series on the ins and outs of tech consulting.
Cast:
- Evelyn, The Business Manager - Margaux Amie
- Florian, owner of BKL - Josh LaForce
- Max, friend of Florian - Jake Minevich
- Peter, friend of Florian - Ron Bianchi
- Ida, friend of Florian - Debbon Ayer
- Sonja, manager of BKL - Debbon Ayer
- Leena "Münchkin" - Zoe Anastassiou
Wed, 12 Dec 2018 00:41:37 +0000
Consulting. You're just giving your opinion. That's it. Nothing more.
Now, in theory, that opinion is worth something on the open market. It's worth something for two reasons. First, you have some special training or knowledge. Second, you have data. Data about what is happening.
And there's the rub. In the modern day and age, we collect ever bit of data we can and call it good. Yet. Yet. Yet. Data can mislead. It can make you believe you know something when you don't It can confuse when it should inform. Therefore, we need to know something about gathering data scientifically
Fifth episode in a series on the ins and outs of tech consulting.
Cast:
- Kit, Chief Consultant - Kit Kuksenok
- Evelyn, The Business Manager - Margaux Amie
- Victor, the Dispatcher - Jake Minevich
- Jurgen, driver - Ron Bianchi
- Anna the intern - Sarah Corbyn Woolf
- Rohit, from IT - Noah Masur
- Henry Kissinger - Ron Bianchi
Interlude: When Kids buy Bitcoin
Thu, 06 Dec 2018 00:00:21 +0000
When Kids Buy Bitcoin You think that buying Bitcoin is a grownup thing to do? Really? Meet Maddie, the 8 year old entrepreneur who will tell you otherwise. Maddie is played by Zoe Anastassiou, one of the most flexible members of the cast. Zoe has played executives, teachers, moms. But Zoe Anastassiou is most commonly identified […]
Consumer Electronics Show Preview
Wed, 28 Nov 2018 12:00:18 +0000
It’s a holiday for gratitude in the United States but a holiday for data in the rest of the world. Ok. They now call it the “Consumer Technology Show” but it’s the same old event. New technology. Lots of talks. Entrepreneurs desperately trying to move their ideas from intellectual conception to money making product. So […]
Interlude: A Holiday for Data?
Mon, 19 Nov 2018 12:00:42 +0000
It’s a holiday for gratitude in the United States but a holiday for data in the rest of the world. A Holiday for Data? Three different groups have organized holidays for data and statistics: one for India, one for the continent of Africa and one for the world at large. You may think that they’re […]
Trail’s End: What does this paper mean?
Wed, 07 Nov 2018 12:00:09 +0000
You don't, and that''s the point.
It's the contract that holds you together. Not your history. Not your friendship. Not anything else.
The contract. Offer. Acceptance. Consideration. That's it.
And what does that paper mean when things start moving fast, when you jump from one meeting to the next?
And what does it mean when the client, or perhaps a representative of the client, has ideas? Where does the contract end?
Fourth episode in a series on the ins and outs of tech consulting.
Cast:
- Kit, Chief Consultant - Kit Kuksenok
- Evelyn, The Business Manager - Margaux Amie
- Anna the intern - Sarah Corbyn Woolf
- Sonya, the head of operations - Debbon Ayer
- Vinny, the CTO - Geoffrey Grier
- Aravinda, our Attorney - Sahara Ale
Trail’s End: When the Client Leaves the Premises
Thu, 25 Oct 2018 12:00:27 +0000
You don't, and that''s the point.
We have a company. We have a consulting team. And we believe we have a client, though it would seem that the client is not sure that he would have us. Days after the HWMS team arrived at BKL, it's owner decided to go hiking in the Swiss Alps. It could be the confidence of a secure leader. It could be a brilliant strategy to get a new perspective on the business. It could also be a poor choice by a misguided manager. We take a moment to get the owner's point of view as he walks with his friends in the Alps.
A short episode to give us a little insight into the challenges of tech consulting.
Cast:
- Florian, the Client - Josh LaForce
- Ida, Friend of Florian - Debbon Ayer
- Max, Friend of Florian - Jake Minevich
Trail’s End: Do You Indeed Know What You Are Doing?
Wed, 17 Oct 2018 20:00:39 +0000
You don't, and that''s the point.
None of know what we are doing when we going into a new organization. We don't know the history. We don't know the power structure. Sometimes, we don't even know the goals. (And this will lead us to one of the key questions of this series: "Who are Leena and Klara?") Occasionally , we don't even know ourselves.
Our podcast consulting team has beens starting work in Hamburg. Anna's replacing a key staff member and thinking about the future. Trouble is, she does not know all that the client is thinking and might not know what to do if she did.
Second episode in a series on the ins and outs of tech consulting.
Cast:
- Kit, Chief Consultant - Kit Kuksenok
- Evelyn, The Business Manager - Margaux Amie
- Anna the intern - Sarah Corbyn Woolf
- Dirk, the Tech Guy - Noah Masur
- Rohit, the Other Tech Guy - Noah Masur
- Florian, the Client - Josh LaForce
- Sonya, the head of operations - Debbon Ayer
- Vinny, the CTO - Geoffrey Grier
Trail’s End:The Beginning is Chaos
Wed, 10 Oct 2018 06:00:22 +0000
How do you begin a consulting job?
In thunder, lightening or in rain?
It is chaotic at the start. You move to new offices, meet new people and start to appreciate new responsibilities. Our podcast has been hired by a German firm - a logistics provider to the coffee industry - to review their software systems and make recommendations. They arrive on site, after a long flight, and quickly discover that they did not fully appreciate the environment in which they would have to work.
First episode in a series on tech consulting.
Cast:
- Kit, Chief Consultant - Kit Kuksenok
- Evelyn, The Business Manager - Margaux Amie
- Anna the intern - Sarah Corbyn Woolf
- Dirk, the Tech Guy - Noah Masur
- Florian, the Client - Josh LaForce
- Sonya, the head of operations - Debbon Ayer
Commentary: Harassment at the Workplace
Mon, 01 Oct 2018 06:00:59 +0000
In an invited commentary, the CEO of Embisivile Frien’ addresses the problem of harassment. It is a general problem that needs to be addressed in the tech industry but it is a specific instance that Madison wishes to discuss. Cast: Vinny, the CTO – Geoffrey Grier Maddie the CEO if Embisivle Frien’ – Zoe Anastassiou […]
Trail’s End: A Story of Consulting
Tue, 25 Sep 2018 06:00:25 +0000
The heart of the matter. Do don't know what it is until you've done it. You don't understand why it is hard, until you've done it internationally.
The crack cast of HWMS Audio Theatre prepares to depart for Germany. At one level, the problem is simple. A small German logistics firm needs some help. It's a drama of course. But dramas are good at the exposing the heart of the matter. Almost as good as doing it yourself.
Cast:
- Chuck - Ron Bianchi
- Debbon Ayer - Herself
- Josh LaForce - Himself
- Ziggy - Skippy
We Read It So You Don’t Have To: The Great Convergence
Tue, 18 Sep 2018 15:00:49 +0000
Globalization. It seems to be a term of another era. Simpler. Less chaotic. Quieter, perhaps. Civil, if that remains a relevant concept. In this episode, we return to that idea as part of our recurring series “We Read It So You Don’t Have To.” Specifically, we look at the role of technology in linking […]