Podcast
Silicon Heartland Sessions
Hosted by Cloud Nirvana · EN
Join us for Silicon Heartland Sessions, where we interview tech leaders, including CTOs, CIOs, CEOs, Founders and others, to highlight their stories and insights. We delve into personal and professional development, leadership, technology, and more. This podcast is all about authentic conversations that go beyond buzzwords, offering real insights from the people shaping the Silicon Heartland. Subscribe now to learn from the best and be part of these meaningful discussions!
20episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
🎙️ Episode 45: From Curiosity to CEO - Rehgan Bleile’s Journey Into AI
Feb 1600:08:59Tap to summarize🎙️ Episode 45: From Curiosity to CEO - Rehgan Bleile’s Journey Into AIIn this episode of Silicon Heartland Sessions, we sit down with Rehgan Bleile, CEO and visionary leader who turned early curiosity about technology into a career at the forefront of artificial intelligence. Rehgan pulls back the curtain on the leaps, pivots, and human insights that powered her rise - from her first encounters with tech to building teams, shaping culture, and leading innovation in an era where AI is rewriting what’s possible.This conversation goes beyond strategy and tools. Rehgan talks about the mindset that separates “doing tech” from leading with purpose, the importance of empathy in decision-making, and how staying curious doesn’t just spark ideas - it sustains leadership through change.Listeners will walk away with real, actionable takeaways - from how to build credibility as a young leader, to the art of synthesizing technical opportunity with business impact, to the role of human judgment in an AI-driven world.🔑 What You’ll Hear in This Episode • How Rehgan’s curiosity became a career compass • The human skills that fuel leadership in AI environments • Real talk on navigating ambiguity and rapid change • The importance of blending tech fluency with empathy and business insight • How teams and leaders can thrive as AI evolves workplaces⸻🙌 Special Thanks to Our SponsorsBig Kitty Labs – A Columbus-based software design and development partner helping bring ideas to life with mobile, web, and custom solutions. Glean – Work AI that works — bringing enterprise knowledge and AI-powered search together to make teams more productive. Expedient – A full-stack cloud and managed services provider empowering organizations with secure, scalable infrastructure and multi-cloud solutions. Sigma Computing – A cloud-native analytics and BI platform that empowers business users to explore and act on data without complexity. ⸻🎧 Now streaming on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and wherever you listen.
Transcribe →🎙️ Episode 44: Live from Cloud Nirvana Cleveland - Tech Meets Humanity
Jan 2900:48:32Tap to summarize🎙️ Episode 44: Live from Cloud Nirvana Cleveland - Tech Meets HumanityRecorded live at Cloud Nirvana Cleveland, this powerful panel dives deep into the intersection of emerging technology and the human experience. Moderated by Sean Erikson, this vibrant discussion features a dynamic lineup of leaders:John Paganini, CEO @ CrewTracker SoftwareAud Jucaitis, SVP, NextGen Enterprise Transformation @ KeyBankNicole Stika, Director, Sustainability Advisory @ World KinectTracey Forde Weaver, Lead Director, Product Management & Innovation @ CVS HealthTogether, they explore how AI is reshaping workforces, guiding strategic build-vs-buy decisions, redefining the role of human ingenuity, and challenging organizations to think differently about sustainability, trust, transparency, and upskilling. Their insights are practical, grounded, and deeply human.Whether you’re an enterprise leader, startup innovator, or tech practitioner navigating AI’s rapid evolution, this conversation offers powerful takeaways for your journey.🙌 Special Thanks to Our Sponsors: • Rackspace Technology – We advise, design, build, and manage solutions across multicloud, applications, data, and security. • Varonis – The leader in data security and insider threat detection. • Trace3 – AI to help your business run, grow, and transform. • Sigma Computing – Business intelligence built for the cloud. Live, collaborative analytics for data-driven teams.🎧 Available now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you listen.
Transcribe →🎙️ Episode 43: Live from Cloud Nirvana Columbus - Tech Meets Humanity
Jan 900:49:32Tap to summarize🎙️ Episode 43: Live from Cloud Nirvana Columbus - Tech Meets HumanityRecorded live at the Cloud Nirvana conference in Columbus on September 3, 2025, this special episode brings together an extraordinary panel of leaders to explore how AI can elevate - not replace - human potential.Our guests include: • Robin Barbacane, Global Chief Talent Development Officer, Rackspace Technology • Manisha Mahawar, VP TPM, AI Tooling at OpenTable • Kelly Wilson, VP Talent Management, Cardinal Health • Jen Dunlap, Director at Turnberry Solutions • Lacey Picazo, CEO & Founder of Zoco DesignTogether, they dive into the real-world challenges and opportunities at the intersection of AI, talent development, human behavior, and culture. From AI onboarding to internal Tinker Labs, from team empowerment to rethinking career paths, this episode is packed with honest insights, practical wisdom, and contagious optimism.Whether you’re an enterprise leader navigating change or a technologist redefining your role in the age of AI, this conversation will leave you inspired - and equipped.Tune in and share with your network - because the future of tech is human.🙌 Special Thanks to Our Sponsors: • Rackspace Technology – We advise, design, build, and manage solutions across multicloud, applications, data, and security. • Varonis – The leader in data security and insider threat detection. • Trace3 – AI to help your business run, grow, and transform. • Sigma Computing – Business intelligence built for the cloud. Live, collaborative analytics for data-driven teams.🎧 Available now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you listen.
Transcribe →🎙️ Episode 42: Remote, Resilient, Real - The Culture That Actually Works
Oct 2800:09:18Tap to summarize🎙️ Episode 42: Remote, Resilient, Real - The Culture That Actually WorksIn this episode, Warner Moore shares how his remote-first companies stay connected and intentional - not through office mandates, but through values, empathy, and smart rituals.From virtual lunch-and-learns to people-first decision making, Warner shows that great remote cultures aren’t an accident - they’re designed.💬 “It’s just being thoughtful in how we work together and making sure that we’re enabling people to be collaborative and support each other.”🔑 Highlights:– How to keep distributed teams aligned and connected– Rituals that reinforce culture, even across time zones– Why values only matter if you live them– Building trust without a physical office🎧 Subscribe and follow for more conversations with the innovators shaping the Silicon Heartland.🙌 Special Thanks to Our Sponsors: • Rackspace Technology - We advise, design, build, and manage solutions across multicloud, applications, data, and security. • Varonis - The leader in data security and insider threat detection. • Trace3 - AI to help your business run, grow, and transform. • Sigma Computing - Business intelligence built for the cloud. Live, collaborative analytics for data-driven teams.
Transcribe →🎙️ Episode 41: Resilient Leadership in the Real World
Oct 2000:13:23Tap to summarize🎙️ Episode 41: Resilient Leadership in the Real WorldIn today’s episode, Warner Moore gets real about what leadership actually looks like - especially when things get messy.From navigating high-pressure situations to fostering psychological safety, Warner shares the lessons he’s learned leading technical teams, founding companies, and building communities. If you’ve ever wondered how strong cultures are created - or how to lead through failure - this one’s for you.💬 “If you can’t be replaced, you can’t be promoted.”🔑 Highlights:– How to regulate your emotions as a leader– Why blameless postmortems matter– Creating safety and trust in fast-moving environments– Building people-first cultures in the real world🎧 Subscribe and follow for more conversations with the innovators shaping the Silicon Heartland.🙌 Special Thanks to Our Sponsors: - Rackspace Technology - We advise, design, build, and manage solutions across multicloud, applications, data, and security. - Varonis - The leader in data security and insider threat detection. - Trace3 - AI to help your business run, grow, and transform.- Sigma Computing - Business intelligence built for the cloud. Live, collaborative analytics for data-driven teams.
Transcribe →🎙️ Episode 40: Is It Risky… or Just New?
Oct 1900:13:48Tap to summarize🎙️ Episode 40: Is It Risky…or Just New?In this episode, Warner Moore challenges the way we think about risk, privilege, and what it really means to take a leap.Drawing from his own entrepreneurial path and deep experience in technology, Warner breaks down how perceived risk is often a matter of perspective - and why the most meaningful opportunities require us to rethink what’s truly risky.💬 “We get in a car every day. It’s one of the riskiest things we can do statistically. And we’re scared of jumping out of an airplane with a parachute—and it’s one of the safer things we can do.” 🔑 Highlights:– The role privilege plays in who gets to “fail fast”– How to reframe risk based on your circumstances– The myth of the romanticized startup leap– Taking calculated risks without betting it all🎧 Subscribe and follow for more conversations with the innovators shaping the Silicon Heartland.🙌 Special Thanks to Our Sponsors: • Rackspace Technology - your trusted multi-cloud solutions partner. • Varonis - protecting enterprise data where it lives. • Trace3 - AI to help your business run, grow, and transform. • Sigma Computing - business intelligence built for the cloud.
Transcribe →🎙️ Episode 39: Give First - Building a Career on Relationships
Sep 2600:09:20Tap to summarize🎙️ Episode 39: Give First - Building a Career on RelationshipsIn this episode, Warner Moore shares how generosity, authenticity, and a strong sense of community have shaped his leadership journey. Drawing on lessons from Dale Carnegie and the Columbus tech ecosystem, Warner breaks down why the “give first” mindset isn’t just good karma - it’s a career strategy. One that builds trust, drives impact, and creates real opportunities for everyone involved.💡 Whether you’re early in your tech journey or leading a team, this episode is a powerful reminder that relationships are at the heart of everything we do.🔑 Highlights:- Why “give first” works better than transactional networking- Building trust in the tech community- The books and mentors that shaped Warner’s values- How generosity compounds over time🎧 Available now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you listen.🙌 Special Thanks to Our Sponsors: - Rackspace Technology - We advise, design, build, and manage solutions across multicloud, applications, data, and security. - Varonis - The leader in data security and insider threat detection. - Trace3 - AI to help your business run, grow, and transform.- Sigma Computing - Business intelligence built for the cloud. Live, collaborative analytics for data-driven teams.
Transcribe →🎙️ Episode 38: Gotta Find a Way - The Entrepreneur’s Mindset
Sep 1900:07:29Tap to summarize🎙️ Episode 38: Gotta Find a Way - The Entrepreneur’s MindsetIn this episode, Warner Moore, founder of Gamma Force and a longtime leader in the Midwest tech scene, shares how a rebellious spirit and a love of early internet culture sparked his unconventional path into entrepreneurship. From teaching himself distributed systems in the days of IRC to building values-driven companies, Warner opens up about what it means to challenge the status quo, lead with authenticity, and find your own way - even when the path doesn’t exist yet.🎸 Inspired by Nirvana’s Territorial Pissings, this episode explores how music, mindset, and mission can collide to drive meaningful change.🔑 Highlights:– Why Warner left the enterprise world to build his own companies– The mindset behind driving change from the outside– What Nirvana taught him about leadership– Building a tech career without asking permission🎧 Available now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you listen.🙌 Special Thanks to Our Sponsors: • Rackspace Technology - We advise, design, build, and manage solutions across multicloud, applications, data, and security. • Varonis - The leader in data security and insider threat detection. • Trace3 - AI to help your business run, grow, and transform. • Sigma Computing - Business intelligence built for the cloud. Live, collaborative analytics for data-driven teams.
Transcribe →🎙️ Episode 37: Miro Humer - Leading with Empathy, Failing Forward, and Creating Space for Innovation
Aug 3101:12:12Tap to summarize🎙️ Episode 37: Miro Humer - Leading with Empathy, Failing Forward, and Creating Space for InnovationIn this episode of Silicon Heartland Sessions, we sit down with Miro Humer, CIO of Case Western Reserve University, for a powerful and human-centered conversation about leadership, innovation, and the evolving role of technology in higher education.Miro shares his journey from the private sector to academia, the impact of launching the internal GenAI portal CWRU AI, and how his team is helping shape the digital future of the university. But more than just technology, this episode is about building a workplace culture that empowers people, supports failure as a learning tool, and encourages leadership that is empathetic and purposeful.“Within the IT organization, what I try to do is have a culture where failure isn’t necessarily viewed as failure. It’s viewed as a learning experience… That makes for a better work environment. It gives people more control over their work life. And I think that leads us to a happier place to be.”- Miro Humer🎧 Key Insights You’ll Hear in This Episode: • How Miro launched CWRU’s secure, internal AI platform and is shaping AI innovation within higher education • Why empathy and psychological safety are foundational to tech leadership • How to foster a culture where failure leads to learning instead of fear • The importance of creating safe spaces for people to grow, contribute, and lead • What CIOs and tech leaders can learn from academia about long-term thinking and service orientation🙏 Special thanks to our sponsors for supporting the mission of Cloud Nirvana and the Silicon Heartland Sessions:🙌 Rackspace Technology - We advise, design, build, and manage solutions across multicloud, applications, data, and security.🙌 Varonis - The leader in data security and insider threat detection.🙌 Trace3 – AI to help your business run, grow, and transform.🙌 Sigma Computing - Business intelligence built for the cloud. Live, collaborative analytics for data-driven teams.
Transcribe →🎙️Episode 36: Never Get Comfortable - Srini Koushik’s Advice for Aspiring Tech Leaders
Aug 2400:18:29Tap to summarize🎙️Episode 36: Never Get Comfortable - Srini Koushik’s Advice for Aspiring Tech LeadersWhat does it really take to grow as a leader in today’s fast-changing world of technology? For Srini Koushik, President of Technology and Sustainability at Rackspace Technology, the answer is clear: never get comfortable.In Episode 36 of Silicon Heartland Sessions, Srini shares his personal playbook for leadership and growth. He explains why discomfort drives progress, how reinvention keeps you relevant, and why humility and curiosity are the most important traits for any aspiring leader.Whether you’re early in your career or stepping into a bigger leadership role, this episode is packed with wisdom you can apply today.📄 Key Takeaways:Why stepping outside your comfort zone is essential for growthHow to continuously reinvent yourself in a changing industryThe role of curiosity and humility in effective leadershipWhy you shouldn’t wait to be invited to the table - build your ownSrini’s timeless advice for the next generation of tech leadersSpecial thanks to our amazing sponsors for making this conversation possible:Rackspace Technology – your trusted multi-cloud solutions partner.Varonis – protecting enterprise data where it lives - on-prem and in the cloud.Trace3 – helping organizations innovate through advanced IT strategy and execution.Sigma Computing – enabling business users to explore live data without code.
Transcribe →