In this episode of The Forward Slash, James talks with Michael Pompey, AI Evangelist at Arrow Electronics, about the messy middle between innovation and impact. They discuss lessons from mission-driven organizations, the danger of chasing hype, and why the next evolution of transformation will be adaptive, not architectural. From AI to governance to leadership trust, this conversation is a candid look at what actually drives change in organizations.

/AI strategy: back to business basics

What if your transformation plan is the thing holding you back?

This week, James welcomes Carol Houle, CEO of Inspire Digital Consulting, to dive into the mindset shift from rigid planning to adaptive execution. They explore how to connect OKRs to customer value, replace feature wish lists with measurable outcomes, and finally move from building more to building what matters.

/outcome engineering: the end of feature factories

Has AI finally met its moment of truth?
This week, James sits down with Jim Spignardo, Director of Cloud Strategy & AI Enablement at ProArch, to explore how enterprises are moving from curiosity to competence with AI. They talk data, security, productivity, and the shift from “let’s try AI” to “let’s solve real problems with it.”

/AI adoption: from FOMO to fundamentals

What if AI could hear what doctors can’t?

This week James welcomes, Dr. Morris Nguyen, founder and CEO of Predicate, to explore how AI is transforming healthcare by combining patient voice and vital signs to detect critical illness early. Morris shares his journey from critical care physician to tech founder, what it takes to bridge medicine and machine learning, and why empathy may be AI’s most powerful feature. Together, they unpack what it means to build predictive, equitable healthcare technology, and the surprising challenges of scaling real-world innovation.

/digital health: rewriting the rules of care

Is platform engineering the missing link in real AI adoption?

This week, we welcome Matan Grady, lead AI PM at Port, to unpack why platform engineering is the control plane for AI adoption. We cover the move from chat UIs to agentic workflows, what it takes to trust AI in production (secrets, permissions, guardrails, human-in-the-loop), and how MCP servers connect agents to calendars, docs, and code. Matan explains why AI evals should measure outcomes—not outputs—and shares a real win: turning a manual changelog into an AI agent PMs simply review. Its a pragmatic look at developer portals, coding agents, and the evolving role of engineers as orchestrators who architect, observe, and ship faster.

/engineering ops: orchestrating AI at scale

Is AI making product design smarter—or just noisier? This week, James talks with Erica Price, product experience leader, about how AI is reshaping UX, product design, and job dynamics. From ADHD hyper-focus as a superpower to the limits of chat interfaces, Erica shares practical insights on using AI as a tool—not a replacement—in the future of design.

/product strategy: adapting to AI

What does it really take to run AI at scale? In this episode, cloud architect James McShane joins James to explore how Kubernetes became the backbone of modern tech, why the cloud isn’t always the cheapest answer, and what most people miss about keeping AI systems healthy after launch. From GPU scarcity to “vibe coding” gone wrong, this conversation pulls back the curtain on the choices shaping the future of software.

/AI at scale: the hidden costs of the cloud

Is AI making developers more productive... or just making us feel that way? Adam Barrett joins James this week to cut through the vibe coding hype. They dig into why requirements and context still matter, how React became the LLM default, and what zero-dependency coding could mean for security. From junior talent to quantum risks, this episode challenges how we think about building software in the AI era.

/dev productivity: beyond vibe coding hype

Can AI really replace junior software engineers? Jason Pedone, CTO at Aspida and former SVP at Truist, joins James Carman to tackle one of the most debated questions in tech today. They explore why cutting early-career talent puts your entire pipeline at risk, how AI can boost productivity without killing creativity, and what happens when companies chase short-term savings over long-term engineering strength.

/AI talent: why juniors still matter

What does it take to modernize a 165-year-old bank?
This week, James talks with Jude Schramm, EVP & CIO at Fifth Third Bank, about leading digital transformation in a highly regulated industry. From scaling agile across 200+ teams to rethinking core systems and adopting AI, Jude shares how he’s helping one of America’s largest banks move faster while keeping customer trust at the center.

James Carman

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