We all have at least one friend who somehow finds enough hours in a day to have a full-time job and take on several side projects. How can you successfully juggle a career, side hustles, and make time for your passions?
Kelly Vaughn, Engineering Manager at Spot AI, has some thoughts. She is leading a diverse, fully remote, global team that spans from California to India. Kelly keeps her management style flexible to account for the quirks and personality types of her team. When she’s not steering the ship at Spot AI, she’s advising several startups and working as a consultant. Despite doing it all, she finds time for reading, cycling, and her passion for Porsches.
In this episode, Kelly talks to Chuck and Robbie about her experience leading diverse global engineering teams from agencies to SaaS companies, juggling several side hustles, and collecting Porsches. 

Key Takeaways

[01:22] - An intro to Kelly Vaughn.

[02:16] - A whiskey review - Barrell Craft Spirits Grey Label Dovetail 15.

[09:07] - Kelly’s current roles at Spot AI and her projects.

[12:23] - The difference between leading teams in an agency versus in a corporate environment.

[19:26] - What are the challenges of managing an international team?

[22:26] - What’s Kelly’s favorite leadership book?

[26:40] - Kelly speaks about her love of the Porsche Brand.

[44:25] - Kelly talks about her cycling challenge for childhood cancer research.


Quotes
[13:37] - “The speed at which you work at an agency versus a SaaS company is vastly different because of the way that you're working. You're working with multiple clients directly versus having any number of customers.” ~ Kelly Vaughn
[16:26] - “I think what's important to remember is when you're looking for metrics for growth, you need to look beyond just the quantitative metrics and really find a way to measure the qualitative metrics as well.” ~ Kelly Vaughn
[21:59] - “What I’m doing to manage Team A is not going to be what I need to do to manage Team B. Finding out those differences and the personality quirks is what I’ve been focusing on so I can make sure they get what they need, in the structure they need it.” ~ Kelly Vaughn

Links

Kelly Vaughn Twitter

Kelly Vaughn LinkedIn

Spot AI

Barrell Craft Spirits Grey Label

Sherwin Williams

Porsche

George Stag Jr

First 90 Days

Acotar

Book of the Month

Barbarians at the Gate

The Big Short

Michael Lewis

The Premonition

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

Spanish Love Deception

Astro

Vue

Nuxt

Cayman S

Taycan

Need for Speed Porsche

Boxster

911 GTS

Lotus Emira

Mazda Miata

1968 Porsche 912

1974 Porsche 914

LA Experience Center

Atlanta Experience Center

Cayenne


Stuttgart 

Tesla

1965 Scout 800

2012 Toyota Camry

Porsche 718 EV

Mazda 3

PCA

Barbara Motorsports Park

Aston Martin

Rivian

LinkedIn

Peloton

University of Georgia

University of Michigan

Ohio State University

University of Cincinnati

Michigan State University

Georgia Tech 

Kennesaw State University

Sagamore Rye

Post-It

Ladybug Podcast

Twitter


Connect with our hosts

Robbie Wagner

Chuck Carpenter

Ship Shape


Subscribe and stay in touch

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Google Podcasts

Whiskey Web and Whatnot


Top-Tier, Full-Stack Software Consultants
This show is brought to you by Ship Shape. Ship Shape’s software consultants solve complex software and app development problems with top-tier coding expertise, superior service, and speed. In a sea of choices, our senior-level development crew rises above the rest by delivering the best solutions for fintech, cybersecurity, and other fast-growing industries. Check us out at shipshape.io.