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The TechEd Podcast sits at the intersection of technology, industry, innovation and the people who make progress possible. Hosted by Matt Kirchner, each episode features builders, executives, educators, and policymakers shaping what’s next—AI, automation, advanced manufacturing, energy, and the systems behind them.
If you care about the future of work, the future of tech, and how talent actually gets built, you’re in the right place.
259 Episodes
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The labor market is evolving faster than traditional signals of competence can keep up. Roles are shifting, technology is accelerating, and employers are searching for clearer ways to identify real capability. In that environment, degrees remain valuable, but verified skills are becoming increasingly central to hiring and advancement. In a marketplace now saturated with more than a million credentials, clarity has become the differentiator. Some credentials function as marketing tools. Others...
Over the past several years, many leaders have noticed a subtle but meaningful shift inside their organizations: the erosion of basic workplace courtesies, particularly from younger employees new to the professional workplace. Not misconduct; not ethical lapses. But something more subtle. Employees announcing time off instead of requesting it. Cameras off in meetings. Missed meetings treated casually. Messages left unanswered for a day or more. Delegating up. Matt Kirchner addresses these pat...
Imagine giving middle and high school students a full week to explore careers without grades, homework, or “regular” classes. That’s the core idea behind Camanche Community School District's J-term: a dedicated pause in the academic grind that turns school into a career-exploration lab, where 5th-12th grade students can test-drive career fields, build confidence, and discover options they didn’t even know existed. That's right: J-term is no longer only reserved for the college experienc...
Your organization doesn’t have a data problem. It has an intelligence problem: the gap between having information and being able to act on it with speed, clarity, and confidence. That gap shows up everywhere: hospitals, schools, manufacturers, and any team drowning in dashboards while leaders still wait on someone to “find the story.” Rick Anderson (Chairman & CEO, The Hive Health) is back to show just how much AI has impacted one organization in 12 months. Enter Corby Furrer (Harvard AI ...
The U.S. Department of the Interior manages the nation’s most consequential assets—public lands and waters, energy resources, and critical minerals—making it a crucial center for AI capabilities, national security, and workforce opportunity. In this episode of The TechEd Podcast, host Matt Kirchner sits down with Doug Burgum, U.S. Secretary of the Interior, to connect the dots between Interior's responsibilities and the next generation of innovation in the U.S. Today, Interior manages 500 mil...
Most leaders have a vision, a plan, and the authority to move it forward, but real momentum shows up when you understand how culture is being shaped through trust and influence behind the scenes. Host Matt Kirchner sits down with Dr. Ben Johnson, Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Schools at Bismarck Public Schools, and Bobby Dodd, Assistant Principal at May River High School, co-authors of Intentional Influence. They break down how influence really spreads inside an organization, in scho...
Higher education is shifting toward a connected model where colleges and universities function as one learner ecosystem. The goal is simple: make credentials stackable, transfer predictable, and pathways flexible enough for learners to move in and out of education as their careers evolve. In this episode of The TechEd Podcast, Matt Kirchner speaks with Dr. Katherine Frank (Chancellor, University of Wisconsin–Stout) and Dr. Sunem Beaton-Garcia (President, Chippewa Valley Technical College) abo...
What actually happens inside those massive Amazon facilities—and how do products arrive at your door with such astonishing speed? In this episode of The TechEd Podcast, host Matt Kirchner explores these questions with Amanda Willard, Strategic Workforce Development, and Logan Schulz, Senior Manager of Reliability & Maintenance Engineering at Amazon. They take us behind the scenes of the advanced robotics, mechatronics, and automation systems that power Amazon’s fulfillment network—and the...
With states stepping directly into the venture capital arena, a major shift is underway in how early-stage companies are funded—and where the next generation of innovation will be built. In this episode of The TechEd Podcast, host Matt Kirchner dives into this emerging movement with Pete Martin, Director of Portfolio Management at the MSU Research Foundation, and Alison Todak, Vice President of Entrepreneurship & Innovation at the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. Together, they ...
With the pace of change in technology, geopolitics, infrastructure, and the economy, what should technical educators and workforce leaders be watching most closely in 2026? In this year’s annual Predictions episode, host Matt Kirchner shares the fifth edition of a listener-favorite tradition, scoring last year's predictions and looking ahead to the trends and technologies that will shape Tech Ed in 2026. What's in store for 2026? Energy, defense, materials, biomimicry, AI, smart tech, humanoi...
Watch the episode on Youtube: https://youtu.be/f5gWUVQI0jI Melissa Martin and Matt Kirchner are back to answer your questions, covering everything from university curriculum design, to AI in the classroom, to what employers actually expect when they invest in education. This one moves fast, but it’s focused: how do you build programs that truly prepare students for modern work? How do you keep education from falling behind as technology accelerates? Along the way, Matt and Melissa break down ...
The clearest way to understand Ronald Reagan’s leadership may not be from a podium, but from a saddle, a woodpile, and a quiet table where he worked through the ideas that shaped an era. In this on-location episode of The TechEd Podcast, host Matt Kirchner sits down with former Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker inside the Reagan Ranch Center, recorded at the same table and microphones Reagan used for his radio addresses. The conversation moves beyond “Reagan the icon” and into Reagan at Rancho ...
In this episode of The TechEd Podcast, host Matt Kirchner sits down with Irv Blumkin, Chairman of Nebraska Furniture Mart (NFM), and Ryan Blumkin, Executive Vice President, to unpack nearly 90 years of retail innovation, from Mrs. B’s pawn-shop beginnings to multi-acre campuses in Omaha, Kansas City, Dallas, and soon Austin. They explore what it’s like to partner with Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway, build massive destination developments, and still obsess over every single SKU and cust...
What if you could get a behind the scenes look at China's most innovative tech companies, factories and logistics hubs—seeing how they really run and asking the questions most Americans never get to ask? This week, you do. Matt Kirchner and Todd Wanek, CEO of Ashley Furniture, sit down to debrief the trip they took together to China. In a candid, off-the-cuff conversation, they trade questions and challenge each other’s assumptions as they compare what they saw there with what’s happening in ...
With artificial intelligence stepping off the laptop and out onto job sites, factory floors, and flight decks, are we preparing students for the AI that sees, senses, and acts in the real world, not just the kind that chats back? Matt Kirchner sits down with Lieutenant General Brian Cavanaugh, USMC (Ret.), CEO of VigilanteX. After decades commanding Marines and integrating emerging tech into national defense, Cavanaugh now leads a company building applied AI platforms at the edge: solar- and ...
How can CTE listen to regional economic and workforce needs and build a vision so big that others can't help but support it? Watch this episode on YouTube Matt Kirchner sits down with Adam Snoddy, Principal of the Butler Tech Aviation Center, to explore how one district used its regional economic identity to design a world-class CTE program. Located between Cincinnati and Dayton—home to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Amazon’s CVG air hub, a web of regional airports, and one of the den...
With technical colleges serving as the front line for breaking generational poverty, one question rises to the surface: how do we design education that truly creates economic mobility? In this episode of The TechEd Podcast, host Matt Kirchner digs into that question with Dr. Anthony Cruz, President of Milwaukee Area Technical College — the largest nonprofit technical college in the country and one of the most diverse institutions in the Midwest. Dr. Cruz brings a compelling mix of lived exper...
Higher education can’t keep teaching “just in case” knowledge. In an era where technology evolves faster than curriculum, universities must align directly with industry needs — and that’s exactly what Paul Lavoie is doing at the University of New Haven. In this episode of The TechEd Podcast, host Matt Kirchner sits down with Paul, the university’s Vice President of Innovation and Applied Technology and former Chief Manufacturing Officer for the State of Connecticut. Together, they explore wha...
Watch this episode on YouTube! https://youtu.be/UbNr7vF4CC8?si=VqX2owW86GNq7Ods What does it really take to get started with artificial intelligence in a small or mid-sized company right here in the U.S.? In Part 2 of this two-part series, Matt Kirchner continues breaking down A Manufacturer’s Guide to AI Tech — exploring the final 7 technologies reshaping how organizations operate, automate, and make decisions. From autonomous mobile robots and smart drones to AI-powered industrial robots, n...
What does it really take to get started with artificial intelligence in a small or mid-sized company right here in the U.S.? We're breaking it down in this two-part series. In part 1, Matt Kirchner shares lessons from his recent trip overseas and what he learned visiting 26 advanced tech companies in six days. From open-source innovation and mandatory AI education to the work ethic driving global competition, Matt explains why the time to act on AI is now, and how American business leaders ...
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