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Empathic Insights Collective is an independent publication launched in February 2023. If you subscribe today, you'll get full access to the website as well as email newsletters about new content when it's available. Your subscription makes this site possible, and allows Empathic Insights Collective to continue to exist. Thank you!
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Who we are
We are a team of professionals in Management and Product Management roles, who have over 50 years of experience managing technology teams.
Jason Bliss
Jason is a seasoned tech leader that builds high-performing software teams and delivers products that customers love. He is passionate about making an impact on real people, using data to solve problems, and fostering a culture of innovation and creativity. He has been a leader in the tech industry for over 20 years and currently works for IMDb, a subsidiary of Amazon as Head of Technology, Monetization. Jason also owns Waterland Arcade, a retro arcade bar in Des Moines, WA.
Ken Furie
Ken Furie is a seasoned leader in the technology industry with 35 years dedicated to managing people. Much of his time has been in startups where small movements can have a big impact, and with the diversity of challenges in that arena he has enjoyed making extraordinary teams a lifelong passion and study. In the course of his career, and through empathic leadership techniques, he has won the Project Management Institute's (PMI's) "Project of the Year" award, Inc. Magazine's "500 Fastest Growing Companies" award, and helped save two companies from bankruptcy. When his busy work/life balance permits he loves teaching and mentoring, giving him opportunities to pass along his career learnings.
Eric Jorgensen
Eric has enjoyed a diverse career. After graduating from MIT with a BS in Materials Science, he worked at Intel in chip manufacturing then gradually shifted to software development, his true technical passion. He helped found a startup in trucking logistics then worked at Microsoft, a Health Care company, Facebook, and Adobe. Early on, Eric discovered Extreme Programming and Agile Software Development and saw their technical and empathic potential, taking every opportunity to teach others about how to work in a way that is compatible with being human. On the side, he has also published many tools, software libraries, and games, picked up a MS in Computer Science from UW, raised a family of six children, and dabbled in writing, acting, and visual arts.
Jason Kieffaber
Jason Kieffaber has a background in Electrical and Computer Engineering, with a graduate degree in Engineering Management, and over his 27 year career has helped to develop and directly manage several avionics products for a wide range of groups including the Air Force, Airbus, United Technologies, Ball Aerospace, and SpaceX. During this time, he’s also worked extensively in the software tech industry as both an Engineering and Technical Program manager, specifically working for Kansas State University, Amazon, and IMDb, most often on advertising and advertising-related products that serve across several platforms. With over 15 years of experience leading teams and driving technical development across a wide range of disciplines, industries, and companies, he’s seen first-hand how important managing with empathy is to building skilled, resilient teams that deliver amazing products and services.
Eugene Polonsky
Eugene Polonsky has 28 years of experience in the IT industry, over fifteen of those leading teams in companies like Microsoft, Adobe, Outreach and Amazon. He's worked on projects as diverse as System Center Virtual Machine Manager, HoloLens prototyping, Skype for Business, Adobe XD, and IMDb Advertising, and this diversity of experience led him to his specific management style that emphasizes empathic connection with his organization.