Remote First Innovators

What makes a virtual meeting or webinar truly effective? In this episode of Remote First Innovators, Bernie DeSantis, President of Insignia Training Partners, shares practical lessons from producing more than 6,000 virtual events.
Bernie explains why virtual presentations can't simply copy the format of in-person meetings, how to keep remote audiences engaged, and why thoughtful planning, audience targeting, and the right event format matter. He also discusses virtual event production, Zoom best practices, micro-engagements, remote team meetings, global audiences, AI, Zoom fatigue, remote work productivity, and the future of virtual collaboration.
Whether you're a business leader, entrepreneur, speaker, trainer, coach, or remote team manager, this conversation offers actionable insights for creating better virtual experiences and more effective remote meetings.
Topics covered: virtual events, webinars, remote work, distributed teams, virtual engagement, Zoom, leadership, AI, remote meetings, workplace productivity, and the future of work.

Can a hard tech startup succeed with a fully remote team? Bill Walker proves that it can.
PhD biomedical engineer, five-time founder, inventor with 35+ patents, and Co-Founder of Boundless Science—to discuss what it really takes to build groundbreaking medical technology while leading a distributed workforce.
Bill shares the remarkable story behind launching Boundless Science during the COVID-19 pandemic, creating a remote-first culture built on trust, and developing a next-generation medical device designed to improve patient outcomes. Along the way, he reveals the leadership principles, hiring philosophy, AI strategies, and company values that have shaped his entrepreneurial journey.
Whether you're a startup founder, engineering leader, CTO, entrepreneur, or someone passionate about the future of remote work, this episode delivers practical lessons on innovation, collaboration, and leading high-performing teams.
In this episode:
What defines a hard tech startup
Building and testing hardware with a remote team
Leadership lessons from five startup ventures
Creating a culture where the best ideas win
Founder agreements, trust, and difficult conversations
How AI is transforming engineering and research
Preventing burnout in high-performance organizations
Cybersecurity best practices for remote businesses
Stoicism, integrity, and vulnerable leadership
The future of medical device innovation and Boundless Science
Subscribe to Remote First Innovators for more conversations with founders, executives, and industry experts redefining how modern businesses grow, innovate, and lead in a remote-first world.

Healthcare is entering a new era—and telehealth is leading the transformation.
Eric Doherty, CEO of My Pediatric Doctor, explains how technology, artificial intelligence, and remote-first healthcare are making pediatric care faster, more accessible, and more efficient for families nationwide.
From reducing wait times and improving physician workflows to expanding healthcare access in underserved communities, Eric shares how his company is building one of the country's most innovative pediatric telehealth platforms.
The conversation also explores AI in healthcare, remote physician management, healthcare leadership, scaling startups, patient experience, and the future of digital medicine.
If you're passionate about healthcare innovation, entrepreneurship, AI, remote work, or technology-driven leadership, this episode offers valuable insights into where the industry is headed.
Subscribe to Remote First Innovators for more conversations with founders, executives, and innovators building the future of work and technology.
#Telehealth #HealthcareInnovation #HealthTech #DigitalHealth #ArtificialIntelligence #PediatricCare #Leadership #RemoteHealthcare #MedicalTechnology #Podcast

James Martucci joins Remote First Innovators to discuss building successful remote organizations through intentional leadership, hiring, and culture. Drawing from experience at Apple, Oscar Health, robotics startups, and his own company, Sidekicks, James explains why culture is the foundation of long-term business success.

Titus Kariuki shares his experience as a Data Analytics Business Analyst supporting enterprise analytics solutions while leading nonprofits, building a personal brand, and exploring AI-powered workflows. Learn practical strategies for hybrid work, productivity, leadership, AI adoption, personal development, and career growth in today's evolving workplace. 

What separates successful remote companies from those that struggle?
In this episode of Remote First Innovators, HR strategist and author Leslie Speas shares practical strategies for creating a thriving remote culture built on trust, communication, accountability, and connection.
Learn how leaders can improve onboarding, performance management, employee engagement, and retention while avoiding common remote work pitfalls like burnout, quiet quitting, and micromanagement.
A must-listen for founders, HR professionals, people leaders, and executives managing remote or hybrid teams.
#RemoteWork #HRLeadership #EmployeeEngagement #Leadership #HybridWork

What happens when a 24-year-old former Division I basketball player walks away from a corporate engineering path and bets on herself? She builds a global cybersecurity education company with 50+ interns, a custom-built operating system, and a management philosophy that lets roles grow around people.
 
Adaora joins Jake Gump to talk about remote team structure, time zone challenges, leadership lessons learned the hard way, and why she believes the biggest firewall is the human brain.
 
This episode explores:
Why she left Apple's engineering track to start her own company
How she managed 50+ global interns with no systems in place
The delegation failures — and fixes — that shaped her leadership
Building a cybersecurity education platform targeting teens and older adults
Why human behavior is the real vulnerability in any system
For founders, operators, and anyone building distributed teams who wants a real, unfiltered look at what early-stage remote leadership actually looks like.
 
#RemoteWork #CybersecurityEducation #WomenInTech #FounderStory #DistributedTeams #StartupLeadership #RemoteFirstInnovators

Alyssa Lundy has worked with 200+ clients across industrial, automotive, and healthcare — running marketing remotely before remote work was a strategy. In this conversation with host Jake Gump, she shares the patterns she sees in businesses that consistently win, how she structures remote marketing teams with zero chaos, and why chasing viral content is keeping most B2B brands broke. Plus: the deeply personal story behind the Five to Nine Club, a women-only sober dance experience she built from scratch in Baton Rouge.
If you lead a distributed team and want marketing that actually converts — this one's for you.
#FractionalCMO #RemoteMarketing #B2BMarketing #BrandStrategy #RemoteFirstInnovators #DistributedWork #MarketingStrategy #WomenInBusiness #RemoteTeams #BusinessGrowth

What does entrepreneurship really look like when things get hard?
In this episode, Juming Delmas shares why he fired three clients, how he handles pressure, and what separates real entrepreneurs from business owners.
From sleepless nights to tough client decisions, this conversation highlights the realities most people do not talk about.
You will learn:- Why firing clients can be necessary- What late payments really signal- How entrepreneurs think differently- The pressure behind running a business

This episode explores health as a holistic system and how small, intentional daily wins compound into lasting transformation.
Michael Levy, CEO of the Digital Health Institute for Transformation and co-founder of Blue Door Group, shares frameworks developed across 20+ years of healthcare leadership.
The conversation covers practical strategies for remote professionals and leaders seeking to optimize performance, energy, and wellbeing.
You'll learn:
The 4D Framework: Discover, Define, Design, Deliver
Why tracking your current reality is the essential first step
How the brain-gut connection affects mood, energy, and long-term health
The concept of a "flexible human stack" for work and advisory relationships
How to build a personal advisory board across self, family, work, and friends
Why "choosing your hard" today creates easier outcomes tomorrow
The Periodic Table of Health Elements and its 85 levers for change
This episode is ideal for remote workers, founders, and leaders focused on sustainable performance, intentional living, and building systems that support long-term success.