Have you ever wondered how software engineers transform into CEOs? We recently sat down with Tommy Dang, co-founder and CEO of Mage, whose journey started as a software engineer at Airbnb. After gaining invaluable experience, he co-founded Mage, an open-source data pipeline tool with the goal to make the creation of data pipelines more accessible to everyone regardless of their technical expertise and not just data engineers.

During our chat, Tommy highlighted the importance of sidestepping industry jargon to explain complex concepts. He brilliantly used relatable analogies, illuminating the functionality of Mage without pigeonholing it into a predefined category. His approach underscores the importance of making complex concepts understandable to a broad audience, which ties in with the overarching goal of Mage - open up the world of data.

A key themes that emerged during the conversation were the balance between data-driven decisions and intuition, and the importance of cross-disciplinary collaboration in making informed decisions. We delved into his views on the future of data engineering, where he envisions a unified landscape empowering individuals to self-serve. Tommy strongly believes in the power of combining solutions to create compound effects and his vision involves a shift towards empowering people to, well, service themselves, which again, aligns with his core philosophy.

”One is a unification of solutions. I think, specifically in the data pipeline piece, you have things that pull data from sources and then bring them into your warehouse data integration. Then you have tools that run jobs and do something on this data, they call them orchestrators. And then there's going to be other examples out there, but for us, those two have a synergy. When you combine them in a delightful, simple way, there's a lot of power coming out of that. There's a lot of synergy. It works really well together and less tools, less headaches, less overhead. So I do see a trend of unifying more and more use cases that can create compound effects”

- Tommy Dang looking into his magic crystal ball

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It was also rather fascinating to hear how he employs a mentality of extreme ownership as a company, treating every issue as a chance to enhance the user experience. For him, if a user runs into an issue, his mind goes straight to if Mage failed in giving clear instructions, not providing the right documentation, if the UI is crap, etc., and then how they can turn this into an opportunity to delight their end-users. And talking about the users, Tommy also shared his perspective on the “the customer is always right” mentality. It rings true for every user-centric startup, however, individual users only see their own needs without having insights into others. So, the challenge is evaluating the most urgent user needs.

“So how I think about “the customers is always right” is in the sense of their needs, but not in the sense of prioritisation”

- Tommy Dang on “the customer is always right” mentality

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So, does Tommy ever just chill out and relax? Well, kind of. Tommy shared his “relaxation routine”, which includes listening to fictional books for inspiration. Think Dune, Star Wars, etc. It enables him to dream beyond the boundaries of reality, generating ideas that may not seem feasible but push the limits of what's possible, reflecting the innovative spirit that is so essential in the tech industry - yesterday, today, and tomorrow. After all, “everything's science fiction until someone makes it science fact” (from the book Warcross), right?

The conversation with MR. DANGerous was insightful, enlightening, and quite a mind-expanding roller coaster. It provided a unique perspective on data engineering, offering valuable insights for anyone interested in the field. Or even better, for those not yet in the field.

Tommy’s journey from Airbnb to Mage, his vision for the future of data engineering, and his unique approach to explaining complex concepts makes this a “must-listen”. Whether you're a data engineer, a software engineer, or simply someone interested in the intersection of data and technology, this episode is for you.

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Podcast Episode:

Apple Podcast: https://lnkd.in/eN-rpQ8B

‍Spotify: https://lnkd.in/erX7FFMh

‍YouTube: https://lnkd.in/e4mJDr4K

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