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Welcome to "INNOV-8 presents Entrepreneurs in Tech," where we delve into the minds of trailblazing innovators who have left an indelible mark on the technology world. Join us as we explore the journeys, challenges, and triumphs of these visionary entrepreneurs, uncovering the strategies and insights that have propelled them to success. From disruptive startups to industry titans, our podcast showcases the diverse stories and groundbreaking ideas that shape the future of technology. Tune in for inspiring conversations and actionable takeaways that will ignite your entrepreneurial spirit and drive innovation forward.
Bob Shami (00:00)
Welcome to Innovate, presents Entrepreneurs in Tech. Today, we are delighted to have our guest, Therese Baptiste. Therese, thank you for joining us today. As we delve into the world of tech innovations, could you start with introducing yourself and providing insights into your tech background and expertise? But not too much because we're gonna dive into it later on in the interview. Absolutely.
Therese Baptiste (00:23)
Exactly. Well, contrary to popular belief, I've been in this area for let's say 35 years, right? Okay, so because my first degree actually, even longer, my God, if I go back to when I got started studying, my first degree is in mathematics and computer science. And then I went on to do business degree. And then I got involved in a lot of other areas and consulted, but always recognizing that technology was like the foundation to everything I did.
Bob Shami (00:42)
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (00:52)
which I could explain later on.
Bob Shami (00:55)
How many years of education? I'm always impressed with people like yourself who have so many accolades and so many, how should I say, years of studying, graduating. How many, how many?
Therese Baptiste (01:07)
But you think, because I believe in continuous learning, I would never cut off number of years of experience in learning because my mother is a retired teacher right now. So she's always grounding to us that you must continuously learn. I believe I will stop learning when I die.
Bob Shami (01:24)
Wow, amazing. Well said. You know, it's all comes in, starts from the home when you're growing up. It's being implemented in you. I like that. That's a great message for our listeners and viewers and for a lot of the young, how should I say, inspired entrepreneurs, young women and young men who really aspire to be like you, always continue to learn. You never stop learning. Amazing. Really amazing. Please carry on.
Therese Baptiste (01:49)
You know, so, I mean, my career has seen me go through being in the private sector, being in the public sector, being a consultant, being a politician, being a diplomat, being an academic. So I've said I've traversed throughout all, but everything I have taken as an experience, I have no regrets. They've all been experiences. I've all learned from them because I don't see anything as a problem. I see it more as an opportunity to progress. So.
Bob Shami (02:17)
As a politician, how long how many years and where were you a politician?
Therese Baptiste (02:21)
that was, well, politician, I was a politician back home in Trinidad and Tobago. I was actually the minister of health prior to being that I was like a change management consultant. And I was fortunate enough that one of my past students was elected as the prime minister. And I guess she saw that she needed some level of change management reorganization in the ministry of health. She appointed me there. We came up with strategies. I'm not a good politician because I.
For the people only the people and no one else not the finances no one else So soon I was moved from being a politician and sent into Geneva to be a UN ambassador Which honestly is just politics on a higher level. So it's not my you know, they call it diplomacy It's just politics on a higher level. So I'm not that I think I think I'm too honest to be in either one
Bob Shami (03:10)
You're an honest politician. That's what it is. An honest...
And how was the experience working for the UN?
Therese Baptiste (03:19)
well, the UN was actually interesting because, to be honest, I remember my first meeting there as a permanent rep for WTO because my country is small, 1 .3 million at that time. So you did everything. So I was also the permanent rep to World Trade Organization. And at my first meeting, you go in there and I think a lot of people don't realize that at WTO, for something to be passed, it has to be unanimous. And we went in there and at the beginning, a country said,
Bob Shami (03:43)
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (03:46)
We don't agree. And I turned to the one next to me and I said, so can we leave? Because if one person doesn't agree, it's not going to be unanimous. no, no, no, you must stay. And this went on every single country reading in their input into this particular policy until it finally came to my turn. And I stood up. And that is when I showed I was not a diplomat. I actually said thank you. I turned and I put everyone's attention onto the clock, which was after 11 p We started at 9 a by the way.
Bob Shami (04:07)
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (04:15)
And I pointed out to the fact that my country did support the other country that had put forward its proposition, but it was very late. So all I would say is go country. And everyone looked in shock and stuff. And then the next day I was invited by the secretary general to join his committees because he said, you are not a diplomat.
Bob Shami (04:21)
Amazing. Mm -hmm.
You know, what drove you to become an entrepreneur in this dynamic field and competitive field? Was it, would you kind of, should I say, you credited to your mom by pushing you into education and always learning, learning?
Therese Baptiste (04:43)
Well, actually...
No, no, no, I wouldn't say for entrepreneurship. I would not credit it to my mom because my mom believes in stability and entrepreneurship is anything but stability. It's a lot of unknowns that you're going into. And so therefore, when I was working for a financial organization and I left, my husband and I started our own company. So we encountered of a new startup. He was a foreigner in my country, starting up our own business, trying to market it, facing the hurdles of the bigger businesses, trying to keep you down.
Bob Shami (05:00)
Hehe.
correct.
Therese Baptiste (05:19)
And when I got into academia as a lecturer, I decided to study that field. And in fact, I was doing my PhD in entrepreneurship when I was made a minister of health and I had to stop doing my PhD in entrepreneurship. And I'm very proud that some of my teaching assistant continued what I started. And she's actually now a professor in entrepreneurship in England. But it's that quest that to understand and to realize and to look at family entrepreneurship.
and many families don't survive the till generation because getting people to be interested in what you're doing waking up and that unknown of not knowing for sure where the next dollar is coming in. A lot of people like safety just get it a feedback. So yeah.
Bob Shami (06:00)
Correct, correct, correct. You know, with your accolades and knowledge and experience in education, I want to ask so many questions. I really do. Like questions popping up in my head. But, you know, I would need probably all, it'll be the longest interview I've done. But you know what? Let's pick subjectively. Let's pick technology. And tech is the biggest thing right now in the world. And that's what driving, the main driving force right now of everything. Any industry,
Therese Baptiste (06:19)
Okay.
Bob Shami (06:29)
You know, as my background in the music business, it's pretty much the driving and the leading force in the vehicle. Without it, there's no music industry, healthcare, travel, education, not yet, but definitely technology. You need to get involved in technology big time. We'll talk about all of that. So let's talk about tech in general. What do you think? And let's talk also about AI. You know, everybody say artificial intelligence. Is it?
The word is very trendy, obviously. Everybody likes to use trendy words, but is it being used correctly? Is it ML instead of AI? Is it really just straight up ML, machine learning? That's what we're dealing with. And people prefer the word AI. Please correct me. I'm not a scientist. And for me and for our viewers.
Therese Baptiste (07:13)
Well, the thing is...
Yeah, the thing is, I was recently contacted by a company that said they were into AI and they were looking for a management consultant to come on board to help promote their AI adventure and be that bridge. Because that's where I actually got into business. Because I wasn't I wasn't technology and I was designing systems. But then I found the management I was talking to can understand me because I didn't speak tech. Right. I mean, I spoke tech, but I didn't speak their vision of what was tech because they had a business.
understanding of it. And that led me to do my MBA and I did my MBA in IT marketing and strategy so that I could do that. And while I was doing that, we did what they said was an AI course, but looking now at really with AI being predictive and generative, what we did was expert systems, you know, put an insert in if, when, then. So a lot of machine, SQL, everything. And that is what people are bringing out now and saying it's AI. And that is really disturbing to me.
Bob Shami (08:12)
Hmm.
Therese Baptiste (08:14)
because the true AI needs to learn from the experience, from the encounter. And yeah, you have chat bots and chat bots are what is it? You ask a question, they answer based on keywords, but it's not learning. And what happens is if you get investors into that and then they realize it's not giving them what they want, it may discolor what AI really is. And AI has so much opportunity for us if people understand that AI has different categories.
It's literally artificial intelligence. In other words, you're not speaking to a human, punto, but not all are going to be generative. And if we understand that, then we'll understand how much, what we want to dwell into and realize it can never, for the time being, replace a human being according to what field you want it into. Because for AI to feel emotion, it's difficult. I mean, I always end my conversations with my mother saying, I love you.
Bob Shami (08:59)
No.
Therese Baptiste (09:09)
And it really gets on my nerves each time that my Google says, well, I can't experience what love is, but thank you so much. I'm not even speaking to you. But yeah, it goes on.
Bob Shami (09:18)
Hehehe.
So your message to our viewers and everybody out there, don't be afraid of technology. Don't be afraid of the current AI or machine learning system that it's being presented out there because it's not something could replace humanity. Humanity have something called emotions, not yet. Emotions and experience and feelings, which is AI doesn't have yet. Now, maybe it is out there, but it's not being exposed to the general public or being used. The technology is not out there yet.
Therese Baptiste (09:36)
Not yet. Not yet.
Bob Shami (09:50)
for us to use, but maybe it is, but not exposed. Got it. Very interesting, very interesting point. You know, what was the big moment, I should say, in your early days of international management and how did it shape your career?
Therese Baptiste (10:05)
So again, I go back to that big project I was working on and I was actually there trying to, the CEO asked me to develop something for him. I did. I followed all the requests. I gave him what he wanted, but he still wasn't getting the benefit from it. And I realized he didn't understand what he needed and I didn't understand how to express it.
Bob Shami (10:09)
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Yeah.
Therese Baptiste (10:29)
And that really was what prompted me to go to UBC to do my business degree. And from there I started and consulted and it was being able to speak the tech and show them how technology is there as a foundation to enable you to work faster. I mean, I loved it even when I was doing, I started off at the bottom, as you know, and I had to be doing training of people with systems and showing them, like, you know, you're getting people afraid.
Bob Shami (10:34)
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (10:55)
55 years old and you're telling them to use a computer and they're like, no, I don't even want to use a typewriter. And I got people to, when you understand the human part of it. So I said, listen, you can be typing a letter for your boss and on the other screen, you can still switch screens and type a note to your friend. And when your boss come, you switch back and they were like, my God.
I mean, if the CEOs know that's what I was training them, but then they were interested in using those things. So the key I realized in management consulting, listening to your audience, seeing exactly what they want and making them comfortable, making them understand that you're there to help them, not to control them.
Bob Shami (11:16)
Hehehe.
Amazing. You know, ESG, empowering social growth. What is most interesting thing you found about how ASG factors in social impact, you know, and connected to recent book, and that's the title of your book, actually, ESG.
Therese Baptiste (11:50)
It is, it's ESG, but I always tell people ESG should really stand for empowering social growth. Okay. And one of the most fascinating discoveries I found was when I was looking at the intricate and profound interplay between them. Throughout the book, my book, which came out last weekend, I dwelled into how the environmental, social and governance initiatives do not merely comply with ethical standards, but they actively try to drive positive.
Bob Shami (11:57)
Yes.
Therese Baptiste (12:19)
societal change. Okay, for instance, if we look at environmental sustainability, if we get a cleaner environment, it's better for everyone's health. It reduces pollution, improve air and water quality. Again, if you look at the governance, it talks about transparency and accountability. And this synergy amplifies the role of social capital. And my whole thing in looking at ESG, we keep seeing ESG, but they try to make the S like minute. And you notice in my book, my S is my standing point.
Bob Shami (12:48)
Yes.
Therese Baptiste (12:48)
because I believe that the S is the glue, the interconnectedness that underscores the power and the responsibility of businesses if we really want to create a more equitable world. It's not to drive away poverty. We say we're going to drive away poverty, but are we just trying to exclude the poor man from everything? Because we are creating situations where they will not be able to survive. So we need to find a smooth transition that allows everyone to benefit.
from all the changes we are doing. Because this Earth is for all of us. It's not just for select few.
Bob Shami (13:21)
and how technology and AI could help in empowering social growth.
Therese Baptiste (13:29)
Well, the thing is, if you look at the AI and if we leverage the AI driven analytics, it can go back even to COVID. COVID, you saw them were able to do predictive analysis of how it was going to spread, right? The capability will allow us to detect what we say potential outbreaks, to see where patterns are. AI can do that drilled on very quickly. Yes, it is learning what is going on. It's learning people's patterns, people's reactions. If you look at service delivery efficiency, AI chatbots.
Bob Shami (13:34)
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (13:58)
have really helped public service because public service normally is officially nine to four. In actuality, it's 10 to 12, big break for lunch, and then they come back and people need answers. So yes, like I said, we have, we've had in my time frequently asked questions, right? But nobody wants to go through that. I mean, the questions are there. One of the things that I found Bob, when I was a consultant, it was actually funny when I was a technology consultant.
Bob Shami (14:26)
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (14:26)
I actually commented to a friend. I said, I'm getting paid to literally read the help book to the client because we were supporting an accounting system and the client would call me, how do you do so and so? And I was like, you want to do so and so. And I'm just like turning to depart in the book that says how to do it. But no one wants to take the time. They want someone to tell them and AI can make public operations go faster and let those people.
Bob Shami (14:29)
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (14:52)
spend more time in doing the things that need the people to interact. Because not everyone can just deal with a machine. But there are some of us, like myself, I consider myself to be an extroverted introvert. If I could do it out with people, I would. So I appreciate that aspect of it. But there are some people who like to go in. There are people who still go into a bank to get their money. They will never use an ATM. They exist.
Bob Shami (15:05)
Hmm.
Hehehe
Being part of AKFI industry, Concertium, how do you think digital changes and ESG principles mix? And what does it mean for different industries?
Therese Baptiste (15:34)
Yeah, well, yeah, because I'm on the advisory board and it's led by Manuel Wexler. And I think in the realm of environmental sustainability, digital tools can optimize resource use and energy consumption. Technologies such as IoT sensors can monitor emissions in real time. And we see that digital technology therefore plays a pivotal role in enhancing the capacity of industries to implement ESG. And at AKFI, we say from a social perspective,
Bob Shami (15:39)
Hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (16:03)
digital technologies facilitate more inclusive stakeholder engagements, okay? They're by enhancing social governance and it can also drive economic inclusion by enabling access to financial services and as you mentioned at the beginning, education. And for different industries, that means embracing digital transformation. You cannot implement ESG without some kind of digital transformation occurring. So that's one of the things that we were founded upon to look at it.
Bob Shami (16:07)
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (16:32)
If you look at FinTech innovations are reshaping investments and banking services, manufacturing digital and technologies to achieve that circular economy. Ultimately, we see the conversion of digital changes and ESG principles with this transformative opportunity. And that is something AKFI is trying to do to make sure we all are on the same level playing field.
Bob Shami (16:34)
Mm -hmm. Yes.
Amazing. What problems that you or the main problem that you find how and you know in ASG and how people should deal with them.
Therese Baptiste (17:03)
Okay, well, in the integration of ESG, right, we see the principles, a lot of significant challenges. I mean, if you look at Europe with the Green Deal and ESG, the postponement of when it has to be implemented. One of the primary challenges is the complexity of quantifying and reporting ESG metrics. And if you talk about S, there's nothing. In my book, I talk about it being like an alphabet soup. You don't know which one to use for which country because the problem with social...
Bob Shami (17:06)
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (17:32)
Social includes DEI, and DEI itself gets confusing, because I know some people said, it can be simple. You just say you must have X percentage of someone of another race in your company. That's not that simple. You know, some people say, like in Brussels, in Belgium, someone would say, at least 10 % of a company should be people who are Black, if we want to be fair. And I asked that person who was Black, I said, OK, you come from a country in the African continent.
Bob Shami (17:51)
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (17:59)
What if your country said that followed that rule with 10 %? Can you find 10 % white people to work in your company? And he looked, it doesn't apply to that. It only applies to companies that have the white. You don't do it to the companies that have, and we can't do that kind of level. You know, companies are struggling with collecting consistent data. Additionally, I think there's a challenge of aligning ESG initiatives with existing business goals. On the flip side, the integration.
gives opportunities. There's a lot of opportunities for consultants. Unfortunately, these days, when everyone looks for an ESG consultant, they just focus on the environmental consultant. They're not a lot of money is being spent on the S and the G. And if they do, they give it to one person, their legal person, handle this ESG, or to the accountant, handle this ESG, like if it's only finance and legal. Businesses that are successfully incorporated can enhance their brand reputation.
For those who want a deeper dive, you can go into my book and I go a lot and I give examples of companies that are using it and are benefiting from it.
Bob Shami (19:02)
So you're saying that really ESG and the growth of technology or the advancement, I should say, of technology and AI should definitely be both integrated together. Definitely. That will help advancing humanity.
Therese Baptiste (19:14)
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Well, everything is in what I do find. If you look at the average person in companies long ago, at least we didn't have all this confusion because remember, we were the ones who apparently who polluted the world, right? My generation. But a lot of companies would spend money upgrading their equipment, but they never upgraded their staff. The level of training that they would give people was never really there. You got someone in and you won't invest in in their mind and they're continuous growing.
Bob Shami (19:33)
Mm -hmm.
Therese Baptiste (19:47)
ESG is telling you to let people be included in your decisions. Talk to your staff and see what it is they want to do. I see a lot of companies saying we do DEI or we are good. I'm a DEI leader. I'm a diss, I'm a dat. And I mean, I worked at a company once and I was like, okay, I guess I am the token black person because I didn't realize that I wasn't part of the decisions. But anytime anyone from outside was coming to visit, I was requested to be there as the face to be present.
And I think it's important that people need to work together to make this world a better place. And to facilitate this kind of collaboration, I tend to focus on building bridges between the different parties. And I'm saying this involves mediating discussions, fostering mutual understanding and helping groups articulate shared objectives. I tell people all these in business, there are a lot of new terminologies that come along, but what they actually are doing is similar to what we did in the past.
Bob Shami (20:43)
Hehe.
Therese Baptiste (20:46)
except we now have words for them. Recently a friend contacted me. She was re - she read my book. She was my first ebook reader and she's like, what are ERG's, Employee Resource Groups? And when I explained it to her, she's like, all right, well, we do that. I said, yeah, well, we came up with this new terminology, you know, we got to make it sound good. You know, ESG promotes ERG. And she's like, please, you know, and it's true and it can get confusing, but the whole thing is.
Bob Shami (21:02)
Hehehehe.
Therese Baptiste (21:12)
And that's what I try to do when I do workshops and training sessions, is I help stakeholders integrate their efforts and build lasting partnerships. When your staff realize that you care for them, then all these changes you're doing, they will understand why, and they will want to be part of those changes.
Bob Shami (21:28)
You know, I like what you said in the beginning of this conversation. You said, you know, a lot of company invest in buying new equipment, but they don't invest in staff. So they invest in the infrastructure to really fancy a building, a better place, more modern equipment, but they're not investing in the actual staff that's been with them from the get go. Meaning re -educating the staff, re -investing in them, you know, better training.
And I think I'm sure you read it, the article recently in Singapore that I think the government itself said a lot of the companies right now, and everybody must, anybody above 40, 40 and above to go back. Well, obviously, I don't know if they're going to give them free education that because of AI and technology and how fast technology is really advancing right now in a speed that we haven't seen before.
to go back and learn so everybody doesn't lose their job nobody has the fear of technology because there is a fear and i think the only way to how do you how do you take the fear out of somebody you know of the unknown by teaching them about it it becomes known to them so that's how you embrace it when somebody doesn't know something it's the unknown to them and naturally they're going to be afraid of it but once they learn about it understand it
Therese Baptiste (22:28)
Thanks.
Bob Shami (22:49)
then say, it's okay. They're gonna embrace it. And that's how you have a society that actually growing. And that's where ASG comes in, growth.
Therese Baptiste (23:01)
Yeah, it's good. And Bob, I like when you said that to take away that fear. One of my first jobs was a maths teacher and everyone hates maths, right? And I remember walking into the classroom of these students and they looked at me and they were like, one was like filing their nails and I was like, really? You know, and she's like, we don't like maths. And I said, neither do I. And they looked at me in shock because, hey, you're a maths teacher. And I said, but we have to have a class, right? The Bolly, yeah. The nuns say we have to because it was a convent. I said,
Bob Shami (23:09)
Yes.
Therese Baptiste (23:30)
Okay, so let's forget about maths and they looked at me like in shock like my god, this is a cool teacher. She's gonna forget all about maths. I said you all are gonna graduate regardless, right? So let's plan a graduation party and they looked at me like yeah because these were the hip girls who didn't like maths. So we started to plan a party and I said okay so what space we need? How many people are coming? So they said...
how much people each person is going to bring so they worked out that and I said what area we should get so I said okay how do you do that I said okay let's work out this and you look at this and then we'll look at area and what's it cost can we get it cheaper they said we could get a discount how much would that save us they learned maths and they never knew they were learning maths and they liked it
Bob Shami (24:08)
Hmm. Interesting. So the ESG book, your book, is it available everywhere or how do people if they want to buy it? Amazon or?
Therese Baptiste (24:17)
It's available everywhere on Amazon. Everywhere, everywhere on Amazon. It's on Amazon. It hasn't gone like in bookstores yet. It's now because they only came out this weekend. It's on Amazon. It's on Kindle. And if people have Kindle unlimited because I signed up for that package, they get it free from Kindle. So good for them. Right. But it's available there. And I really encourage people to read it because it's designed for Bodysee Suite, the managers and they.
For each chapter, what I've done, I guess you can't take the academic out of me, I've put like reflection questions and just tree references. This is not a book with a whole set of references. It's not meant to be a textbook to live on and die by. It's meant to stimulate understanding and make you hungry for more information.
Bob Shami (25:03)
Yes, hungry for more information hungry to learn never too old or too young to learn never, you know, There's in every industry out there there's always a misconception if you're not in it and What is the common misconception? People hold about the tech industry and how do you believe these misconceptions impact innovation and entrepreneurship within the field because definitely it's important because
when you misinterpret something is definitely going to impact your innovation and entrepreneurship in it. Please.
Therese Baptiste (25:40)
The first one I would say is people believe tech is only for the young. The second one, they say tech requires a formal education in STEM. It doesn't. They believe tech is only about coding and software development. It isn't. They believe startups are the primary drivers of innovation. They aren't. It believes there's a quick success or failure. Not true. If you want, I could get into that more. It's up to you with the time in, but again.
Common misconception the main one is that a tech industry is exclusively for young people and that is so so wrong Okay, and many times older professionals are saying my god. This is coming in I can't do this I can't do this and you just need someone who understands and to be there with them and again I go back to when I started I had a neighbor and she was a receptionist She's the answer the phones at a major bank and one day she came home and she said can you help me write a resignation letter and I was like
Why? They're gonna put in technology for me to answer phones and stuff. There's no way I'm gonna do this. There's no way. But you, she said, I can talk to people, not to a computer. Type these things, you know, and how did I get her to do it? I said, okay, okay, okay. Give yourself a month to decide. Let me teach you technology. Let me show you how to get online and see what's going on on Young and Restless. And she was interested. yeah, and she was there with the keyboards. She could type, right? She was there and she's reading up.
It wasn't a problem. But she had this fear. She saw this computer as something not for her age group. But then when she saw that this computer opened up a whole new world that she was interested in, it was no longer a tool of oppression. It was a tool that would free up her life. If we talk about the formal education, many believe you have to have a background in science. Yeah, that's great. Or mathematics. I did. Right. But it's beneficial. But many times it can exclude talented individuals.
who can understand and I say if I look at my spouse when something goes wrong on our computer it's my spouse who goes first I have a master's in IT but I'm telling you he gets in there because he has really gathered that aspect and when startups are important that's a misconception because if you're looking at companies who have that R &D budget they can do a lot of stuff so they can also make a lot ahead way that startups can't because money is easier for them to get into and
This myth that tech ventures either quickly succeed or fail spectacularly, this overlooks the reality that sustained effort. I mean, even Amazon, sustained effort is what keeps you. You and I were wrong when Amazon started and everybody's like, who's gonna buy a book online? No way, we need our bookstores. And only four bookstores are help, help. So yeah.
Bob Shami (28:11)
Sustained effort, yes.
Yes, same thing with the music. Everybody was buying CDs and records and vinyls from record stores and record store were everywhere. Now they vanished, they disappeared. Everything is done online, digital, not even download streaming. Everybody streams and that's about to end soon. Probably there's I don't know what the new technology is.
Therese Baptiste (28:37)
And that... Yeah, but even that I feel kind of sad about because I think what has happened, at least to me within music, I find that the musicians of the past, I was much more impressed with them because they were true musicians. Now I see some of these people now are true, have good tech support teams, that's what I call it, who can help them sound really good, but they themselves are really... They don't even write their songs, they don't put...
Bob Shami (29:02)
You like live acoustic bands with their equipment a guitar a drums
Therese Baptiste (29:06)
No, but does it? I don't like that either. So it's weird. It's just that I appreciate truth. You know, I want truth. If I'm listening to your voice, I want to listen to your voice, not a computer generated enhancement of how you should sound. You know, that part I can't handle. And so just to me, it destroys everything. And suddenly everyone's a musician now. And then we go to the other side with because you talk about streaming, it comes into the whole copyright aspect.
Bob Shami (29:13)
Okay, okay.
Yes, yeah.
Therese Baptiste (29:36)
go on and on and that because I think because everything is starting to be so copyrighted that if you just take one second or make sure you pay for it the exposure that came out so naturally for some of these artists are not there unless they can get on a radio unless they can get on a streaming platform it can be difficult.
Bob Shami (29:54)
Yeah, well radio is disappearing. It's everything is streaming platform now. Everything is clear.
Therese Baptiste (29:57)
Yeah, I mean, in my country, I saw now they need a license to have a radio in like, it's like a maxi taxi with multiple people. So you can't have a radio without a license. And therefore the radios don't want to pay this so they don't play the songs. And then the exposure is not there again. So it's that balance that we have to get that empowering social growth without destroying other people. Yeah.
Bob Shami (30:14)
Yes. Yes.
Absolutely. Anything you're working on besides the book you just released ESG that you would like to mention to our listeners and viewers so they look for a new activity, you're going to speak in somewhere, new engagement, please.
Therese Baptiste (30:35)
Well, I'm planning to do some webinars. I'm working on that. I still have to focus on marketing this book because I was more obsessed with writing the book and putting out the book. You know, I was like marketing. I do have a master's in marketing. Do I have to market it? OK, yeah. Right. So but webinars and workshops. And I've been asked to start back my podcast because actually it was a podcast I was doing on ESG .com to this. I was doing a podcast and I would be sending my podcast to my brother and saying, hey, listen to this.
Bob Shami (30:57)
Mm.
Therese Baptiste (31:03)
Hey, listen to it. And he said to me, could you just put all this in a book for me? You know, like you keep sending me these every week, a different podcast, put it in a book. I'll read it, you know, and he actually did it forward for my book. He did. He wrote it forward. He's the president of a major bank and financial and he wrote it forward for my book. So he says, yeah, because again, he wants to be able to flip to a particular part at that point to find to remember which podcast she said X, Y, and Z. So, but I'm going back into my podcast. It was fun. I love it. Doing my.
Bob Shami (31:32)
Great. Amazing. Well, you know, for listeners and viewers that who are going to be inspired by this interview and listen to you talk and how far you came and how much accolades and how much education you compiled and you're still learning and you're still open to learn more. What advice you would give anyone who gets inspired by your story and by your accomplishment, achievements in life?
Therese Baptiste (31:33)
I'm going to go to bed.
Okay. I have some rules. I say you must always embrace lifelong learning. As I said in the beginning, I don't believe we should ever stop learning. The tech industry is evolving rapidly. So continuous learning is going to be essential. I myself have to upgrade my skills always continuously develop what I consider a diverse skill set. This is no longer the time where you can just be a specialist in one area. You cannot be a specialist in one area. Technical skills are important, but you need to compliment them with communication.
Bob Shami (32:21)
diverse skill set. I like that. Yes.
Therese Baptiste (32:30)
Teamwork problem -solving make you more adaptable. I also say you should learn to Specialize but stay flexible. Okay specializing in a niche area Like I said, I'm doing in s but I haven't stopped doing my strategy on my change management, but maintain Yes maintain flexibility to adapt to new technologies that open up more opportunities for you Network effectively. I said I was a extraverted introvert. I
Bob Shami (32:46)
So you said also work with others, that's what you meant. Okay.
Therese Baptiste (33:00)
It really means you have to do, you have to build a strong professional network to make you indispensable. When I was lecturing, I told my students, you need to start building another network from the time you enter university on LinkedIn. Build it, get people who may be able to get you those positions, open up your eyes and of course showcase your projects. Okay. Whether through a professional portfolio or personal projects, demonstrate to people your practical skills. Again, Bob.
Bob Shami (33:19)
Yes.
Therese Baptiste (33:26)
did this book because when I left academia and I came out now back to go fully consultant. People in Belgium don't know who Therese Batiste is. People perhaps my students know who I am. Somebody consultants back home and people who I worked back home. But in Europe I was a pretty unknown. So my logic is this was like a method of saying hey this is me I know what I'm talking about hello right. We talk about focus on problem solving. Companies will value individuals who can solve complex problems.
Bob Shami (33:52)
Yes.
Therese Baptiste (33:56)
I tell, I say on my website, therazbetease .com, that I can turn that mess into a message. Okay. I am there to help you get rid of these complexities, showcase your ability to use technology, to find innovative solutions. I mean, have fun with it. You don't have to think everything so seriously. I mean, I'm on TikTok and I go on TikTok not for work. I just go on TikTok to just get off some steam, make a joke, read a joke, laugh at a joke. Okay.
By adopting different strategies, you can enhance your profile, adapt to industry shifts, and carve that success for you in the dynamic field of technology. We, technology, can no longer stay what we used to be long ago. I used to be called a nerd. We nerds have to come out and say, hey, look us. We know what we're talking about.
Bob Shami (34:28)
Correct.
Amazing. Well, you know, all great things has to come to an end. I definitely enjoyed this interview and many, it's very insightful and many takeaways for myself and for our viewers and listeners. So thank you for joining us today on Innovate Presents Entrepreneurs in Tech. Be sure to connect with us on social media, stay informed about our upcoming episodes and exclusive content. For sure, it is exclusive. Until next time, keep innovating, stay curious.
and we'll see you on the cutting edge of technology. Thank you and take care.