Montclair, NJ – Montclair Kimberley Academy (MKA) has a history of alumni who are changemakers and thought leaders in their respective fields. Steve Valentine, MKA’s Assistant Head of the Upper School and Director of Academic Leadership, as well as tech guru, brings you Inquiry to Insight’s ‘State of Technology’, an MKA podcast featuring some of the school’s extraordinary alumni.

“From investments and law to product partnerships and design, each guest will discuss their career paths and how technology has played an important role,” said Steve Valentine. “We are taking our listeners on a journey through the ‘state of technology,’ demonstrating how this ever-changing field is intertwined in everything we do. At the forefront of innovative solutions, MKA is a school that has mastered the art of technology on many levels and our alumni are proof.”

The podcast, launching today, will feature these experts:

Rick Diamond ‘91, heads the Global Financial Technology investment banking practice at Citigroup. He will discuss technology trends and their implications on society, developing the next innovation within the tech industry, sustainable disruptors in the tech industry and more.

Vejay Lalla ’93 is a Partner in the technology transactions group at Fenwick & West. He will discuss monetizing traditional marketing content and distributing it via tech platforms, disruptors in the tech industry, how the convergence of tech with traditional industries is changing the way people are consuming products and more.

Alex Holz ‘99 is a Senior Product Specialist at YouTube. He will discuss the importance of trust and integrity when licensing at scale and distributing music on a large platform like YouTube, how one should distinguish between those opportunities that offer legitimacy and those that do not, particularly in the tech industry, what happens when a tech product is created for one purpose but unintentionally disrupts another and more.

Devika Patel ’12, is the Design Director at The Better Lab. She will discuss how the facets of the human-centric design process invite us to embrace, and thrive in, ambiguity, why the design process plays such an important role in technology, how companies beginning to thoughtfully integrate design technology and more.

For more information on the podcast: https://www.mka.org/inquirytoinsight