Introducing Plato AMA Sessions: Learn Leadership Together in Small Groups of Peers

We’ve been working for over a year on our mission to help engineering and product leaders build better teams. Today, we’re launching something new: AMA Sessions.

People often ask me what was the best thing about our experience at YCombinator (read more about our story here). A lot has been written about it. Some could argue it’s the reputation to attract investors, some could say it’s the intense focus of work over three months, others would say it’s how smart YC Partners are, and how valuable the 1–1 office hours are to help you make the best decisions for the future of your company. One thing missing here that I find absolutely fundamental is the ability to be able to connect with people who are in the same shoes as you, and people who are facing the same issues you’re facing. As a founder, having that core group of people reassures me I’m not alone, and others are facing the same challenges. You realize that everyone has problems, and sometimes they’re way worse than yours. It’s good to keep perspective, and to be able to talk through those challenges is helpful. This is the most powerful thing about YC in my opinion — being able to connect with other founders of startups that are at the same stage as us, and being able to discuss solutions to problems we have.

At Plato, our mission has always been to connect leaders with other leaders who have lived through many challenges, mistakes, and found solutions. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel or fall into the same mistakes when you can learn from others who have been there before you. This is why we designed an experience where you can connect and receive mentorship from seasoned engineering leaders (aka Plato Mentors). One thing was still missing though: this impactful network with peers who are currently facing the same issues. So we launched an experiment: have our Plato Mentors share their stories around common challenges engineering and product leaders face in small groups of four to eight people. It was an immediate success, and those who participated gave us great feedback.

People loved it because they found value in the discussion, and many found value in simply listening, perhaps because they’re introverted, or simply because it was helpful to hear others’ stories:

“Truthfully for this AMA I think he presented his story very well and so comprehensively I did not have many questions to ask. I got a lot of great ideas just from listening.”

— Thomas, Dir of Engineering at Billtrust

People also loved hearing other people’s questions that they would not thought of to ask:

“So far, I like these more than 1:1s. Having multiple people participate gets more ideas and questions out.”

— Christian, Software Engineer at Liveramp

People loved the interactivity of the format, and the Mentor had the flexibility to tailor the session around specific audience questions:

“Jeff was brilliant. We did a lightning round of questions which he noted then we worked through them.”

— Justin, VP Engineering at Neto

Users loved particularly the depth and breadth of experience of the mentors that triggers conversations among them.

“Gautam was thoughtful. He clearly had a wealth of experience to think through. He exhibited transparency, self-reflection, and humility which made me think even better of him. I think he’s a very good mentor, certainly for the AMA format.”

Today we’re launching Plato AMA sessions for everyone. Almost 200 sessions have been added on 50 different topics — we focused on the most common challenges engineering and product leaders experience. Anyone can participate in one session for FREE. If you find value from the experience and are interested in receiving 1–1 mentorship from Mentors you met during an AMA session, plus access to unlimited sessions (we’re adding more each week!), you can subscribe to Plato. Enjoy, and as always, we’d love your feedback.

PS: We’re launched in PH today: https://www.producthunt.com/posts/plato-ama-sessions

Haven’t heard of Plato yet? Plato is on a mission to help engineering and product leaders learn soft skills and build better teams. We do this through our powerful mentoring platform, where new leaders connect with seasoned professionals for 1–1 sessions, AMAs, and a comprehensive knowledge base.

Our Plato Mentors have extensive experience in management, and come from top tech companies like Google, Facebook, Lyft, Slack, Netflix, and Spotify — among others.

Plato has offices in both San Francisco + Paris. Learn more or book a demo HERE.