Herding Squirrels Ep 01
w Giacomo Pallotti VP of Engineering at Everyday Health
In our inaugural episode of Herding Squirrels, we welcome Giacomo Pallotti, VP of Engineering at Everyday Health Group, for a conversation about engineering leadership, team dynamics, and personal growth - all explored through the creative lens of LEGO Serious Play methodology.
Episode Highlights
Opening LEGO Tower Build - We kick off with a quick tower-building exercise that reveals Giacomo's approach to engineering challenges.
Life Beyond Code - Through his LEGO model, Giacomo shares a glimpse into his life outside work.
Team Dynamics in 3D - We explore contrasting team experiences through LEGO models:
The hallmarks of high-performing engineering teams
The warning signs of dysfunctional technical collaboration
How physical modeling reveals insights that conversation alone might miss
Leadership Journey - Giacomo reflects on his path from coding at age eight to leading a global team of 60+ engineers, sharing pivotal lessons learned along the way.
The Gift of Perspective - When asked what talent he wishes every engineer possessed, Giacomo emphasizes listening and seeing challenges from others' perspectives—skills he believes are fundamental to both technical and human problem-solving.
Final Build: You Can't Do It Alone - Our conversation concludes with Giacomo's powerful LEGO metaphor about collaboration: trying to do everything yourself will eventually lead to collapse.
About Giacomo Pallotti
Giacomo Pallotti is a tech leader with over 15 years of experience building teams, solving complex problems, and driving innovation across digital media, health tech, and fintech. As VP of Engineering at Everyday Health Group, he leads a global team tackling everything from cloud migrations to AI-powered solutions for major health and parenting brands.
Before joining Everyday Health Group, Giacomo played a key role in Ziff Davis' tech division and was the first and principal engineer at Socure, where he co-developed a patented fraud detection algorithm that helped the company grow into a $4.5 billion fintech powerhouse.
An engineer at heart, Giacomo started coding at age eight on a Commodore 128 (which he still keeps running). He lives in Brooklyn with his wife, two children, and two cats. When not solving tech puzzles, he enjoys playing tennis, skiing, or sitting at the piano.
Connect with Giacomo: LinkedIn
Note: This is our first episode of Herding Squirrels! We'd love your feedback and ideas for future episodes. Contact us through IN8 Create's website.
