#175 – Jennifer Schumacher on Learning From Agency Mistakes

On the podcast today Nathan Wrigley talks with Héctor de Prada, co-founder of Modular DS and an organiser of the WordPress Meetup in León, Spain. Héctor shares his motivations for fostering local WordPress communities, details how the team organises popular, well-attended Meetups, and explains their strategies for inclusive topics, sponsorship, and creating a welcoming atmosphere. They also discuss the importance of variety in event formats, supporting new organisers, and the positive impact Meetups have on networking and opportunities within their local tech ecosystem. If you’ve ever thought about starting a WordPress Meetup in your city, or want to bring new energy to an existing group, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Jennifer Schumacher. Jennifer shares her journey from freelance web developer to agency leader, focusing on the mistakes agencies often make, like unbillable support hours, poor design handoffs, and scope creep, and how to learn from them. She emphasises the importance of process improvement, mental health, honest reflection, and open conversations within the WordPress community to avoid repeated mistakes, find balance, and create healthier agency cultures. Jennifer also highlights the value of sharing experiences and continuously adapting, rather than seeking perfection. If you’ve found yourself frustrated with agency workflows, or are hoping to build a healthier business in the WordPress ecosystem, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Felix Arntz who discusses speculative loading, a new WordPress 6.8 feature designed to make websites faster by preloading pages before users navigate to them. Felix explains how it works, why WordPress uses a conservative default setting for broad compatibility, and how more eager configurations are possible with plugins or code. The episode also covers how performance gains, though seemingly small, add up at scale and are carefully measured using large datasets. Felix highlights the balance between speed improvements and environmental considerations, and shares insights into the data-driven work of the WordPress Performance Team. If you’ve ever wondered how large-scale, browser-level improvements make their way into WordPress Core, or simply want to know if there’s a way to make your own WordPress site that much faster, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Chris Reynolds. He's a developer advocate at Pantheon, and we're talking about the similarities and differences between the WordPress and Drupal communities. Chris discusses Pantheon's dual focus on both platforms, their approaches to managed hosting, and community event structures. The conversation covers Drupal’s recent community-driven innovations, like Drupal CMS and “recipes”, and how the Drupal Association’s organisation compares with WordPress' governance. If you’re curious about how open source projects organise themselves, how their communities navigate growth and challenge, and what WordPress can learn from Drupal (and vice versa), this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Wes Tatters, and he's here to discuss the evolution of the internet, from early tech days and community-building on platforms like CompuServe, to the emergence of open-source projects and the rise of WordPress. Wes reflects on the transition from closed platforms to owning content and highlights the importance, and challenges, of online communities. He touches on the impacts of social media, AI, and the self-correcting nature of internet communities, while examining the strengths and growing pains within the WordPress ecosystem. The conversation underscores the enduring value of openness, collaboration, and listening. If you’re interested in how the history of the internet directly shaped WordPress, the open web, and the communities we build today, this episode is for you.

In this episode, I talk with Hari Shanker about the thriving WordPress community in India, and the innovative WordPress Contribution Health Dashboards project. Hari discusses his background, the growth of WordPress among India’s youth, challenges in tracking contributions across teams, and the effort to build visual dashboards to help all contributors understand where help is needed in the project. The episode highlights the need for community feedback, technical support, and automation to make contribution data more accessible and impactful for the entire WordPress ecosystem. If you’ve ever wondered how to make your WordPress contributions matter even more, or how the project could be better supported by data-driven insights, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Bud Kraus. He's a WordPress educator, content creator, and host of the “Seriously, BUD?” podcast. Bud shares his journey from web design to WordPress teaching, explaining what inspired his transition toward podcasting and content creation. We discuss Bud’s show format, tech stack, and why he values unexpected, personality-driven conversations over strictly WordPress-focused discussions. We also get into the evolution and accessibility of podcasting, how he approaches guest interviews, and the importance of curiosity and listening skills. Bud also opens up about the joys and challenges of editing, working with guests from diverse backgrounds, and why he keeps his podcast focussed on the WordPress community’s personal stories, rather than purely technical topics. If you’re curious about podcasting, interested in the art of conversation, or are thinking of starting your own show, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Ryan Welcher. This was recorded at WordCamp Asia in Manila, and centres upon his developer relations work with Automattic, and his popular "Block Developer Cookbook" workshop. We discuss some recent new features in WordPress Core, including the Block Bindings API, Plugin Template Registration API, and Data Views, as well as the growing focus on documentation and developer experience in the WordPress community. We also touch on the impact of AI on WordPress development and the importance of interactive, engaging workshops at WordCamps. If you’re interested in what’s new in WordPress development, want to understand where the project is heading, or are curious about the real impact of recent changes and features, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Aaron D. Campbell, and we're here to talk about the significance of open standards and open source in the digital world. Aaron shares his 18-year journey contributing to WordPress, and expresses excitement about its future as an open, viable counterbalance to closed platforms. We discuss the history and current state of the internet, emphasising the importance of choice and interoperability. The conversation covers the impact of proprietary platforms and highlights efforts to promote open standards, ultimately Aaron argues for a more open, and collaborative, web for innovation and societal benefit. If you're curious about the role of open systems and the future they shape, and why the open web matters now more than ever, this episode is for you.

On the podcast today we have Milana Cap, and she's here to talk about her presentation at WordCamp Asia in Manila, titled "WordPress gems for developers: fresh new features you'll actually want to use." Milana, a WordPress Engineer at XWP from Serbia, discusses the significance of the Interactivity API and HTML API in modern WordPress development. The Interactivity API enables communication between Gutenberg blocks, while the HTML API simplifies server-side DOM manipulation using PHP. These advancements enhance WordPress' interactivity, boost performance, and provide standardised solutions for developers, improving efficiency and moving WordPress into the future. If you're a developer looking to leverage these new WordPress features, this episode is for you.