Jill Binder Consulting

09/23/2026

Staying Human In A World of Shortcuts: Speaker Announcement #7

What can a Canadian WordPress developer, photographer, and birder teach us about certain shortcut tools that have become prevalent? 👀

In line with our human-centered theme of , Nicolas Demers has some thoughts to share on how shortcuts are impacting our personal development, and how to hold on to our humanity.

In his words:

"Improving your skills at any craft takes regular effort and practice. We need to suck before we get better.

Over the course of my career, I have gained experience in all sorts of languages and frameworks, as well as documentation and communication skills. My years as a wildlife photographer and avid birder have taught me about light, composition, and animal behaviour.

Lately, we've all seen tools that aim to shortcut this process, particularly in building tech products, but they pose the risk of removing our skills foundation and fostering stagnation, especially if we're just starting out. We learn by doing.

In this opinionated talk, drawing on my experience as a web developer, nature photographer, and birder, I will make the case for nurturing creativity, continual growth, and our unique voices. In other words, staying human in a world of shortcuts."

Please join us on October 27! Get your ticket now: https://techdifferently.com

09/22/2026

I have never talked about my personal life publicly before! But that's what Bud Kraus 's podcast is all about, so I said yes and buckled in for the ride.

We talked about:

- my year traveling the globe as a , and why I don't travel anymore
- my love of caves
- how I started coding back in Grade 10(!)
- some of my fun hobbies
- and... the truth about my love life :o

Bud runs a "no shop talk" show, but he was curious to hear about Tech Differently since it's not your typical conference. Just like his show, it's a people-first thing. So we talked about that as well, and a bit of my former work.

Thank you, Bud, for creating a space where we can learn about the human side behind the big names in tech.

Question for you: When you've spoken publicly, do you keep it strictly professional, or do you let the personal stuff in too?

For a fun time, listen here: https://seriouslybud.com/episode/jill-binder/

Jill Binder shares her journey from programmer and slam poet to WordPress diversity advocate and founder of Tech Differently. She discusses digital nomad life, public speaking, imposter syndrome, diversity in tech, chronic illness, creativity, and helping people find their authentic voice on stage.

09/18/2026

Speaker Announcement #6: When production goes wrong!

Based in Brazil, Daniel Bertoldi works at Touchlab as a Kotlin Multiplatform developer. He does a lot of bug fixing on Android, iOS, and occasionally Desktop or Web. What happens when a small bug that breaks everything slips past the radar?

So… We Broke Production

No matter how experienced you are, shipping software means things will eventually break in production. What really tests a team is how they handle the chaos once it happens.

In this talk, Daniel will share what happened when a stealth breaking change slipped past his team’s safety nets, alongside a few well-known incidents from across the tech world. We’ll look at the rush to find a fix, how to communicate while everything is crashing, and how to build a healthier engineering culture out of a bad deploy.

Get your ticket for Tech Differently now! tech differently dot com

09/14/2026

Early bird tickets are available until end of day September 15, 2026!

Why attend the Tech Differently Conference on October 27th, 2026 (online, worldwide)?

1. Hear from a diverse group of speakers representing different countries, backgrounds, and lived experiences.

2. Get a day of hope and positive, tangible action steps in tech. Because the world is a lot of bad news bears these days, we could all use some positivity.

3. Be inspired by voices you haven't heard before. Some have spoken before, some are new to speaking, all are trained by me in our 6-month cohort to speak on something that matters.

4. Have a day of human-ing: In today's AI world, there are fewer human-centered tech events. We could all use more perspectives and connections with real, curious, caring humans.

5. Walk away energized, unstuck, and ready to ship something new, powered by a full day of great ideas.

Keynote: Allie Nimmons, "Changing the World, One Slide at a Time"

If you've been on the fence, this is your sign. Get your $5 early bird ticket today, before it goes up to $19 on September 16! (Which is still a great deal.) https://TechDifferently.com

A tech conference for people who think differently and build differently.

09/14/2026

Early bird tickets are available until end of day September 15, 2026!

Why attend the Tech Differently Conference on October 27th, 2026 (online, worldwide)?

1. Hear from a diverse group of speakers representing different countries, backgrounds, and lived experiences.

2. Get a day of hope and positive, tangible action steps in tech. Because the world is a lot of bad news bears these days, we could all use some positivity.

3. Be inspired by voices you haven't heard before. Some have spoken before, some are new to speaking, all are trained by me in our 6-month cohort to speak on something that matters.

4. Have a day of human-ing: In today's AI world, there are fewer human-centered tech events. We could all use more perspectives and connections with real, curious, caring humans.

5. Walk away energized, unstuck, and ready to ship something new, powered by a full day of great ideas.

Keynote: Allie Nimmons, "Changing the World, One Slide at a Time"

If you've been on the fence, this is your sign. Get your $5 early bird ticket today, before it goes up to $19 on September 16! (Which is still a great deal.) https://TechDifferently.com

09/11/2026

Have you heard of Folk Tech before? Neither had I, and I am eager to hear all about it from Seeley Quest (sie/hir). Truly bringing our two core principles, "think and build differently" and "making the world better," to our stage on October 27th.

In short, Folk Tech is a paradigm for digital tools built on open source, decentralization, and public‑good values.

seeley’s talk highlights a tension many of us feel: Big Tech shapes our digital lives, yet so many people wish the tools they rely on were more ethical, more accessible, and less extractive. The alternatives exist, but they’re often too hard to learn or too under‑resourced to thrive.

This session digs into what it would take to change that, from usability and ecosystem gaps to funding models and design choices that distribute power instead of concentrating it.

Bio: seeley is a Toronto‑based , designer, artist, and educator whose research spans , small‑press publishing alternatives, open source usability, and emerging “public AI” efforts.

Read the full description of seeley's talk: https://techdifferently.com/2026/08/17/seeley-quest/

Early bird tickets end September 15th, get yours now: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/the-tech-differently-conference-tickets-1988292318849?aff=oddtdtcreator

09/10/2026

I just did my first "keynote speaker" coaching.

The client used our course material to jump-start, so we could immediately dive into what we actually needed to do.

In the one session, we went from his "pretty good" talk topic to a really stellar, standout one that absolutely needs keynote stages. :)

Send a message to learn more

09/10/2026

Thank you to Neo Code Software for sponsoring Tech Differently!

They build custom software for workgroups in large companies that have outgrown their existing solutions.

A few words about why they're supporting this event:

"We care about developing strong speakers who will go on to build high-integrity technology. Tech Differently supports that mission, and Neo Code is proud to support it."

Please Like and drop a note of thanks to this sponsor in the comments.

Send a message to learn more

09/03/2026

"Web Design, Art History, And Staying Resilient Through Tech Change"

Speaker Announcement #4: Rachel Wi******er 👩🏿‍💻

What does building websites have in common with making art? Particularly when we look at how art has changed throughout history?

Rachel Wi******er, or Win for short, is here to tell us. In her words:

"I started in art, studying art history and working in the art world. Then I found web design and WordPress, and my work shifted toward the internet. Over time, I noticed that my career was following the same pattern as my passion for art: new tools were making new kinds of work possible. In art, artists use new tools to explore new mediums. On the web, I used WordPress to build websites in new ways. The tools were changing, and so was the work.

"Now the web has changed again. Building a website is no longer a special skill for a small group of web designers. It has become a basic tool for entrepreneurs, artists, and businesses. More people can make websites than ever before. Art has gone through a similar change, with more multimedia work and more artists combining different technologies to create experiences. Looking at both histories gives me confidence about what comes next, despite the ongoing platform wars.

"My story will inspire hope in the minds of website builders everywhere!"

This is Rachel's next keynote talk in the making, and we can't wait to see this innovative, fascinating blend of two different worlds from her life.