B2B Networking

**Brian Thorne: Awa, a Postgres-native background job queue** Python talks! Python people! Join our monthly meetup about all things Python. If all goes well there will also be pizza and drinks. * We meet **every fourth Tuesday** of a month at 5:45pm (talks start at 6:30pm) * 📌 **Space is limited** at the venue, so please only register (it's free) if you really intend to come. Also, as we will aim to provide some food and drinks, this will help us manage amounts and avoid waste. Thank you! * **Join the [Python New Zealand Discord server](https://discord.com/invite/BywWY26ARc)** to stay up to date, interact with others or help with upcoming events. * Python New Zealand's **[Code of Conduct](https://events.python.nz/redirect/?url=https%3A//python.nz/about/code-of-conduct/%3AfBv4yOxQ5i0fg9WnNd7RvQ4JrjpQ4CztIw_jdXQaRoY)** applies to all Python New Zealand events and participants agree to abide by it. **Brian will be talking about his new project, named Awa (Māori: river). It provides durable, transactional job enqueueing with typed handlers in both Rust and Python. All queue state lives in Postgres — no Redis, no RabbitMQ. The Rust runtime handles polling, heartbeating, crash recovery, and dispatch. Python workers run on that same runtime via PyO3, getting Rust-grade reliability with Python-native ergonomics.** **Finding the meetup:** Look for a glass door with a sign mentioning the meetup and head upstairs to the Trade Me office. Call the phone number on the sign if you arrive late and the door is locked. Can't make the meetup in person? It'll also be accessible virtually at the link below. The virtual session will open around 6pm. Don't hesitate to pass this information around to whomever you think may be interested to hear and discuss all things Python. **[Speak at a meetup](https://forms.gle/9PbhSz1gtmHLpAPR6) -** All presentations are by members of our Python community - people like yourself! First time speakers are absolutely welcome. Join our meetings online or in person: * [Python New Zealand - Online Events](https://meetup.com/pythonnz-online) * [Python New Zealand - Auckland](https://meetup.com/pythonnz-auckland) * [Python New Zealand - Wellington](https://meetup.com/pythonnz-wellington) [Python New Zealand - Christchurch](https://meetup.com/pythonnz-christchurch)

Most product thinking assumes you’re building a product. In a startup, you’re not—you’re building a business. In the early days of a startup, there is no product team. The founder is the product team—while also juggling sales, hiring, fundraising, support, and everything in between. Product decisions don’t happen in isolation; they’re shaped by survival, speed, and the need to get something working in the real world. In this talk, Kim Thibault shares her experience from BoardPro, reflecting on the transition from founder-led product to hiring the first product people. She’ll unpack what triggered that shift, what worked (and what didn’t), and the tension that comes with sharing product ownership between a founder and a product team. Along the way, she’ll challenge a common assumption: in a startup, success doesn’t come from the product alone—it comes from how the whole business works around it. This session will explore: * What it really means to be a founder driving product * Why great products don’t matter without a working go-to-market motion * How product thinking changes across startup stages (-1→0, 0→1, 1+) * The realities of hiring and working with your first product people * The mindsets product managers need if they want to become founders—or work effectively with oneIf you’ve ever worked in (or are curious about) a founder-led environment, this will give you a clearer view of the trade-offs, tensions, and decisions behind the scenes. **About our speaker** [Kim Thibault](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimthibault/) is a co-founder of BoardPro, a governance software platform used by boards and leadership teams across New Zealand, Australia, and beyond. She spent nearly a decade leading product as the company scaled, navigating the transition from founder-led product to building a product team. Kim now works as a startup coach and startup director, supporting early-stage founders—particularly in B2B SaaS and product-led growth companies—to build effective products and businesses. She brings a practical, experience-driven perspective shaped by the realities of building and scaling a startup. Huge thanks to Auror for hosting and sponsoring this event! You can join the livestream here: [https://meet.google.com/pmi-iynm-ome](https://meet.google.com/pmi-iynm-ome). As always the livestream will kick off from just before 6pm. Note that the rules of our host venue means that we will send the exact location of the event to attendees on the day of the event - the venue is in the Britomart area. Those of you who have attended events at Auror before will know where it is!

Bring your business cards and network in person with other business professionals! Gold Star Referral Clubs is one of the most established professional networking organizations in the country, with multiple groups in central Ohio. Join us!

Bring your business cards and network in person with other business professionals! Gold Star Referral Clubs is one of the most established professional networking organizations in the country, with multiple groups in central Ohio. Join us!

Bring your business cards and network in person with other business professionals! Gold Star Referral Clubs is one of the most established professional networking organizations in the country, with multiple groups in central Ohio. Join us!

Bring your business cards and network in person with other business professionals! Gold Star Referral Clubs is one of the most established professional networking organizations in the country, with multiple groups in central Ohio. Join us!