1 year ago, I left my 22 year IBM career to join a startup. Everything changed and nothing changed. I've learnt a lot about myself.
Changing Lanes: From IBM’s Corporate Ladder to Collecting Cars’ Startup Hustle
Leaving IBM, and advice for early career IT professionals
This isn't a post I thought I would be writing. After 22 years, I'm leaving IBM. I have loved my career and the people I worked with! I want to thank all my managers, mentors, coaches, leaders and teams. Without you and your support, I would not have had the opportunities I enjoyed at IBM. To say I will miss you would be an understatement.
The Pivot
Intro A new starter to the team asked me how and why I chose Node & React. It led to the below... The Pivot and POV In 2018 we released our latest and most significant Cognos Application. Next, my manager tasked me with leading the development of a cloud-native app. Our 'New Tech' Team was … Continue reading The Pivot
Design Thinking Practitioner Badge
Observe * Reflect * Make For 2-3 hours investment, there is a lot to be gained from the badge. Even for experienced Agile practitioners. The common language and practical application of agile practices would benefit all. https://www.ibm.com/design/thinking/ My top 5 takeaways: 1. WHY, iteratively Asking why three or more times evolves the answer with … Continue reading Design Thinking Practitioner Badge
#Mission To Mars! Easter School Mentoring with Software Cornwall
Last week I volunteered as a mentor for the Code Club Cornwall: Mission to Mars Easter School. It's a great project for teenagers interested in programming, electronics, and computer science. Bert and Ernie, two Arduino-powered robots, offer the participants a chance to program self-driving 'Mars Rovers'. Destined to auto-pilot around the surface of Mars. Functionality … Continue reading #Mission To Mars! Easter School Mentoring with Software Cornwall
My Agile On The Beach 2014
Last year Agile On The Beach 2013 was approached with an excited anticipation of the unknown, and relatively newly having joined the Agile party. With lessons learned and applied from 2013 I was keen to capitalise on Agile On The Beach 2014, and bring new ideas and things to try back to my team. This year is the … Continue reading My Agile On The Beach 2014
Mac Mini Hard Disk Upgrade with Clonezilla
My Dad's aging Mac Mini has done him a great service. A late 2009 A1283 model we've already upgraded the RAM to 8GB but didn't take the opportunity to address the 160gig hard drive. Sadly for Dad this meant, while processing photos, he ran out of space at the weekend. No problem... Lots of 2.5inch … Continue reading Mac Mini Hard Disk Upgrade with Clonezilla
Agile On The Beach #AGILEOTB #ATOB 2013 and 2014
Last year I had the pleasure of attending Agile On The Beach 2013. My first Agile Conference and first Tech Conference in Cornwall. As a relatively new team to Agile it was a great launch pad, with lots of great ideas and takeaways to try with my team: Agile should always focus on removing barriers from productivity … Continue reading Agile On The Beach #AGILEOTB #ATOB 2013 and 2014
Master Boot Record (MBR) Corruption and PGP Whole Disk Encryption (WDE)
Today is a big deadline in work. The point when weeks of work flow from development to production (via numerous sprints and UAT releases). The culmination of the development team and my efforts over the last two months. As with most IT projects the last two weeks have been a bit fraught, testing us as we prepare … Continue reading Master Boot Record (MBR) Corruption and PGP Whole Disk Encryption (WDE)
Excited by the BMW i3
Caveats: Not driven an i3 and no idea of costings. BMW have been testing their electric 1 series in the UK with reasonable success (batteries in the cold aside) and the i3 is an exciting prospect. Ok, it's not going to set the world on fire with its looks, performance and range but....... Consider a World … Continue reading Excited by the BMW i3
Olly Brand 