A team member asked if our strategy and approach was lifted from the Phoenix Project. They wondered if that’s why I split our engineers into two squads: one focused on features, owning our frontend repos, and the other on platform, owning the backend and cleaning up the “messy middle”. We have a learning budget at … Continue reading The Phoenix Project?
I’ve always been a strong advocate for remote work, especially in the tech world. It offers flexibility, allows people to work from where they’re most productive, and makes a lot of sense for our industry. With Amazon forcing everyone back to the office, I can’t help but disagree with a one-size-fits-all approach. That said, our … Continue reading Remote, first
Last night, I went to a talk by Oliver Burkeman, for the launch of his new book, Meditations for Mortals. It was a brilliant evening, and his ideas hit home. He made a point that stuck with me: we all have problems, and they never fully go away. Some people’s problems are a lot worse … Continue reading Problems & Finitude
Two years in feels like a good moment to reflect on the journey so far and the road ahead. Just after my 1-year on post, things escalated as I became Head of Engineering and joined the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) at The Collecting Group (TCG), Collecting Cars and Watch Collecting. I’ve survived my first board … Continue reading Changing Gears: Navigating the Road to Executive Tech Leadership
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.
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.
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
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
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
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
Olly Brand 