Technology strategy that responds to change.

What I help with

• Technology strategy

  Strategy as a living hypothesis rather than a five-year edict. Clear direction, the signals that show when it's wrong, and the rhythm to adapt.

• AI in the SDLC

  Bringing AI into how software is designed, built, tested and run, judged by delivery outcomes rather than demos.

• Architecture & APIs

  Evolutionary architecture, and APIs designed up front so they're easy to consume and never break the people using them.

• Engineering leadership

  Teams with ambitious, measurable goals and the autonomy to reach them. Architects and tech leads as equals.

• Building products

  Founder-level product engineering: TeamMate ships to clubs, coaches and parents across iOS, Android and the web.

Where I’ve done it

1. Present

   Equal Experts

   Head of Technology Strategy & AI in the SDLC

   Global lead for technology strategy and for AI across the software development lifecycle, working with clients and Equal Experts' network of consultants.

2. 2023 – present

   TeamMate

   Founder

   Building the grassroots football platform: registrations, payments, fixtures, coaching and match day in one app for clubs, coaches and parents.

3. HMRC Digital

   Head of Solutions

   Led solution design for digital services at HM Revenue & Customs.

4. Freelance

   Technical architect & digital consultant

   Architecture and digital delivery for clients including British Airways, IBM and Deutsche Bank.

5. 1999

   Software engineering

   Where it started

   Started out building software in Java, and never really stopped.

How I work

1. 01

   Strategy is a hypothesis

   A strategy will be wrong. The failure is not noticing until it's too late. Build in the observations that tell you, and loop faster than the change around you.

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2. 02

   Architects are technology pilots

   Plan the route, react to the weather, see turbulence coming and change course, and still land at the destination safely.

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3. 03

   Never break your consumers

   An API succeeds by being easy to consume. Do the hard design work up front, so nobody downstream has to change.

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4. 04

   Stretch for the amazing

   Underpromising is a lie that looks like success. Set ambitious goals, commit to them, and measure what matters.

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Writing elsewhere

• InfoQ · January 2017

  What does “being digital” actually mean?

  Being digital isn't putting offline services online or adopting new tools. It means redesigning around the customer, and it depends on people and mindset more than technology.