Deployment Pipelines for AI-Assisted Development
CI/CD principles remain, but AI-assisted development changes the control model. This article describes a three-gate pipeline.
Enterprise convenience addiction
Enterprises are choosing convenience over critical thinking, leading to tool sprawl and firefighting symptoms instead of sustainable improvements.
Whitepaper: Making transformation actionable
Organisational transformation is an ongoing journey. This whitepaper explains common transformation frameworks with practical and actionable examples and guidance
How DNA impacts change management
Change is often seen as a battle between what we know and what we need to become. But what if the key to successful transformation lies not in forcing people to change but in helping them redirect their natural tendencies to support transformation?
Whitepaper: Uncertainty matrices for digital transformation
In this whitepaper I look at the uncertainty matrices and how they might effectively be applied to digital transformation. Many examples and ideas are included to support the application of the framework to your digital transformation initiative.
Whitepaper: Cloud and agile transformation in large enterprises
In this whitepaper I look at the Lippitt-Knoster model for organisational transformation. Diving deep into each component with practical and actionable recommendations.
Whitepaper: Managing Expectations in large-scale enterprise projects
In project management, particularly for large and complex projects, the ability to manage expectations is a deciding factor in the perceived outcome of the project.
Most of us are born with innovation traits. Do you still have yours?
Innovation traits are not taught; they are innate characteristics found in every child. Curiosity, creativity, observational skills, and the ability to talk about the world as they experience it are fundamental to the success of our species.
Building a consultancy with the right culture
The guidance in this article can apply to any consultancy and a few other types of service-based companies. However, given my interests and expertise, what I have in mind here is specifically a cloud consultancy providing strategy, training, and engineering services.
Over-reliance on vendors in cloud security
As the use of the cloud increases, cloud security has become increasingly critical for organisations to understand and get right. However, I often come across organisations that rely heavily on vendors to manage this for them. This article highlights the dangers of over-dependence on vendors and proposes strategies for mitigating these risks.
Training problem solving and keeping your brain active with Sudoku
I love sudoku, and in this article, I explain what it is, why I like it, and provide some strategies to help you master it.
Processing grief and talking about mental health
A bit different to my usual blog, I talk about coming to terms with saying goodbye to my grandad
Bridging the agility gap in large enterprises
While many organisations have made great strides in agility, many departments are still lagging, causing collaboration challenges and an awkward mix of waterfall and agile at different stages of a project’s lifecycle.
Planning vs impulse
Some personalities like to plan ahead, while others take action in seconds with minimal thought. Both approaches have strengths and weaknesses, and the differences are as impactful today as they were centuries ago.
Short-term vs long-term dichotomy
A dichotomy of life is that if something is easy in the short term, it will likely be challenging in the long term. Conversely, if it's difficult in the short term, it often becomes easier in the long term. This principle is a testament to the enduring human struggle between immediate gratification and long-term success. Psychologically, this struggle is entrenched in our evolutionary biology. We are wired for survival, which often means opting for the path of least resistance to conserve energy and resources.
Striking a balance between policy and common sense
In our complex, fast-paced world, we often seek refuge in the certainty of rules and policies. They are the concrete directions that guide our actions, promising a sense of order and predictability. However, sometimes this adherence to policy is taken to extremes, in what seems to be the death of common sense. At first glance, this statement may appear overly harsh, even anarchic. However, it prompts one to consider the balance between rigid policy adherence and the exercise of individual judgement.
Mistakes vs non-competence
In the evolving landscape of the modern business environment, where we've learned to be more accepting of the occasional misstep, it becomes imperative to distinguish between errors and a lack of skill, or what I prefer to call non-competence.
Fear of Finding Out (FOFO)
A psychological mindset, especially common in first-time startup entrepreneurs, that can be highly damaging to the success of the business or product.
The organisational wolves: security and user experience
Like the story that has been making the rounds for a few decades, supposedly of native american origin, I think every organisation also has two wolves: one representing security and the other representing user experience.
What is a consultant?
I wrote this for my last book Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition (before ChatGPT was churning out poems). Quite happy with it, so I am including it here in my blog for posterity.
Attracting technical talent: Addressing the maritime industry’s struggle
The maritime industry is in dire need of attracting digital talent, particularly from the younger generation, to enhance its capabilities in cloud computing, application development, data analytics, and cybersecurity.
Empathy is complicated
Today, I learned that there are two types of empathy, cognitive empathy and emotional empathy. Cognitive empathy is the ability to understand someone's situation from their point of view, while emotional empathy is the ability to feel what someone else is feeling.
Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition: Chapter 10. Case Studies
A series of articles and videos providing a summary of my latest book, Serverless Beyond the Buzzword - 2nd edition. This article focuses on Chapter 10. Case Studies.
Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition: Chapter 9. Architecture
A series of articles and videos providing a summary of my latest book, Serverless Beyond the Buzzword - 2nd edition. This article focuses on Chapter 9. Architecture.
Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition: Chapter 8. Logging and Testing
A series of articles and videos providing a summary of my latest book, Serverless Beyond the Buzzword - 2nd edition. This article focuses on Chapter 8. Logging and Testing.
Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition: Chapter 7. Data
A series of articles and videos providing a summary of my latest book, Serverless Beyond the Buzzword - 2nd edition. This article focuses on Chapter 7. Data.
Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition: Chapter 6. DevOps and Tooling
A series of articles and videos providing a summary of my latest book, Serverless Beyond the Buzzword - 2nd edition. This article focuses on Chapter 6. DevOps and Tooling.
Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition: Chapter 5. People
A series of articles and videos providing a summary of my latest book, Serverless Beyond the Buzzword - 2nd edition. This article focuses on Chapter 5. People.
Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition: Chapter 4. Security
A series of articles and videos providing a summary of my latest book, Serverless Beyond the Buzzword - 2nd edition. This article focuses on Chapter 4. Security.
Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition: Chapter 3. Finances
A series of articles and videos providing a summary of my latest book, Serverless Beyond the Buzzword - 2nd edition. This article focuses on Chapter 3. Finances.
Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition: Chapter 2. Strategy
A series of articles and videos providing a summary of my latest book, Serverless Beyond the Buzzword - 2nd edition. This article focuses on Chapter 2. Strategy.
Serverless Beyond the Buzzword 2nd edition: Chapter 1. Serverless Basics
A series of articles and videos providing a summary of my latest book, Serverless Beyond the Buzzword - 2nd edition. This article focuses on Chapter 1. Serverless basics.
re:Invent 2022 Updates
Another year, another re:Invent and another host of awesome updates to AWS cloud. Here, I cover the keynotes and some talks that I attended.
re:Invent 2021 Serverless Updates
Another year, another re:Invent and another host of awesome updates to AWS cloud. Here, we have gathered those updates we feel are relevant to Serverless architecture with our thoughts and ideas on each.
Co-authored with KangZheng Li
Summary of: Walkthrough of the Singapore Personal Data Protection Act 2021 Update
Singapore’s Personal Data Protection (PDPA) is the country’s primary data privacy regulation, with more business-friendly aspects to offer than Europe’s GDPR.
My Recording Studio for Content Creation
Recently, we rented a new workshop space for storage and Meiting’s soap making side gig. The workshop had enough room for me to carve out a little studio corner for recording training and other videos.
Serverless design patterns
As with most development projects, there is no single right way to do things. It really depends on your use case and the project’s short and long-term goals. In this article, I look at a few design patterns that you can consider for Serverless or hybrid backends.
Static site deployment with CDK and AWS
A reusable simple CI/CD pipeline created with CDK for deploying static websites to AWS S3
re:invent 2020 Serverless Updates
We have come to expect a plethora of cloud updates and announcements from the yearly re:Invent AWS event and this year was no different. Serverless also enjoyed some great updates, some of which I have summarised below.
Serverless: Team roles
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: Privacy regulation
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: Security
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: Cost of operations
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: Cost of development
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: History
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: Benefits?
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: Challenges
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: Suitable projects
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: A simple example
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: Microservices
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Serverless: What is it?
Serverless - Beyond the buzzword is a book about Serverless aiming to give you all the information you need to make informed business decisions. This is part of a series of articles summarising some of the topics from the book.
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
More information about Serverless - Beyond the buzzword can be found here: serverlessbook.co
Truly Serverless Container
AWS Fargate service fully manages the underlying EC2 instances for containers but to launch a truly serverless container in AWS, a bit of development needs to be done.
Serverless Per-User Costing
Serverless architecture is much better than server-based solutions at tracking costs and linking them back to specific users. You can use this to bill your users (cross-department and external) for use of your solution based on actual usage.
Innovation Roles: Enterprise Architect
Enterprise Architects may also be known under a different title, but their responsibilities are fairly consistent. Startups and most SMEs should work with solution architects, but enterprises and larger SME’s should also consider an enterprise architect.
Ideas for Innovation Transformation
There a few ways for a business to transform itself into an innovation culture. This is a list of actions that can be considered to drive transformation in your business. The right ones to pick will depend on your business, market and budget.
Virtual Barista
In the summer of 2019, I was introduced to Globe, a major telco in the Philippines, by AWS. They had been looking for someone with experience in Sumerian. Having developed several prototypes, a simple (but difficult) game, and an e-training solution using Sumerian, I was suitably experienced to answer their needs.
Training in Cambodia
Cambodia is the latest up and coming tech centre in South-East Asia. Driven by companies such as Slash with co-founder Andries de Vos who recognized the opportunity of building a low-cost, high-capability development team in the region.
Microservice types in Lambda
An overview of some of the different types of microservices I have used in my projects (on AWS Lambda). These are not official definitions, just how I refer to them in my architecture designs.
Serverless Attack Vector
I recently thought of a potential attack vector related to serverless. After discussing it with people at AWS it seems that, at least in theory, it is plausible. I have not tested it in my own AWS account for obvious reasons - even a simplified version could get out of control if I make a mistake and the method for stopping it has not been confirmed.
Technical Contract Evaluation & Vendor Negotiation
In the age of social, big data, cloud, mobile and web applications, properly negotiating vendor contracts removes a significant amount of risk related to information access and usage. It facilitates successful and on-time project completion.
Data Privacy in Digital Applications
As long as your business has an online presence that collects personal data and information, you need to be aware of and comply with privacy regulations. This can often be tricky as you need to consider both the legal requirements as well as user perception, which may not always align. Different regions in the world also have varying degrees of legal requirements. We explore the recent changes in online privacy regulation and offer 6 tips to ensure your business is in compliance with privacy regulations.
Executive Summary: Serverless Architecture
There are many articles about the technical details of serverless but I found there were very few that looked at how Serverless can impact security policies, business models and team structure. Certainly from the perspective of executives and account managers.
Singapore Government Grants For Web & App Development (Updated: November 2018)
Grants don’t come easily, and knowing how to source for them increases your chances of getting your ideas off the ground.
Client - Technical Vendor Relationships
Relationships can be hard work and when money, deadlines and complex technical requirements are involved they can be even more of a challenge.
Non-Functional Requirements (NFR) - What are they?
An essential part of scoping projects, this article seeks to explain what they are and why they are important.
Publishing a Book
Recently, I finally published a book I had been working on for some time. The process of writing the book is a story for another day, but I wanted to share my experience with publishing it.
Project Scoping Methodologies
In this article I cover the 3 most common project management approaches to scoping and how my approach uses the best parts of each while minimizing the negative aspects.
Managing a development vendor? Be involved!
Detailed and meticulous scoping and research for your custom web or mobile project will ensure you are well prepared for development, but it does not stop there.
Comparing an Off-The-Shelf solution with a Custom build
From time to time we get asked by clients if we can draw up a comparison chart between a similar existing OTS (Off The Shelf) solution and a custom solution. But does this give a realistic impression?
Strategy Session, how to kick off your project
The kick-off for all projects is a lengthy but structured discussion between all stakeholders and a consultant to get detailed insights into their goals and requirements for the solution.
12 Common Mistakes Startups Make When Building Apps
Many businesses are enchanted with the idea that mobile apps will enable them to reach out to more users and customers. However, they often underestimate the challenges of creating a mobile app, and their first attempt may result in failure and wasted time and effort.
Should You Work For Equity?
Working for equity can be a way to gain valuable experience for junior or freelance developers, but if you are looking for more than just experience ask the right questions and be aware of the risks.
10 Marketing Ideas for Your App
Most of the computer-literate public today suffer from “app burnout”. No matter how useful or entertaining your new app is, the average smartphone user hears about a dozen new “killer apps” each week. After awhile, users pretty much tune out the hype unless someone or something makes the app appealing to them.
Informed Decisions with Market Research
Before embarking on any major project it is essential to do research to confirm and validate the project and its requirements. This research can help shape the plan to ensure maximum chance of success with the target audience.
What can Ideation do for your project?
If you are in the creative industry, it is common for clients to ask for a new website, or web or mobile application. You may have a few ideas - but are they possible?
Dynamic Engineering Teams
A hierarchical approach to business teams might work for the banking industry, but far more productive results and increased innovation can be achieved with a dynamic approach to project teams.
Serverless Web Applications
Lately most of the projects we have been doing Solution Architecture for have been serverless. But what does this mean exactly and what makes it so great for web applications?
Considering a custom website? Here are 10 tips!
We are frequently approached by prospective clients who think they need a custom website. More often than not, we recommended these clients to start with a subscription platform.
Briefings that work
Many inconsistencies between estimates and final invoices can be improved with a better approach to vendor briefings. This approach can even follow corporate procurement guidelines.
7 Myths about Web and App Development
A large part of what we do is educating people on all matters relating to custom application development and we have noticed that there are a few misconceptions that many of our clients share in this area.
There are no winners in Fixed Price
Where does this fixation for fixed price come from, why is it so prevalent in the tech industry and why is the concept of fixed price completely counter-intuitive and flat out wrong?
Requirements Gathering
How you can build better applications by focusing on users’ requirements instead of technology to drive decisions in your application planning.
What is a Bug?
A loaded question with different answers from different people. This article is about bugs in custom applications, my opinion on the matter and how to reduce the frustration they can cause.
Solution Architecture II
A more in-depth look at the contents of our Solution Architecture documents and insight into the areas we evaluate and research when writing them.
Managing your expectations
Many clients embark on the journey that is custom web/mobile application development full of enthusiasm and with clear goals and deadlines in mind. But more often than not, this quickly turns sour.
Vendor briefing and evaluation
To get the best possible estimates you must ask the right questions and manage both your own and the vendors’ expectations. But which questions should you ask and how to ensure that you get consistent estimates from multiple vendors?
I want a website or app, what now?
Through my work and network I have helped many people who wanted a new website or web application but were unsure what to do next. Many of them started by looking for a designer or developer and getting an estimate.
Solution Architecture (SA)
Binary Thinktank no longer provides development services but focuses entirely on Solution Architecture. But what is SA? And how come there is enough of it for a company to only offer this?