Technical Leaders Blog
Fueling Curiosity, Igniting Expertise
(See also my articles on “IT in Manufacturing“).
Own and control your own AI? Small Language Model (SLM) Opportunities
In my quest to learn AI from the beginning I became curious about the power of Small Language Models (SLMs). I want to know about training your own data, controlling your model, and the potential of SLMs for smaller organisations and startups. I also discover Microsoft’s Orca 2, a promising SLM.
Navigating the AI Revolution: Copilot and Business Systems
Last night, Microsoft hosted a significant Business Applications Launch Event, shining a spotlight on the 2024 release wave 1 for Dynamics 365. Among the exciting innovations unveiled, AI—specifically Copilot—stood out as a game-changer across supply chain, sales, and service. The buzz around this launch was unprecedented, with participants tuning in from countries worldwide.
New updated software product management framework
The ISPMA has recently published its updated reference framework for software product managers.As a software company scales up, it becomes more and more important to structure the different activities such as strategy, development, marketing, etc. What works in a...
Hello World, again.
It has been a long time since I wrote anything specifically about Technical Leaders. I guess that life happens and you can easily get caught up in a whirlwind mainly when new opportunities keep presenting themselves. “Look, a squirrel”! Another shiny object. The next...
4 Perspectives on digital product management
If I had to distill just four key areas that have the most impact on the success of a digital product business, I would most likely come up with the list below. My first website had these prominently displayed. Turns out, after 5 years they seem to me to have...
New toolkits for innovation
Back in the 1980s, as a junior process engineer, I spent a great part of my first job working with DCS and SCADA systems. At the time, I was working on a synfuels plant that made use of a Honeywell TDC3000 DCS. Most of the field instruments were connected to the...
How real is augmented reality?
The early morning air was still cold when I arrived together with a colleague at the mine for our underground visit. Our hosts were keen to show us the practical challenges of the drilling and blasting operation, and the many ways in which rock fragments containing...
Digital twins, science-fiction or reality?
Industrie 4.0 introduces the somewhat abstract concept of a ‘digital twin’. But is this really new, does it actually exist anywhere in practice, and if so, what steps should be followed to build one? A process control engineer who is already familiar with CAD, SCADA,...
When should consultants rethink their business model?
An information business is one where you are compensated for sharing your expert knowledge and experience through various means such as consulting, training, coaching, writing, entertaining, etc. You are compensated by the hour. An online information business is the...
Product or project manager?
A business requirements specification is not the same as a value proposition. If you want to create a product for a defined market, as opposed to a customer, then you need to be able to articulate a value proposition for many customers, not just the bespoke...
Starting out? Why you might consider becoming a software developer
There has never been a better time to become a software developer. I realise that not all my readers are geeks and this topic may not be relevant to you. So forgive me for a somewhat technical post, but I feel the subject is important to anyone in a technical career....
The accidental product manager
Product management is sometimes referred to as the accidental profession. Even though product managers fulfill a real and defined need in a company, the discipline is often not well developed or understood; and not always acknowledged. Most people when they get to the...
Innovate together with your first customer
Many successful commercial software products originate as a result of joint innovation between a customer and the developer. The first customer of a product benefits from getting the functionality that meets their requirement exactly. The developer benefits from...
How to leverage products to grow your business
Frustrated with slow growth in your business and lack of leverage to scale up? By working smarter can you leverage the impact of the time you invest and create that extra space (sometimes called “margin”) in your life and business to do the things you always wanted...
Beyond the metrics – building trust
Just how much effort is warranted in promoting your online product or service using social media? Is there a reason for being consistent and patient or should you be looking for a quick return? How long is reasonable to develop a new brand online? One year, two or...
Why you need to build an online platform
When I worked in an IT company one of our biggest challenges was finding the right blend of technical skills in our developer team. We relied on CV’s submitted with a job application. But not only technical skill, it was also actually just as important to find a...
There is nothing passive about “passive income”!
Are you encouraged by opportunities you see to make passive income online in the information economy? Lured by the promise of working as little as 4 hours per week with no one else to account to seems very appealing. The opportunities to build an online business...
A small niche might provide the best opportunity for success
Bill Gates once spoke at a Microsoft event in Johannesburg to an audience of over a thousand packed in a large auditorium. After his presentation, many questions were posed to the visionary who had together with Microsoft defined personal computing and made it a...
Pricing software – like art it’s really not that simple
There are certain pertinent comments in life which you will remember for a long time. An observation by a friend, a quote you read in a book, an acknowledgment of the fruits of years of work, each of these contributes to our own fabric of consciousness that determines...