Design Talk (dot IE)

By Allen Higgins

Design Talk. A podcast for learning about the business of technology design and management. Listen to stories, panels, interviews and discussions about technology and design in-the-wild: the good, the... more

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FAQs about Design Talk (dot IE):

How many episodes does Design Talk (dot IE) have?

The podcast currently has 174 episodes available.

Design Talk (dot IE) episodes:

August 04, 2022 0170 - Consulting Challenges with David Bowman
Hosts: Trisha Ghosh and Saptarshi Mitra
We are very pleased to welcome David Bowman, Chief Technology Officer at InvoiceFair.
First, David, could you tell us a little about yourself and your current role?

1.     Let’s start with a hard question first. What, for you, is the essence of design?

2.     Moving on then, our audience are interested in digital, consulting, technology. Is there a place for consultants in a start-up?

3.     If you were to start from scratch, what would your ideal team look like? [diversity, numbers, reporting/hierarchy, location]

4.     Is Agile more fashion than reality?

5.     Could you share some tips on fostering a ‘learning culture’ in teams?

6.     What are good practices for teams involved in software? [daily/weekly practices, office environment, work practices/policies]

7.     As a technologist who has worked in finance, what works well in the finance sector that we should adopt in the Tech sector?

8.     Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) has become an important part of financial services. Can digital services and software industry follow suit and if so, how?

9.     And finally, after two years of “remote”, how do you see work evolving over the next two years?

10.   Any last observations before we finish?

Well, we’ll wrap up there.
Thank you for talking with us today.

Notes:
David Bowman; Chief Technology Officer at InvoiceFair, a working capital platform for businesses.
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidbowman4/

Acknowledgements

Music
Title: Impulse
Artist: Ben Prunty
Source:  https://www.benpruntymusic.com/
License: Non-transferable license. Permission granted by Ben Prunty (personal letter)

Cover Art
Title: Pick and Mix
Artist: Conor Fitzpatrick; and Graphic Design: Allen Higgins
Source: Fitzpatrick_Unamed.jpg -> PickAndMix-Name.pptx
License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (Permission granted by Conor Fitzpatrick (personal letter))

Podcast License
Design Talk (dot IE) CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The license can be viewed at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
By taking part you give permission for your voice to be recorded, for the recording to be edited, and for it to be posted and published as a podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
43min
August 02, 2022 0169 - Where Does Design Happen? with Padraig Coffey
Hosts: Gayatri Poddar and Isha Sharma
Our guest today is Padraig Coffey. Padraig is CEO at Zartis - a software consultancy, technology strategy and team augmentation services company based in Cork.

1.     Thank you for joining us, Padraig, can you start by telling us a little about yourself?

2.     How do you become a consultant and what do consultants do?

3.     Is consultancy necessarily a time-boxed project-oriented activity?

4.     Do you ever admit the limits of your knowledge?

5.     How do you handle the politics of being a consultant?

6.     Comment on the consultant as facilitator.

7.     How do you cope with resistance on a project? Sensitivity to tone, communication, context.
8.     What for you is the essence of design?
9.     Where does design happen in consulting projects?
10.   How do you see the work changing over the next couple of years?

Well on that note, I think we’ll wrap up there.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences today.

Notes:
Padraig Coffey: CEO at Zartis - a software consultancy, technology strategy and team augmentation services company based in Cork.
https://www.zartis.com

Acknowledgements

Music
Title: Impulse
Artist: Ben Prunty
Source:  https://www.benpruntymusic.com/
License: Non-transferable license. Permission granted by Ben Prunty (personal letter)

Cover Art
Title: Pick and Mix
Artist: Conor Fitzpatrick; and Graphic Design: Allen Higgins
Source: Fitzpatrick_Unamed.jpg -> PickAndMix-Name.pptx
License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (Permission granted by Conor Fitzpatrick (personal letter))

Podcast License
Design Talk (dot IE) CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The license can be viewed at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
By taking part you give permission for your voice to be recorded, for the recording to be edited, and for it to be posted and published as a podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
28min
March 08, 2022 0168 - Practicalities of Consulting with Trevor Dunne
Hosts: Bing Chen and Rachel O’Brien

Our guest today is Trevor Dunne from Grant Thornton Ireland.
You are very welcome to the podcast Trevor. Could you say a few words about yourself and GT’s consulting business?

1.What is the role of a consultant?

2.Do we need deep expertise in all domains?

3.What do you consider to be key skills for a consultant?

4.And your thoughts on how to become a better communicator?

5.What tips would you give to someone starting out?

6.Is there a clear line between being a strategist versus technologist?

7.How do you handle the politics of being a consultant?

8.And finally, could you share advice on good practice for the hybrid workplace?

Well, we’ll wrap up there.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences today.

Notes:
Trevor Dunne – LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevor-dunne-aca-7461838/
https://www.grantthornton.ie/meet-our-people1/trevor-dunne/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
31min
March 07, 2022 0167 - Strategist or Technologist? with Mark Smyth
Hosts: Bo-Tsun Chen and Sandra Orozco

Our guest today is Mark Smyth from Accenture.

Mark, you are very welcome to the podcast. Could we with start a brief introduction and how you ended up in consulting?

1.Would you consider yourself generalist or a specialist, a T shaped or π shaped person?

2.What tips would you give someone starting out as a consultant?

3.Comment on the consultant as problem-solver.

4.Do you ever admit the limits of your knowledge?

5.Is it enough to know a little about a lot and a lot about one thing in particular?

6.Is failure an option? How do you deal with it?

Okay, well, I think we can wrap up there.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences today.

Notes:
Mark Smyth – Technology Strategy Consultant - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-smyth-72963649/

Acknowledgements

Music
Title: Impulse
Artist: Ben Prunty
Source: https://www.benpruntymusic.com/
License: Non-transferable license. Permission granted by Ben Prunty (personal letter)

Cover Art
Title: Pick and Mix
Artist: Conor Fitzpatrick; and Graphic Design: Allen Higgins
Source: Fitzpatrick_Unamed.jpg -> PickAndMix-Name.pptx
License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (Permission granted by Conor Fitzpatrick (personal letter))

Podcast License
Design Talk (dot IE) CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The license can be viewed at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
By taking part you give permission for your voice to be recorded, for the recording to be edited, and for it to be posted and published as a podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
31min
March 06, 2022 0166 - Consulting at Scale with Tom Rourke
Hosts: Dimitrios Delemissis and Theodoros Chatzidimitriou

Our guest today is Tom Rourke.
Tom works in kyndryl, with the most interesting job title, “Global Leader for Co-Creation”
You are very welcome to the podcast Tom.
Could you say a few words about yourself and kyndryl?

1.     For someone starting out could you sketch the learning journey to become a consultant?

2.     Could you talk about co-creation, does it relate to design thinking?

3.     How or when do you start the process with a client?

4.     What do you say to the statement that “ideas and solutions are easy, that the real problem is finding real problems”?

5.     Should we separate the strategic from the technical aspects of a transformation?

6.     Does the start-up motto of "fail fast and fail forward" apply in a corporate environment?

7.     Do you have any advice on enabling shared understanding across and between teams?

8.     Where do you see Data Analytics fitting in the consulting palette?

9.     On the idea that consulting is a team sport, could you share tips on enabling shared understandings across and between teams?

10.   What is on your radar for the next 5 years?

Well, we’ll wrap up there.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences today.

Notes:
Tom Rourke – LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-rourke-1a8b70/

Acknowledgements

Music
Title: Impulse
Artist: Ben Prunty
Source:  https://www.benpruntymusic.com/
License: Non-transferable license. Permission granted by Ben Prunty (personal letter)

Cover Art
Title: Pick and Mix
Artist: Conor Fitzpatrick; and Graphic Design: Allen Higgins
Source: Fitzpatrick_Unamed.jpg -> PickAndMix-Name.pptx
License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (Permission granted by Conor Fitzpatrick (personal letter))

Podcast License
Design Talk (dot IE) CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The license can be viewed at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
By taking part you give permission for your voice to be recorded, for the recording to be edited, and for it to be posted and published as a podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
36min
March 05, 2022 0165 - Agile at Scale with Jefferson Cowhig
Hosts: Jesus Cortina Bernal and Odhrán McDonnell

We are delighted to have Jefferson Cowhig to talk with us today.
Jeff works in Financial Services Technology Transformation for EY.
You are very welcome to the podcast Jeff.
Could you say a few words about your own background and experience in consulting and technology?

1.Can we start with an article we have been reading, Henrik Kniberg & Anders Ivarsson’s “Scaling Agile @ Spotify”. What were your impressions when you first learnt about the Spotify model? [2012-2016- the Tribes, Squads, Chapters & Guilds… How LeSS/SAFe reacted and interpreted it then and since?]

2.You are a fan of “Team Topologies”, could you tell us about the approach? [candles and cake problem? - organisations are complex, and large organisations are complex and complicated a tool for analysing structure and introducing change for teams, and teams of teams - Team Topologies, matrix diagrams, organisation charts – help to make organisations tangible – capture connections, responsibilities, reporting.]

3.Could you share any tips on approaches that embed communication across hierarchies and between teams?

4.How do you start an agile transformation?

5.What do you say to the statement that “ideas and solutions are easy, that the real problem is finding real problems”?

6.How has consulting changed over the last couple of years working the Covid?

7.Any final thoughts on changes coming over the next 5 years?

8.Another question?

Well, we’ll wrap up there.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences today.

Notes:
https://eyfinancialservicesthoughtgallery.ie
Jeff’s talk to ALI in March 2021 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuaOfQzFYmU
Team Topologies: https://teamtopologies.com/key-concepts
Book: Agile IT Organization Design | Thoughtworks - https://www.thoughtworks.com/insights/books/agile-it-organization-design
Cynefin Framework About - Cynefin Framework - The Cynefin Co - https://thecynefin.co/about-us/about-cynefin-framework/
Kniberg Product Ownership Video: Agile Product Ownership in a Nutshell - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=502ILHjX9EE
Jeremiah Lee: Spotify’s Failed #SquadGoals (jeremiahlee.com) - https://www.jeremiahlee.com/posts/failed-squad-goals/
SAFe: SAFe 5 for Lean Enterprises (scaledagileframework.com) - https://www.scaledagileframework.com/
LeSS: Overview - Large Scale Scrum (LeSS) - https://less.works/
Simon Sinek - Start with why - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4ZoJKF_VuA
The Social Dilemma: the technology that connects us also controls us - https://thesocialdilemma.com

Credits and License

Music
Title: Impulse
Artist: Ben Prunty
Source: https://www.benpruntymusic.com/
License: Non-transferable license. Permission granted by Ben Prunty (personal letter)

Cover Art
Title: Pick and Mix
Artist: Conor Fitzpatrick; and Graphic Design: Allen Higgins
Source: Fitzpatrick_Unamed.jpg -> PickAndMix-Name.pptx
License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (Permission granted by Conor Fitzpatrick (personal letter))

Podcast License
Design Talk (dot IE) CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The license can be viewed at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
By taking part you give permission for your voice to be recorded, for the recording to be edited, and for it to be posted and published as a podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
39min
March 04, 2022 0164 - Always Put the Client First with Matteo Collina
Host(s) Emma Matthews and Soumya Seniaray

Our guest today is Matteo Collina, Chief Software Architect at NearForm, the Irish enterprise software solutions company, headquartered in Waterford and offices around the world. Among other things Matteo is an active open-source contributor, is on the steering committee for Node.js, and over his career has developed a deep understanding of the business of consulting…

Thank you for joining us, Matteo, can you start by telling us a little more about yourself?

1.Let’s start with the dark side of the business of consulting, it has a dark side, doesn’t it?

2.And yet the business of consulting is hugely important for client organisations. What does it take to get good at consultancy?

3.How can a services firm ‘flip’ the junior/crunch model?

4.How long does it take to learn how to work with a client organization?

5.What do you say to the idea that it is the consultant’s job to build the knowledge of your own clients?

6.By imparting your knowledge to clients, don’t you cannibalise your own business?

7.Is the analyst role and the consultant role different?

8.Where does design happen; is there room for design in consulting?

9.You're with a client and it becomes clear that they haven't identified the real problem...

10.Any thoughts on how to become a better communicator

11.And finally; does consulting pose ethical challenges, how do you deal with them?

Well on that note, I think we’ll wrap up there.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences today.

Notes:
Matteo Collina, open-source contributor and member of the Node.js Technical Steering Committee member, Chief Software Architect at NearForm, the Irish enterprise software solutions company.
https://www.nearform.com

Acknowledgements

Music
Title: Impulse
Artist: Ben Prunty
Source: https://www.benpruntymusic.com/
License: Non-transferable license. Permission granted by Ben Prunty (personal letter)

Cover Art
Title: Pick and Mix
Artist: Original artwork by Conor Fitzpatrick; additional graphic design: Allen Higgins
Source: Fitzpatrick_Unamed.jpg -> PickAndMix-Name.pptx
License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (Permission granted by Conor Fitzpatrick (personal letter))

Podcast License
Design Talk (dot IE) CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The license can be viewed at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
By taking part you give permission for your voice to be recorded, for the recording to be edited, and for it to be posted and published as a podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
31min
March 03, 2022 0163 - Aspects of Consulting with Shradha Shaw
Host(s) Tristan Flüchter and Sinead Cleary
Our guest today is Shradha Shaw. Shradha is a Senior Analytics Consultant at Deloitte Ireland with experience in Business Intelligence and Data Transformation.

Thank you for joining us, Shradha, can you start by telling us a little about yourself?

1.     Is the analyst role and the consultant role different?

2.     What do consultants do? [is being a consultant more about developing technology or strategy?]

3.     What does a day on a sprint look like?

4.     You're with a client and it becomes clear that they haven't identified the real problem...

5.     How do you cope with resistance on a project?

6.     Would you ever admit the limits of your knowledge?

7.     Where does design happen; is there room for design in consulting? [where or how does design and design action emerge?]

8.     Is consultancy usually time-boxed project-oriented or more open-ended and long-term?

9.     And finally; does consulting pose ethical challenges, how do you deal with them?

Well on that note, I think we’ll wrap up there.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences today.

Notes:
Shradha Shaw is a Senior Consultant within Deloitte Ireland’s Analytics & Cognitive team experience in Business Intelligence and Data Transformation across a range of sectors including Financial Services, Life Science and Public sector.

Acknowledgements

Music
Title: Impulse
Artist: Ben Prunty
Source:  https://www.benpruntymusic.com/
License: Non-transferable license. Use with permission by Ben Prunty.

Cover Art
Title: Pick and Mix
Artist: Conor Fitzpatrick; and Graphic Design: Allen Higgins
Source: Fitzpatrick_Unamed.jpg -> PickAndMix-Name.pptx
License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (Permission granted by Conor Fitzpatrick (personal letter))

Podcast License
Design Talk (dot IE) CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The license can be viewed at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
By taking part you give permission for your voice to be recorded, for the recording to be edited, and for it to be posted and published as a podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
15min
March 02, 2022 0162 - The Data Scientist as... with Christina Phillips
Host(s) Wenqiao Xu, Upama Ghosh
Our guest today is Christina Phillips. Christina is a senior lecturer in business analytics at Liverpool John Moores University and has worked in applied scienced research, problem solving, and solution development for industry.

Thank you for joining us, Christina, can you start by telling us a little about yourself?

1.Is data science more about statistics, application development or organisational change?

2.Where do you see the role of data analysts or scientist fitting in to existing organisations?

3.What needs to happen to make problem solving possible? – what are your go-to approaches when setting out to solve open-ended problems?

4.Let’s say you're on a job and it becomes clear that they haven't identified the real problem...

5.Can you talk about the different hats that analytics professionals need to wear: as technical expert, facilitator, change agent etc.

6.Is failure ever an option?

7.How do you handle the politics of being a consultant?

8.Any thoughts on becoming a better communicator?

9.What ethical concerns do consultants encounter?

Well, we’ll wrap up there.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences today.

Notes:
Christina Phillips: Senior lecturer business analytics at Liverpool John Moores University and visiting research fellow at Leeds University Business School.
Co-chair of the Problem Structuring Methods special interest group at The OR Society (link)

Acknowledgements

Music
Title: Impulse
Artist: Ben Prunty
Source: https://www.benpruntymusic.com/
License: Non-transferable license. Used with permission by Ben Prunty.

Cover Art
Title: Pick and Mix
Artist: Conor Fitzpatrick
Graphic Design: Allen Higgins
Source: Fitzpatrick_Unamed.jpg -> PickAndMix-Name.pptx
License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (used with permission by Conor Fitzpatrick)

Podcast License
Design Talk (dot IE) CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The license can be viewed at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
By taking part you give permission for your voice to be recorded, for the recording to be edited, and for it to be posted and published as a podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
22min
March 01, 2022 0161 - Consulting the Track Vax Project with Siobhan Duggan & Amanda Creane
Host(s) Calum Comerford and Kunal Gupta
Hello, I am Calum
And I am Kunal
Our guests today are Siobhan Duggan, Amanda Creane from GS1 Ireland .
Can you start by introducing yourselves and give a short overview of GS1?

1.Could you tell us about the project you took part in to keep track of Covid-19 vaccines for Ireland’s national health system?

2.Further to this could you comment on how the opportunity came about?

3.Is the TrackVax initiative unique or was it simply an accelerated version of the kinds of projects that GS1 works on all the time for its members?

4.How did you get buy-in from key actors and stakeholders?

5.Is this kind of cooperation only feasible when there’s a central government actor, in this case the HSE or the National Immunisation Office (NIO)?

6.The pace of the project was unbelievably fast what tools did you use to keep track of milestones, software changes and actions?

7.What governance structure was in place to facilitate decision making and transparency of project direction?

8.What were the key challenges encountered when implementing this project?

9.This sounds like an amazing project to have been involved in, what were the key learnings and what thoughts could you share with our audience as the embark on their careers?

10.Where do you see GS1 fitting in the technology adoption cycles of its member companies?

11.How do you answer the question of using standards-based technology for competitive advantage versus technology for everyone’s benefit?

Well, we’ll wrap up there.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences today.

Notes:
https://www.gs1ie.org
https://www.eolasmagazine.ie/keeping-track-of-the-covid-19-vaccine/

Acknowledgements

Music
Title: Impulse
Artist: Ben Prunty
Source: https://www.benpruntymusic.com/
License: Non-transferable license. Permission granted by Ben Prunty (personal letter)

Cover Art
Title: Pick and Mix
Artist: Conor Fitzpatrick; and Graphic Design: Allen Higgins
Source: Fitzpatrick_Unamed.jpg -> PickAndMix-Name.pptx
License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (Permission granted by Conor Fitzpatrick (personal letter))

Podcast License
Design Talk (dot IE) CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
The license can be viewed at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
By taking part you give permission for your voice to be recorded, for the recording to be edited, and for it to be posted and published as a podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
...more
29min

FAQs about Design Talk (dot IE):

How many episodes does Design Talk (dot IE) have?

The podcast currently has 174 episodes available.