Unleash Your Inner CTO!

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UNLEASH YOUR INNER CTO! A PRIMER ON TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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PRIMER WHAT WE’LL BE COVERING GROWTH TECH STRATEGY

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DEFINITION PURPOSE MAKING DECISIONS WHAT WE’LL BE COVERING TECH STRATEGY

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ME PREV: PRINCIPAL CONSULTANT @TELSTRA PURPLE NOW: HEAD OF ENGINEERING @VIX TECHNOLOGY @DDDPERTH CO-ORGANISER TIME-POOR BIBLIOPHILE + = ROBDCROWLEY ARCHITECTURE TRAGIC

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I ABSOLUTELY SHINY TECH WE WILL LEARN HOW TO GIVE THIS TECH PURPOSE @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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@ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH STRATEGY AND FRIENDS A (NOT SO) GENTLE PRIMER ON STRATEGY

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So what is strategy? @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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strategy noun a plan of action designed to achieve a long-term or overall aim. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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PURPOSE VISION MISSION | | THE WHY THE WHAT THE HOW A STRATEGY USES THE MISSION TO ACHIEVE THE VISION @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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If we do not communicate with the outside world — to gain information for knowledge and understanding — we die out to become a non-discerning and uninteresting part of that world. JOHN BOYD @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Situational awareness is table stakes for effective strategy, it represents the ability to discover, communicate and learn about changes in the environment. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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As the environment changes, the ongoing value of previous decisions can decrease and perish @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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COMPETITION ⇒ EVOLUTION @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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DISRUPTORS VS FAST FOLLOWERS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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CASE STUDY: THE FIRST BROWSER WAR @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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SATISFACTION DISSATISFACTION NOT FULLFILLED FULLY FULFILLED KANO MODEL OVER TIME ATTRACTIVE FEATURES BECOME MUST HAVES MUST HAVES PERFORMANCE ATTRACTIVE

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The novel becomes commonplace and in turn enables the creation of more complex innovations @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Use appropriate methods for the challenge at hand. A one-size-fits-all approach is suboptimal by definition. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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3X MODEL – EXPLORE, EXPAND, EXTRACT PAYOFF SUCCESS EXPLORE EXTRACT ELIMINATE UNCERTAINTY ELIMINATE WASTE ELIMINATE VARIABILITY RISK APPETITE EXPAND

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Large organizations die from a series of reasonable decisions. DR JASON FOX – HOW TO LEAD A QUEST

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THINKING DOING OPERATIONAL (CERTAIN) PIONEERING (UNCERTAIN) QUEST-AUGMENTED STRATEGY DECISIONS EXPERIMENTS OPTIONS STRATEGY PROGRESS HYPOTHESES INSIGHTS MISSIONS QUESTS

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Decisions without actions are pointless. Actions without decisions are reckless. JOHN BOYD @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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OODA LOOP OBSERVE ORIENTATE DECIDE ACT Observe: Sense outside circumstances information Orientate: Analysis and synthesis of new information and previous experience to generate options Decide: Hypotheses, option selection and provide feedback Act: Test, probe and implement using doctrine @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Strategy is not a linear process but an iterative cycle @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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§ STRATEGY REQUIRES AN ITERATIVE APPROACH WITH HIGH CONTEXT FEEDBACK LOOPS. § COMPETITION IS DRIVING CONSTANT CHANGE ACROSS YOUR BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT. TODAY’S NOVEL IS DESTINED TO BECOME A COMMODITY (WHEN IS THE HARD PART!). § SITUATIONAL AWARENESS IS KEY TO RECOGNISING PATTERNS AND IDENTIFYING OPTIONS. § LEVERAGE MODELS SUCH AS THE OODA LOOP AND 3X TO PROMOTE DELIBERATE THOUGHT. § STRATEGIC THINKING IS A SKILL AND CONSEQUENTLY REQUIRES PRACTICE AND DEDICATION TO MASTER. STRATEGY AND FRIENDS TAKEAWAYS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY AMPLIFYING YOUR BUSINESS OUTCOMES

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technology strategy term a collective set of decisions created to guide the use of technology and related factors to achieve business or end user outcomes @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Write your technology strategy down and make it accessible. This is vital to building alignment. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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DEFINING A TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY § Executive Summary § Purpose § Business Strategy § Tech Landscape § Tech Vision (North Star) § Platform Principles & Guardrails § Tech Radar § Lightweight Architecture Governance Describes the purpose, vision and mission of the business agnostic of technology. The technical strategy exists to amplify the delivery of business outcomes. Setting this business context with a clear articulation of the problems to be solved is vital to building alignment. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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DEFINING A TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY § Executive Summary § Purpose § Business Strategy § Tech Landscape § Tech Vision (North Star) § Platform Principles & Guardrails § Tech Radar § Lightweight Architecture Governance Describes the current technology landscape along with the existing constraints and limitations. This section of the document aims to create a clear shared vision of the current limitations. This is key to managing stakeholder expectations around the delivery of strategic goals and the associated risks (legacy systems, environmental instability etc.). @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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DEFINING A TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY § Executive Summary § Purpose § Business Strategy § Tech Landscape § Tech Vision (North Star) § Platform Principles & Guardrails § Tech Radar § Lightweight Architecture Governance Describes the technology vision and details the primary decisions and intended actions to achieve this (embracing cloud to enable experimentation/innovation, expanding existing platforms, retiring costly legacy systems etc.). @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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CASE STUDY: MYOB (BY @SIMONRAIKALLEN)

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Takeaway: The MYOB platform manifesto encourages decisions and actions that are focused on the medium term view @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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DEFINING A TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY § Executive Summary § Purpose § Business Strategy § Tech Landscape § Tech Vision (North Star) § Platform Principles & Guardrails § Tech Radar § Lightweight Architecture Governance A visualisation of the technology landscape, outlining Platforms, Techniques, Tools and Languages - classified by appeal and relevance to the organisation (Experiment, Adopt, Hold, Retire) See: Build Your Own Radar by ThoughtWorks @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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DEFINING A TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY § Executive Summary § Purpose § Business Strategy § Tech Landscape § Tech Vision (North Star) § Platform Principles & Guardrails § Tech Radar § Lightweight Architecture Governance Describes the approach to architecture and provides a framework for architectural decisions and direction. The framework covers guidance on: § Roles and responsibilities § Decision making process and autonomy levels § Decision tracking § Artefacts produced § Communicating architectural decisions @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Remember: Strategy is iterative. Do not aim for perfection on the first pass, timebox, seek feedback and repeat. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Strategy is not static. Treat the technical strategy document as a living artefact. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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§ TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY SHOULD AMPLIFY BUSINESS AND/OR USER OUTCOMES. § DEFINING A LONG FORM TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY DOCUMENT IS AN EXCELLENT WAY OF COMMUNICATING THE OBJECTIVES AND BUILDING ALIGNMENT. § STRATEGY IS AN ITERARIVE PROCESS. APPROACH DEFINING THE TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY DOCUMENT IN THE SAME WAY. § ENSURE THE TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY IS VISIBLE AND ACCESSIBLE ALWAYS. EMBED IT IN THE ONBOARDING EXPERIENCE FOR NEW STARTERS. TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY TAKEAWAYS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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METRICS HOW TO MEASURE WHAT MATTERS

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Situational awareness is critical, but user needs cannot be met just by becoming aware of them @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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metric noun a quantifiable measure of any component or process used to gauge the performance of the business and whose change informs if existing behaviour should be continued or adjusted. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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START END EVOLUTIONARY SYSTEM @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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The only way to win is to learn faster than anyone else. ERIC RIES – THE LEAN STARTUP

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The Core Principles of The Lean Startup: § Minimum Viable Product (MVP) § Continuous Deployment § Split Testing (aka A/B Testing) § Actionable Metrics § Pivot § Innovation Accounting § Build-Measure-Learn Loop

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So how should good metrics be chosen? @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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@ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH DAVE MC CLURE’S PIRATE METRICS (AARRR!) ACQUISITION ACTIVATION RETENTION REFERRAL REVENUE Acquisition: How do users find you? Activation: How do users have a great first experience? Retention: Do users continue to return? Referral: Are users advocates and tell others? Revenue: How do you make money from your users?

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DATA ↦ INFORMATION ↦ INSIGHTS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Most companies do not capture the data required to make effective informed decisions @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Make your users’ needs your north star @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Doctrine are the basic universal principles that are applicable to all industries regardless of the landscape and its context. SIMON WARDLEY @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Software delivery is an exercise in continuous improvement, and our research shows that year over year the best keep getting better, and those who fail to improve fall further and further behind DR NICOLE FORSGREN, JEZ HUMBLE & GENE KIM – ACCELERATE

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DevOps term a set of practices that works to automate and integrate the processes between software development and IT teams, so they can learn faster. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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STATE OF DEVOPS DEPLOYMENT FREQUENCY LEAD TIME FOR CHANGE FAILED CHANGE RATE SPEED FOCUSED STABILITY FOCUSED @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH MEAN TIME TO RECOVER

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METRICS AS A MEANS FOR BALANCED BEHAVIOUR SPEED (PRODUCTIVITY) QUALITY (STABILITY) THE (NON SCIENTIFIC) CONE OF BALANCED BEHAVIOUR FAILED CHANGE RATE + MTTR LEAD TIME FOR CHANGE + CHANGE FREQUENCY

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SPEED AND QUALITY @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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ANTI-PATTERNS TO AVOID WHEN USING METRICS METRIC MISSTEPS

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Achieve excellence, don’t just avoid errors L. DAVID MARQUET – TURN THE SHIP AROUND

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@ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH The more any quantitative social indicator is used for social decision-making, the more subject it will be to corruption pressures and the more apt it will be to distort and corrupt the social processes it is intended to monitor CAMPBELL’S LAW

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CASE STUDY: US HOSPITAL REPORT CARDS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Vanity metrics depict the rosiest picture possible but do not accurately reflect the key drivers of your business VANITY METRICS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Using the same metrics as successful companies without understanding if they align to your business drivers CARGO CULT METRICS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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CARGO CULT METRICS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH Substituting imitation for understanding is a beguiling shortcut but is suboptimal at best

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There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all PETER DRUCKER USELESS METRICS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Using metrics for comparison and punishment rather than for continuous improvement purposes WEAPONISED METRICS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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@ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH Any observed statistical regularity will tend to collapse once pressure is placed upon it for control purposes GOODHART’S LAW

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When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH “ “ MARILYN STRATHERN

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§ PIVOT! BASE CONVERSATIONS TO METRICS RATHER THAN NON-ACTIONABLE OPINIONS. § USE CUSTOMER NEEDS AS THE BASIS FOR YOUR INITIAL SET OF METRICS. § CAVEAT EMPTOR! INCENTIVE STRUCTURES WORK, MEASURING THE WRONG THING CAN LEAD TO UNANTICIPATED CONSEQUENCES. § EFFECTIVE METRICS OFTEN WORKS IN UNISON TO DRIVE BALANCED BEHAVIOUR. § METRICS ONLY DELIVER VALUE IF THEY INFLUENCE BEHAVIOUR. METRICS TAKEAWAYS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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GETTING STARTED TIPS TO BUILD YOUR STRATEGIC ACUMEN

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Disclaimer: The transition between delivery and strategic focuses is non-trivial and requires dedication and commitment @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Technical ability is unlikely to be the constraint on your career progression @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Invest in truly learning your business and industry. This is vital to growing your situational awareness. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Build your network both inside and outside work. Hallway tracks at conferences afford incredibly valuable learning opportunities. @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Know and share the context always @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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As a leader your focus should be on growing an environment that encourages the behaviour you want to see @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Corollary: Attempting to embed behaviours that run contrary to the incentives defined by the environment is a Sisyphean endeavour @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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You may not always have the authority to make a decision but you can always champion a cause @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Embrace empiricism, base conversations on metrics instead of non-actionable opinions @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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You can achieve amazing things if you do not need to take credit for it @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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Live, operate and think in a world of ambiguity and be able to context switch dramatically across delivery and strategy @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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TAKEAWAYS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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RESOURCES @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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§ Defining a Tech Strategy | Sarah Taraporewalla: https://sarahtaraporewalla.com/agile/design/architecture/Defining- a-Tech-Strategy § Tech Strategy: You need it, but what is it? | Nick Tune: https://medium.com/nick-tune-tech-strategy-blog/tech-strategy- you-need-it-but-what-is-it-af292421e422 § Build Your Own Rader | ThoughtWorks: https://www.thoughtworks.com/radar/byor § Cargo Cult Analytics | Stijn Debrouwere: http://debrouwere.org/2013/08/26/cargo-cult-analytics/ RESOURCES @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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QUESTIONS @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH

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@ROBDCROWLEY | ROBDCROWLEY THANK YOU!

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§ Images sourced from www.pexels.com § Browser war from medium.com/@traciemasek/a-brief-history-of- the-original-browsers-and-the-first-browser-war-7823fdf756fe ATTRIBUTION @ROBDCROWLEY #DDDPERTH