Andrew Sharp

PlatformCon 2024 5 key takeaways from Colin Humphreys' presentation. 1) Employ a "Product Mindset" 2) Find The Right Abstractions For Your Organisation 3) Democratise Your Platform 4) Everywhere is Brownfield, Everything is Complex 5) Day One is Easy, Day Two Thousand is Hard https://lnkd.in/gTaVE7KP

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£6,800,000,000. That is the modelled monthly cost to UK organisations of employee's time spent dealing with complaints, problems, and service failures. The results of analysis completed by the Institute of Customer Service in their UK Customer Satisfaction Index report for 2024 demonstrates there is an enormous cost associated with correcting issues with customer experience. It is amazing to see so many of our customers listed in the Top 20 rated organisations for customer satisfaction 2019 - 2024, but I know even those who are already doing an awesome job will be looking to further improve. This is topical for many industries and not just retail. Any organisation with a B2C or D2C channel should be conscious of the impact their customer journey and customer experience has on the overall health of the business. I would encourage you to read the report for yourself as it contains a huge amount of insight, analysis, and guidance. It is available via the institute's website: https://lnkd.in/guadysDr Section Four: Recommendations for organisations, and specifically the guidance on achieving the appropriate balance and the right approach to technology and people within customer service. That is a standout section and such an important subject, technology alone is not the answer. Analysis of your customer journeys must be holistic and encompass both the transient aspects of Customer Experience and the associated Journey Maps, and the controlled, measured aspects of Service Blueprints and the Master Process Lists. This analysis is often disjointed with the exercises and workshopping required taking place within discreet, siloed teams. Organisations will benefit greatly by harmonising the approach and creating multi-disciplinary teams and by utilising a combination of tools. Teams should consider using online whiteboarding to support design thinking. Data origination and analysis tools such as task mining and process mining to surface and visualise data, and process analysis with simulation to discover and ideate end-to-end processes and journeys. #CX #CustomerService #Leadership #ARIS

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Reflecting on my first week or so at Nimble Approach and along with the people and culture, the other big standout has been the lasting value we have added to our clients. Not only through top quality delivery and solving the right problems but also through upskilling their internal teams and embedding lasting processes. In this interview with Craig Watson, our Head of Product & Design Capability, you can read more about how we do this, what Craig loves about working in tech and why he joined Nimble in the first place. #productdesign #techconsultancy #productdelivery

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GenAI-driven digital transformation is modernising and optimising local governments, creating a better future for both citizens and staff. Join us in our journey #GenAI #DigitalTransformation

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Is your website or app delivering the best possible experience to your users? A fresh perspective can make all the difference. This article from my UX colleagues at CACI Ltd explores how a UX MOT can help you uncover areas for improvement and enhance your digital experience. Curious about how your site or app measures up? 👉 https://lnkd.in/ebvgEw3z #UX #UserExperience #WebDesign #DigitalExperience

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So what are my key takeaways from #gotocph beside being incredible inspiring to see people like Martin Fowler Simon Wardley Manuel Pais (Team Topologies) 🇺🇦 🇵🇸 Dave Farley or Daniel Terhorst-North besides many others on stage… Product focus #product #productfirst is key and code like software is just means to an end. Our customers don’t really want software actually they want the least amount of software possible what they want are solutions to their problems! So its good to remind ourselves about that and also detach ourselves emotionally from code. #mindset #coding Autonomy and real end to end responsibility for product teams not only removes dependencies but also optimizes for actual flow of value! Put trust in your teams and they will deliver amazing things! #teamtopologies #team #people And last but not least was great to see that there was quite a consistent view on #AI and #LLM that it will as any other hype will soon get back to normal and take or eliminate any job. I loved the term stochastic parrot that was framed at the conferende because this is what LLMs actually are. Happy to see that smart people are not fooled by marketing. #futureofwork #codingassistent There was so much more, was truely an inspiring event! #conference #learning #inspiration #softwareengineering #development

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Agile Nottingham never disappoints! Last night's session was particularly enlightening as we delved into StrongSuits, a fascinating tool for personal and team development. From a vast array of 52 possible strengths, I narrowed my top strengths down to these 5:  - Clarity - Responsiveness - Listening  - Optimism - Resilience Do you agree? Disagree? I'd love to hear your perspective. What are your strengths? 

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Just some thoughts on Agile Today

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Should employers subsidise public transport for their teams? An interesting read from City AM today (🔗 in comments) focusing on new research from the ONS highlighting the slowdown in London's productivity growth since the financial crisis. The data suggests a correlation with low productivity and office attendance (🥱...nothing new there!). Its a sensitive issue but irrespective of your opinion on productivity at home vs in the office it appears average days per week in the office in London lags behind many other international cities. One of the suggested improvements for this is subsidising travel costs for employees. “London’s workers are by far more likely to cite that travel costs are a barrier to getting back to work than workers elsewhere,” What grabbed my attention is an interesting comparison with our French neighbours. The French labor code requires employers to cover a minimum of 50% of commuting costs, many cover the entire cost. This feels like an interesting concept that could help with the cost of living and encourage people to spend more time together. The UK has the most expensive public transport costs in Europe. British employees can spend up to 20% of their salary on commuting, whist in France data I've seen indicates this to be nearer 6%. In 2023 the average change in regulated fares in the UK was 5.9% the highest since 2012. Its not getting cheaper either! Average gross salaries in France are also higher than the UK, which perhaps reinforces the squeeze that UK commuters feel. Lots to digest but in my experience I'm increasingly feeling people do want to get together more often for purposeful and personal connections. My gut feel is that subsidised transport would help support this. But from a business perspective the potentially significant increase in organisation labour costs is a hard swallow. Additionally it's considered a taxable benefit currently. What do you all think? - Are there examples of companies in the UK paying for employee public transport to the office - do those that do see higher office attendance? and would you be happier going to an office if your travel was paid for?

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Exploring user needs and the value chain of platform teams can be a hugely successful exercise to help members of the platform teams identify who their users are and how they might best deliver services that meet their users unmet needs. #fastflowconf #teamtopologies #userneedsmapping

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The next chapter of our journey....

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🔍 After 30+ years in tech, here's what I've learned about diversity and inclusion: It's not just HR's job - it's everyone's responsibility Diverse teams consistently outperform homogeneous ones Your privilege is a tool - use it to amplify marginalised voices "Strong opinions, loosely held" is key to staying open-minded Mental health and neurodiversity are often overlooked aspects of inclusion I've compiled my thoughts, experiences, and practical strategies in a new article: "The Power of Diversity and Inclusion: Transforming Workplaces and Society - A Privileged Perspective" 👉 Key takeaway: Every interaction is an opportunity to make someone feel valued and included. Read the full article by clicking below. What's your experience with diversity and inclusion in your workplace? Share below. #DiversityAndInclusion #WorkplaceCulture #TechIndustry #Leadership

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Lean Agile Scotland 2024 in Edinburgh on 25-27th September is approaching fast. I’m both excited and terrified to be talking on the first day as part of the Calba delegation. Exploring DORA: Can DevOps capability metrics help drive better agile practices? https://lnkd.in/eq5y-J-t It would be great to see you there. https://leanagile.scot/ https://calba.com/ #LAScot #LeanAgile #AgileTransformation #LeanAgileWork #Agile #Lean

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A lot of discussion on the news feed today about Lord Darzi’s report, and rightly so. I think we all appreciate that there are some serious challenges to overcome. This is seen both as citizens, and from our roles working to support Health and Social Care.  Wanted to reshare my blog post from some weeks ago which although was focussed on Social Care, looked across the wider Health and Care space. The article goes into more details, but in summary the 5 areas for digital focus are: 1. Learn Lessons 2. Tackle IT integration 3. Think about the workforce 4. Listen to the users 5. Embrace innovation Some thoughts for you to consider as you take on your new role Tom Riordan CBE (and a few Nye Bevan quotations as well!). And please also realise that all of us in the supplier community for DHSC are passionate about making our National Health and National Care services a success, and we here to help. https://lnkd.in/g7aC3wQw

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The art of balancing strong opinions and adaptability: 🧠💪 Launched my podcast "Strong Opinions Loosely Held" 🎙️ Tackled complex stakeholder concerns in digital transformation 🔄 Overcame ADHD-induced guilt and overwhelm 🧘‍♂️ 3 key lessons from a hectic week: 📚 1./ Preparation is crucial, but you can't plan for everything 📊 2./ Trust your team's experience and knowledge 🤝 3./ Balance is found through action, not hesitation ⚖️ Remember: Leadership isn't about perfection. It's about: 🚀 Making things happen ✅ Adapting as you go 🌊 Trusting yourself and your team 💯 The journey of digital transformation is complex. Embrace the challenge, start moving, and adjust your course as needed. 🧭 What's your approach to navigating complexity in leadership? 🤔 #Leadership #DigitalTransformation #Adaptability

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It's been frantic at today's Retail Technology Show - in a good way - so busy - only just had time now to film and post this video - you still have time until 6pm today and from 9am until 4:30pm to come and chat with us - I look forward to meeting with you to talk #retail #solutions from #Lenovo :-) #Lenovo #Retail #Technology #Show #RetailTechnologyShow #Event #RTS2024 #WeAreLenovo #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #Edge #EdgeComputing #CustomerExperience #CX #Optimisation #Efficiencies #Dynamic #Signage #ColdChainManagement #ColdChain #Marketing #Advertising #Shrinkage #Secure #Security #PoS #PointOfSale #Warehouse #Warehousing #Inventory

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Important topic, written very well, and summarised in the final paragraph wonderfully.

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AR AI Impacts 07  : Recap on recent posts – too positive or just naïve on timescales  ?   Some friends and colleagues have contacted me and think I am being far too optimistic on time scales or just naïve in believing all the hype that is around at present about AI . I would like to take this post to dispel such views and will then get back to my periodic updates to keep my network informed of recent AI developments and likely impacts they will have on different sectors . The 1st thing to note is that I am , if anything , underestimating the speed of AI activity and impact. Everything is happening faster than most people realise and we are now experiencing Ray Kurzweil’s Law of Accelerating Returns where each new technology can build on the earlier technology reducing the cycle of production / innovation so technological innovations get faster and faster. Perhaps just one example can illustrate this. The internal combustion engine ( ICE )was invented in 1886 but it took another 30 years before Karl Benz put it into the first car ( basically a sort of tricycle with an engine that everyone laughed at and said no one would buy because it could only travel a few miles slowly before it needed to be refuelled ( does this view of a newer technology sound familiar?  ) It took another 22 years until 1908 for serious production to start when Henry Ford invented the assembly line and started making cars in volume  It took further 40 years to get to 1 million ICE cars . By comparison Tesla was set up in 2003 and has already produced 20+million electric vehicles. Others have produced another 24+ million and there will be another 14 + million produced in 2024 alone . The pace of technological advance and public acceptance is accelerating. It took about 5 years for Twitter  and Facebook to reach 100 million users but only 9 months for Tik Tok to reach that figure and only 2 months for ChatGPT to reach 100 million users and just 1 year later there were 100 million users per week !  When Chat GPT was launched it had an IQ of 64  ( compared to human average IQ of 100 ) but this year AI has already reached an IQ of 120  which is higher than 90% of humans on the planet and is higher than that of a graduate ( average  IQ 115) and getting close to the level of  a PhD (average  IQ  125 ) This is allowing new discoveries in numerous areas ,  many of which will themselves transform whole sectors of human activity . In materials science, it has allowed discovery of 2.2 million new materials and 650,000 new crystallines and numerous more durable, sustainable or biodegradable materials  Similar advances are now occurring in biochemistry, medicine , food production and many other areas. We are going to have rapid advances in every field and we are only at step 2 out of a 5 step process to reach the levels of AI that is expected to be possible in the near future.. It will happen far quicker than you think  so ,buckle up as this is just the beginning Alan

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