If your engineering organisation is busy but not delivering, the problem is rarely the engineers. It’s the system they work inside — and that system is a leadership responsibility. This library is the working record of twenty-plus years spent fixing those systems: what worked, what failed, and why.
The current focus is Agentic Engineering — the disciplined application of AI agents within accountable, observable and testable engineering systems.
The library’s strongest work on engineering excellence and technical leadership — ranked by substance, not recency. How this is ranked
Engineering as a Leadership System: Moving Beyond Frameworks
Delivery outcomes are shaped less by frameworks and practices than by the operating model leaders have designed. How an organisation's …
Why Most Companies Operating Models Fail in Dynamic Markets
A concise comparison of Predictive and Adaptive Operating Models, explaining why traditional structures fail in dynamic markets and how …
One Azure DevOps Project for 1,500 People Is Not the Risky Option
Compare the coordination costs of separate Azure DevOps Projects with the governance a shared Project requires, using actual dependencies …
Telling People What to Do Is Not Leadership. It’s a Failure of System Design
Explores why real leadership means designing systems that enable team autonomy, flow, and accountability, rather than relying on …
Engineering as a Leadership System
Session recording from The Future of Work in Scotland. Why the frameworks your teams adopt cannot overcome the operating model your …
The AI Decided Is Not an Explanation
When an AI says it got bored or we say it lied, we give a machine feelings and intentions. The false output needs an explanation, not an …
AI Agents Lie About Being Done
My agent reported every task complete when half the tests were missing. Call that a lie if you like. The engineering problem is that the …
Don’t Manage Dependencies, Remove Them
Explains why dependencies are a sign of poor system design and outlines steps to eliminate them by aligning teams, clarifying ownership, and …
The Estimation Trap: How Tracking Accuracy Undermines Trust, Flow, and Value in Software Delivery
Tracking estimation accuracy in software delivery leads to mistrust, fear, and distorted behaviours. Focus on customer value, flow, and …
Engineering as a Leadership System: Moving Beyond Frameworks
Delivery outcomes are shaped less by frameworks and practices than by the operating model leaders have designed. How an organisation's …
Why Most Companies Operating Models Fail in Dynamic Markets
A concise comparison of Predictive and Adaptive Operating Models, explaining why traditional structures fail in dynamic markets and how …
One Azure DevOps Project for 1,500 People Is Not the Risky Option
Compare the coordination costs of separate Azure DevOps Projects with the governance a shared Project requires, using actual dependencies …
Stop Losing the Decisions You Already Made
Your business already writes everything down, in email, meetings, and chat. It just cannot read what it wrote. Why small and medium …
AI Guardrails Are Just Polite Requests
Written rules influence an AI agent, but do not enforce compliance. My agent records and build failures show why independent checks matter, …
The AI Decided Is Not an Explanation
When an AI says it got bored or we say it lied, we give a machine feelings and intentions. The false output needs an explanation, not an …
AI Agents Lie About Being Done
My agent reported every task complete when half the tests were missing. Call that a lie if you like. The engineering problem is that the …
Who Owns the Code?
AI-generated code and copyright. Why "who typed it" is the wrong test, where the real legal uncertainty sits for agentic development, and …
How My Father's Business Reverted to the Mean
My father died eight years ago today. In 1980 a leadership team's golf retreat left him holding a ten-year lease on a Glasgow shopfront, so …
Engineering as a Leadership System
Session recording from The Future of Work in Scotland. Why the frameworks your teams adopt cannot overcome the operating model your …
From Legacy Pain to Modern DevOps: My Proven Roadmap for Real Engineering Transformation
Transform legacy engineering with a proven, step-by-step approach, learn how to automate, adapt, and build a resilient, modern DevOps …
Engineering Excellence Isn’t Perfection: How Continuous Improvement and Fast Feedback Drive Real Agile and DevOps Success
Engineering excellence isn’t perfection, it’s continuous improvement, clean code, and fast feedback. Unlock true agility with modern Agile …
Why Outsourcing DevOps Fails, and How Real Engineering Excellence Starts With Your Team
Avoid DevOps vendor lock-in, discover how true engineering excellence starts with partnership, not outsourcing. Ready to transform your …
Why Big Bang Rewrites Fail: How Sustainable Change and Engineering Excellence Transform Legacy Systems
Ditch the Big Bang rewrite. Discover why sustainable, in-place change drives true engineering excellence and lasting transformation in your …
Why Azure DevOps Wins for Governance, Security, and Scale, Right Out of the Box
Unlock seamless governance, security, and scale with Azure DevOps, integrated tooling that lets you deliver value, not just manage …
Stop Guessing: How to Make Work Visible and Drive Real Improvement with Azure DevOps Flow Metrics
Stop guessing, start making data-driven decisions in Azure DevOps. Discover tools, tips, and insights to make your work visible and your …
Stop Testing Quality In: How Shifting Left Builds Better Software, Faster
Stop testing quality in, start building it in. Learn how shifting left, automation, and fast feedback loops drive engineering excellence in …
Still Deploying Manually? Why Automation Is the Bare Minimum for Modern Engineering (and Your Business Survival)
Still deploying manually? Discover why automation isn’t optional, protect your business, avoid disaster, and deliver value with modern …
Building a Resilient Token Server: Engineering for Flow, Fault Tolerance, and Speed
Explains how to engineer a robust, fault-tolerant token counting server using FastAPI and PowerShell, covering error handling, retries, …
How I Used Generative AI to Transform Site Tagging and Categories
Explains how generative AI and PowerShell scripts automate and improve blog post tagging and categorisation in Hugo, with human oversight …
Convert Legacy Projects and ASP.NET MVC Apps to SDK-Style with Confidence
Learn how to upgrade legacy .NET and ASP.NET MVC projects to SDK-style for easier builds, modern tooling, and future readiness, including …
You Probably Shouldn't Build Your Own Mailchimp. Here's What It Took When I Did.
What it took to replace Mailchimp with a self-built email notification system on Azure Communication Services. The pricing model that …
How I Built an Organisational Brain to Run My Consulting Business
How schemas, routing, scoped context, source links, and independent validation let AI agents maintain an organisational brain, with a small …
Leveraging AI Embeddings for Related Content Classification
Explores using AI embeddings and cosine similarity to improve related content recommendations in Hugo, enhancing semantic relevance, user …
Kanban Guide
Comprehensive reference outlining Kanban principles, practices, and metrics for optimising workflow, value delivery, and continuous …
Evidence-Based Portfolio Management
Explains how evidence-based portfolio management helps organisations extend agile practices beyond teams, enabling greater responsiveness …
Detecting Agile BS
Guidance for identifying genuine agile software development in DoD projects, including key principles, warning signs, essential tools, and …
OKR Guide - A Social Discipline for Shared Focus, Measurable Contribution, and Strategic Learning
Comprehensive guide to using OKRs for shared focus, measurable outcomes, and strategic learning, including roles, events, best practices, …
Nexus Guide
Explains the Nexus framework for scaling Scrum with multiple teams, detailing roles, events, and artefacts to coordinate product delivery …
Manifesto for Agile Software Development
Outlines core Agile values and principles for software development, emphasising collaboration, adaptability, working software, customer …
Kanban Guide for Scrum Teams
Explains how Scrum Teams can use Kanban practices to optimise workflow, track flow metrics, and enhance transparency, efficiency, and …
The Evidence-Based Management Guide 2020: Improving Value Delivery under Conditions of Uncertainty
Evidence-Based Management (EBM) guides organisations to improve value delivery under uncertainty by using empirical goals, measurement, and …
The Scrum Guide (February 2010)
A clear summary of Scrum’s framework, roles, events, artefacts, and values, explaining how teams use Scrum to deliver value and adapt to …
1706 resources dating back to 2006 · twenty-plus years fixing delivery systems · maintainer of Azure DevOps Migration Tools · 19 years a Microsoft MVP in DevOps · Professional Scrum Trainer