Working Resistant Stakeholders

Working with Senior Stakeholders on New Technology Introduction How do you convince or work with a senior stakeholder who’s pushing back on new technology when you need to win them over? My experience comes from two sides: the startup perspective and the corporate perspective. Startup Perspective In startups, the biggest issue is risk, specifically the return on investment. Cash is usually tight, and any project or investment you’re making is at the expense of another initiative. What you need to show is tangible proof there will be value. ...

September 27, 2024

Why Build Career Fintech

Introduction I have been giving some thoughts to why domain knowledge is important in building a career in fintech. I thought I could share some of my thoughts on the topic. I have put in QnA format to make it easier to read. Why focus on building domain expertise in fintech? With the advancements we’re seeing in artificial intelligence and development tools, the ability to translate well-defined requirements into code is no longer the primary differentiator it once was. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang takes it further and says ...

September 23, 2024

Why Event Driven Architecture

I’m a big fan of event-driven architecture. I think it’s a great way to build scalable and resilient systems. I thought I would share some of my thoughts in this QnA format Why use event-driven design? Event-driven design should be considered for many system designs due to its ability to address common challenges in modern software architecture: Scalability: Events can be queued and processed asynchronously, allowing for better handling of high loads. Availability: Systems can continue to accept events even if downstream processors are temporarily unavailable. Evolvability: The decoupled nature of event-driven systems makes it easier to modify or replace individual components. Resilience: Queuing mechanisms provide a buffer against failures and allow for easier recovery. However, it’s important to weigh these benefits against potential drawbacks like increased complexity and the learning curve for developers. ...

September 19, 2024

My Resilience Journey

What does having a growth mindset mean to me? Let me share an experience from my younger days that shaped my understanding of resilience and personal growth. The Challenge: Society of Actuaries Exam I was preparing for my Society of Actuaries P1 exam. The preparation materials were expensive - these books cost north of a hundred dollars at that time. I had gone through the book thoroughly and felt I had a solid conceptual understanding. ...

September 18, 2024