In addition to my work as a consultant and agile architect, I also offer the ability to act as a high-productivity software developer.

While I am happy to take on a variety of assignments, my strengths are in being able to very quickly create a prototype which proves the viability of one or more solutions, or indeed to rapidly create and deliver a working solution which solves a specific business problem.

If required, I can undertake the complete development of a solution, or I have a strong track record of handing over my initial developments for further elaboration and exploitation by other teams.

While I am a great believer in the value of analysis and modelling, words and diagrams have their limits in many complicated problem domains. In such cases even a low-functionality prototype is a powerful tool to elicit an understanding of complex requirements. The challenge is to strike a balance, but I if required I can then deploy my skills as an architect to generate genuine models and documentation off the back of any such prototype.

Part of the value I bring to professional engagements is the willingness to invoke unusual approaches if I think they are a good fit to a challenge. However it’s not unusual to find that other architects or developers are resistant to less traditional approaches, or those outside their comfort zones. Models and PowerPoint can go only so far in such situations, and a working proof of concept can be a very persuasive tool. Even if the proposed solution isn’t as easy or as effective as hoped, then “prove” takes on its older meaning of “test” and we have at least narrowed down the solution options. Similarly as vendors consistently overstate the capabilities of their products, a quick proof of concept can be very powerful in confirming or refuting a proposed solution, or establishing its limitations.

It's important to understand that my prototypes always work, providing real and usable functionality, even if constrained to a limited dataset or use cases. A viable prototype must allow its consumers to see things happening, not just imagine them behind a static user interface mock-up.

A prototype does not have to be expensive. Many of those described in the case studies below were developed in a week or two, some in a few working days. An investment in my services to help identify a solution is likely to repay itself several times over.

I am happy to either develop a solution myself, or create the “scaffolding” to integrate available tools into a smooth process. If a partial solution exists I will progressively identify the limitations and find ways to work around and automate them.

My automation solutions can be simple macros, more complex scripts written in VB.Net or Python, or in some cases full-blown small applications, whatever is appropriate to the problem.