Technology Without The Jargon
Technology can become complicated very quickly.
AI, software development, cybersecurity, technology strategy, digital transformation and emerging technologies can all generate an enormous amount of terminology, hype and conflicting advice.
But the people making decisions about them are often not technologists.
They are business owners, founders, CEOs, directors and leadership teams trying to understand what the technology actually means for their organisation.
That is the perspective I bring to public speaking.
I combine more than 35 years of technology experience with a practical approach to communication.
My objective is not to demonstrate how much technical terminology I know.
It is to help an audience understand the issue, think differently about it and leave with ideas or questions they can actually use.
People Before Technology
One principle runs through both my consulting work and my public speaking:
People before technology.
Technology conversations are more useful when they start with the people involved, the business problem and the outcome the organisation is trying to achieve.
The technology comes afterwards.
That is particularly important today.
It is easy for conversations about AI, software, automation and emerging technology to become dominated by what the technology can do.
I am more interested in another question:
What should it do for the business and the people who depend on it?
That perspective makes my speaking particularly relevant to business audiences that need to understand technology without becoming technologists themselves.
Topics I Can Speak About
I speak about areas where technology, business and leadership intersect.
These are not fixed, off-the-shelf speeches. Topics can be adapted to the audience, event and time available.
AI And Business
AI is creating genuine opportunities for businesses, but it is also generating a considerable amount of hype.
I approach AI from the perspective of the business leader rather than the AI researcher.
Potential topics include:
- What AI actually means for SMEs
- Where AI can genuinely create business value
- Separating AI opportunity from AI hype
- Questions leaders should ask before investing in AI
- Why AI should begin with a business problem rather than a tool
- What business leaders need to understand before adopting AI
The objective is not to turn business leaders into AI experts.
It is to help them ask better questions and make better decisions.
Technology Leadership
Technology leadership is not simply about understanding technology.
It is about ensuring that technology supports the organisation and that leadership has enough visibility to make informed decisions.
Potential topics include:
- What business leaders should expect from their technology leadership
- What a CTO should be telling the CEO without being asked
- Technology leadership when you do not need a full-time CTO
- Why technology problems are often leadership problems
- People before technology
Technology Strategy
A technology strategy should not exist separately from the business it is supposed to support.
Potential topics include:
- How business leaders can make better technology decisions
- Why technology strategy should start with the business
- Turning technology complexity into a practical roadmap
- How to decide what technology deserves investment
- Why a technology strategy should be understandable to the leadership team
Software And Project Delivery
Software projects rarely fail because someone forgot how to write code.
The causes are often found in decisions, priorities, communication, dependencies, expectations and leadership.
Potential topics include:
- Why software projects run late
- Why adding more developers does not always fix a late project
- What CEOs should ask when a development team is not delivering
- Why developer estimates are not promises
- What business leaders should expect from software delivery
- Understanding technology problems without becoming technical
Technology Risk And Governance
Business leaders do not need to understand every technical risk.
They do need to understand what those risks could mean to the business.
Potential topics include:
- Key person technology risk
- Dependence on a single developer or supplier
- What leadership teams need to know about their technology
- Making technology risk understandable at leadership and board level
- Questions leaders should ask about critical technology
- When technology debt becomes business risk
Speaking From Experience, Not Theory
The subjects I speak about come from more than 35 years working in technology.
My career has included:
- Software development
- Systems and architecture
- Software and engineering management
- Project and software delivery
- Agile delivery
- Cloud and infrastructure
- Technology management
- Technology strategy
- Governance and risk
- CTO and Head of Technology-level leadership
- Working directly with founders, CEOs and business leaders
That breadth gives me perspectives from both sides of the conversation.
I understand the technical challenges facing technology teams.
I also understand the questions business leaders need answered before they can make a decision.
My public speaking sits between those two worlds.
Read More About Iain WhiteKeynote And Conference Experience
I have delivered keynote speeches and spoken to business and technology audiences on subjects drawn from my professional experience.
I have also organised and run several technology conferences.
These combined an in-person audience in Brisbane with virtual participants joining from other Australian states and internationally.
Running those events gave me experience on both sides of a conference.
I understand what it means to stand in front of an audience and communicate an idea clearly.
I also understand the organiser’s perspective: bringing speakers, technology, content and participants together to create an event that works for the people attending.
The hybrid nature of those conferences also required communication that worked for people physically in the room as well as those participating remotely.
Toastmasters And Communication
Public speaking is a skill I have deliberately developed alongside my technology career.
I have been involved with Toastmasters International, including serving as a Club President.
My Toastmasters experience has included prepared speaking, impromptu speaking, speech evaluation, speaking competitions and club leadership.
Serving as Club President added another dimension.
It involved leading the club, facilitating meetings, supporting members and communicating with groups of people with different levels of speaking experience.
Toastmasters has been valuable in developing my communication and leadership skills, but it is only part of what I bring to an audience.
The substance behind my speaking comes from decades of actually working with technology, teams, projects and business leaders.
Who I Speak To
My speaking is particularly suited to audiences that need to understand technology from a business perspective.
That can include:
- Business owners
- Founders
- CEOs
- Leadership teams
- Boards and directors
- Professional services audiences
- SMEs
- Technology and software teams
- Business associations
- Chambers of commerce
I particularly enjoy speaking to audiences where technology matters to the business but not everyone in the room has a technology background.
That is where translating the technical issue into a business conversation becomes most valuable.
Speaking Formats
Different events need different approaches.
My speaking and presentation experience includes:
- Keynote speeches
- Conference presentations
- Technology conferences
- Business events
- Professional and industry events
- Panels and Q&A discussions
- Podcasts and interviews
- Workshops and facilitated discussions
- In-person presentations
- Virtual presentations
- Hybrid events
The format should fit the audience and the purpose of the event rather than forcing every subject into the same presentation.
If you have a particular topic or format in mind, I am happy to discuss what would work for your audience.
For Event Organisers
If you are considering me for an event, the starting point is a conversation about your audience.
I would want to understand:
- Who will be in the room
- What they are interested in
- Why the event is being held
- What technology or business issues are particularly relevant
- What you would like the audience to take away
- The format and time available
From there, I can determine whether I am the right fit and how the subject could be shaped for the event.
I am based in Greater Brisbane, Queensland and can consider speaking opportunities elsewhere in Australia as appropriate.
For virtual events, location is naturally less important.
About Iain White
Iain White is an Australian Technology Consultant, Fractional CTO and founder of White Internet Consulting.
I have more than 35 years of technology experience spanning hands-on software development, systems and architecture, software delivery, engineering management, technology management and CTO-level leadership.
Today, I work with founders, business owners, CEOs and leadership teams that need experienced, independent technology advice.
My approach is based on a simple principle:
People before technology.
Whether I am consulting or speaking, my objective is to make technology understandable enough for people to make better decisions about it.
Read My Full ProfileLooking For A Technology Speaker?
If you are organising a conference, business event, professional gathering, panel, podcast or leadership session and think one of these subjects would be useful to your audience, get in touch.
Tell me a little about the event, the audience and what you would like them to take away.
I can then determine whether I am the right fit and discuss an appropriate topic and format.
