a bit of everything
Hello, I’m Martin.
I’ve spent nearly thirty years helping run a small software business, and somewhere along the way I’ve done most of the jobs in it.
nearly thirty years
That business is Harlequin Software. We work with charities and the NHS, helping them get more out of their systems and their data, and these days I’m Head of Product and Operations.
Over the years I’ve designed products and systems, worked out how they should fit into the way people actually work, written a fair bit of the code, done hundreds of data migrations and spent a lot of time working out why the numbers don’t add up. I’ve also helped run the business itself (the money, the people, the customers), which turns out to be useful, because a problem with a system is very often a problem with how the work gets done.
One minute I’m writing code, the next I’m knee deep in a contract negotiation.
a generalist, really
Systems and product, mostly.
Deep down I’m a systems and product person. I like getting the whole picture of how something works, designing how it should work, and then building it. I’ve never really minded whether that means a conversation, a drawing on a whiteboard or some code.
I’m a generalist too, which I think is underrated in small organisations. The person who can see how the accounts, the bookings and the customer list all connect is usually the person who can fix them.
small on purpose
Alongside the day job
Harlequin is still my main work, and it’s a big part of who I am. Alongside it I work with a few small organisations of my own, sorting out how their information moves and building what’s missing. I keep it small on purpose (a few hours a week) so the people I work with get my full attention.
I also make software of my own, under the name myriad of one. Myriad has always been one of my favourite words, and it suits a generalist.
if you want them
The facts
- by day
- Nearly thirty years at Harlequin Software, now Head of Product and Operations
- data
- Hundreds of data migrations, and the clean-ups that go with them
- building
- Products, systems and integrations, designed and built end to end
- coaching
- Qualified coach
early mornings, horses in the afternoon
I live in Kent with my family. I start my days early and quietly, which is when I do my best thinking, and most afternoons I’m at the yard with our horses.
Want to see a bit more of my background? I’m on LinkedIn.
no form, no pitch