Sometimes we forget the humans behind the tech in our ever busy world. DSF is fortunate enough to know some incredible tech leaders across the world and has the privilege of hearing them present at our events. That being said, our Speaker Spotlight sets the stage to get to know our speakers on a more personal level and connect them with our growing community. Read the mini interview below!
A bit about Tom:
Tom is an engineer and founder obsessed with data. For over 15 years, he’s been building breakthrough systems at the forefront of Big Data, Event Streaming, and now AI, Tom has repeatedly built software and systems that move the needle in terms of what can be achieved with the data a company is collecting and how it is processed.
He’s now leading Streambased, a bold new venture with a NoETL approach to data management where analytics and operations converge into one source of truth.
How did you start out in your tech career?
I started my career on the trading floor at HSBC in Canary wharf, it was a very daunting prospect and an intense environment but I loved every minute. I loved that everything you did made an immediate difference.
I was working on one of the pricing applications so had to learn a lot of business theory to be able to do my job correctly. This is a principle I’ve carried throughout the rest of my career.
Probably the largest thing I learnt from that role was time management. I learnt to prioritize my time on the most important issues and to effectively communicate ETAs with my customers.
What are the signs of success in your field?
In my current role as CEO at Streambased success is defined pretty much exclusively by company growth. We are an early stage startup pioneering a unique and novel idea so our success metrics are not just customers landed but also exposure and signals across the wider market that our concept is accepted and adopted.
What is the best and worst thing about your job role?
The best thing about running a company as an engineer is the variety. I work on such a range of problems from deep technical issues all the way through to marketing, procurement and customer success. I love to operate outside of my comfort zone and this role gives me the scope to do so.
The worst thing about being a startup CEO is the uncertainty, you can never count on a complete set of information when making decisions and it can be very difficult to gain confidence that you have made the right one.
What can you advise someone just starting out to be successful?
I alluded to it earlier but being comfortable with being uncomfortable is the best piece of advise I can give anyone starting in tech. It’s a huge field and I encounter new starters often that stay quiet and try to blend into the background. To be successful you need to break that mindset. There are no bad questions and no one knows everything!
How do you switch off?
My engineering passion extends beyond software into cars, motorbikes and planes. In my spare time I like to build custom vehicles that extend existing concepts into new territory using the same approach I take to software engineering. My most recent build is a jet engine powered motorcycle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
What advice would you give your younger self?
Experiment more! I spent the first 5yrs of my career working within the safety net of banking (an industry not known for pushing the boundaries). It was only when I began experimenting with exciting new projects in the open source world that my career began to take off.
What is next for you?
We still have a long way to go at Streambased. I am really looking forward to growing the company and team, this is something I’ve never had exposure to and so I’m really excited to see where it goes.
If you could do anything now, what would you do? Why?
I’m doing what I love in the way I love doing it so wouldn’t change much. If I had a magic wand I’d go back and focus on more business experience alongside the tech but I’m closing that gap hard…
What are your top 5 predictions in tech for the next 5 years?
1. AI will completely remove grunt work – tasks that are performed for technical reasons alone will be removed.
2. Data infrastructure will converge – no more online/offline systems, one data platform for all
3. Data systems will rally around a small number of standards – Kafka protocol for real-time and Iceberg for batch are leading the charge here. Differentiation will be by implementation not interface.
4. Everything data will be built cloud native – This has already happened in other areas but data is playing catch up. We will use cloud storage, cloud processors etc. to massively save in cost.
5. Data exchange will be a key market – Companies will become much comfortable in sharing their data publicly (both for free and paid) and other companies/regular people will be able to use and expand this. Think Kaggle on steroids.
Watch Tom’s session at the Data Science Festival here.
Thank you to all our wonderful speakers for taking part in our Speaker Spotlight!
Want to become a DSF Speaker? Apply here!