Dr. Joseph Sweeney

I’m a veteran of IT industry, having begun my career in software development & deployment back in days when “it was not a computer unless you could walk through it.” I was there at the birth of the desktop revolution, through the shift to client-server, and now the cloud. It’s been quite a rollercoaster ride… and it just keeps getting faster and more interesting.

Over the past 30+ years, a sharp sense of curiosity has kept me on the cusp of technological and cultural change This includes: – developing early ‘big data’ analytics for fraud detection – turning around and selling on a tech PR company – founding the first commercial Internet company in the Asia – creating a successful mixed-media gaming publisher – doctoral research on the ICT policy and implementation in education All of this has kept me deeply involved in the intersection of technology, people, culture & policy.

What I’m Doing Today? As an Advisor (industry analyst) with IBRS, I strive to simplify the complexities faced by organisations when moving from the past ‘desktop / office” business model to new innovative workplace models. I work with a diverse range of clients, helping them tease out what the future holds for their business and their staff.

Then we get down to the nitty-gritty of how to get from now to the ideal future: the policies, tools, tech, governance, measures, and workplace changes needed.

It is one thing to have a future-state vision. It is entirely another thing to map out the path to get there! What Does My Future Hold? Change. That is one certainty. But I’m a scientific futurist. Tech changes are easy to plot & predict. It’s the cultural side of the equation that is difficult to envision accurately.

My goal is to continue creating clarity & offering pragmatic and implementable advice to business leaders looking towards the future.