Shane Gibson

As a Agile Architect I help organisations ensure the right things are built as well ensuring things are built right

The role of an agile architect

If you are looking to adopt a new data architecture or platform, I can help describe the options, evaluate these to determine the best fit and craft a data blueprint which outlines a reference architecture to be implemented.  I can then assist your team to deliver this.

If you are already in the process of implementing a new data architecture or data platform, I can provide the role of Architecture Owner to facilitates the evolution of the overall solution design and provide ownership of architecture decisions to help minimise roadblocks for your team.

Bio’s

Shane's Background

I am known for my practical, no-nonsense approach to solving complex data challenges. With over 30 years of experience, I’ve dedicated my career to helping organisations design, deliver, and scale their data practices by adopting innovative patterns that simplify how data teams work.

Drawing on my experience as a consultant, architect, agile coach, and product manager, I iterate and publish patterns and pattern templates to bridge the gap between technical data teams and business stakeholders, ensuring alignment in delivering valuable outcomes.

I have worked in the Data and Analytics domain in a variety of roles including Agile Data Coach, Agile Data Architect (Enterprise, Solution and Data), Agile Data Trainer, DataOps Coach, Presales Consultant and Company Founder.

Between 1996 and 2007 I worked with major international data and analytics software companies including QSP, Oracle and SAS.  In 2008 I founded OptimalBI, a multi-million dollar Business Intelligence consultancy based in Wellington New Zealand, which I sold in 2025.  Since 2013 one of my focuses has been coaching New Zealand teams on how to deliver Data and Analytics using an Agile mindset and Agile Data patterns and in 2018 I founded PitchBlack to focus on the delivery of Agile Data coaching.  In 2019 I co-founded a startup, AgileData.io, with the aim of removing the complexity of managing data by combining a Software as a Service (SaaS) data platform with proven AgileData Ways of Working.

I am the host of the AgileData Podcast and was one of the founding co-hosts of the No Nonsense Agile Podcast for the first 113 episodes

I have authored a number of courses including Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language , Big Data courses for Cloud Academy and a series of Agile Data private courses for data teams.

An experienced public speaker, Shane regularly speaks at local and international conferences and meetups on subjects across the Agile, Product and Data domain.

I have published my first book in the Agile Data Guide series,  An Agile Data Guide to Information Product Canvas.

I have worked with both private and public organisations such as Accident Compensation Corporation, AMP, ANZ Bank, Contact Energy, Department of Corrections, Farm Focus, Fire and Emergency New Zealand, Genesis Energy, Meridian, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Justice, New Zealand on Air, New Zealand Transport Agency,  Oranga Tamariki, PowerCo, Powershop,  Taranaki Savings Bank, Telecom NZ, Tertiary Education Commission, Vector and Xero.

Agile Architect Bio

Shane has worked in the data and analytics domain in a variety of architecture roles, assisting a wide range of public and private organisations.

This has included crafting architecture documents to provide data blueprints, modern reference architectures, data management frameworks and master data management strategies.

Shane has worked across a myriad of technologies and techniques from traditional relational based platforms and tools, though the advent of self service visualisation and big data platforms.  He is now actively engage with a number of organisations deploying modern data platforms leveraging a combination of cloud and open source capabilities.

Shane has been the architecture owner or technical lead on a number of data implementations.

Timeline of engagements where I have helped organisations in the role of Agile Architect

Programme Technical Adviser – EDAP Implementation

Oranga Tamariki
Enterprise Data and Analytics Platform
Aug 21 – Mar 22

Programme technical advisor assisting Oranga Tamariki with implementing an Enterprise Data and Analytics Platform capability.

Included:

  • Lead the platform design and build workstream
  • Contributed to the design of a Modern Data Platform
  • Lead the selection of data collection, ELT, version control and IAC components
  • Supported other EDAP workstreams

Programme Technical Adviser- EDAP Procurement

Oranga Tamariki
Enterprise Data and Analytics Platform
Nov 20 – July 21

Programme technical advisor assisting Oranga Tamariki with creating an Enterprise Data and Analytics Platform capability.

Included:

  • Validation and updating of capability architecture
  • Creation of a reference architecture
  • Advice on agile data way of working
  • Co-creation of Request for Proposal
  • Providing support and advice throughout the RFP process, resulting in the successful selection of a implementation vendor

Agile Data Consultant

Oranga Tamariki
Performance Management Project Review
Sep 20 – Nov 20

Reviewed an inflight Performance Management delivery project and provided options and recommendations to improve the technical maturity of the project.

Agile Data Coach

Contact Energy
Data and Analytics Platform Modernisation
Mar 19 – Mar 20

Coached the performance, data and analytics team as part of the implementation of a new data platform.

Highlights:

  • Scaled from 1 squad to 5 squads, including cross organisation squads
  • Introduced a number of agile scaling patterns from Spotify
  • Assisted with the platform roadmap and architecture
  • Combination of AWS and open source technology platform

 

Agile Data Coach

PowerCo
Data and Analytics Platform Modernisation
Nov 18 – Mar 20

Coached the data and analytics team as part of the implementation of a new data platform.

Highlights:

  • Mentored a number of internal scrum masters
  • Operated under a remote first team structure
  • Reviewed the initial platform architecture options
  • Google Cloud and open source technology platform

Data Blueprint

AMP NZ
Data Blueprint
Aug 19 – Sep 19

Delivered a data blueprint to provide a future state Operating Model, Architecture and Technology platform to enable the replacement of the legacy data platform with a modern data and analytics capabilities.

 

Business Analytics Blueprint

PHARMAC
Business Analytics Blueprint
Oct 18 – Dec 18

Delivered a business analytics blueprint provide a future state Operating Model and Technology platform to enable  improvements in the organisations analytics capabilities.

 

Technical Lead – Analytics 2.0 (Big Data) Platform

Technical Lead – Analytics 2.0 (Big Data) Platform

Accident Compensation Corporation
Analytics 2.0 Project
Mar 18 – Sept 18

Lead the technical delivery of an Analytics platform utilising integrated Attunity, MapR and SAS Viya capabilities deployed in both Azure and AWS.

Coached internal BI and data teams on implementing new data, analytics and content using an AgileBI approach.

Delivery Lead – Client Transformation Data

Delivery Lead – Client Transformation Data

Accident Compensation Corporation
Client Transformation Data
Nov 17 – Feb 18

I lead a multiple phase review of the impact on critical business data as a result of the organisational wide implementation of the  Client Transformation programme.

Phase 1 resulted in a recommended approach and roadmap for implementation,  Phase 2 resulted in a successful Proof of Concept of a Big Data Vault.

Read more

Solution Architect – R Platform

Solution Architect – R Platform

New Zealand Transport Agency
R Platform
Oct 17 – Dec 17

Solution Design and Proof of Concept to move NZTA Statistical Analysts from using R Studio on local desktops to using R on Azure Virtual Desktop Servers based on the Microsoft Azure Data Science Virtual Machine (DSVM).

Read more

Enterprise Architect – Enterprise Information and Data Thought Leadership

Accident Compensation Corporation
Analytics 2.0 Project
Aug 17 – Oct 17

Assisting ACC with understanding how they will change and adapt their approach to operational reporting, warehousing, use of information/ data, and analytics as part of a large transformation programme.

Delivered a set of Enterprise Data Principals and Patterns as well as a Reference Archtecture based on a “Big Data Warehouse” approach.

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Architect – BI Platform Replacement

New Zealand Transport Agency
BI Platform Replacement
Feb 17 – Oct 17

Developed the Cloud Architecure to deploy an end to end Data Vault and BI solution into the Microsoft Azure Cloud.

Included:

    • Microsoft SQL Server
    • Microsoft Master Data Services
    • BIML data acqusition
    • Data Vault
    • Qlik Sense Enterprise
    • Sql Server Reporting Services

Also included the assisting with the PIA and Cloud Assesment process and all the other onerous processes required when you are deploying the first production nearshore cloud solution for a NZ government agency.

Read more

Enterprise Architect – Master Data Management Review and Roadmap

Advanced Metering Services
Analytics 2.0 Project
Dec 14 – Dec 14

Delivered a Master Data Management review and roadmap for AMSr.

Included Reference Data, SOA/ESB and Governance components of MDM.

Read more

Solution Architect – Advanced Security Model

Ministry of Justice
SAS Security Project
Mar 13 – Mar 13

Designed and implemented an advanced security model within SAS 9.3 for a large Government Department.

Included:

  • Row level security
  • Column level masking
  • Removing shared identities (Pooled workspace server etc)
  • Multiple environments, Dev, UAT, Discovery, Production
  • Release process across environments.
Read more

Solution Architect – Data Integration

Contact Energy
SAS Data Integration for SAP
Dec 12 – Dec 12

The OptimalBI team combined with the install and configuration firepower of Australian Scorpio partners implemented the SAS Data Surveyor for SAP components required to extract data from SAP B/W and load it into Oracle.

Solution Architect – Greenfields BI/EDW

Earthquake Commission
BI/EDW Project
Oct 12 – Aug 13

Solution Architect for a Microsoft SQL Server 2012 & Sharepoint 2013 BI/DW environment.

Members of OptimalBI are also providing implementation, data integration and report development skills for the build phase.

Deployment includes:

  • Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Enterprise edition
  • SSRS
  • SSAS (Tabular and OLAP)
  • SSIS
  • PowerPivot and PowerView
  • Visual Studio/Report Designer
  • Sharepiont 2013
  • Attunity Change Data Capture
Read more

Enterprise Architect – Master Data Management

NZTA
Master Data Management Strategy
Mar 12 – Apr 13

The OptimalBI team delivered a Master Data Management (MDM) strategy and roadmap to articulate how the organisation can harness the myriad of data sources and ensure a single view of each data entity is available and managed.

Coach & Solution Architect – EDW

Ministry of Justice
Oracle Enterprise Data Warehouse
Sep 11 – Jun 12

Provided a mentoring and leadership role to assist in defining the solution Architecture for a Oracle based EDW project for a Government Agency.

Included:

– Oracle Golden Gate, RAC, ODI, OLAP EDW platform
– Integration with SAS BI Environment
– Complex Data Masking Security requirements/analysis
– Assistance in RFP process and evaluation
– Proof of Concept
– Project team and BAU team structure recommendations

Solution Architect – EDW

Housing New Zealand
Data Warehouse
Jan 08 – Jun 10

Ensured the success of Phase 3 of the data warehouse and introducing a more structured development approach.

This required the development of a three year roadmap and the creation of a new team with additional Data Warehousing and Business Intelligence resources.

Key Responsibilities

  • Design map for the Data Warehouse for the next three years;
  • Design and develop the role out of SAS Strategic Performance Management to support the organisations Statement of Intent, Management and Operational reporting requirements;
  • Design the Business Intelligence reporting architecture to support business users ranging from general report viewers through to advanced analysts;
  • Oversee the DI and BI team leads;
  • Implement, maintain and enhance the Wiki environment, which provides a collaborative and centralised environment to store all business rules, development standards and other supporting information