Embolster Services is me, Michael Shaffer. I’m an independent technology consultant based in Wantirna, working with growing businesses across Melbourne.

Why independent matters

Most technology advice businesses get comes from someone with something to sell. I know, because I spent five years being that person, selling and architecting solutions for Melbourne businesses. Before that I was the one being sold to, running IT departments. I do this independently now because I’ve seen how that advice gets built.

I’m pragmatic about this stuff. Technology usually does make things work better. Deciding is sometimes the hard part: knowing a solution is right, and being confident enough to commit to it. That’s where businesses stall. I help cut through the analysis paralysis and get to a decision.

Background

I’ve worked in IT since 1999, most of it in management and delivery. I ran IT for Siemens across Australia and New Zealand, and before that managed IT in a global water company. I’ve led outsourcing programs, IT transformations, and the IT workstreams through mergers and divestitures.

More recently I moved to the other side of the table, spending five years with IT integrators designing solutions for clients across varying business types.

My industry experience is varied: water, energy, health, transport, mining, manufacturing, automation and software. So are the business functions, from R&D, production and logistics through to sales, service and administration. It means I’ve usually seen a version of your problem somewhere before.

I hold a Master of Management (Information Technology) with Distinction from Charles Sturt, and a Graduate Certificate of Management from Macquarie Graduate School of Management.

Long before any of it I worked as a chef. Hospitality teaches you that people remember how you made them feel. That one stuck.

What I work on

Day to day: technology strategy, platform selection, processes, costs. I follow what’s happening across the industry and where it’s going wrong. And I still get a kick out of it when a piece of technology genuinely makes someone’s job easier.

Details