about me
David Anthony Czubala
Senior Technology Leader / Enterprise/Solutions/Service Architect / People Manager
Together we can do anything… after coffee. — Anonymous
Find me on LinkedIn here:
I have been obsessed with technology for a long time.
Ever since the Commodore 64 / VIC20 came out and I programmed my first "Hello World" in BASIC, I moved onto programming computers and playing games on x286/386/486 CPU's. At University (studying Computer Engineering) I learnt to program 8086 chips using Assembler. I learnt on Unix and Windows PC's to program in Fortran, C++, Modula-2 and Basic. Studying electrical engineering, I learned how software and hardware work together (i.e. electrical signals with a falling or rising voltage, setting the registers to a 1 or 0).
However my dream was always to fly in a fast jet. I thought me needing to wear glasses meant I never would. But when an opportunity arose in to join the RAAF on a specialised course, I took it, and was fortunate enough to secure one of only 5 spots being offered that year across Australia.
After my time in the RAAF ended (where I trained to be an Air Defence Controller, spending every spare moment trying to get in the back seat of any aircraft I could), I left air force life and began my career in technology.
I first started out in technical computer component sales, where my clients loved me (but not necessarily my sales managers); as I would tell people what I honestly believed was the best technology for them (sometimes directing them to other vendors).
Afterwards I moved into software and hardware support, as a systems engineer, where I learnt how to troubleshoot & diagnose system problems, deploying IT solutions, before moving into enterprise technology solution delivery, management and technology/enterprise architecture.
More recently I've been...
Evangelising about the adoption of Cloud (while also warning companies of the unexpected or hidden costs that would wreck havoc on many an OPEX).
Preaching at the alter of technology standardisation & systems management telemetry, I extolled the many benefits of the visibility and consistent service, known costs and easy (ok, easier...) troubleshooting, that having a control suite and a set of blueprints and patterns delivers.
Telling horror stories to scare (aka educate) many a C-suite member of security breaches causing real and/or reputational damage to a company, when they didn't have their Cybersecurity posture at an appropriate level of maturity.
Now I find I'm spending more time talking about AI (educating people about hype and capability).
For example, I really like the benefits AI can deliver as a tool, as an automation service and as data collection and analysis engine.
It is very very good at:
The rapid recording & summation of meeting data.
The superhuman speed that it can collect & collate research material.
The ability it has to distill & present the information in a pleasing format for your target audience.
The automation capabilities and integration ease that AI now has, enabling what would have taken many weeks to accomplish complex tasks, now takes hours.
What's not to love about AI?
Well, I passionately dislike the way AI can lie (and no, I won't use the preferred marketing term the AI companies would like us all to use, when their product delivers responses that are not just marginally inaccurate, but completely incorrect).
It is a disconcerting aspect that AI companies have produced a service that we (as consumers) need to check not just the accuracy of the results, but whether or not the results are pure fiction!
Everyone using AI, needs to be aware of this, so they do not get caught out.
So my current guidance on AI: 'While AI is a valuable tool, approach it as you would an intern's work—always verify outputs before sharing them with your customers, your team or executive leadership.'
If you've gotten this far...
A few other things about me...
I love science (mainly physics, astrophysics and anything to do with space), history (ancient, modern), beaches and body surfing on beaches with sand (not pebbles), movies (all genres) and tabletop & video games. I am a Catholic who has been to church on 4 x continents, and awe struck by the works of Michaelangelo in Rome. I've been a fan of martial arts since childhood, training in Kyokushin Karate, Tae Kwon Do & Kung Fu (and dabbled in Aikido and Judo), being lucky to shake hands with a young Steven Seagal and been trained by Jeff Speakman (of "The Perfect Weapon" fame).