I'm Josh, a CTO based in Leeds with over a decade leading engineering in product-led businesses. I also founded All Day Hey!, one of the UK's longest-running independent technology conferences, and host Off Script, a podcast on engineering leadership and AI.https://joshnesbitt.dev/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/a-conference-is-a-physical-network-of-incredible-people/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/a-conference-is-a-physical-network-of-incredible-people/Earlier this month, we delivered the final All Day Hey! conference, our tenth edition. I've been reflecting in the aftermath of the event as people have published their thoughts on the day and said many lovely things, about the purpose of events like ours and how their existence is fundamental to our industry.Fri, 22 May 2026 12:00:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/building-my-own-llm-operating-system-ctos/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/building-my-own-llm-operating-system-ctos/A conversation with Jack a few months ago set me off on an idea that radically changed how I work. We were talking about how skills in Claude could add an intelligent layer on top of the notes I'd been keeping in Obsidian for years. By the end of it, I'd started building something tailored to how I work as a CTO.Fri, 24 Apr 2026 12:00:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/misleading-accessibility-claims-are-a-breach-of-learner-trust/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/misleading-accessibility-claims-are-a-breach-of-learner-trust/The Title II requirements are a timely reminder to make sure your accessible design is up to scratch. But the gold standard for accessible design isn’t that it’s ‘compliant’, it’s that you’re thoughtful and transparent about what users can expect (and trust) from their experience with your products.Tue, 06 Jan 2026 15:00:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/the-real-cost-of-incusion/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/the-real-cost-of-incusion/Every year, the tech industry produces another round of award ceremonies aimed at celebrating women and underrepresented groups. They arrive dressed in the language of empowerment—shining a light, giving a platform, amplifying voices. But a closer look into the logistics of some of these awards reveals the need for nominees to buy their time in the spotlight.Fri, 05 Sep 2025 14:00:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/an-experienced-team-sails-calmly-through-uncertainty/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/an-experienced-team-sails-calmly-through-uncertainty/Following a rebrand to Genio earlier this month, I've been reflecting on how teams are set up to navigate uncertainty and tight deadlines while preserving culture.Wed, 18 Jun 2025 13:00:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/the-real-threat-isnt-ai-its-the-discourse-surrounding-it/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/the-real-threat-isnt-ai-its-the-discourse-surrounding-it/It’s possible to believe AI is one of the most transformative tools of our time and that most of what’s being sold as AI is smoke and mirrors, or worse, complete bollocks. Both can be true.Fri, 06 Jun 2025 13:00:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/non-performative-allyship/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/non-performative-allyship/Allyship is often spoken about in diversity initiatives, but too frequently, it lacks grounding in day-to-day behavior or a company’s reality. It's important that we challenge that. True allyship isn’t performative, it’s operational and cultural.Thu, 29 May 2025 13:00:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2025/https://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2025/The fact that I'm writing this review of 2025 in April 2026 indicates how crazy the past year has been. I've never grown so much personally and professionally as in 2025. I've also found new ways to deeply focus on difficult work amongst the chaos.Sat, 12 Apr 2025 12:00:00 GMTreviewshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/the-state-of-leeds-nightlife/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/the-state-of-leeds-nightlife/Last night I had the pleasure of hosting a panel at the Leeds Night Time Economy Group launch. The panel highlighted clear failures where support just isn't there, or friction is being introduced in areas where support is obvious and much easier to provide (over financial backing or licencing challenges).Thu, 20 Mar 2025 12:00:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2024/https://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2024/2024 was a year of gratefulness matched with a change of pace. Not a restful change, but a rewarding one. I spent time focusing on myself and my family, as well as continuing my journey of leadership. It was a very reflective year, where I asked myself a lot of questions about what is important, and what productivity meant to me in an environment that was full of distractions.Fri, 17 Jan 2025 17:00:00 GMTreviewshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/soft-skills-are-what-make-us-human/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/soft-skills-are-what-make-us-human/For a long time, I've enjoyed working with teams to build exceptional products. A core part of that is facilitating clear communication and working practices to ensure we do the best job we can. Working on communication, organisation, and decision making structures is just as much of a creative act as the coding itself.Wed, 08 Jan 2025 14:40:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/the-conference-dream-team/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/the-conference-dream-team/Last year I learned that making yourself redundant is vital to scaling events. Create processes and systems that mean you are replaceable. Not because you want to be replaced but because if you want to create something of permanence, it’s a requirement.Fri, 26 Jul 2024 13:00:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/completing-a-stage-at-the-black-swan-in-oldstead/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/completing-a-stage-at-the-black-swan-in-oldstead/I had wanted to do a stint in a professional kitchen for some time, so when the opportunity arose to do one at The Black Swan in Oldstead - a restaurant awarded a star from the Michelin guide - I jumped at it.Fri, 02 Feb 2024 15:00:00 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2023/https://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2023/2023 kicked me firmly in the face. The highs were high. The lows were low. I learnt a lot about myself and my perseverance while traversing the unknown. I write these reviews just as much for myself as well as anyone who wants to read them. They're an excellent opportunity to reflect on the events of a year and how I carry their lessons into the next one.Thu, 18 Jan 2024 09:51:31 GMTreviewshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/consistency/https://joshnesbitt.dev/thoughts/consistency/Last week, I was at an event discussing how long I'd been running the Hey! Presents events for (10 years as of a few weeks ago), and the person I was talking to asked how I'd stuck with it for so long.Mon, 26 Jun 2023 12:01:34 GMTthoughtshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2022/https://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2022/Last year was one of the most memorable and action-packed years to date. As events sprung back into action following years of COVID lockdowns, and people became more confident and eager to reconvene life, the calendar filled up with events, parties, weddings and work commitments.Thu, 09 Feb 2023 10:00:00 GMTreviewshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2021/https://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2021/As another turbulent year has drawn to a close, I'm jotting down my usual thoughts on achievements from the past year. Sometimes progression isn't obvious, like a promotion or finishing a particular project, but I'm a firm believer that we grow for the better through difficult times.Thu, 14 Jan 2021 10:00:00 GMTreviewshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2020/https://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2020/What a year 2020 was. I'm posting a shorter version of my usual review here, because quite frankly while I achieved a lot last year, I'm absolutely exhausted. As with most people, the move to working remotely full-time has been difficult because the boundaries between home and work life have been even more blurred than before.Mon, 11 Jan 2021 10:00:00 GMTreviewshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2019/https://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2019/At the start of 2019, I took a long-overdue break to see friends in Abu Dhabi. It was the first time I had made a "proper" trip at the start of the year, so when I got back, I vowed to try and do it every year. There's a great feeling coming out of the Christmas chaos to then go on a break to gather your thoughts. So when the start of 2020 came round, I did just that.Sat, 01 Feb 2020 10:00:00 GMTreviewshttps://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2018/https://joshnesbitt.dev/reviews/2018/I'm currently sat writing this post on the 59th floor of the World Trade Center building in Abu Dhabi. To be quite honest, Abu Dhabi wasn’t that high up on my list of places to visit until our best friends moved here just over a year ago. Since then, we made it our mission to experience it. There are plenty of Western misconceptions about this place that’s for sure.Wed, 09 Jan 2019 10:00:00 GMTreviews