About Me and Present Thread

I’m Duanne O’Brien.

I’ve spent the last couple of decades as a CTO building SaaS platforms at scale, leading listed companies and technology teams through hypergrowth, international expansion, and everything in between. Earlier in my career I worked extensively in large-scale enterprise integration, connecting complex systems across complex organisations.

I’ve been fortunate to design, build and operate platforms exported globally, recognised with NZ Hi-Tech Awards, and used by hundreds of millions of people for brands including McDonald’s and Booking.com.

I’m a Board advisor, mentor, and regular public speaker. I also serve on Customer Advisory Boards, including MongoDB.

But Present Thread isn’t a résumé.

What has stayed with me isn’t just the platforms, it’s how they evolved, how we evolved, and how I evolved. It’s how people respond to pressure. How leadership bends without breaking. How systems, technical and human, reveal their truth under load.

Present Thread is where I explore what I’m seeing now, and what I think is coming next. Of all the threads in motion, which one is the present thread?

This isn’t a framework or a playbook. It’s what I’ve seen work, what I’ve seen fail, and how those experiences shape how I think about the future. I’m comfortable being wrong. But I’m committed to saying clearly what feels true from where I stand.

It’s rooted in patina and, over time, it should produce patina.

You’ll find field notes, technical reflections, leadership perspectives, and open thinking here. Sometimes sharp. Sometimes soft. Always honest.

As I commit to every team I’ve led: you can ask me anything, and I’ll answer as honestly as I can.

If any of this resonates, I’m glad you’re here.