Find the Repeated Work Before You Buy More Technology

Eoin Hinchy described a capable security team facing a growing operational burden. Better detection and more information did not automatically translate into more time to investigate difficult problems.

In his Fireside Chat conversation, he recalled analysts moving between tools, working through alerts, updating tickets and repeating tasks. He connected that manual workload with burnout, errors and difficulty scaling the operation.

The problem helped motivate his search for automation that practitioners could use reliably without becoming software engineers. He later described building the product he had wanted for his own team.

Look at the work between the tools

The central lesson is the need to understand where a team's time goes. A technology inventory describes what is installed. It does not necessarily describe the repetitive steps people perform to make those systems useful together.

Hinchy's account was specific about the operational burden. That specificity made the problem more concrete than a general wish to automate. The team needed to complete important processes consistently while reducing the amount of repeated manual handling.

For security leaders, the editorial application is to examine a recurring workflow from beginning to end. Identify where a person gathers the same information, moves it elsewhere or performs a predictable follow-up. Those observations can shape requirements before a product discussion begins.

This archive story is not a current comparison or endorsement of automation products. Its enduring value is the sequence of thought: observe the work, identify the constraint and define what a dependable improvement would need to accomplish. Hinchy's experience began with the team's problem, and that problem gave the technology a purpose.

Listen to the original conversation with Eoin Hinchy · Read the transcript

From the Fireside Chat archive: original episode published 2022-10-21. This is an editorial reflection on that conversation, not a new interview or an update on the guest’s current role.