At the XT25 Fintech Conference, Rob Moffat, Senior Technical Architect at FINOS, explored a refreshing perspective on building software: treat all work as risk management.
In his talk, ‘Risk-First Software Development’, Rob drew on concepts like the Lindy Effect, the idea that the longer a technology has survived, the longer it is likely to keep going, and applied them to engineering decision-making. He challenged attendees to see software development not just as delivering features, but as a continuous process of identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks.
From the trade-offs of adding unit tests to the pitfalls of overly complex codebases, Rob highlighted how each decision impacts the balance between speed, safety, and sustainability.
His central message:
The basic problem of software development is risk.
With a mix of humour, references to pop culture, and practical frameworks from riskfirst.org, Rob left the audience with a powerful reminder: whether it is adopting AI or shipping your next release, success depends on managing uncertainty as deliberately as you manage your roadmap.
Watch the full talk here:
Access Rob’s slides here.
To discover Financial Services offerings at JUXT, visit: https://www.juxt.pro/financial.
