Gift Ideas

Clothing

• This is high risk but I've done a brain dump on what I like and don't like here

Electronics

• One thing I never seem to run out of is charger plugs like this one which are A) Super small, B) From a reliable brand, C) 65w or higher, and D) Have 2 usb-c outlets. I don't like the ones that work in every country because they're so clunky, so I tend to just have each of the 3 different plug type - EU, IE, and US. The EU one is usually best to have multiple of - I only really need one of each of the other types.

Other

Resintek "Liquid Wax": I found this in the Philippines and it's by far the best hair product I've used. I used to buy it on Amazon NL but it looks like they stopped selling it, and I also checked a half dozen online stores where it's also out of stock, so we may need to go the international route. Seb man has other products but it's this one specifically - in the pointy applicator bottle, that I'm looking for

• Link One

• 

Today's issue related to Revolut.

• Receive email - "You need to update your info to keep using the service"

• Click through, scan qr code, open the app.

• Brings me to a UI to add my details. Looks like it's for the trading account specifically.

• The only unfilled field is Nationality.

• Click in, select Ireland, go back to main screen.

• But the main screen still hasn't updated, and still shows "Add Nationality"

• Repeat this 4 or 5 times - doesn't work

• Now I have to spend time reaching out to live chat, explaining the issue, because of a bug they have. And if I don't do that they threaten to shut down my account 🤦‍♂️

• Lunch: Khan's meal

• Snack: Yogurt plus berries plus honey, x2

• Call: Tony Alex Megan Ciaran Call - call notes logged separately

• Update: Karlo available to start next Wednesday. Still needs to confirm contract but provisionally pencilled in

Update: Tony & Megan both posted into internal channel - snippets:

• Megan: Shared the spec of backend sims

• Tony: Priorities are:

  • Jen - pick up and finish Jason's ticket plz. After that plz start to look at the chrome extension ticket

  • Joey - let us know (roughly) how long you have left in your backend ticket

  • Lastly, I think we should do a call to disseminate all the context Megan & myself have gathered on the backend sims product, which is quite technical. Any chance tomorrow would suit people any time from 5:30 to 7pm Manila?

Patrick <> Tonic <> Ciaran <> Megan Call

Current Design System Status

• Components live at design.solidroad.com (no login required)

• Two-way sync between Figma and dev not fully implemented

  • Code Connect feature paid for but only partially set up

  • Missing documentation and storybook stories for many components

  • Some components don’t match designs (e.g., button loading state is static image)

• Process gaps: no formal design review/sign-off workflow established

Design System Completion Requirements

• Documentation needed for each component:

  • Developer docs (technical implementation details)

  • PM/usage docs (when to use menu vs select, etc.)

  • Code Connect integration for LLM context

  • Complete storybook stories

• Single master documentation file recommended for LLM tool selection

• Ciaran to write usage guidelines, engineers to handle technical docs

• All components must match Figma designs exactly

App UI Redesign Project

• 116 navigable pages identified via Patrick’s analytics script

• Pages ranked by traffic volume for prioritization

• Three categories of work:

  • High-traffic pages need full UX redesign (top 5-10)

  • Mid-tier pages use design system with minor updates

  • Low-traffic pages get basic design system application

• Megan managing project tracking in Asana, engineering tickets in Linear

• Some pages already redesigned (quality section, some settings)

Backend Sims Current State

• Chrome extension records DOM interactions, saves to backend

• Reliability issues: ~50% failure rate for recording/playback

• Current designs not source of truth - live implementation is

• Two-iframe architecture creates constraints vs original Figma designs

• Hotspots system working but needs polish and Ciaran’s design review

Backend Sims Technical Architecture

• Recording: Chrome extension captures DOM events during screen recording

• Playback: Uses RRWeb for full recording, snapshots for step-by-step interaction

• Security model: No same-origin + scripts to prevent malicious code execution

• Hotspots: Draggable/droppable system accommodates iframe positioning constraints

• Input validation: New hotspot type for form field checking (in development)

Backend Sims Remaining Work

• Priority areas identified:

  • Chrome extension reliability fixes

  • Editor UI polish and Ciaran design approval

  • UX for adding flows to simulations

  • UX for showing flows within simulations

  • UX for standalone flow assignments

• Current add-to-simulation flow described as “criminal” - needs complete rework

Project Management & Communication

• Weekly 20-30 minute check-ins recommended initially

• Patrick may be unavailable during Series A fundraise (January)

• Alex to handle day-to-day communication when Patrick unavailable

• Megan stewarding overall project organization in Asana

• Engineering handoffs remain in Linear

Timeline & Capacity

• Design system: Highest priority for LLM integration

• App redesign: Systematic approach through page rankings

• Backend Sims: Focus on reliability first, then UX flows

• Patrick available until Series A fundraise begins

• Team capacity planning needed for sustained progress

• Chat with meeting transcript: https://notes.granola.ai/t/b3bca906-eb3d-450e-8b03-d03aa07db7c2

Nov 10 Solidroad Cycle

Nov 10 - Patrick Alex & Tony did a call - Takeaways were broadly under 3 headings

• Engineering velocity isn't where we'd like it to be. Jason isn't at the races. Joey seems oddly slow too. Jen is doing well.

• Engineering staffing - We'd like to take Jason off and also find someone at the level of Jen or Joey to come in, potentially more than one.

• Product Acceleration - we'd like to explore how Tonic can help to take one or more product streams and organize it, primarily to increase throughput but also to give more visibility on timelines and to be able to have high level planning conversations understanding where everything is.

Updates since then

Fixing Engineering Velocity

• I know that Joey's a superstar & had a hunch the metrics were off in some way. I had a chat with her, told her about the metrics, and asked Jen to get more deeply involved in distributing tickets. I think Joey had just been undertaking what was fed to her, which was potentially not high impact work, and weave grades on impact. As of Dec 1 these measures seem to have worked and the problem seems solved, but we should keep an eye on it too.

Accelerating the PM track

• We explored a few options - I had 3 sessions with an external consultant (Ahuva) before deciding to just draft Megan in as she had some capacity. I had thought this would be reasonably lightweight but after our sessions today & yesterday I'm not so sure. We'll need to monitor Megan's capacity closely here to make sure it remains viable.

Staffing

• I let Jason go & he finished up on Nov 28.

• Karlo (superstar I worked with back in First Circle days) coincidentally reached out and the timing was right for him to join. As of right now it's looking like he will start next Wednesday Dec 10, which will be exactly a month from our initial conversation in line with our 30 day replacement period.

• Separately, Earle fired up the recruiting machine and began interviewing, and has gone through several candidates, a few of whom are promising. We'll keep interviewing but for now it seems surplus to requirements given that Karlo is in.

Test update

• bla bla bla

Morning call with the team. Not much to report, still aiming to ship the rebrand build on Tuesday