"What I had to do was actually work the store for a day… The store manager said to me, you need to go out there and see what it's like to be a customer in that retail environment. And I always think about that when I'm in a software company looking at product development - how do I do it as a user? What do I go through?"
Listen now:
Darren Wu is a project manager and data specialist who describes himself as "the MacGyver of data and technology projects." Currently, he works for a software company implementing AI optimisation tools for baggage handling with autonomous vehicles at Singapore airport. Previously, he has worked across multiple industries managing data, technology projects, and stakeholder relationships. Darren is also the Sydney lead for Generalist World, where he regularly hosts community meetups focused on creating genuine connections without pressure.
What you'll learn
How to get diverse teams speaking the same language using glossaries and visual communication across global organizations
Why using AI as a "trained co-pilot" on your own content creates better outputs than generic prompts
How treating your role like a customer experience helps you stay connected to the real problems you're solving
Some takeaways
Creating a shared language across technical and non-technical teams requires comprehensive glossaries and visual documentation. Darren maintains company glossaries to track acronyms and industry jargon, then complements this with visual documentation using photos and diagrams. Pictures break down language barriers more effectively than written explanations, especially when working with global teams spanning different accents, technical abilities, and cultural contexts.
Using AI as a trained co-pilot on your own content produces far better results than generic prompting. Darren uses RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) approaches where he trains the AI on his own writing first. For CVs or job applications, he provides the AI with all his previous work so it understands his voice and experience, then uses it to create first drafts that reflect his actual expertise rather than generic AI-generated content.
Treating your role like a customer experience keeps you grounded in solving real problems rather than abstract technical challenges. Darren learned this when a retail manager asked him to work in-store for a day to understand the customer journey firsthand. This "walking the aisles" approach taught him to always consider what users actually experience, a perspective that's especially valuable in software and technology roles where it's easy to drift from end-user needs.
Generalist World events succeed because they remove the transactional pressure typical of industry networking. Unlike traditional industry events where vendors hustle to sell and attendees are cautious about being pitched to, GW meetups create space for genuine curiosity and helpfulness. The measure of success isn't what happens during the event, it's how many people continue meeting up afterward without waiting for the next organised gathering.
Links
Where to find Darren Wu
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darrenwu/
Website: https://tutxi.com/
Where to find Milly
Website: http://www.millytamati.com/
Generalist World Resources
🙏 Special thanks to our podcast producer James McKinven! (get in touch for all your podcast needs, he’s really great!)
