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Monday 9am - 5:30pm Tuesday 9am - 5:30pm Wednesday 9am - 5:30pm Thursday 9am - 5:30pm Friday 9am - 5:30pm

Oval Business Solutions

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Oval Business Solutions

Boutique consultancy offering bespoke software development and social collaboration tools

Innovation, Creativity, Expertise, Productivity...

We provide a unique blend of business and technical expertise, consistently delivering high-quality, fit-for-purpose business solutions. We offer our clients a genuine means of increasing effectiveness through improved software, streamlined processes and smarter thinking.

15/10/2026

As 2027 budget and technology planning kicks off in earnest, many C-suite conversations are hitting the same wall:

➡️ "We've tested AI tools across our teams... so where is the measurable bottom-line impact?"

The shift from experimental AI to Practical AI is the defining challenge for enterprise tech strategy heading into 2027.

Industry forecasts show enterprise AI spend scaling rapidly, yet Gartner reports that 34% of CIOs still name legacy technical debt as their primary hurdle to real adoption.

Adding surface-level AI tools onto fragmented software architecture doesn't scale productivity... it compounds complexity.

For CEOs and CIOs mapping out their 2027 software roadmap, practical AI requires three foundational shifts:

1️⃣ RESOLVING TECH DEBT FIRST
AI assistants and automated logic require modern, well-structured codebases. Addressing core architectural debt isn't back-office maintenance anymore, it’s the prerequisite for AI performance.

2️⃣ ORCHESTRATION OVER ISOLATION
Moving away from point solutions toward integrated business systems that automate repetitive engineering and operational logic end-to-end.

3️⃣ MEASURING VALUE, NOT ADOPTION
Grounding tech investments in hard metrics, shorter release cycles, fewer system bottlenecks, and reduced operational overhead.
AI isn't a silver bullet, but when built on a solid architectural foundation, it can be a powerful operational multiplier.

If you'd like to sense check your 2027 software roadmap, we'd be happy to help.

Sources & Reference Data:
Gartner Research: Enterprise IT Spending & CIO Priorities Forecast
PwC Executive Insights: Scaling AI with Enterprise Governance & Architecture

13/10/2026

Not long now until Let's Connect in Stockholm! 🇸🇪

We've got a fantastic trio representing Oval Business Solutions in Sweden: Adam Foster, Doug Tait and Leah Capaldi-Robertson.

Adam and Doug will be taking to the stage to share a deep dive into practical AI and automation strategies for HCL Domino. Showing how you can harness tools like Domino IQ to build intelligent, high-impact business solutions without giving up data control or sovereignty.

If you're attending Let's Connect in Stockholm, we'd love to grab a coffee, catch up, and chat all things HCL Domino! ☕

01/10/2026

Next stop: Stockholm! 🇸🇪

First though, we thought it would be good to throwback to Engage 2026.

Six months on and the key message from the HCL Notes and Domino community is clearer than ever:
• AI adoption isn't just about capability... it's about control.

To recap, these were our key takeaways:

• Sovereign AI & Data Control: Keeping data, processing, and intelligence within your own environment is vital given the legal and geopolitical landscape.

• Practical Helpdesk AI: Our very own Adam Foster presented a practical session on embedding Domino IQ into helpdesk applications (and he'll be joined by Doug Tait at Let's Connect in Stockholm to share a new, improved version!).

• Context-Aware Notes Client: The new Notes client sidebar powered by Domino IQ brings intelligent, context-relevant responses directly into your active applications.

• Agentic AI with Leona: HCL's new platform allows full web-enabled Domino apps to be built directly from natural language prompts using native design elements.

If you'd like a complete recap of everything we shared and learned at the conference, catch up on our full blog post here: https://www.ovalbusinesssolutions.co.uk/thoughts/engage-2026?utm_source=Social+Media&utm_id=Social+Media

With both Adam and Doug taking to the stage as speakers, and Leah there with the team, we'd love to meet up with fellow attendees.

Let us know if you're attending Let's Connect, Stockholm—we'd love to grab a coffee and chat all things HCL Domino! ☕

📸 Doug Tait | Leah Capaldi-Robertson | Adam Foster

24/09/2026

With Let’sConnect around the corner on 22nd October, we’re excited to spotlight what our dream team will be bringing to the stage in Stockholm! 🎤

Doug Tait and Adam Foster be sharing real-world insights from the HCLSoftware ecosystem with:

• Helpdesk Using Domino IQ RAG (16:35 – 16:55)

Taking on the late-afternoon 'graveyard slot' at 16:35 requires a topic guaranteed to keep everyone awake, and Adam and Doug will deliver just that!

The dynamic duo will demonstrate how to build an intelligent support assistant using Domino IQ RAG. You’ll discover how adding AI to your existing Domino infrastructure can empower helpdesk teams, reduce downtime, and deliver accurate answers fast...all while keeping your data completely secure.

We can’t wait to connect and swap ideas with the HCL community in Sweden!

Let us know if you are going to be there.

16/09/2026

The Oval Business Solutions team is gearing up for Let’sConnect in Stockholm!

It’s going to be a brilliant day connecting with the HCLSoftware community, learning from technical experts, and catching up with HCL Software executives.

🌟 We’re super proud that both Doug and Adam will be speaking at this year’s Stockholm event, bringing their real-world expertise to the stage.

If you’re heading to Let’sConnect on 22nd October, come and say hi to one of the team:
Adam Foster | Leah Capaldi-Robertson | Doug Tait

Find out more: https://letsconnect.world/

11/09/2026

Data privacy is one of the biggest concerns holding businesses back from wider AI adoption.

So how can organisations benefit from AI without losing control of their data?

For businesses in regulated sectors, sending sensitive customer records, intellectual property or business-critical information to public cloud LLMs may simply not be an option.

The answer isn’t necessarily to hold back on AI. It’s to consider where the AI runs, and where your data stays.

That’s where HCL Domino IQ becomes particularly interesting for organisations already running Domino.

🖲️ AI grounded in your own knowledge
Domino IQ brings AI directly into the Domino environment, using Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) to help users find insights across their existing Domino data and documents.

🖲️ Security and access rights remain central
Domino IQ is designed to respect existing Domino user permissions, helping ensure that users only receive insights from information they’re already authorised to access.

🖲️ Keep sensitive information where it belongs
With Domino IQ operating within your own environment, sensitive business information can remain under your organisation’s control rather than being sent to third-party cloud AI services.

For organisations that have invested in Domino over the years, this creates an interesting opportunity:

• You don't necessarily need to replace your existing platform to take advantage of AI. You can build on what you already have.

At Oval Business Solutions, we’ve worked with Domino through its evolution from Lotus Notes and IBM Domino to HCL Domino. That means we understand not just the technology, but the business-critical applications and data that organisations have built around it.

Now, with Domino IQ, there’s an opportunity to bring that existing investment into the AI era — securely, practically and without losing control of your data.

Your Domino environment may already contain decades of valuable business knowledge. What could you do with it?

03/09/2026

Managing 700 drivers and 1,000 crew members on a single screen shouldn't feel impossible.

When a major US construction group went looking for a scheduling solution, they had a clear vision: they needed to see everything in one place. While others suggested multi-screen workarounds, the real key to the project was simple—we sat down, listened closely to the brief, and actually heard what the client needed.

At Oval Business Solutions, we believe the best software solutions come through collaboration and consultation, rather than trying to shoehorn an off-the-shelf product into a custom workflow.

By partnering closely with the team and focusing carefully on the user experience (UX) to eliminate unnecessary friction, we built a bespoke, browser-based solution that delivered exactly what was asked:

• Everything on one screen – intuitively handling 700+ drivers and 1,000+ crew members in real-time without forcing clunky, segmented views.

• Designed around the user – streamlining daily management with smart cloning and quick setups that respect the administrator's time.

• Built to last – running reliably for several years straight.

Complex challenges don't require compromises. Sometimes, the most powerful tool a software developer can bring to the table is simply a willingness to listen.

Head here to learn more:

https://www.ovalbusinesssolutions.co.uk/thoughts/impossible-challenge

27/08/2026

AI won't fix a bad process - it'll just do it faster.

Before you spend a single credit, try these token-free adjustments.

Recent industry studies show that 51% of employees spend at least two hours every day on repetitive, manual tasks—from copy-pasting data to chasing updates across screens.

The fastest performance multipliers live in the micro-adjustments within the platforms you already run:

• Automating single-step data handoffs: Linking web forms to custom workspaces like Podio via light APIs cuts manual entry by ~80% and eliminates human typing errors.
• Cutting 3 clicks out of daily tasks: Reconfiguring dashboards so primary actions take one click instead of three saves dozens of collective team hours every month.
• Refining notification triggers: Default alerts generate noise. Filtering triggers so teams only receive notifications when an item is actionable recovers focus immediately.

Digital transformation isn't always about building new system - it's about making your daily collaboration tools run cleaner, leaner, and faster.

Sources: This+that & Parsli

21/08/2026

On World Entrepreneurs Day, we're sharing five foundational lessons Tech Leaders can steal from the entrepreneurial playbook:

1️⃣ Steve Jobs: Build for simplicity, not complexity

"Simple can be harder than complex." Jobs understood that real engineering excellence isn't adding more features—it’s removing clutter until the system is intuitive.

2️⃣ Steven Bartlett: Speed of iteration beats perfection

On The Diary Of A CEO, Bartlett frequently highlights that waiting for a "perfect" plan means missing the market. In software strategy, agile iteration and continuous deployment beat sitting on legacy systems for years while waiting for a silver-bullet fix.

3️⃣ Melanie Perkins (Canva): Solve a massive, real-world friction point

Perkins didn't build Canva because she wanted to design software; she built it because design software was needlessly painful and inaccessible.

4️⃣ Jeff Bezos: Move from chaos to customer-centric control

Early Amazon was operational chaos. Bezos scaled it by ruthlessly building internal tools, infrastructure, and automation focused on one outcome: customer delivery. Growth demands transitioning from manual firefighting to automated systems.

5️⃣ Sir Richard Branson: Partner where you aren't the expert

Branson’s superpower has always been recognising what he doesn't know and hiring or partnering with specialists to build it.

Happy World Entrepreneurs Day - may every challenge fuel your creativity, and every win inspire your journey.

18/08/2026

If there's one place where clunky, delayed processes cause a proper nightmare, it’s the supply chain. When you’re dealing with hundreds of active users and endless approval forms, any friction feels amplified.

A major bugbear we hear from teams using HCL Domino as their workflow engine is the pressure to deliver modern, AI-assisted automation without breaking the existing setup.

The good news? You don’t need to jump ship to get the clever stuff.

At Oval Business Solutions, we specialise in weaving HCL’s latest AI and automation capabilities right into your existing processes. We help you build smarter, AI-assisted workflows to keep friction points to a minimum, and can even introduce AI chat to your existing application for interrogation... all while keeping your core platform intact and data sovereign.

Why risk a messy migration when you can simply supercharge the platform you already trust? Let’s have a natter about what’s possible.

Address

The Coach House, 16b High Street
Godalming
GU86BQ

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 5:30pm
Tuesday	9am - 5:30pm
Wednesday	9am - 5:30pm
Thursday	9am - 5:30pm
Friday	9am - 5:30pm

Website

http://www.ovalbusinesssolutions.co.uk/

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