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Icarian Forge

Dan West · A Portfolio · Open to Conversation & New Roles

Nearly 20 years in IT. Strategy, leadership, and hands-on with AI.

See the work ↓Résumé & certifications

I’m Dan West. A career in information technology taught me that good ideas rarely fail for lack of vision. They fail in the quieter places: adoption, trust, and whether anyone tells the builders what customers are actually saying. That’s where I like to work.

How I work, in short

Strategy. Leadership. Hands-on.

01 · Strategy

The big picture

Nearly twenty years in information technology taught me how it really gets chosen, built, rolled out and supported, and where it tends to stall.

02 · Leadership

The people in it

I set a clear direction and a high bar, then help the team clear it, with the customer’s voice in the room the whole way.

03 · Hands-on

The small print

I still like doing the work. I use AI every day and build with it: everything here was made with Claude.

My Portfolio

AI projects, applications and works.

About · Why this portfolio

Great capability doesn’t change the world. Capability that people understand, trust and use well does.

Why “Icarian Forge”

Everyone remembers that Icarus fell. Fewer remember that he flew. The forge is the unglamorous part before the flight, where the wings get built, tested and rebuilt. Aim high, respect the sun, and keep building.

01
Begin with the personWho it’s for and why it matters, settled before anyone opens a laptop.
02
Then read the small printA strategy only counts once it’s delivered. I keep the team pointed at done, and help carry it there.
03
Adoption is the productCapability means little until people trust it and use it well. I make sure the builders hear the customer.
04
Keep a human in the loopAI drafts, people decide.
05
Use what I recommendI don’t advise on AI I haven’t used myself. Everything here was built hands-on with it.

AI certifications

MIT Professional EducationApplied Generative AI · 2025 AnthropicClaude Certified Associate – Foundations DeepLearning.AIAI For Everyone GoogleAI Essentials Claude Academy2 courses IAPP AIGPIn progress

Contact

Tell me what you’re working on.

I’m open to new roles leading strategy and the teams that bring it to life. Even if the timing isn’t right, I’d enjoy the conversation. I’m always glad to talk through how my projects were conceived and built.

hello@icarianforge.comLinkedIn ↗