Donegal’s vibrant tech landscape has just gained a powerful advocate for customer and user-driven innovation.
Chris Burgess, a fractional product leader providing part-time product strategy and delivery, has over a decade of experience working with global tech pioneers. He has recently relocated to the region and is planting deep roots with a clear mission: to make Donegal a leader in technology innovation.
“My experience working with extended reality has provided me with a snapshot into a wider problem within product development – the prioritisation of advancing technology capabilities over addressing customer needs. As a fractional product leader, my approach centres on delivering data-driven value, helping companies move beyond assumptions.”
Chris has a long history working in the XR, or ‘eXtended Reality’, industry — a broad term covering technologies like augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). For years, Chris worked at the forefront of this technology in the UK, starting at the AR startup Aurasma in London (later acquired by HP) and then leading product strategy at the innovative interaction company Ultraleap in Bristol.
Now based in Donegal, Chris is leveraging his experience with innovative tech to help businesses innovate thoughtfully, ensuring they prioritise their customers and users while preparing for the future.
“I’ve seen first-hand how fast innovation can outpace human needs. As a fractional product leader, I now help businesses navigate the challenge of aggregating and analysing fragmented customer insights to truly understand their users. And if I can encourage businesses to adopt XR in a way that’s meaningful, sustainable, and aligned with their long-term vision along the way, that’s even better!”
Bridging the Digital and Physical Divide
While Chris started out with a mission to help close the gap between emerging technology and its practical application, he quickly noticed that connecting tech to real-world problems is a much wider challenge. Drawing from experience in product development, strategic collaboration, and human-computer interaction, Chris provides fractional product strategy and UX expertise to help companies unlock their potential. The focus is on helping companies evolve the technologies they are promoting to serve the people they are selling to — by always keeping UX in mind.
“New tech is exciting, innovative, and a rewarding space to work in, but simply expecting people to want to use technology because it’s new isn’t enough,” Chris explained. “It needs to support KPIs, enhance existing workflows, and engage users meaningfully. That’s where I come in — helping businesses avoid common pitfalls and focus on lasting value.”
Donegal: A Strategic and Surprising Base for Tech
While Donegal might not be the first location that comes to mind when talking about cutting-edge tech, Chris sees that as part of its advantage.
“Moving here has brought a better work-life balance, clarity of focus, and a deeper appreciation for meaningful work,” he said. “The community support, mentoring, and events I’ve discovered through Local Enterprise Office, Donegal 2040’s Alpha Innovation, and the ii have been outstanding. There’s a quiet but powerful network here, and it’s growing.”
Chris recently took part in the Donegal 2040 Alpha Innovation Bootcamp in Letterkenny, joining 12 other aspiring entrepreneurs. There, he explored how companies struggle to align new products and features with customer and user needs — and began developing a new product idea that could help solve this challenge at scale.
A Vision for Donegal and Beyond
XR remains a personal passion for Chris. During this year’s Enterprise Week, he highlighted the global shift toward a new era of computing — from AI-powered smart glasses to immersive headsets replacing computer screens — and emphasised the enormous opportunity this presents.
“XR can make geographical barriers disappear. Imagine meeting your team virtually, each of you wearing a headset, with natural body and facial movements mirrored by your avatars. Intelligent audio even makes it easier to hear teammates nearby compared to those across the room. That’s the reality of XR technology today — and it’s only going to get better with companies like Apple and Google taking it seriously.”
Chris believes Donegal, with the right strategy and investment in promoting this technology, could attract more people to live and work in the region. His vision is expansive: to support businesses in deploying real-world XR solutions, grow thought leadership in the space, help shape a vibrant regional tech economy, and advocate for smarter, more inclusive adoption of XR across Ireland and Europe.
If your business is ready to transform fragmented customer feedback into clear product direction, Chris invites direct inquiries. Discover how his fractional product strategy and UX consulting can deliver impactful results.
For anyone intrigued by the potential of XR and curious about how emerging interfaces might impact their industry, Chris is eager to connect for an informal discussion.
For more information:
- Website: https://www.crwburgess.com/
- Book a 30 min chat: https://calendly.com/crwburgess/30min
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/crwburgess/
