When Jason first called Bri Bellavati with a job offer, her response was straightforward: “Jason, don’t you do something with computers? I was an English teacher and you are a computer guy – we were on opposite sides of the school.”
Today, as COO of SmartLogic, a custom software development shop founded in 2005, Bri’s journey from high school English teacher to tech leadership proves that non-traditional backgrounds often bring the most valuable perspectives to technology organizations.
Why Educators Excel in Tech Leadership
The assumption that tech careers require computer science degrees is being challenged by successful leaders like Bri who bring transferable skills that prove invaluable in software development environments.
Strategic Planning Masquerading as Lesson Plans
“When you’re thinking about your year, your curriculum, your unit, your chapter – what is it that I want my students to be able to do? How do you back map? How do you scaffold those learning processes?” Bri explains. “That’s strategic planning. That’s planning a backlog. That’s going from ‘we need this product to do this’ to ‘how do I start? Where do I start?'”
The parallels are striking:
- Curriculum design becomes product roadmapping
- Learning objectives translate to user outcomes
- Student engagement strategies inform user experience design
- Educational metrics evolve into KPIs and performance analytics
The Data-Driven Educator Advantage
Educators who grew up with data-driven decision-making in the classroom arrive in tech already fluent in metrics, performance analysis, and iterative improvement – essential skills for modern software development teams.
Communication Across Technical Boundaries
One of Bri’s most valuable insights addresses a challenge every tech organization faces: bridging the communication gap between technical teams and non-technical stakeholders.
The Power of Active Listening
“I think the root of it is listening, being an active listener,” Bri emphasizes. Her approach involves:
- Asking clarifying questions without shame: “What does that mean?”
- Summarizing for comprehension: “Can I tell you what I heard?”
- Checking understanding: “Let me try to explain that in my own words”
“Every single developer, designer, anyone in the technical field that I have asked those questions, they go, ‘Hey, thanks for asking, actually. Let me try to explain that to you,'” she notes.
Documentation as Communication Infrastructure
The perennial challenge in software development is documentation that actually serves its purpose. Bri’s litmus test is simple: “If you’re a junior developer, you just got onboarded and you’re reading this document, does this explain it enough for you to take the next action?”
SmartLogic’s approach prioritizes:
- Clear processing systems organization-wide
- Consistent documentation practices that survive team turnover
- Knowledge transfer structures that work months or years later
AI Integration Through Tiger Teams
In early 2025, Bri recognized that AI adoption required structure. “The tsunami is here, we just need to figure out what kind of board we need – is it a longboard or a shortboard? How do we get on that wave?”
The Evolution of SmartLogic’s AI Strategy
Phase 1: Exploration – Bri created an internal Tiger Team with non-billable time for interested team members to explore AI capabilities. Weekly meetings featured sharing discoveries.
Phase 2: Focused Missions – The team shifted from general exploration to specific Tiger Missions with clear objectives tied to practical applications.
Real-World AI Success: Emma’s Legacy App Modernization
Developer Emma tackled a legacy application with outdated JavaScript using AI tools. The result? A major modernization effort completed “way more quick, quicker, more efficiently and more effectively” than traditional approaches.
Her 30-day Tiger Mission demonstrated:
- Accelerated code modernization using AI assistance
- Improved documentation generated alongside code updates
- Enhanced testing coverage created efficiently with AI tools
- Developer-in-the-loop architecture ensuring security and scalability
Vibe Coding: Powerful Tool or Dangerous Shortcut?
The rise of vibe coding tools like Bolt, Replit, and V0 has sparked intense debate in the development community. Bri offers a nuanced perspective based on SmartLogic’s experience.
Where Vibe Coding Excels
“You can spin up a working prototype,” Bri notes. “I think it’s great to get the concepts to the screen. I think it’s great for validating and getting some feedback.”
Practical applications include:
- Discovery phase prototyping to validate concepts quickly
- Stakeholder visualization during requirements gathering
- Real-time design iteration during client calls
- What-if scenario exploration without expensive wireframing
The Vibe-to-Viable Gap
SmartLogic’s Director of Engineering wrote extensively about what it takes to move from a vibe-coded prototype to a viable product. Critical considerations include:
- Security vulnerabilities that AI might introduce
- Scalability limitations not evident in prototypes
- Database architecture that may not support growth
- Integration fragility that breaks when adding features
- Accessibility compliance often overlooked in rapid development
“Yes, you can make an app, but is that app gonna be safe? Is it gonna be secure? Is it gonna be scalable?” Bri asks. “I still think that our engineers are extremely valuable. You will always need them to help guide you and make those truly technical decisions.”
The Developer-in-the-Loop Model
Rather than viewing AI as replacing developers, SmartLogic positions it as amplifying their capabilities while maintaining human oversight for critical decisions.
What AI Handles Well
- Code modernization and refactoring
- Documentation generation
- Test creation
- Architecture analysis
- Pattern recognition in legacy systems
What Requires Developer Expertise
- Security architecture decisions
- Scalability planning
- Integration strategy
- Data modeling
- Performance optimization
- Regulatory compliance
Staying Current in a Rapidly Evolving Landscape
“Did I think in October of 2024 that I would be leading our team with Tiger missions and leading AI initiatives?” Bri reflects. “No, I didn’t think that, but it’s interesting what a year can do.”
Resources SmartLogic Uses
The Artificial Intelligence Show (Marketing AI Institute) – Weekly news digest covering AI developments
Bureau of Digital – Networking group for agencies and consultancies with monthly “AI Did What?” show-and-tell sessions
TLDR Newsletter – Daily tech news in digestible format
Hands-on experimentation – Dedicated time for team members to explore, fail, learn, and share
Building Mission-Driven Custom Software
What sets SmartLogic apart is their focus on meaningful work. Clients include:
- Brooks Publishing – Childhood development assessment platforms
- Ocean Conservancy – Clean Swell app for waterway data collection
- Health & Human Services – Custom EHR/EMR solutions for residential and outpatient care
“You can most definitely get fulfillment in tech, not just from accomplishing a task or making a thing or doing a thing, but also what are the client’s missions and visions and how are you helping them do what they need to do?” Bri emphasizes.
Key Takeaways for Custom Software Development Teams
Implement Tiger Team Structure
- Allocate non-billable exploration time
- Create focused missions with clear objectives
- Share learnings organization-wide
- Document best practices as they emerge
Balance Vibe Coding with Developer Oversight
- Use AI prototyping for discovery and validation
- Maintain developer-in-the-loop for production systems
- Establish clear criteria for vibe-to-viable transitions
- Prioritize security, scalability, and maintainability
Prioritize Communication and Documentation
- Practice active listening across technical boundaries
- Write documentation for junior developers
- Systemize knowledge transfer processes
- Leverage AI to improve documentation quality
Stay Current Without Burnout
- Subscribe to curated newsletters (TLDR, Neuron)
- Join peer networks for knowledge sharing
- Build learning into regular work cycles
- Accept that expertise is constantly evolving
The Future of Custom Software Development
As AI tools evolve at breakneck speed, the role of custom development shops is shifting. Success requires:
- Embracing change while maintaining core engineering principles
- Augmenting human expertise rather than replacing it
- Building systems that allow rapid adoption of new tools
- Maintaining curiosity and openness to new approaches
“Everything we knew about what we used to do is changing. And that means we have to change and evolve as well,” Bri notes. “But that doesn’t mean we stop what we do or everything has to jump to a new way. Let’s just be curious, explore within reason, within constraint, within being pragmatic.”
Conclusion
The intersection of non-traditional backgrounds, structured AI adoption, and human-centered development practices creates a powerful model for modern custom software development. SmartLogic’s approach demonstrates that the future isn’t about choosing between human developers and AI tools – it’s about orchestrating both to deliver secure, scalable, mission-driven solutions faster than ever before.
As Bri concludes: “How can you emerge with [AI] versus being resistant? If you’re resistant, I think that’ll age itself out.”