Bern, Switzerland · systems, software and aviation

Complicated systems interest me. Working ones interest me more.

I’m Richie Eiger. I have spent my career working where software, networks, operations and people meet. I keep asking questions until the facts line up, then help turn a difficult situation into the next useful decision.

Where the real work starts.

I am most useful when a problem will not stay in one box. Architecture, operations and people are part of the same conversation, especially when the system is already under pressure.

See the whole system
I connect infrastructure, software, networks and operations in a design people can explain, challenge and actually run.
Stay useful in a crisis
First establish the facts. Then make the next decision safe, keep the people involved and do not confuse activity with progress.
Explain enough to decide
From Unix and telecommunications to current AI tooling, I enjoy going deep. It is only useful when it leads to a decision that somebody can genuinely act on.

Things I have built

These are things I have made. Games was built entirely with first-generation vibe coding in 2022. EventIQ is a much older idea that began with LLMs and is deliberately still a work in progress.

See what I have built

A few chapters that shaped how I work.

This is not a full CV. These are the chapters that explain the habits behind the way I work today.

ECDA Ltd.

ECDA Ltd. is my own company (founded in 1982) and the primary organization I used for most of the work shown below.

Swisscom Mobile

For ECDA, from 1995 to 2001, I led this Swisscom Mobile engagement as project lead and solution architect, replacing a custom-built booking server predecessor in 3-4 months with a team of 12 engineers from ECDA and contractors across Switzerland. I also handled worldwide presales support, integration support for several mobile operators, and crisis management in production.

Swisscom B2C / B2B

In a separate ECDA engagement for Swisscom B2C and B2B, I worked as an end-to-end solution designer on the convergence of wireline and wireless services.

Legacy transitions across three sectors

All three engagements were executed through ECDA. In banking, health care, and social insurance I supported the shift from legacy mainframe environments to modern multi-tier, object-oriented architectures while keeping operations stable.

Banking · RTC & Swiss Bankers Traveller Check Center

Consulting across core processes, architecture and a modernisation programme that could not simply stop the business while it changed.

Swiss health insurer

Another substantial transition: taking established mainframe processes into a modern application landscape without losing sight of day-to-day operations.

Swiss OASI

Here too, the work joined continuity for the people using the system with a fundamental change of technology generation.

FHNW

At FHNW, I was responsible for creating the curriculum, teaching the modules and exam administration for operating systems, distributed systems, telecommunications and databases. This engagement was delivered via ECDA.

Full profile on LinkedIn Full profile on XING

I am still curious. And I am still building.

From vibe coding to AI-agent-supported solution building

I am moving from AI vibe coding towards solution building supported by AI agents. Speed matters, but it is not the finish line. I care about the end-to-end user experience, operations that remain resilient over time, and software that somebody can still maintain two years from now. That also means being clear about the places where agents sound convincing but are not dependable yet.

Linux, networks and self-hosted systems

I still prefer systems I can inspect and understand. Reliability and security are much easier to discuss when nothing important is hidden.

Software, data and simulation

I build practical tools that make evidence visible, let people explore a decision and show what a complicated system is actually doing.

How Moore's law still informs architecture decisions

The old Moore-law explorer has now been reworked as an in-site lab. It compares historical transistor counts with feature-size progression and highlights where physical constraints are likely to become the limiter.

Flying brings everything together.

Aviation combines preparation, weather, machinery, communication and judgment. It is one of the best ways I know to stay humble about systems. On YouTube I share IFR flights plus cockpit and 360-degree views from my Cessna P210R.

Visit my private pilot channel