What was your first job?
Systems analyst for BAE. My first big project was a document management system
for the space platform using DB2.
How did you get into the IT profession?
I have a computing science degree and felt I needed a couple of years doing IT
for a real business before becoming an academic. That was 22 years ago. With the
pace, challenge and sheer fun in the industry, I have never looked back.
Which IT qualifications/courses have proved most useful to you, or
would you be interested in achieving?
My degree stands out, as it has provided me with a broad appreciation of many
technical areas. I would also say my year doing MBA studies really helped me
apply that knowledge more effectively in the real world.
Which web sites do you have bookmarked at work?
Right now TED (Technology,
Entertainment, Design),
Virtual Worlds
News,
Wikinomics,
Wonderland (Alice
Taylor’s blog), The
Obvious? (Euan Semple’s blog),
Ypulse and
KillerStartups.
Which technology has had the biggest impact on your working life?
The BlackBerry has helped make my working life easier, but without discipline it
can also easily
take over your life.
What current projects are you most excited about?
I am currently evangelising and facilitating the use of 3D virtual environments
to create value in the enterprise. While people may be focused on the
entertainment aspects of virtual worlds and games engines today, the field is
developing rapidly, and at BP we see a wide variety of potential uses in
training, collaboration, business process rehearsal, marketing and other areas.
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