Hot Seat - Chris Bale

No longer a teaboy of the IT world

What was your first job and how did you get into IT?
I worked at Heron Suzuki as a night shift junior computer operator, the IT equivalent of the teaboy. I would like to say I stumbled into this fledging area of business and then carved out a great career, but the truth is that I was put on the spot with the inevitable: “So what are you going to do with your life?” question and responded with: “Work with computers.”

Which mobile device do you currently use?
A BlackBerry Storm which was provided by Vodafone at its launch, making me the envy of my daughter for the first time since she hit a double-digit age, though this was short-lived. I am also a huge fan of the netbook as it provides all the
processing power I need, not what I am told I need, and weighs less than 1kg.

What coming government legislation will most affect your IT operations?
None, as the clarity provided around most government legislation enables us to plan well in advance for any impact it may have (I will now remove my tongue from my cheek).

If you were not in IT, what would you be doing?
I would be a technology journalist as I would enjoy all the benefits of playing with and writing about technology without ever having to endure the nightmare of justifying its cost or implementing it.

Which technology has had the biggest impact on your working life?
It has to be the internet and perhaps in particular the humble IP address as, coupled together, they enabled information and process to be taken out of a closed business environment and put into a whole new space that I am sure we have not seen the full extent of yet – witness Web 2.0, for example. This had the dramatic effect of changing IT from a science to a business function and opened the boardroom door for a new type of executive.