My breadth of experience is something I feel makes me a good leader and strategist. An important contributor to that breadth of experience has been my willingness to periodically uproot and go to where the action is, and where I feel I am most needed. It is an attitude that has sometimes demanded considerable personal commitment: not just moving around the country, but across the globe to pursue the best opportunities. In an attempt to avoid stagnation and keep sharp, I have sampled many different markets and business models in the high tech world of software and hardware. I feel this has helped me keep an open mind, and allowed me to introduce new ideas from one domain into another (which is often the very essence of innovation).
Growing up on the South East coast of England, I figured it was unlikely I could satisfy my career ambitions while settling down near where I was raised. London and the area immediately to the West were the nearest sizable tech centers, and that was indeed where I conducted my undergraduate studies and first worked for International Computers Limited (which was later acquired by Fujitsu). One of the great benefits of working for ICL was, like a British version of IBM, the company had a broad portfolio of products, from personal computers to network infrastructure to mainframes; from general office productivity solutions to enterprise-class applications to vertical product lines such as retail (cash tills, etc.). Not only did I get exposed to a lot of different cool technologies, but ICL was (as the name implies) an international company. As a product manager and marketing manager at ICL, I had global responsibilities and in particular spent a lot of time in continental Europe. At one point my division reported to the offices in Finland, and during visits there I got to appreciate some of the Nordic culture (and weather).
While ICL's campus was in the suburbs, my new role at FileNet put me right into the city of London, and moved me from a central HQ to the sales office of an American company. The culture was very different: harder, faster and more aggressively sales-oriented. A lot of this came from the company's LA-based HQ, and I found it fresh and invigorating. During my time there, organizational reporting shifted to the European HQ in Germany, and it was fascinating to see how that dynamic changed the culture. Plus it was fun to spend some time visiting Germany.
My next big move took me to another country, albeit still in the United Kingdom: Adobe offered me a position in Edinburgh, Scotland. By then I was married, and this represented the first big relocation for the two of us.
Whereas much of my time at ICL had been with departmental solutions sold both direct and through a value-added reseller channel, and FileNet had much more focus on enterprise-class solutions supported by consulting services, the Adobe sales model had these aspects but also much more focus on selling direct to end-users through catalog, web and two-tier distribution. My management of the European marketing of PageMaker introduced me to a business-to-consumer (B2C) sales and marketing model, whereas my enterprise solutions background came in useful to running FrameMaker marketing.
The European headquarters of Adobe were quite cosmopolitan. My boss and some of my colleagues were French, and others were Spanish, German, Scottish and English. I spent a lot of time working with each of the European country managers. Despite my best attempts, my foreign language skills didn't develop too well, but I certainly picked up on the cultural nuances of each nationality.
It wasn't long before Adobe gave me the opportunity to relocate across the world to San Jose, California. Uprooting to Scotland from England seemed trivial in comparison to moving to the US. Aside from the distance from friends and family, starting anew in a new country is a major undertaking. Domestic details that locals take for granted (e.g. a credit history, a different tax and healthcare system, and so on) can become significant challenges.
Nonetheless, moving to the Bay Area at the turn of the century was very exciting. Not only was there the energy from the tech boom in full swing, but the California laid-back style mixed with the diverse population that gravitated to the area. Along with Californian locals and British ex-pats, we had friends from many other places in the world also (e.g. Japan) and our Persian landlord was kind enough to include us in some of the local Persian community activities also.
I got to manage a pretty diverse range of business lines at Adobe, also. In addition to traditional desktop applications, I gained experience in bringing services to market (productizing the Adobe Expert Support services) and marketing non-traditional intellectual property (specifically, the Adobe font business). My long-standing association with FrameMaker and related technical authoring and publishing products exposed me to a rich set of experiences, from OEM-style negotiations with large enterprises, to the science of eLearning and manufacturing workflows. I took full advantage of comprehensive management training that Adobe offered, getting up to speed with American best-practices in terms of employee management and business culture. And whenever possible, I tried to make the most of available opportunities to learn about upcoming web technologies.
Another valuable experience I gained at Adobe related to working with an India-based team. Not only did I have to figure out how to adapt to the culture and expectations of Indian staff and managers, but I had to adjust to the challenges of working closely with teams thousands of miles away and with a time difference of thirteen hours.
Moving to Geomagic and relocating to North Carolina obviously meant more big changes, and not just another big move across the country. Here I got to embrace the culture of a Venture Capital based company, working as part of the executive team, dealing with the board, establishing partnerships and playing a central role in Merger and Acquisition activities (both as the acquirer, and the company being acquired).
During the Geomagic acquisition of a company based in Massachusetts, the opportunity came up for an executive to relocate to manage the new Sensable Group. I didn't hesitate to relocate once more, landing in the city of Boston. In addition to getting experience with the fascinating Sensable software and hardware technologies, my relocation involved quite a substantial lifestyle change, from living in a big suburban home in a family neighborhood, to apartment living in the big city. I found the process of downsizing really focuses the mind on appreciating what's important to keep as possessions.
Through all these experiences, I would say the secret is to embrace the opportunity and be decisive in the face of change and uncertainty. For example, when the opportunity came up to join Geomagic, things moved so quickly that our possessions were packed and on the moving van before we had even secured a place to live in North Carolina. We had faith that we could move fast enough to find a house to rent and have it ready to move in, before the van arrived in NC. Even given the time constraint, we made excellent decisions and stayed happily in our house until we moved to Boston. Equally when we moved to Boston, we found an apartment with just one weekend trip, and starting with an acquisition that closed in mid-April, we had moved to Massachusetts by the end of May.
Reflecting on all these experiences, weighing up the costs and personal inconveniences of relocating, and the investment in time to learn new businesses, understand new cultures, and figure out new markets, I would say the wealth of experience it has brought has made it all very much worth it. Not only is each new challenge become easier to adapt to, but I find now I can bring a valuable fresh insight to businesses that are new to me. Ultimately this translates to the bottom-line, as best practices and ideas from other domains can bring improved results, boost efficiency, or highlight new opportunities that otherwise would have gone unnoticed.