Here’s a quick run down of who I am:
An Englishman, from rural Leicestershire, I moved to the US in 2005.
My original career was as a contingent Recruiter, both of temporary and full-time candidates, in various industries (manufacturing, healthcare, education, marketing).
I ran my own business (GlobeTeach) for 3 years with a friend, Jan Booy (check out his new company The Outfit). We recruited US and Canadian trained teachers to work at schools in London and the surrounding area. It was hugely enjoyable and I learned a lot, but mainly that I loved being my own boss, and I no longer wanted to be a recruiter!
After moving to the US (Chicago) I decided I wanted to get in to technology and the web, but not as a developer. So after researching for a while I decided being a Business Analyst was the way to go. To make that career shift I enrolled in a Masters program at DePaul in Chicago called Business & Information Technology. It is half an MBA mixed with classes from the Computer & Digital Media school.
As part of this change in direction I started a blog to track my learning around the field of Business Analysis called the Budding BA.
My fascination with custom web and software development begins, and especially the Agile methodology, which sounds like one of the most sensible and forward thinking approaches to team management I have ever heard about. I now know I want to work in an Agile environment at some point.
After a difficult first job in technology as an Implementation Consultant at the payroll software company Ceridian, I joined Triton-Tek Inc. in Jan 2010. They are small consultancy that builds web applications, websites and software products for their clients. Here my role was as an all round project resource but mainly consisting of being Business Analyst / Project Manager / QA. To my delight they were also an Agile shop!
I learned a huge amount about web and software development during my time at Triton-Tek. It has cemented by love of the technology and web space and confirmed that this is where I want to build my career. However I had a yearning to move to the product side and in June 2012 I became a Product Manager at Braintree where I am helping drive this company towards world domination in the payments. It’s a very exciting time.
I continue to read books and blogs, and watch and listen to podcasts about all things web, and I am thriving in an environment that demands constant learning and growth.
That pretty much brings you up to date on my career development. On a personal note I am very happily married to Cavan and we have a two kids, Owen and Cailey, and a slightly crazy but lovable mutt-of-a-hound called Sadie.