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Friday 24 March 2017

Time for Change

In just over a week, on Monday the third of April to be precise, my current organisation becomes a totally new company, merging with a peer in our industry to create one of, if not the, largest pure-play services company in the world.  This means, for the first time in a very long time, there is no drive or incentive to sell our stuff, coz we do not have any stuff to sell.

Instead, we will be totally agnostic and able to sell the best-of-class for any service.  The detail of this is that the offerings for two organisations have been merged and refined so that we have a single point of view and a (relatively) cohesive go-to-market strategy.

To be honest, having been though several events that were mergers, take-overs or some other similar coming together of two cultures, I know that it is a tricky business.  What I have observed with my own organisation is pretty impressive.  We did a "soft split" at Christmas, become a separate interim entity, we have split off key systems to create our own dedicated versions ahead of go live, and we have managed real estate and individual identities with real dexterity.  In short, it bodes very well for the future; if our organisation can do a "spin off and merge" this well, taking as much care as it has with communications and process changes, then I think we are in for a rosy future.  I genuinely cannot wait for it to start.

I am planning on going to my nearest office for the launch day, which will centre around our new leader ringing the bell on the New York Stock Exchange, to announce the arrival of our new company, and locally there will be cakes and a lot of merchandise.  Our company brand colour is black, so we are also being urged to wear black clothes.  I will let you know in a couple of weeks how it went.

Next week I have three days of training.  I will meet my manager for the first time face-to-face, and I will have a bit of a break from the usual routine to get myself an education.  I am staying away for two nights, which will enable me to socialise with my peers, colleagues and also hopefully my boss.  I really cannot wait.

On the home front, not too much to report, so on that note I wish you a great weekend, and speak next week.


Friday 17 March 2017

Even briefer

Putting a lot of miles on the car for work.  Good to be busy, catching up on my podcasts, but running high on miles per year against the lease agreement.  Need to keep an eye on that.

Usual weekend of sport and relaxing.  If I could just ask my team to play well on Saturday and keep their slot, third in the league and the final automatic promotion slot.  Really would be good to win everything now, go up without play-offs and start working on building the team for next year in Div 1.

Otherwise, nothing much to report, so I will wish you a great weekend. and speak next week.

Friday 10 March 2017

Brief

Very very busy with work.  Really enjoying it, but it is certainly keeping me awake at night.
Had a visit to the client's training centre, and it was exceedingly impressive.  The fact that our solution is its replacement, to run until 2025 at a minimum, is quite daunting and exciting.

On the home front, it does not feel like I have been here much, so quite looking forward to a normal weekend at home.  The weekend has a heavy mix of sport; Maggot 2's usual training and match on Saturday and Sunday, rugby all weekend, and I hope to catch Pompey on the radio in-between.  I would like to be doing some garden chores, clean the car, and generally potter round the house.

Nothing else to report, so I will wish you a great weekend, and speak next week.

Friday 3 March 2017

Time is most definitely an abstract concept

Another really busy week at work, with plenty of travel, and plenty of thinking.  One of our number was sadly taken ill with a heart attack in the week, so my thoughts are with him.  The prognosis seems to be that it is not life-threatening but he will be off for several weeks.

Home this week is therefore a bit of a blur.  I know that Maggot 2 played cricket for his team, and they came second in a tournament, and I know that Maggot 1 continues with his strategy of "why use 10 words when 1 will kind of do".

This weekend is fairly normal.  On the sport front, we have football training (Maggot 2) and tennis coaching (Maggot 1).  I plan to do a bunch of tidying up the outside of our house, and will hopefully listen to Pompey whilst doing so, and in the evening we have A&E over for a meal.

Have a great weekend, and speak next week.