I’m an IT Solutions Architect, working for IBM in the United Kingdom. I’ve worked for them for some 20-odd years now, in a variety of roles ranging from product development & test, through consultancy & services, to technical pre-sales roles. For most of that time I’ve been based out of IBM’s Hursley Park development laboratory in Winchester, though like most IBMers, I tend to be fairly mobile.
I’m fascinated by the intersection between business and technology, where business finds novel ways to use technology to improve their effectiveness, and novel technologies force businesses to re-evaluate the way they operate. If I look back at my previous roles I seem to have specialised in the commercialisation of emerging technologies, from the introduction of messaging based paradigms back in the early 90s, through eBusiness and the .com boom, Pervasive Computing, HPC & Grid Computing, and most recently Cloud Computing.
I have a steadily growing portfolio of patents and publications to my name, enjoy presenting on a variety of subjects at conferences, and am committed to the mentoring and professional development of more junior colleagues.
Outside of work I’m happily married with three daughters, enjoy tinkering with my home network of computers, and trying to keep my “kit” car on the road. I’m also a governor at my daughters school, and try to take a pragmatic interest in environmental issues.
Unfortunately I was diagnosed with bowel cancer at the beginning of this year.
I was very lucky that colleagues who had previously beaten this disease heard about me, rallied around and talked to me about their experiences, helping me to prepare for my treatment. However, I’m concious that that isn’t the norm – despite being a major killer, finding first-hand information about bowel cancer isn’t always easy. I hope that by documenting my experiences here I can help other people prepare for and succeed in their own battles against this disease.
At the moment I’ve completed my initial diagnosis, been through a short course of radiotherapy, had extensive surgery (which left me with a temporary ileostomy and an enormous scar!), completed six months of chemotherapy, and finally had my ileostomy reversed. I’ve a few rough weeks ahead of me while that settles down, and then a few months of further adaptation by my new digestive system before it reaches it’s final “steady” state.
I’ve been very lucky – with the support of my friends, colleagues and family, I’m steadily winning my fight against this disease. And hopefully with some changes to my life-style and the addition of regular check-ups, I’ll remain cancer-free. Unfortunately many people are not so lucky.
