Cake is a powerful weapon

  Earlier last week I was at the Dynamo North East office for one of our regular weekly meetings. To be honest, they are regular but I am not. Due to, in the main self-imposed time restraints and diary clashes I have only been able to attend sporadically, so infrequently in fact that I don’t … Continue reading Cake is a powerful weapon

Building credibility

How can you build credibility? By being credible of course. It is easily said but not so easily done. Hopefully you are aware that I am trying to help build a cyber (information security) cluster in the North East. I want to see the region positioned as a leading player in this important and growing … Continue reading Building credibility

In praise of naivete

Often I have been told that I am naive and that is not the way the world works. At times I think that is an unfair criticism. It is clear that I have a lot of experience and believe I can offer wisdom and use good judgement. I appear naive then, not because I don’t … Continue reading In praise of naivete

Let’s agglomerate

A few months ago I went to buy some perfume for my wife’s birthday. She had been dropping hints for a couple of weeks and so I thought I was on a safe bet. I set off for the Metro Centre, a shopping mall not far from where I live and went into Debenhams. The … Continue reading Let’s agglomerate

Rip up the textbooks on private schools

I occasionally buy a copy of ‘The Big Issue’. Homelessness is a serious issue and I would like to support the work that they are doing but they compete on the high street with so many other worthy causes. I feel guilty every time I pass someone rattling a tin, shaking a bucket, sitting at … Continue reading Rip up the textbooks on private schools

Entrepreneurial opportunities

I’ve given a few lectures to students now. It is nice to be asked and I am always keen to oblige yet they can be a difficult audience, especially early in the morning. My latest attempt to enthuse the next generation was at Northumbria University where I gave a talk on ‘Entrepreneurial opportunities in the … Continue reading Entrepreneurial opportunities

Be a role model

Everyone has the role to be a role model. What a great quote. I heard it at the update of the North East Local Enterprise Partnership's  Economic Plan. It was so good that I had to tweet it and unfortunately forget who said it. It’s an age thing. The point though is that we all … Continue reading Be a role model

Carbon capture

Apparently 97% of scientists agree that human activity is having an effect upon global climate. I am minded to agree with them yet my understanding of the issues is little more than superficial. In this blog I wanted to talk about how we could manage the problem in future. Before that though I will go … Continue reading Carbon capture

Seasons greetings

I like this time of year, Christmas, Winter Festival or Festivus, take your preference, yet it is the best of times and it is the worst of times. It is the one time in the year where people, in the main, seem to put their grievances aside and there is a general outpouring of goodwill … Continue reading Seasons greetings