Helping Business

Make Sence of Government

	Like any young guy growing up in the 1980’s, my love of gadgets and therefore technology started in my early teens, with the launch of the Sinclair ZX80/81 and then the Spectrum. I started learning to program on the Commodore-64 and once our school started receiving its first computers, I moved over like most secondary school pupils in the 80’s: to the BBC Micro. Imagine how excited I was to then land my first job in an IT business? Well, that passion for IT and technology remains a core part of my life today.
Dr Bryan Keating gave me my first break in the world of IT and therefore a job at CEM Systems (Fitzroy Avenue, Belfast) during the late 1980’s. I couldn’t believe my luck and thus I have never forgotten about Bryan and his faith in me. Being able to focus my energy and passion for the latest kit (BBC’s & Apple Macintosh): I found my niche is selling this pioneering technology to businesses, universities and the Northern Ireland.
With the launch of the Amstrad 1512 and then the 1640, my world (along with everyone else’s) moved to the mighty IBM compatible PC and after stints NI’s leading systems providers Shorewood and B.I.C. in the early to mid-1990’s: I knew it was time to take Graeme Campbell to the next level and that meant leaving Northern Ireland. If DEC (Digital Equipment Company) was still here today, I’d probably still be working for them! The DEC VAX, then the Alpha and with the development of 64-BIT Windows; DEC (or ‘Digital’) was probably the most innovative computer hardware company in the world. In 1997, I moved to the UK and in specific Scotland with a new role to take the DEC Direct business indirect, through a network of fantastic local partners and there I stayed until the demise of Digital. What happened to DEC? Well, like all great things that sadly come to an end: they were swallowed up by a not-so-great competitor: “Compaq.”

I stuck with Compaq into the early part of the new millennium and seeing the writing on wall for profit margins in the world of hardware, I moved into the bright new world of software! Since 2001, my career has continued working in the world of software solutions, which are designed to support and improve the workplace and for me that has been (in the main): public Sector. Throughout the years 2001 to 2009, I built up experience developing winning solution strategies in UK public sector but also: North America and Australia. In 2009, after the Northgate acquisition of Anite (yet another corporate buy-out), I took the leap into self-employment and set-up Govbiz. My goal was to help small software companies market and sell their products into the world I know best: public Sector.

Some people said I was crazy but in 2007 after witnessing many blunders by our local authority in Avondale, including the complete lack of investment in our rural roads and the community being ignored when it came to the highest performing school in the county, I decided if a job is worth doing; I would have to do it myself! As I result, I should for election in May 2017 to represent the people of Avondale (South Lanarkshire) and over a decade and two elections later, I’m still a councillor!
In my first eleven years as an Avondale councillor, I’ll have seen one new school building, fit for the 21^st century delivered to this community each year. More than £20 has been invested in Avondale’s roads and today I continue to use my skill set developed nearly 40 years in the IT business to support any constituent who comes to me asking for assistance.
			Whatever you think about Microsoft, they have (in my opinion) developed some of the most fantastic software products that have enriched the lives of billions across the planet. With the explosion of cloud computing, we see Microsoft leading the way with cloud-first strategies on all their products and
for me this is just another reason why so much of my career has been dominated by Microsoft, including a three-year stint working for them in Scotland. Today, It doesn’t matter if your hardware platform of choice is Windows, Mac-OS, IOS or Android; Microsoft supports them all with a superb range of products and solutions. It’s therefore no surprise that so much of my personal & professional world is still dominated by Microsoft, including their products, services and network of partners who use the various Microsoft platforms to deliver world-class solutions that continue to improve our lives both inside and outside work
		Alvin Toffler (October 4, 1928 – June 27, 2016) was an American writer and futurist, known for his works discussing modern technologies, including the digital revolution and the communication revolution, with emphasis on their effects on cultures worldwide. He said: “The Illiterate of the 21^st century will not be those who cannot read or write but those who cannot Learn, unlearn, then relearn.” Today no-one can say that they have a job for life and the reason those of us old enough to remember the ZX80 & 81 are still around the IT sector today, is because we have changed with the times: unlearned the old ways (inc. old tech) and relearned new ways, including new tech. MS-DOS and green screen are gone! No longer is the world of business & government chained to a desk from 9-to-5 and no-longer is sales just about the golf-course and networking.
Sales & Marketing in the IT sector requires us to consider new ideas to engage with an ever-changing and better educated (never mind more demanding) customer base. Social media and Skype are here to stay and as a result of our ever-changing world, 2016 saw a new milestone in human evolution: the year (see above) that saw technology companies in the top five largest global companies. I 2016, oil no longer dominates our economy: tech does! In conclusion: technology has provided me with the opportunity to work and play for over three decades and I plan for this to continue! I will also continue to be suckered into supporting the latest crowd funding project for a gadget that will change our lives, and I will invest time and knowledge, which keeps me at the edge and therefore able to advise and support my clients going forward.
	Want to know more? It’s all on LinkedIn at: www.linkedin.com/in/graemefc

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