What’s at the top of your Christmas wish list this year?
A mobile phone that can hold a signal for more than two minutes, with a battery that will last the day
What trend (business or technology) do you think 2014 will be remembered for?
The trends towards mobile, personalisation and targeting of information have been going on for a while, so I wouldn’t particularly see them as uniquely evident in 2014. What has struck me though are the issues that Google started to run into with the European regulators, over privacy and the power of their business model. A challenging mixture of culture clash, differing approaches on free markets, a dominant business, and long-established industries under threat. Worth following.
What do you think will represent the single biggest opportunity for printers in 2015 and why?
See below.
What do you think will represent the single biggest threat for printers in 2015 and why?
It’s difficult to identify one single threat in a sector that has such a wide variety of businesses in it. Overall though, accepting that technological change is inevitable in our sector and is both a threat and an opportunity. Rather than resisting the inevitable, spending our time understanding it and identifying what we can do to adapt and thrive represents the opportunity.
What’s the one thing that the industry should do more of, or do better, in 2015?
Ask me in six months! At this point, I’d say understanding and engaging with all the technologies affecting us and our customers is something that we are all going to have to continue to work very hard at. This isn’t easy when business is tough though, so it’s something that within the BPIF I expect we will be looking at, to see how we can help our members.
What was your biggest disappointment in 2014?
Probably seeing my son, lose what looked like the biggest trout ever, just as he was bringing it in. Luckily I have his reaction caught on video… Other than that, it’s not been a bad year!
What was your highlight of 2014?
Being appointed to the BPIF CEO role, naturally! Seeing our two children heading into their teen years has actually been great too, so far…
What are your hopes for 2015?
It’d be great to see those parts of the world that seem to be heading in the wrong direction reverse that trend. Within the sector, that we can all have a lot of fun while creating and celebrating success. It’d be nice to dream about unclogged roads and a perfect train service, as I have a feeling I’ll be using them rather a lot next year.
What was the most important thing that you learnt in 2014?
Along with really getting to grips with online, that thinking hard and creatively about the skills and experiences that we need to succeed tends to lead to opportunities that one couldn’t have anticipated in advance. I may have known that already though!
What if anything will you do differently in 2015?
On a day-to-day basis, many things, as I aim to be out meeting as wide a range of people in the sector as possible. At the same time, keeping the technical knowledge up to speed will be important.
Are you making any new year’s resolutions? If so, what?
Probably the same ones as last year, which I can’t even remember now, so whatever they are, I doubt they’ll last long!
Who will win the Rugby World Cup in 2015?
England, for sure. I hope…
