In 1987 I ended full time education early, as it was clear to me that universities at that time were only teaching the history of computers. I established my first IT company – Network Support Limited to deliver commercial systems to businesses that needed them at a time when there was little experience and much hype.
I focussed the business on customer service, providing support and maintenance. The company became established as one of the leading organisations in London providing IT services, with many manufactures’ accreditations.
In 1996 I spotted an opportunity at Pepsi Co International. Network Support evolved to Network Support International and became a provider of IP based email solutions for Microsoft. We rolled out Microsoft email to over 60 countries and established Wide Area Networks enabling communications for global offices using email and business critical applications.
As brands were acquired by Pepsi they were also incorporated into the Pepsi network infrastructure, brands such as Walkers, Smiths, Quaker, Tropicana, Fritolay, and many others.
2004 Saw the Telecoms infrastructure for Pepsi outsourced to major organisations. Having experienced the corporate environment, it was clear to me that there was a model for providing hosted corporate Microsoft email services.
in 2005 Network Support International was renamed to Virtual eMail Limited and we established ourselves in the UK as the second Hosted Exchange provider. Virtual eMail was the one of the first cloud based Software as a Service organisations, though the “cloud” as a term had yet to be coined.
In 2007 Virtual eMail was sold to Nasstar, a London based Internet Service Provider, listed on the London Stock Exchange
In 2008 The Hosted Exchange services grew to be one of the biggestproviders in the UK. At the same time, it was clear to me that there was an opportunity to extend the offering into a Hosted Desktop model. I helped Nasstar change into a leading Hosted Desktop provider in the UK, with a clear innovative market leading product (www.nasstar.com).
For most of 2009 I took time out cycling and went cycling round the UK, Europe and further. I became passionate about cycling, keeping fit and achieving cycling challenges. Unfortunately, it ended in a serious cycling accident for me at the end of 2009.
Details of my companies are here