Postcards from the Edge : US

Sleepless in San Fran

claireoh — Sat, 16 May 2009 01:05:38 GMT

Here I am in sunny Frisco and attempting to adapt to PST. My feet barely touched the ground in the UK after my time in Eastern Europe, before I boarded a plane bound for the West Coast. Yet again I am surviving on a few hours sleep and cramming in as much time with friends & colleagues and experiencing the highlights of the city. Dinner at COI last night and their 11-course tasting menu. Wow.

Just digesting all the goings on at the Prague event (and the 11 courses from last night). Great feedback from participants at the event and we hope that the presenting companies go on to secure funding for their ventures. Read more about the presenting companies and the news announcements.

Mike Sigal from Guidewire is trying to tempt me into running the Bay to Breakers on Sunday. Not sure I am up to that really as my exercise regime in the immediate future appears to include mostly lifting the wine glass and circling the shoe department at Barney’s.

Thanks Geoff

claireoh — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 01:29:06 GMT

I consumed with relish the series of Big Cat Live on BBC last week. Thankfully was not travelling (much) and could check in almost every evening for my fix. Just when I thought the lioness was the most impressive beast, I fell for the charms of the cheetah and her five (then three) cubs. Then the leopard. They are mesmerising. Must plan a safari in Kenya.

Saturday's Telegraph made for good afternoon reading. Great coverage of the US elections. Astounded reading this one though as I will happen to be in NYC on election day (4 Nov) and was hoping to know the result by the time I headed back to London. Perhaps not.

Having just enjoyed delicious hummus in Lebanon I enjoyed this article. It also made me hungry. But then I seem to be hungry every two hours with all this marathon training. Love this picture of a chimpanzee with his new friend (a rare white tiger cub) in North Carolina.

I also read an interview with Geoff Hoon, the new Transport Secretary. His first major decision is regarding the expansion of Heathrow airport and I know this is not good news for some people.. but for someone who has to travel out of LHR frequently on business, I am very pleased to learn that apparently he is in favour of a third runway:

"If you look at the kind of businesses that operate in that south-west corridor out of London, people like Microsoft are there because of the access to a hub airport that allows their people to travel all around the world. Those kind of businesses, we want to keep them in the UK, they are valuable sources of employment".

Saying that I have cut back on travelling pretty substantially and will do calls with people where possible, rather than get on a plane. Live Meetings are also a good option - now that one of the guys in the office has explained to me how to use the technology! Pretty cool..

Back to animals for a moment and I have to admit to having a huge amount of admiration for this guy - the mouse who killed the snake. Firstly, he was supposed to be lunch. And it turned out he didn't fancy being lunch. I do not like snakes. They always seem to be in a bad mood, with nasty big teeth and ...oh I dunno, they just do not seem like the kind of creature to share a G&T with you on a Friday night. And I love the underdog. The winner that no-one - absolutely no-one - bets on. Anyone who supports the Irish rugby team during Six Nations knows what I mean.

LAX

claireoh — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 13:05:08 GMT

Fancy finding an excuse to visit LA in a few weeks? Register for our PDC event. There is even a letter to convince your boss to let you go! Details of pre-sessions also posted on our start-up zone site.

Sign of the Times

claireoh — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 01:27:00 GMT

The one thing I manage to consume everywhere on my travels, regardless of timezone or climate, is the FT. These days it is full of desperate tales of economic decline, of course. Along with every other quality publication, every television channel and every outpost of communication from Beijing to Bognor. Thank goodness they managed to find a picture of some European leaders smiling this week.

There is no hiding from it. The message is clear. We are all doomed. Allegedly. One of the best commentaries I have read is in today's Times.

The most ironic conversation with the financial services sector for me this week has to be with a fine representative from one of the largest, wealthiest (once) Swiss investment banking institutions who, in the throes of our discussion about partnership on start-ups and Entrepreneurship, seemed terribly distracted and asked me if we had any jobs going. Back in London on Thursday, my meetings with Sir Stephen Wright from IFSL and with HSBC were a little more rewarding. Neither of them asked me for a job.

With a good coffee and a little sunshine to accompany it, I read through the San Francisco Chronicle last week, learning more about the Obama and McCain campaigns. Our VC Summit in Silicon Valley went well. We hosted visitors from US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Sweden, China, Russia and Ukraine. SteveB was in fine form. He has incredible energy. Mine was eroded somewhat with all the plane hopping so I was not able to run across the Golden Gate bridge with my German colleague. Hit the shoe dept at Barney's instead.

The week before, on an incredibly brief pitstop, I managed to soak up a little of the atmosphere while in Beirut and sample the festivities one evening around Iftar - the breaking of the fast at sunset, during Ramadan. Those guys sure know how to party. And eat. I love the vibe in Beirut. A wonderful city. Munich was not so exciting for me as I was perpetually tired and the hotel had a rubbish gym (one treadmill in a room the size of a stamp - do not stay at the Sheraton Munich Airport if you need the treadmill). I also had to decline the beer during Oktoberfest. Its hard being virtuous sometimes. But I reckon it suits me.

From San Fran to Oslo for a team meeting and, again, not much sleep or running. Back in the UK before taking off to Brussels tomorrow, I escaped into updates on the cabinet reshuffle and Mande's return. Hidden gem from Janice Turner. I also managed to run 16.5 miles. Not sure I am really ready to do 26.2, but will give it a go. Still fundraising by the way!

Thankfully everyone I work with is buzzing with the sense of potential and building up to the launch of some very exciting programs in a months time. Credit crunch? What credit crunch.

CA dreamin'....

claireoh — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 04:57:00 GMT

This week sees our Worldwide Partner Conference in Houston. I hear it's hot and humid. If you're not there in person you can see some of it online. Getting texts from the guys there. They get funnier as the night goes on. Whereas, I have just arrived in a hot and sunny San Fran, leaving a rather autumnal London behind.

I love this place. I don't know why I feel so at home here. Perhaps it's the weather, the way you order eggs sunny side up (that puts you in a good mood in the morning), the buzz, or the fact that as a Manic Paddy (as my former boss calls me) I fit right in. That and the marvelous shoe collection at Barney's. At the hotel I was instantly relieved of my bags and handed a glass of chardonnay. I walked into my room, docked my ipod and got online. It's all so civilised. It might be 2am for me right now but I'm wide awake and ready to soak it up...

Tomorrow I meet up with the leadership team to talk about all things start-up and entrepreneur; we're building up to launching major programs and doing this worldwide does take some orchestrating, I can tell you. We may suffer from overwhelming levels of potential and possibility right now, but what a nice position to be in. Finding focus is they key. Changing the world is never easy. So we have to bite off manageable chunks...

After a few days assimilating, debating, plotting and strategising, it is on to a quiet hotel down the coast to chill - and run. 12k in an hour - between vineyards. More exercise and sleep is required - and less fine dining and fine wining. Now that I have my NY marathon place I am compelled to don the shorts and ipod every day. Not easy when you are shifting timezones and working long hours. But hey, I am glad I signed up to the challenge. You're dead long enough. And as my friend Rob said the other day - I believe in life before death.

I was practicing partying technique in the sunshine at Henley Regatta on Friday where several tankers of Bollinger and Laurent Perrier were consumed. So Tuesday night I resisted the fizz (wow) at the launch of politicsandthecity.com - brainchild of the wonderful June Sarpong. I love the fact that June is so unapologetically feminine and - dare I say it - girlie; and at the same time a successful businesswoman. She has great charisma...as seen in Brussels at our recent summit when she hosted the student session for me.

Last night's launch party at the ICA in London was a total celeb fest, complete with paparazzi snapping outside and "mwwaaw hello dahling" exclamations echoing all over the room. June's speech was inspiring (as always) and I was so proud watching her. Look at me getting all maternal. It's a great site and we will see some cool content in the coming months. It does address an interesting thing though. Serious Girls. They are everywhere. One minute discussing IRR on Venture funds or a new project in South Africa and the next someone is admiring your Louboutins. Alistair Darling and Diane Abbott looked on as June eloquently described her passion, mingling effortlessly with size zero's and telly types, techies, entrepreneurs, City folk, corporate types even (me and the guy from Sun Microsystems having our perennial debate about who is more cool). June asked me to write a blog on the site a few months ago and I know there is plenty of material for this - I just need to stop long enough to write it.

From here I'm off to Atlanta (which is also going to be pretty hot and sticky). We just closed our fiscal on 30 June so we are now in kick-off mode. 10,000 Microsofties from around the world will convene to reflect on the year just gone, celebrate late into the night (they are never quiet affairs) and hear from SteveB about our plans for the year ahead. Then I have a weekend in Miami to recover on the beach. And no doubt burn a few calories on the dance floor. I hear the Delano is just awesome. Decadence is certainly something that has not been in short supply of late. It's a hard life. You wouldn't guess I was in training for the NY marathon by my routine for the last few months. 18 weeks and counting. But for now, I am off to sample what SF has to offer. The Clift (in Choo's) will be on the list. Awful place. Bye for now.

Blog Role

claireoh — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 00:43:05 GMT

Last week was a comedy of errors - without the comedy. Yet even when things are this crazy in this job (often) I can't help thinking how lucky I am to work with such a bunch of smart, funny, passionate, talented folks. If ever there two people that sum up the essence of this Gaping Void cartoon it is Frank and Eileen.

I've just arrived in Seattle (failing miserably to adjust again) to catch up with my team and attend a 3-day planning meeting organised by Frank. Frank's blog has a huge following - and no wonder. He's an Aussie in America. Unlike me, he is a geek - but quite a human geek who likes sharing mind-boggling facts with the readership.

Eileen is a force of nature. And a Girl Geek. Her blog is also massively subscribed (over 1m hits per month she tells me). I'm off to Whistler with Eileen for the weekend, where we will no doubt change the world over a few bottles of wine. Hope my liver survives. While busy not sleeping last night, I immersed myself in the political thriller that is the race for the White House. Constant coverage on CNN (when they weren't interviewing lawyers and psychoanalysts about Naomi Campbell).

Next week I will start to write a blog on startupzone proper on all things Emerging Business International. It will have perspectives mostly on Entrepreneur, Start-up and Investor community. This Armadillo blog will be reserved for related matters like Economic Policy, work we do with Government and Academia, travelogue and general rantings from the edge.

Hummousility

claireoh — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 02:01:00 GMT

Just back from a week at the mothership in Seattle and what a week it was.

In order to prepare appropriately for a series of demanding sessions with our senior worldwide leadership team, we felt it necessary to hit the slopes first. Just as well I got some exercise to counter the calories consumed in the last few days. Much of the incremental ones coming from the great local wine. And larger-than-average blueberry muffins.

Driving 1.5 hours from SEA-TAC airport you hit deep snow and towns with funny names like Enumclaw; and Muckleshoot with their scores of casinos. Might have to play the Lucky Leprechaun. The skiing was great though. Even managed to survive a double-black diamond. Scare yourself at least once a day and all that...

One evening the team had the company of our recently-appointed leader and chief. Walid is a really great guy. Very passionate and up for the challenge it seems. Talking to him at the dinner (actually we were cooking our own dinner that night - good fun) we got onto the subject of politics. Not sure how. He hails from Palestine originally but from what I gather has spent many years in the US. His knowledge of the US political voting system and of US political history is impressive. I got a fix of national politics every morning from CNN and to be honest I was yearning for that FT on the plane home today. It's all very complicated.

Me and Walid got chatting about my recent trip to see the MEA folks in Dubai and Beirut. The regional team is headed up by Ali and encompasses 8 subsidiaries, 30 offices covering 79 countries. The opportunity in that region is immense.

Dubai is buzzing. Since investing in the Microsoft Innovation Centre in Kuwait we've see the creation of groups like ABAN eager to invest and leverage the growth of innovation. BillG's recent visit in Jan this year highlighted some of the work we're embarking on in the Gulf. I was stuck by the momentum there:

In the next four years, the region's IT sector (in this case comprising Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and UAE) will generate more than 210,000 new jobs and account for the creation of more than 4,100 new IT companies.

Lebanon itself, the venue for my meeting on day two, is not without its challenges of course. I was saddened to find such a great city empty of tourists. The team there comprise people from all over the region, some educated in the US and all well traveled and somewhat pragmatic as to the road ahead. What is evident by their stoicism and positive attitude (a fair percentage of buildings in Beirut are yet to be "refurbished" after even 1975 events, not to mention last year's) is how business can transcend religion and politics. It can drive change.

There are countless tangible example of where investments in education and enterprise programs, in partnership with Government, Institutions and Foundations, are paying off. We're seeing new venture funds created and even the rise of more cross-continental co-operation (like Vietnam and Oman).

One thing I do know: after my US over-indulgence and expanding waistline, I need to embark on a diet of just great bread and hummous. With perhaps some tabbouleh for good measure. Can't wait to get back out there. Inshallah. Now I must sleep....

Talking American

claireoh — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 04:22:20 GMT

Day Seven of my trip to the US and my immersion in all things innovative and emerging. The downside of this is I find myself not annunciating words and rounding them instead with a "waahhhhhh" effect rather than delivering my usual crisp sentences (neutral tones of mostly non-specific European / acquired Brit with a few slight Paddyisms occasionally thrown in).

As if to highlight this, when I got to my 8am meeting with Cliff this morning he had the topics for discussion on the whiteboard with a picture of a shamrock to remind me of my identity. Sometimes it's easy to forget I was born in Ireland, while living in England and working for an American company and feeling like Michael Palin - just without the sense of humour, bohemian experiences and chino's.

The upside of said trip is of course getting to spend time with cool people. And finally getting a good night's sleep in the heavenly bed at the Westin. I feel almost human today.

In the Valley they're are some great market-watchers in the start-up arena like Debbie Landa's Dealmaker Media and Guidewire Group founded by Mike Sigal and Chris Shipley - both of whom are working with Microsoft. I was lucky enough to spend time with Mike in San Francisco at the weekend and also hook up with the lovely Julia French.

While I'm here Macworld is taking place and Apple made many announcements including the very purty Macbook Air - for someone who carries her laptop everywhere something this small and dinky is very attractive. Especially if accompanied by a Louis Vuitton shoulder bag. I was hoping they'd announce a new iPod so I had a valid excuse to go gadget shopping while in Seattle and give my little red nano to my young cousin. Alas I don't have a valid excuse so I just bought new headphones for $29. Not half as satisfying. My retail therapy shall have to continue in Abercrombie & Fitch.

Reading Steve's latest blog I got drawn to this one about working at Microsoft. I've lost count of how many times I have uttered the words "awesome" and "cool" this past week but I just can't help it. This place is cool.

There's an energy here which I can relate to, which feeds the beast and appeals to my belief that anything is possible. Sleep deprivation aside, it's great.

You may have seen the BillG video from CES already but have you seen the BillG exit interview? Cool.