If life is a journey, you better enjoy the road instead of focusing too much on the end destination.
The decision I made to join Microsoft in 1996 was the start of one of the most exciting journeys possible in life. Everything else I did before that was mere preparation for that step really. My period at IBM was an interesting one as press & communications guy – those were the days where companies could afford an amazingly huge amount of training days. I soaked it in and enjoyed it but my job was a job. The moment I started at Microsoft it became a passion. It grew my personality, my skills set & competencies, it brought me good friends & possibly the most intelligent & brightest minds I could ever dream working with, and I am rewarded for changing - a piece - of the world and making it a better place. A world where people are connected to that what they hold closest to their heart: the people they care about and the stuff they like. At some point I accepted this foolish mission to get ‘MSN’ as a top portal in the Belgian market, to introduce services like messenger & Hotmail, to recruit and build a sales force, to build a brand, to etc etc etc It was a dotcom and our VC was Bill. It’s been a roller coaster ride and a bit living on the edge. But I discovered this great culture of passionate & energetic people, of daring ideas and empowerment to deliver the results. After 5 years we became the major player in Belgium in the ad industry; and ‘MSN’ made it into a verb that changed consumers life online.
After 6 years in MSN Belgium I thought it was time for change and I took on the regional sales director role for EMEA. I have travelled EMEA over and over from Helsinki down to South Africa. You name a city: I have been there, did presentations and press interviews, met interesting people, had great dinners & lunches enjoying the local jamon, salmon or aquavits. And I gained insight in cultural diversity & subtleties. I know the difference between engaging with a Swedish agency CEO or a Turkish one. It is also called broadening your cultural mind set. And in the meantime we have taken this division in EMEA on a growth path and market share gain game that is probably unheard of in the advertising industry (unfortunately numbers that I cannot disclose – so just take my word for it). I am proud on the team I build - I could not do without them. This 11 year journey at Microsoft has taught me more lessons around coaching teams into highly performing units than any other training could have delivered. I am also most grateful to have received coaching & mentoring from some of the finest leaders we have had on this MSN / online services / MDAS journey.
I am born in Belgium and I still have Belgium as my home and hub amidst the travel storms. It’s not the dull country that everybody knows just from the beers & chocolates but if you want to know more about that just ask me. My family keeps me grounded with 2 legs into the reality of life and I love seeing my kids grow & develop their personalities. I also recognize a piece of myself – which is most of the time humbling or inspirational in itself.
Microsoft Digital Advertising Solutions is part of Microsoft and positioned as a key driver for growth in the company. Two things will fundamentally contribute to continued success: the technology platform that facilitates conversations between brands and consumers. And the people that bring that story to life to the agencies and advertisers they represent. It’s hard not be very passionate about what people call my ‘job’.
Last but not least – I try to enjoy everything I do or make choices not to. Life is not a rehearsal.
Hi,
I was doing some research for a blog I run called http://www.ihtreaders.blogspot.com ; a blog for readers of the IHT, and came accross your interview with Eric. I though you might be interested in that blog.
But actually, what I really wanted to ask you to do is to take a thorough look at another blog I run called http://www.aplaceintheauvergne.blogspot.com.
You look like the sort of globally engaged, primarily office or airplane based, short of time person, who might appreciate how I keep my readers on top of the world’s metathemes. And allow them a little rural escapist fantasty time when stuck in the departures lounge at Airport X.
Anyway, if you do have a moment, please let me know what you think about it. And if you think it’s a genuinely new way of presenting news and opinion, please do share it with your colleagues, whom I presume have the same information needs but constraints on their time.
Kind regards,
Ian