Start Me Up

I've noticed a lot of startup talk these days from ex-coworkers in and around London.  I think there are a lot of us that already miss the drive we once had while working at Liberate and early on at TVWorks.  And after moving on we find out just how much we've lost.  I'm pretty happy with NDS.  But it isn't the same. I'm in the professional services division and as such product isn't my focus.  In professional services we work for a specific customer.  And that customer has very direct control over what you do.  Not all that different than when you are building a product in some ways.  You still have to build what someone will want to buy.

The difference for me is that when you are building a product, a part of what you are trying to do is to show your customer something they didn't realize they needed or just didn't think that such a solution was possible or available.  You are there to anticipate what they will need.  Whereas when you work on a contract you have to very carefully tease out the particulars of a contract and the specific work that you will or will not be doing as part of that contract.  It lacks a certain creative spark for me.  But it certainly can pay the bills.

I talk a lot with an ex-coworker about his work at a local startup.  It's quite intoxicating and gets me quite charged up.  They're in a stealth mode right now and won't tell me anything about what they're actually doing.  But I'm still excited by the possibilities.  A part of me is very jealous of my friend.  He's taking a real chance and it may pay off for him.  I don't know that I could make that kind of bet myself.

Another ex-coworker I expect has something brewing.  He's started taking an entrepreneurial course through the TechAlliance.  It sounds pretty interesting.  I wish I'd know about it sooner.  I don't know what he's got up his sleeve either.  But I'd love to talk to him about it.  I love talking about the opportunities that can open up with a good idea and the application of some great technology.  It's quite amazing to be a part of that.  And I'm glad that I can say I've had my piece of that at Liberate.  I don't know if I'll every have that again. But there was something quite exciting for me about Liberate.  I joined them when I was pretty much just out of school, but I'd started working at another company in London.  I'd interned there and was comfortable with the people and the work.  But here was this other company that was trying to put java virtual machines on set tops.  I was totally sold by that.

I'd be remiss if I didn't also mention the work of AgileMan.  He's been quite busy for someone who half retired not that long ago.  He's published a few books and done some consulting related to agile development.  I like to keep tabs on his activities as well.  He's always had a lot of interesting things to say and is someone I look up to.

I joined Liberate while they were in the middle of bankruptcy.  I didn't care.  They were working on some really neat technology and I wanted to be a part of it.  The people there all had so much energy and focus.  It was amazing to me to see the pace at which they worked.  There was an immediacy in everything they did.  They also had a lot of processes in place that made my head spin at the time.  I cam from a place with a couple of developers and here was this place with over 75 developers at the time and just about as many QA people.  They had a dedicated documentation department and technical services.  They had automated build systems (the good o'l tinderbox) and a bug tracking system that was home grown, but sturdy.  Of course nowadays I've got a wife, mortgage and my first child on the way.  So such opportunities are a bit tougher to take.

I hope London gets a few more places like that though...maybe there are a couple around already I've not heard about.  I have a feeling there will be a couple in the next few years and I expect them all to have some pedigree from the folks who made Liberate (and later TVWorks) such a vibrant place to work. Ultimately we didn't quite realize the goals we'd set out to achieve...but I'm sure glad we gave it a hell-of-a try.