Newsletter 2003 - Work

My working life changed completely on 19th December 2002. (Why is it that so many life changing experiences have happened to me on the 19th of the month?) I got an email to tell me that there was an important conference call scheduled that evening. We had arranged to go to the first night of Lord of the Rings, but luckily the call was to be recorded, so I could listen when we got back from the cinema. As soon as we got back, I dialed into the recorded call to find out that Adaytum was to be acquired by Cognos, a global, Canadian head quartered company, with its roots in the Business Intelligence market. Everything that I had known in my working life for the past seven years was about to change.

The Christmas period was pretty fraught as we all wondered if we would have a job at the end of the process. In particular, since I had only been in my new job for three months, I felt pretty vulnerable. So, when I found myself on the way to Ottawa on 13 January, I felt grateful that, for now at least, I had a job. My friends from other functions had to go into the office that morning to find out their fate. Fortunately, the majority of them stayed. As Cognos were quick to point out, they had bought the people as well as the products.

That trip was to be the first of 9 transatlantic trips that I have made this year. I have experienced snow and ice in Ottawa, spring in Atlanta, Orlando (just the hotel, it was too hot and there wasn't enough time to visit Disney), summer in Princeton and fall in Ottawa. The shortest trip was 2 days in the US, the longest 2 weeks. The majority were for three days. I have got to know my way around Heathrow's Terminal 3 pretty well. (If you want a break from the insanity of the shops, visit Chez Gerard, a peaceful haven in the far right hand corner.)

Due to all the flying, I have managed to get myself a gold Star Alliance card, which means that I get:

On top of all of this, I have made some wonderful new friends, I could do with an extra couple of days on each trip, just to spend some time with the people I have met.

There is no doubt that the acquisition has been challenging. There have been many new procedures to come to terms with. At first, it was hard to find out who to go to for help in a particular area. But, as time has come and gone, relationships have been forged and solutions determined. There is absolutely no chance of life being boring in Cognos!