Presentations

I've had an interesting month. I was asked to conduct a workshop for a defense company. It was held in very high level executive-like surroundings, complete with a Manor house, golf course and spa. The workshop went well and I had an offer to do a consulting workshop on a live project the following week.

The consulting job was fascinating. I have never been in a defense company before and it was quite awe-inspiring to see models of fighter aircrafts in the lobby. The work itself was challenging and I am happy to have made a difference on a US$150m bid. Hope they actually get it.

It was gratifying to be working again with a team, and working on a live project. The dynamism and urgency gave me real buzz, something I haven't felt in a long time, being an academic for almost 10 years now. Still, I don't think I'm about to jump back into industry yet. At a recent meeting, I've been described as one of the 'stars' of the school, and that I am really able to work at the same level as practitioners. That made me think.

I do recognize that the practice world uses a very different jargon from academia. I suppose I don't consciously switch between them but clearly 12 years in industry gives me the means to communicate much more effectively. It's not just the jargon either. It's also the straightforward, cut-to-the-chase and often blunt way of speaking.

I have been rather struck by how practitioners value knowledge in the UK. Research is highly valued, important, and worth spending money on. Academics are valued not merely for what they can impart, but also working with companies to discover and innovate. I suppose a country that has invented MRI and Vitamins and who has given us Adam Smith and Isaac Newton, it is not surprising that people here have a healthy respect for research and academia. In Malaysia and Singapore, I do not see such a culture. Perhaps Malaysia and Singapore don't really believe that their academics can do world class research while the British look at every researcher as the possibility of being the next big thing. It's good and it makes a research scientist like me feel inspired to excel. Nothing like being close to greatness and being thought of as someone potentially great to make one feel that perhaps one could actually be great.

The next few months will be very important. I will be applying for AIM fellowship in Services. The application is a real slog and getting 4 companies interested to provide access (and money) is a real challenge. Next week, I will be giving a presentation to 2 defense companies and 1 bank on my research for the next 2 years and I hope to be working closer with them. If I get the AIM fellowship, 60% of my time would have been paid for by the ESRC and I probably will not be teaching for 3 years. Freedom to do my research! Let's hope and pray I will succeed.