Cover Interview
WANdisco celebrating their flotation on the London Stock Exchange
achieve. A roundabout is just too small an idea. The UK is moving in the right direction and we are getting closer to the kind of start-up culture that the US has had for years.”
As well as attending Tech London Advocates, David is continuing to show his support for UK-based entrepreneurial events by speaking at the Follow the Entrepreneur Summit in Hampshire on 24th May. “On the day I’ll be talking about the history of WANdisco – how the company got started, some of the things that were successful and not so successful, mistakes we made – and just really talking about the back story when it was just four guys and an apartment starting a company with only our own investment.
“We worked hard, didn’t take a salary and were all thirty or forty something’s. Most high growth businesses are started by people in their twenties who don’t have a family, a house or assets. They have the time to put everything into making an idea a reality. For us, we had to ask ourselves whether we truly believed in the technology and whether we believed the market place would evolve. We were right, but we had to be completely dedicated to making the business a success.”
Concluding our interview, I ask David what his hopes and dreams are for WANdisco in the next few years. “We want to maintain growth and I can see that we will,” he says, “I would like to build the UK’s most successful software company ever and if I can do that in the next couple of years I’ll be pleased. That all depends on size, valuation and revenue – things we’re working hard to increase.
Firing Questions
What or who inspires you? “People that have succeeded in extremely adverse conditions, not necessarily business related.”
How would your wife describe you? “Egotistical, self-centred, has blinkers on and that’s why he’s a success!”
What experience has been your biggest eye opener? “When my first child was born. The experience made me realise that human beings are such amazing creatures because we are strong and can adapt to all sorts.”
What are you really passionate about? “Having an even playing field. I hate it when the cards are stacked in someone’s favour. I left the UK because I didn’t feel back then that there was an even playing field here – you had to go to the right school or have a trust fund to get the best job. The reason I liked the US was because they have a competitive element instead. I love competition because it creates better products, better people and a much more efficient society.”
What would you tell your 20 year old self? “Don’t go and buy that fast car when you’re 23. I bought a Mercedes to show off and crashed a Lexus – I don’t do that crap anymore!”
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