Trevor Grove suggested I write so you can add my details to the
records of old boys at the MNC.
I was in the same class at Mr Grove from 1977, but I dropped out in
1979, failing to take the radar.
I found a job with a radio telecommunications company called Burndept Ltd, based
at Erith in Kent, as a service engineer on MoD radio equipment used to rescue
airmen at sea. This SARBE equipment included radio receivers used in the RAF's
Nimrods as well as personal locator beacons and floatation beacons used by commercial
helicopter pilots and the RAF.
But this was very, very boring.
After two years I left engineering and, by pure luck, found a position
in publishing as the assistant editor of an electronics magazine
called What's new in Electronics. After two years on this book and
then a further 18 months as a reporter on Electronics Times, I joined a
public relations firm specialising in marketing and communications for
electronics and technology companies.
By the mid 1980s I'd had my fill of sucking up to marketing/sales guys
that knew very little about electronics, let alone marketing, so I
went back to publishing.
I blagged my way in as Editor of a title called Micro Technology and
worked very hard for nine months before my previous publishing company
took notice and poached me back for the editorship of What's new in
Computing.
Happy days! This was great until a market downturn in the mid 1990s
and I ended up briefly as Managing Editor of WniElectronics, as well
as US correspondent. But I'd been there; done that, so I left to go
into PR (again)
From here, onto a small agency I helped set up was a small journey,
but the focus of colleagues I'd gone in with pushed us further into the
Electronics area, which by now I felt was as interesting as nuts and
bolts. My passion is computing, IT and the Internet.
Two years ago an opportunity came up to run a small company that had
the start of an Internet product. I took over as Managing Director of
this and have been trying to turn the operation into a
successful, profitable Internet based company.
So far I have managed to open up the US market for one of the
company's new Internet products - but we remain smaller that the dot
in most dot coms.
The future holds new challenges for me as we try to graft the existing company
onto other operations in the marketing area.
I have travelled a VERY long way from the radio comms area, but not
that far away from the old college. I now live in Bean, only three
miles from our old stomping grounds.
Here's to all who made it to sea - (anyone? anyone?)
Pete Bresser
Email via MRGC 1980
Contact provided by Trevor Grove