Jones, Nigel
A-List 2006
Job title Marketing and business development manager.
Company Alcatel.
Year of birth 1956.
Place of birth Shropshire UK.
Career outline I worked at Plessey Avionics and Communications, Data Labs, then I moved to STC. Joined start-up National Telephone Systems in 1985 as product development manager. Following acquisition of National Telephone Systems by Alcatel, I was responsible for Alcatel Enterprise R&D. I moved to Alcatel’s Northern Europe Call Centre Business Development group in late 1990s. Following the successful launch of the first OmniTouch contact centre solutions in northern Europe, moved back to UK and Ireland focus.
What motivates you every morning to get up and work in the channel? Seeing the channel guys get fired up about some new technology and really going for it.
What has been the most over-hyped technology in the past five years? Voice recognition.
What will be the most underrated technology in the next five years? Analogue telephony.
Which technology would you most like to have invented? Pulse Code Modulation – the basis of comms and audio entertainment.
Do you have any regrets from your time in the industry? Yes, but I don’t lose sleep over it. Everyone may have done something differently over their career and hindsight is a wonderful thing.
What is the biggest hurdle you have faced in your career? Telling an employee they had bad body odour.
What is the biggest success of your career? Overseeing the introduction of the London PBX range at NTS and seeing it really fly in the market.
What piece of technology could you not live without? A digital video camera.
What would be your advice to anyone starting a career in IT? Don’t hide behind your 19in TFT.
What is your favourite computer game? Asteroids, circa 1982.
What would you like for Christmas if you could have anything? A time machine.
What is your favourite karaoke song? Heartbreak Hotel, by Elvis.
What would be the title of your autobiography? The story so far...
Do you have any phobias? Yes. The smell of TCP.
How many beers before you fall over? 33.
Number of staff you manage? 0.
What is your golf handicap? 99.
What car do you drive? BMW.
Number of air miles you have? No idea.