Justin Harling
Chief executive, CAE Technology Services
What was your dream career as a child?
Once I realised (very early) that I was never going to play for Liverpool at Anfield, I wanted to be a journalist working from Fleet Street, travelling the world writing life-changing news stories.
What has been your personal highlight of 2019?
Watching CAE flourish having completed an MBO at the back end of 2018, knowing all the passion and planning was absolutely worth it.
Which famous person deserves a (gentle) slap?
The obvious one is politicians, but you have only allowed a gentle slap opposed to what is really required to get them to take their actual responsibilities to the country seriously.
What two things (apart from family) would you grab if your house was on fire?
My phone and a fire extinguisher to try and put it out!
Which of your 2019 predictions have come to pass?
I'm leaving those to my five-year-old daughter who is two from two in the Grand National, although I made amends in Hamilton at the launch of our Scottish Office.
What TV show have you binge watched this year?
I really enjoyed The Capture and can always re-watch The West Wing.
How has 2019 been from a business perspective?
A fantastic study in working on what is in our control and ignoring distractions in order to produce some great results. Our faith is definitely in our people, customers and partners instead of those people who do nothing but espouse opinion as fact.
What annoys you most about your commute?
Knowing it should be 35 minutes when it has lasted over an hour or hearing the fateful beginning to the rail announcers' sentence: "We apologise for…"
If you could witness one past event, what would it be?
To be at the moon landings in order to satisfy my own curiosity on whether they actually happened, and how.
How do you explain the channel to people?
We make sure that customers get what they really need from the wide variety of technology available to them.
What have been your favourite and least favourite partner conference destinations?
I think I am going to get mixed reactions from the Canadian Tourist Board here. My favourite has been Toronto but least favourite was Montreal.
What is the biggest challenge facing the channel in 2020?
The hardest decisions are prioritising investments and deciding what not to do, given the sheer scale of opportunity that exists at the moment.
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