Werbayne McIntyre OBE Director, Digisoft Education Ltd

I was educated at……

…over seven schools in England, Wales, and South America. However, I completed my degree, a BA Hons in Media Publishing, at the University of the Arts.

My first job was…

…working at Pobjoys Mint, making money. I was 17 at the time and had just been through around 75 interviews, as in those days it was hard to get a job as a young black man.

What I do now is …

…I spent the last few years as the Head of Global Marketing for IT companies in the Broadcast sector. However, I have just launched my own business and I am now the founder and director of a company that delivers interactive educational software. What is unique is that we deliver it where there is no electricity or connectivity. I also have an Audio Broadcast patent that I will be setting out to exploit.

What I learned along the way is…

…Follow the money; it’s the focus of all things commercial. Manage it in your business, follow the big plays in your marketplace and align yourself to the biggest movers. Everything else is just playing at business.

The greatest influence on my life has been……

…well, I will not mention his name here, but he was an unassuming electrician who worked as a maintenance guy, and who quietly amassed a large property portfolio and retired a millionaire. Smart guy, always looked down on by people at the City Bank where he worked, but he did better than most of the execs who looked down on him. He did it with style, charm and humility – and he had the last laugh. The message? “No excuses”.

The best advice I ever received is…

...“Being happy is having something to look forward to.” Make a plan, have a goal, think of the benefits, and enjoy them when they come. Not everything is about work; it’s also about relationships, your personal wish list, family and friends. Don’t give up friends who make you laugh.

My top tips for succeeding in my career area are…

…Find your own way; there is nothing more debilitating than trying to do what someone else did in the way they did it. Invariably it does not work. The best way to do something is your way, especially in the creative and marketing industries. If it works, you’re a genius. If it does not, it was an expression of you. Put your big boy pants on, and go and live.

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