Connections
Portrait
Enjoy the silence
This Aviva Europe marketing director prefers e-books to iPods.
How has your data warehouse changed or grown over the years?
Beyond recognition. Our corporate history of growth through acquisition and merger meant we had many different databases containing similar facts described differently and loads of problems. We have come a long way and now have our marketing data in one place with a good single customer view for our direct businesses.
How would you explain your job to a 5-year-old?
Well, I have a 5-year-old. He is not that interested, but when he does ask, I say, “I boss people about, tell stories, try to make our computers work better at remembering things, a bit like you remembering your Top Trumps cards. And then find people Aviva wants to be friends with and give them treats if they play with us.” By this point he has usually gone back to his dinosaur DS game.
If you didn’t work in your current field, what career would you like to try?
I fancy myself as a fighter pilot, apart from the motion sickness and the fear of heights.
What skill would you most like to improve?
Model making—I like toy soldiers, you see.
What possession can’t you live without?
Right now I am really into my Sony Reader. I love reading, and this is the only thing I use every day. I haven’t had it long and am still discovering what I can do with it.
Who is the most prevalent artist on your iPod?
I am not a big music listener and don’t use an iPod. I’m not comfortable with that tuned-out look you see when people are paying more attention to their music than the world around them. I’ll probably sound like my dad when he used to shout, “How can you think with that racket in your ears?” I’ve grown up to value periods of silence and thought.
Photography by Jeff Gilbert