Profile
John Easton
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About Me:
Some people think I work in IT. Really though I ‘play’ with cool technology, use it to solve problems and get paid to do that 🙂
I have a family (a wife, two sons and a cat) and we live in Hampshire. I’m a big fan of Lego (Mindstorms, Spike, Serious Play) and a long-distance trail runner in my spare time.
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I had a fairly traditional science background (Maths, Physics, Chemistry) at A-Level. Studied Chemistry at university in both the UK and then in Sweden and came out of that knowing the one thing I didn’t want to do with my life was Chemistry !! I had enjoyed programming at university and so decided on a career in IT and the rest as they say is history. I’ve been all over the world with work building large complex IT systems. And that is a whole lot more fun. Really I solve problems for companies.
I spend a lot of my spare time playing with all sorts of cool technology too. I love cooking and I’m a big Lego fan and also run long distances to relax – and by long I mean 60km+. I’m a Scout leader so enjoy doing things in the outdoors.
Because of various family connections, I speak Swedish and Norwegian too.
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My pronouns are:
he/him
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My Work:
I use computers to solve problems for companies. Usually big problems that need big, complicated computer systems to do that.
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I lead a team of technical experts who help companies solve big, complex problems. We design hardware and software solutions to do this. We mostly work with large companies and the systems that we build can be large and expensive too.
My special skills are in taking computers, storage and networking technologies and building the hardware on which applications run that will solve the company’s problems. Other people in the team design the software that will run on top of my hardware.
I spend a lot of time helping other people develop their careers as well as working with schools, colleges and universities to recruit the next generation of technologists.
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My Typical Day:
Every day is different but a typical one might be… Dropping my son off at college and usually in the office by 9:00. The mornings are when I get work done. In the afternoons I am usually in lots of meetings with my team in America.
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I do lots of different things. TBH I get bored very quickly so doing lots keeps me interested ;-). A typical day might include:
Writing articles, papers and blogs about what I do.
Designing new computer systems for big companies.
Helping my team and other colleagues solve their complex problems.
Teaching other people about new technology.
Mentoring and coaching more junior staff to help them grow their careers.
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What I'd do with the prize money:
I would run more events to get girls interested in careers in IT. Everyone seems to think it’s just about programming whereas actually there are so many more things that you could do instead!!
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Education:
I went to school and college in Fareham in Hampshire.
I studied Chemistry at university. First at the University of Sussex in Brighton and then at Uppsala in Sweden.
I keep learning because technology changes so much. Every few months there will be something new to learn.
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Qualifications:
O-Levels – English (Language & Literature), Maths, Science (x 2), French, Geography, Woodwork
A-Levels – Maths, Physics, Chemistry
Degree – Chemistry
Doctorate – Chemistry
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Work History:
I’ve spent all my working life at IBM.
You can divide my career into thirds. The first third was designing and building systems that have to always be running and can’t fail. The next third was building big supercomputers and the last third has been working with cloud computing.
Even though I have worked for just one company, technology has changed so much over the years that it doesn’t feel like I have had one job! Every year has been different.
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Current Job:
I am a Distinguished Engineer which means I have a lot of control over what I do. My day job is designing big systems to help solve big complicated problems like designing aeroplanes, finding new medicines or making sense of vast amounts of data.
I spend a lot of my time helping others to develop their skills and their careers.
I share a lot of what I do with other people so they can learn from my experience and knowledge.
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Employer:
IBM
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
problem-solving technologist
What did you want to be after you left school?
I had no real idea, but something scientific.
Were you ever in trouble at school?
No
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
I would really like to study volcanoes!
Who is your favourite singer or band?
The Cure
What's your favourite food?
Anything Korean
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
To be able to speak more languages. To be a better musician. To spend more time outdoors.
Tell us a joke.
How many software engineers does it take to change a lightbulb? None, it's a hardware problem!
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