It was 4 years ago on April 15th, 2005 that I officially left IBM to start WSO2. I spent the next several months fine-tuning the business case along with Paul and of course WSO2 finally came into existence in July/August 2005.
Any regrets? None at all. IBM was a fantastic place for me to work at and she (it?) gave me incredible insight into how the software industry works, how to make it work for you etc. etc.. I also developed a lot of long lasting friendships and many of those are still active and strong.
In fact, before starting WSO2 I actually tried to do something like what WSO2 is doing (create a middleware stack with an interoperability focus in its heart) while in IBM. However, as good as IBM is with technology, IBM is MUCH better at business- and it was the wrong business action for IBM to take at the time .. so I quit :-).
Its been a tremendous ride. Recently I was asked what the most satisfying part of starting WSO2 has been- and to me the answer is dirt simple: the people. Without a doubt the experience of working closely (I was going to say intimately but maybe that's a bit too close ;-)) with everyone starting with Paul to the entire team has been the best and brightest part of it.
Four years is a long time. Yet, its a short time .. what we set out to do in WSO2 is far from being done! I'm thrilled at how things have gone so far but really, we've only just begun.
No comments:
Post a Comment