In the spirit of entering the new year with a fresh start, we asked some our favourite Movers and Shakers from across the digital and tech industries to write down and share their resolutions with us.
What were their biggest lessons of 2014, and what will they focus on for the next 365 days? We’ve been sharing their thoughts throughout the month of January (on our Twitter feed @Gordon_Eden) in hopes of inspiring the tech and digital industries to make 2015 the most innovative yet.
here's what they shared with us:
In the world of tech, Courtney Boyd Myers (known to the internet as ‘CBM’) is everywhere: she’s the founder of audience.io, a transatlantic studio helping startups with their international marketing and business development activities, who have worked with companies such as Transferwise, Percolate, Fueled, Summit and yours truly. A former tech journalist and avid traveller, she has conquered the New York and London tech scenes by launching several newsletters (see 3460 Miles and The World is Global, Baby), being a health enthusiast (see her latest venture Hustle & Kale), acting as an advisor and curator (see Summit and Second Home) and befriending many. This year, she'll focus on shifting toward the health & wellness space.
Starting from a young age, Oli Barrett has grown his entrepreneurial career on the premise of solving problems that make a difference: he is Co-founder of Cospa, a multi award-winning agency working with brands and charities and also started Tenner (now run by Young Enterprise), a scheme which has challenged tens of thousands of pupils to see what they can achieve with £10 in a single month. He is also Co-founder of Startup Britain, an advisor to the Centre for Entrepreneurs and the individual who first brought speed-networking to the UK. This year however, Oli will focus on slowing things down and making time for the people he appreciates, the old school way.
Serial entrepreneur, investor and share economy expert Debbie Wosskow is the CEO and Founder of LoveHomeSwap, an international homeswapping site launched in 2009. Debbie has also co-founded several other ventures including online resource tool Collaborative Consumption Europe, advisory firm Maidthorn Partners and boutique agency Mantra Public Relations. and is a working mum. This year, Debbie told us her biggest lesson was to be patient - perhaps not everyone can juggle quite as much and move as quickly as she can.
Ben Jones, Global Chief Technology Officer of AKQA, one of the world’s most awarded digital agencies that focuses on “the imaginative application of art and science to create the future”. He has built a global reputation as a technology innovator by creating a culture at AKQA that fuses creativity with technology, ideas with innovation, to create groundbreaking experiences and work with global brands. What did he learn in the past year? Listen to your gut more - it will almost always take your further.
Ed Bussey is the Founder and CEO of Quill Content, a fast-growth content marketing company specialising in writing for the web across all languages and topics. Previously, he was part of the founding team and Global Marketing Director for Balderton Capital and has served in various NED, Chairman and internet advisory positions, including Mr. & Mrs. Smith Boutique Hotels (see our last roundup for Mrs. Smith’s resolution!). This year will be booming one for the content marketing world, and Ed is focusing on growth!
Entrepreneur and evangelist Jess Butcher is the Chief Marketing Officer and Co-founder of London-born Blippar, the world’s first mobile augmented reality platform that has been adopted by many global brands. Jess has over 13 years of experience in marketing and senior partnership roles within fast-growth environments. Besides continuing her efforts to make the word “blipp” happen, this year she’ll focus on doing fewer things at once, better.
In the world of Tech, this man needs no introduction. Mike Butcher, Editor at Large of Techcrunch, is the guy that every startup Founder wants to have on their good side. He knows the ins and outs of what’s moving and shaking the tech landscape, so it’s no wonder he’d like to see one thing realized in 2015: Keep disrupting, and he will keep reporting!
Nicole Yershon is the Director of Innovation Solutions at Ogilvy London, which just might be the coolest corporate title we’ve ever come across. Beginning her career in advertising 23 years ago, she now oversees the ‘laboratory’ driving innovation within Ogilvy UK. Nicole shared with us her secret to success in the last year, which was to say ‘yes’ more often than ‘no’!
London-based and with American roots, entrepreneur and angel investor Alex Hoye has played a significant part in encouraging a wave of entrepreneurial inspiration across Europe. He is Co-founder and CEO of Faction Skis and CEO of Latitude Group, one of Europe’s largest independent digital marketing agencies. He’s also invested in Seedcamp and is chairman of Skimlinks and BraveNewTalent. Other than hitting the slopes in his company’s cutting edge gear, he’ll be making sure he embraces the moment and stays present in each moment this year.
