Paul Talbot, 49, chief technology officer at adept4 chats about his career path
What did you want to be when you were young?
While living in rural Somerset, job opportunities were related to working in the local factory or farm. I was interested in sport and socialising and not really focused on a career. I moved to the West Midlands due to ill health in my family just as I was finishing education. I had a choice to make: to go to college or get a job.
What are the main career stepping stones you have taken?
I worked as a clerical officer in an unemployment-benefit office and got into IT when I joined the WH Smith Group as data-entry clerk. I soon got the IT bug as opportunities within the group allowed for fantastic personal development.
I was there for 15 years and eventually became head of IT. I joined Computer Associates as a business technologist before being approached by IBM. In 2000, I left to join my first managed-service venture, where I met adept4’s chief executive officer, Peter Birkett. Adept4lower case ‘a’ is correct was founded in 2007 and today we have 55 staff working in Aberdeen, Daresbury, Runcorn, London and Bracknell. We are focused on passing on our experience to the next generation of talent.
To read the full article, visit our sister recruitment site here