Dave Hunt at work

At Work

So what is it I do these days? After 10 years as Technical Director of Systems 2100, the company which designed and wrote what was probably the first Electronic Document Management System in the UK (the competition was all American), I moved on to Pi Computer Systems in St. Albans. And for 5 years, I did much the same sort of thing, but more varied. Around 1998, Pi became involved with Pindar Set, printers and publishers in Yorkshire. They wanted to build an EDM system for one of their customers, Yellow Book Inc., in the States. In October 2002, I moved again and started working for Pindar Set full time, on the Yellow Book EDM systems.

However, all good things can't last forever and in December 2006 the Americans finally decided to make it an all American show, and my part at Yellow Book came to an end.

I'm part EDM Guru, part systems designer, part programmer, and can lay my hands to most things which come my way, designing networks, configuring PC's, you name it. I've even been known to make the tea. Making tea is one thing, drinking it might be risky!

Perhaps the only job description I don't like is EDM Consultant, because in a long career, I've discovered very few real consultants, and have found the term Consultant is a very easy handle to lay on a failed salesman. I've met plenty of those. So, by definition I'm a failed salesman as well, the difference is I've never tried to be one - but if I tried I'm pretty sure I'd fail. I was trained as an engineer - all right an electronic instrumentation design engineer - and I still like to think of myself as an engineer, albeit in a somewhat different field. Being an engineer is convenient, when things go wrong, I can always blame the salesman, "... the salesman told you it would do what?" I get the sympathy, and the customer blames the salesman for making him look a schmuck.

So consultant, I'm not. Salesman, I'm not. Engineer, I am. Designing Electronic Document Management systems is what I do. The current challenge is to find a new job.

Page updated: 31/01/07.