Born in Mississauga, went to high-school in Markham and college in Toronto. Grew up with a very 'Canadian' view of the world.
Spent a few years after graduation working in a laboratory as a research assistant (doing terrible things to cute little Chinese Hamsters) before it began to occur to me that working in Biology might not be for me. I spent a year working for IBM on a short term manufacturing contract in preparation for what I thought was going to be a year-out in Europe.
I flew to the UK in 1990 - September 17th to be precise (it was a dark and rainy night... lightening was everywhere).
Between travels (and while temping in an office in Stockport) I was offered my first job in IT - thanks to a kind gentleman named David Medcalf. (My 'geekish' tendancies had not gone unnoticed). After 18 months on a help-desk at RoMEC, I accepted an offer to work for VNU publications - which meant that after a culturally educational stay in the North of England - I was now headed for the big city of London.
I helped to build editorial and publishing systems at VNU - which was a great way to get to know more about publishing, networks, Apple Macs and the journalist scene in London. In 1994 I moved over to Macmillan Publishers. Macmillan was probably my biggest break in IT. The office I started in on the Fulham Road was still using carbon paper and typewriters (this was 1994!). I was given a lot of freedom at Macmillan- free to succeed and fail. It was a formative five years and I'm grateful for the experience. In 1999 I decided to take another year-out to travel, spending the majority of my time in Asia.
In 2001 I joined a startup venture in Bangkok; an online, rights managed stock photography agency - which turned into the 'business experience of a lifetime'. It was tough going - and I learned a lot about business and people in the process.
In 2005 I was back in the UK working for Datapharm Publishers Ltd. A great assignment and a good bunch of people.
I've since started a MSc in Information Security at RHUL - which has turned out to be brilliant so far... and after that who knows what next...
Feel very lucky to have lived, travelled and worked across three continents. It's been an adventure to say the least.
If you've made it this far... and want a more formal introduction - then my CV is at http://www.abouch.com
'Per Ardua Ad Astra'