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Interviews
Published date: January 29, 2009© 2009 Avangate page 1
www.avangate.com
 
Interview with Neil Davidson
"You should try things, measure the results, do what works anddon't what doesn't."
Adriana Iordan, Web Marketing Manager, Avangate
Interviews, Published date: January 29, 2009
Neil Davidson is joint CEO of  Red Gate Softwareand founder of the Business of Software conference.You can follow him on twitterand read his blog at http://blog.businessofsoftware.org.He's been into the software business formore than 10 years now and in this interview he shares his thoughts on boththe software developers' concerns and successfully managing a softwarebusiness.
Adriana Iordan:
Please present yourself to our readers, tell us how you evolved inside thesoftware business. Of all the things you've done, what are you most proud of?
Neil Davidson:
I was unhappy in my previous job. I hated people telling me what to do,especially when I didn't always agree with what they were saying. I was the classic cynicaldeveloper, always whining about why things wouldn't work, about how things should be better.Eventually - and after some pushing - I figured that I'd have to stop whining and actually dosomething. Simon Galbraith and I had met at school a decade earlier and we'd always wantedto start something together. So I called him, and we set up Red Gate.
Adriana Iordan:
By all standards you are a very successful software business CEO. What werethe key factors that led to this situation and what can you recommend to all other softwarebusiness newbies out there?
Neil Davidson:
There's a Woody Allen quote that goes "90% of success is turning up". If you're going to run a software business, you need to turn up. And turn up full time: if you'renot prepared to give your all to getting your business of the ground, it's going to fail. It's easyto hedge your bets, keep your day job and work on your business in your spare time. But atsome point you need to ask yourself the question: am I really prepared to turn this into abusiness? Or is this a hobby? There's nothing wrong with the second answer, of course.
 
 
Interviews
Published date: January 29, 2009© 2009 Avangate page 2
www.avangate.com
 
Adriana Iordan:
Red Gate is presented as a great company to work for, in employees topsaccording to some prestigious publications. Haven't you ever thought that maybe this kind of investment in your team would have a bigger ROI if put elsewhere? What is your motivationbehind this human resources strategy? Will anything change, given the current world financialsituation?
Neil Davidson:
It's not just a question of ROI. Part of the reason Simon and I set up Red Gatewas to create an environment that we liked working in. We want to work in a place that we'dwant to work, if that makes sense. That means working with smart, creative and happy people,being able to work flexible hours, not being treated like children, and so on. A lot it's justcommon sense.Sure, the current economic climate makes it harder to stick to our principles, but - toparaphrase a great man - we reject as false the choice between profit and our ideals. In fact,we've just moved to shiny new offices and are about to start providing free hot meals to all of our employees. That has a measurable cost, but it also has an immeasurable benefit. You can'tpoint at a bacon butty and say that sandwich cost Red Gate £2 but will generate £4 in revenue.But the benefit - financial and otherwise - is still there.
Adriana Iordan:
In terms of software marketing, what strategies would you recommend toother software vendors?
Neil Davidson:
I'd recommend reading"In Search of Stupidity"by Rick Chapman and "Marketing High Technology"by William Davidow. Embarrassingly, I haven't read the last book myself. But apparently it's very good. I just ordered a copy.I'd also recommend looking at marketing strategies in other sectors. For example, although RedGate is a software business, it has more in common with Unilever or Procter and Gamble thanSAP.
Adriana Iordan:
Were there any marketing outlets that you found to be a waste of time/money?
 
 
Interviews
Published date: January 29, 2009© 2009 Avangate page 3
www.avangate.com
 
Neil Davidson:
I don't think there are any general principles. You should try things, measurethe results, do what works and don't what doesn't. Of course, that's not as easy to do inpractice as in principle. And it's not as obvious as it seems. Or most TV ads, and governmentanti-obesity campaigns, wouldn't be run.
Adriana Iordan:
What are your future plans with Red Gate? Any special turnovers to adapt tothe financial crisis?
Neil Davidson:
Just to keep growing! We're doing some things because of the financial crisis,but nothing drastic. Things are going really well for us right now. We got nervous about theeconomy about 18 months ago and started making small changes back then. That should meanwe won't need to make big changes now.
Adriana Iordan:
Some two years ago you were mentioning in an articlethat at Red Gate the term "social media" is banned from usage. What happened to you in the meantime: you'vecreated the Business of Software online social community, regularly write on blogs, including onyour own, you are micro blogging on Twitter and so on...
Neil Davidson:
I think we banned the term but not the substance. In the same article I talkabout blogs, message boards and so on. It's just that the phrase s****l m***a was irritatingthe hell out of people at Red Gate at the time. I've got over that a bit, so you can probably getaway with using it. Just don't call it vibrant. Or I really will slap you. I'm a twitter convertthough (you can follow me at twitter.com/neil.davidson). It took me a while to see the point, but I'm getting used to it now.
Adriana Iordan:
As founder of Business of Software Conference, what do you expect from it in2009? What kind of participants are you expecting, different from last years? What have youlearned from your involvement?
Neil Davidson:
I think BoS 2009 is going to be great. I'm hoping we'll get a lot of the samecrowd as last year, and some new people too. It had a really good vibe - lots of people trying tobuild long term, sustainable software businesses, just like me. This year, Joel is speaking again,and we've got Geoffrey Moore, Donald Norman and Paul Graham lined up too.
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