Doing Business with Andy Farquharson of LogMeIn
- 30 September, 2014 05:00
Title: Vice President, Asia Pacific, LogMeIn
How long have you been in your current role?
Four years - I joined LogMeIn six years ago when working for the business in Amsterdam, and was one of the founding staff members in the Sydney office when it opened in 2009.
What business technology issues are your organisation focusing on?
For LogMeIn there are three key business technology areas that we are focusing. With more than 100,000 small-and-medium business (SMB) IT customers, LogMeIn has been actively investing in an expanding IT portfolio designed to help businesses address and embrace the shift to mobile working, cloud adoption, employee-introduced technology – the bring-your-own or BYO trend – and the rapid proliferation of apps and connected devices. With the recent launch of AppGuru and the recent acquisition of Meldium, we are bolstering our portfolio in ways that help IT pros manage data, devices and apps in today’s workplace, while helping them win over employees accustomed to consumer experiences and personal choice.
We are also helping companies transform the way they deepen their customer relationships, through our IoT platform called Xively. We recently purchased a company with early experience building out IoT-enabled connected customer solutions: Ionia, and we see this as key to helping companies move from vision and planning around IoT to near-term commercial reality. We have seen with early IoT clients including Australian stormwater solutions company Turbid, consumer electronics companies like Lutron and biotechnology companies like NEB to name a few.
What are your interests away from work?
When not travelling for work – which happens quite frequently, I love travelling for pleasure. I’m lucky enough to have extensively travelled the globe and love experiencing different cultures, meeting the local people, watching new sports and tasting exotic foods. If there’s a place I haven’t visited, then it’s next on my travel list.
If you do two things, you are sure to succeed: a. Write a list of things to do; b. Do it.
What are you reading at the moment?
The Promise of a Pencil: How an Ordinary Person Can Create Extraordinary Change by Adam Braun.
Adam recently spoke at a company conference and hearing his story about redefining ‘Not For Profit’ to ‘For Purpose’ inspired me to learn more about his passion which includes bringing education to those less fortunate, turning $25 into more than 200 schools around the world.
What's the best piece of advice you've ever received?
If you do two things, you are sure to succeed:
a. Write a list of things to do
b. Do it.
Professionally, who do you admire most?
Tom Hafey, the Australian Rules Football League player and coach who sadly passed away earlier this year. He ushered in a new era of professionalism, based on simplicity, hard work and accountability into the game he loved and cherished – Aussie Rules -- and those qualities capture for me all the hallmarks required for success in today’s corporate world. I used to see him whenever I visited my family in Portsea, Victoria. Even in his later years he was still out in the surf, catching waves.
How long have you been working in IT?
I started in the industry almost eight years ago, following in my dad’s footsteps - he has been in software distribution and development industry for many, many years.
If you weren't working in IT, What would you be doing?
Sports management. I have a passion for sport, and played Rugby Union for 15 years, travelling the globe to play in Amsterdam, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland and have previously turned my hand at sports and events management.
What's the best thing about working with IT executives?
Their willingness to try new technology and using the latest innovations to unlock their creativity to solve problems for their companies, for example the CIO at Sydney Cochlear Implant Centre needed to conduct ongoing device testing and cochlear implant mapping updates for its patient network, with a growing number of clients based in remote and regional areas of Australia, as well as in other countries such as Samoa and Kenya. He decided to deploy LogMeIn Pro to solve his web-based remote access solution – a simple yet brilliant use of technology to creatively solve his technology challenge.
What is the worst?
Within many organisations big or small, there are often IT executives that are really unwilling to try or even consider any new technology and they continue to use dated solutions that still aren’t able to solve problems for their companies. They can really be a roadblock to new ideas in an organisation, for example finding new ways for teams to collaborate – especially across a base of disparate knowledge workers.
Can you share one key pointer for keeping abreast of business technology trends?
I find that I turn to LinkedIn more and more as it offers a great platform to follow key industry groups and trends across a range of interesting local business networks – everything from the BYOD space, to channel news, and SMB updates as well as regional groups to keep I touch with the wider APAC region as well. It has really grown as a business platform to engage with my peers.
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