07 March 2024

Gordon Cullum, technology director, Axiologik

Who was your hero when you were growing up?
Sir Michael Palin. Not only do I love Python humour, but when I was 12 he did ‘Around the World in 80 Days.’ I wasn’t allowed to stay up late enough on a school night to watch it, so it was the highlight of my week when my mum recorded that from the telly, and I got to watch it the next day. Exploration, creativity, adventure, problem-solving. All things that have inspired me forever since.

What was your big career break?
I’m not sure I’ve ever really had ‘a break’ as such. There have been a couple of steep inclines in my progression. My first was way back at Syntegra. I was working in technical support and I was assigned a mentor, Rob Clayton. He recognised that I was more interested in design and development, but had a grounding in ‘what not to build’ coming from having to get out of bed at 1am regularly and fix problems caused by other people’s deliveries.

He got me seconded to a delivery team building the London Eye’s ecommerce website. He pushed me hard to learn new skills and integrate with that team, so much so that when the team bid for a rebuild of all of the London Eye’s systems (tills, reporting, access control, website) I was named as the solution architect. That was a big step in responsibility for me, and whilst it was hard work and a big ask, I worked with a great team and we all learned and grew so much in so short a time.
Rob is no longer with us, but I think of him often and am so grateful for having had such a great role model.

What did you want to be when you were growing up?
A fast jet pilot in the RAF. Partly because I wanted to travel the world, partly because I love complicated machines and partly because I love speed. Sadly, I was told by a recruiter for the officer training programme when I was 16 that I would never fly because of my eyesight.

If you could dine with any famous person, past or present, who would you choose?
I’m lucky in this question in that the person I admired while growing up is still alive, so I’ll say Sir Michael Palin. I think it would be a riot of tall tales, humour and learning about the world that he has explored. He comes across as such a genuine person, too, so I would like to think that he might enjoy talking with me about some of my, albeit less impressive, experiences.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
Get a mentor – someone who can help you understand where you need to grow based on who you really are, what you want to be and why. Not just someone who’s interested in you from a professional excellence point-of-view, but someone who can see past your immediate ‘use’ and help you become the person you want to be.

If you had to work in a different industry, which would you choose?
Given I can’t fly fast jets for the RAF, motorsports! One way or another – either involved in a team, driving, leading, or being in some way linked to that excitement. I had the pleasure of visiting the Mclaren Technology Centre a few years ago and the way that that whole organisation comes together behind the mission and everyone is excited about the part they play was amazing.

The Rolling Stones or the Beatles?
The Beatles and it’s a simple reason - I grew up with the Beatles. When I was in a band we covered loads of Beatles songs. Their music evolved so much over the years but remained accessible. Almost anyone can sing their songs, pick up a guitar and play their songs, yet to have created such masterpieces in the first place totally belies that simplicity and accessibility.

What’s the greatest technological advancement in your lifetime?
In my view, the thing that’s had the most impact is the internet. Or, more specifically the World Wide Web. Whilst the internet is the technical enabler, the World Wide Web is the great leveller that has created a step change in the learning ability of the world.

I do recognise that there are, of course, still parts of the global community that don’t have the same levels of access to it. Often these communities are closer to home than we in the developed world think. Simplifying and extending access to the web is probably one of the most powerful things we can continue to do to drive our planet forward.

What would you do with £1 million?
I probably should do something like pay off the mortgage, and invest it for my boys’ future. In reality, I’m not much of a personal planner so I’d probably spend it on an assortment of holidays for me and my boys, cool gadgets and probably a Ferrari.