Day 1 in London reminded me (again) that the best part of work isn’t the tech… it’s the people.
I landed early at Heathrow and was lucky enough to get picked up by my friend Peter Clisby — a relationship that started through the Sitecore community + MVP program and has grown into real life friendship. Peter has now picked me up from airports in two European cities (Malaga at SUGCON Europe a few years back, and now London), and he’s even stayed with me at my home in New Jersey.
🎧 A 1-hour podcast with Peter from 2024 (Spotify)
That’s the power of authentic connection: it travels with you.
Also… I totally forgot the driver’s side is on the “other” side here.
The trek from Heathrow into London during the weekday morning rush took a while, but the two-hour ride through the suburbs into The City turned into one of those catch-ups on life, career, AI, and everything in between while watching kids walk to school and the city wake up.
We settled into Shoreditch at Remarkable’s offices (Peter is VP there). I posted up at a workstation and got a few things done while soaking in the rhythm of a global agency: creatives + technologists, bottlenecks, give-and-takes, resolutions… the same calls I’ve lived through at every stop in my career.
After a quick sandwich, I was off to Squiz’s London office—an eight-minute walk away. I met up with Nick Condon (Managing Director), a business connection who has become a friend.
Podcast with Nick: https://lnkd.in/e2hhtTGc
We talked wins from the past year, where Squiz is heading (ICP, features, AI), and I met a group of London-based team members across sales, tech, AM, customer success, and more. The vibe felt like a callback to a pre-COVID era—open-office collaboration, serendipity, and a team where even the “newest” person has been there 6 years.
Then: Covent Garden 4pm hotel check-in, shower, fresh clothes, and a slow wander with Nick toward dinner in Mayfair. We made a pit stop at The Devonshire—which has a reputation for one of the best Guinness pints in London. I can’t confirm it scientifically… but for a bedraggled traveler, it was exactly the right pint.
Dinner was at The Windmill with Janus Boye and a small group of digital leaders, including Jan Havel (ACTUM Digital) — a mentor of sorts who I first met years ago overlooking Manhattan at the Chart House. We remembered the incredible steaks… and the mistake of lava cake that we “felt” for 24 hours.
At Windmill, it was meat pies all around, great conversation, and the kind of industry perspective you only get when you share a table.
And then… I finally passed out and slept hard.
Takeaway from Day 1: the most valuable “platform” is still the relationships you build—consistently, generously, over time. Really excited to see how these relationships grow and the collaborations to be made with iMedia inc!
