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Hi, welcome to the Struffclyde Inspire Highlight video for 2021 to 2022.
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It's been a great year with many inspiring conversations involving some amazing entrepreneurial minds.
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Please sit back, relax, and enjoy some of our favorite clips from this past year.
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Yeah, really fascinating, I guess, in terms of your background, both academically, but also in terms of delivery and, you know, I guess even thinking about legacy and what that means within the context of innovation and enterprise, you know, here in Glasgow, where I guess we've got a strong history.
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Being at the University of Strathclyde, you know, thinking about some of the great innovators that have come through these doors and continue to come through these doors.
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But I guess how we build on that legacy and how we impact the communities that surround us here in Glasgow, you know, some of the most deprived communities in Scotland are not a throw away from our institutions and from the areas in which we live.
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And I guess, you know, what role do you think innovation has in tackling some of those societal disparities that we see?
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I think you're absolutely right.
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And I think when we look at research programs and and I think how they're structured, I think I actually think whether you're whether you're a company or you know, you know, representing almost like a microcosm of society or any sort of organization, or whether you are a local authority looking at how you tackle challenges on the ground, I think increasingly we now need almost like a sort of North Star vision, or we need to base what we're trying to do on sort of societal challenges rather than research questions.
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You know, so I think we I think we almost sort of need to sort of think more broadly, okay, what is the challenge that we're trying to fix?
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And who are the diverse minds that we need to get together to sort of fix that?
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So I don't think we can be as linear as we have been in the past.
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And we've often sort of thought, I guess, about um, you know, sectors, you know, sort of individual sectors.
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I'm not entirely sure how helpful that is.
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I wonder if we need to think about again, you know, what are the real life challenges that we're trying to fix?
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And, you know, and how do we sort of use our rich innovation assets?
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Because somewhere like Glasgow, we're so lucky.
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We've got so many skills and innovation assets within a relatively small geography.
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So, how do we coordinate those and and in a sort of coherent way and a really impactful way, um, whereby we can take a sort of challenge-led approach and bring in all the right people to design sort of the transformational solutions that will really have an impact on um communities and inclusive shared growth?
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Yeah, and I I guess you've got quite a unique experience, Susie, having worked, I guess, closer with local authorities, worked with uh national government, working with uh academic institutions.
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You know, what do you see as I guess some of the challenges and the opportunities within those relationships to really kind of make, as you said, that transformative societal change?
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Because I think there's a lot of messing around the edges with things and and you know, but it's you know, you talked a bit about policy earlier on like what you know, some of the policy changes you think need to happen to help us kind of move things forward.
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Like, where are some of the I guess where's that kind of uh nexus for you and some of that?
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Yeah, you know, it's funny, I remember a few years ago I went, I sat around uh uh I sat in a conference um and we were discussing similar things, and you know, in terms of the Glasgow context, um I don't think we quite realise how lucky we are in terms of the relationships, the tacit relationships between the universities, the town and gown relationships, as we would say, and and um our our connection to kind of local communities because actually this so that that that meeting was in Turin, and I remember the Italians kind of saying, God, you're so lucky, because actually the innovation community doesn't have as good a relationship with its its local authority, so we need to capitalise on that.
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Now there isn't a silver bullet that will answer that question, but there needs to be systemic and systematic sort of changes to kind of what what what we have and what we're doing to support communities, and I think that goes from everything from skills, um, you know, education.
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Education is obviously absolutely critical to sort of everything, and we need to invest in young people from um underrepresented communities who are tackling, you know, are having to, you know, every day they sort of have challenges that that they're facing, but we need to invest in those young people, you know.
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Often it comes down to resource, you know, and I know that's difficult sort of in these times.
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We need to prioritise resource, but I think education and um you know giving those young people equality of opportunity um is is is absolutely um critical to sort of rebalancing.
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So, what are the biggest challenges you're facing today and how you're overcoming them?
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Because it sounds like you knock them down when they get in your way anyway.
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But what are you doing about it?
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Do you know it's uh when you'd give you know you'd you'd ask me to have a wee look at some of the questions, and quite often I struggle with challenges because I don't challenges are just you know, I'm not gonna say something cliche, but they're there to be jumped over or whatever, but you know, chat challenges are there to just be jumped over, are they?
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Um I think that in terms of running a social business, if you like, the challenge is always balancing commercial decisions and social decisions.
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So you have to think with I always talk about running a social business as a commercial mind and a social heart.
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But actually the social thing is what makes it really, really different.
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So sometimes, you know, like there'll be decisions I make and they're not commercially the right decision, but actually they are the they are absolutely the right thing for the people that we're working with.
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So and and so then there's then the challenge is making sure that the investors and the people that are around you and your board respect that and also are on the same page as you so that you're not you're not being challenged about these things.
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Um do you have a methodology for that at all, or is it more like kind of you come with your gut in some of these things, or is there like a methodology?
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So if tomorrow you were kind of hit by a bus, god forbid, would the organisation have a a sense of how it would make decisions based on the those heart heart elements um that you've somehow embedded in the DNA, or is it very much down to you as a leader that a lot of that happens?
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What would happen if I was hit by a bus?
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Um I'm gonna be careful walking home after you've said that then.
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So I think if I think about the way that the senior team we the way that we all work together, uh I do the head and heart thing in my head just instantaneously.
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Alice, our chief operating officer, it's much more about head, she's much more about what does that mean than and the you know the consequences and setting precedents and what are the financial implications, and then Joey, who's our head of lightings and tenancy support, is probably a wee bit more about heart.
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Okay.
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So they would have a debate, but when I think about the different people on my board and our investors, they are imbalanced.
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Okay, so I think we would probably get to the same decision.
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And you know, one of the things when when I'm making decisions around the social or collectively making decisions about the social side, we always have the finances not very far away, so we can articulate look, we're gonna do this, and this will mean that this might be a reduction in profits of X amount, but we've already thought that through and we can we can handle it, so it's always very carefully you know, doing the right thing is is is always well, you know, we consider it carefully.
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Well no, as techies, we are always kind of like what is we're always looking at what's the next and what's not great and what's best.
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But I mean, and there's a lot of different changes going on.
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I mean, there's you know, we had COP in the city, and then I still believe that the the city can know leverage off the back of that.
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Yeah, absolutely, yeah, absolutely.
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So what's kind of what's kind of what's a getting what's the next big thing?
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Yeah, it's well yeah, so so that so I'm uh there's kind of two sides to me in this, right?
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And one is the the pure techie side, so I'm endlessly interested in new stuff, and it can be absolutely useless stuff, but I love it.
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Right, so it's the uh gallium nitride chargers.
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I don't know, you see these things now.
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So I I remember you'd buy a laptop and you'd a charger, you know, it was like a brick, it was bigger, it weighed more than a brick, you know.
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Now you get these wee things that are like two inches square, and and that's the same power.
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So there's a whole heap of stuff like that, but um I I think I'm wise enough now to realise that's sort of some self-gratification, you know what I mean?
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It's like anybody wants to hear about that.
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The thing that is that is constantly on my mind just now and probably has been since we started Data Lab is AI and how that's starting to impact the very fabric of our society.
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Yeah, yeah, yeah.
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So that you know that there's these things that there's things that interest me because they're shiny bubbles, right?
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And I know that that's the case.
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This thing interests me because it it is in the process of changing the world, and it's not clear how it's gonna work.
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Now I see how it's gonna work.
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It's not clear to me we're heading for a good place or a bad place.
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Yeah, yeah, okay.
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But we're at we're at we're at we're at a really interesting point in human history, I think.
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And and you know, I I when I first started programming, my gran used to ask me, What is it you do, son?
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Right?
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And I'm like, oh and I actually tried to show her one day, right?
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And did this so uh Visual Studio would come up, that was a C programme at the time.
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It's like wait till you see this, Gran.
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She's like, Oh, that that that's great, yeah.
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You can add two numbers together, brilliant, son.
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Uh but you know, and then I said, No, no, I've got to break this down in human terms.
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So, what what did I do on a human level?
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Yes, yeah.
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Well, I I went and sat with people who did a job.
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I tried to understand how they did their job, did then I got the computer to do their job and they get made redundant.
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Okay.
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The nice way of saying that is they got other more interesting jobs.
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Yes, yep, yeah.
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Debatable.
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Yeah.
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Uh but that's what we did.
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Now, when you're when I was at the start of my career, I could see that with some sense of arrogance and pride and bravado.
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But now, when I look at it, I think, right, okay.
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You know, self-driving cars, okay.
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You know, within the next decade, let's say let's say 10 years, okay, is it beyond the realms of possibility that you'll be able to have a fully autonomous car?
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Uh no, I would say it's not beyond the realms of possibility, maybe unlikely for full autonomous, but I don't think we're that far away.
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But what's the impact of society?
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How many households in the Glasgow area rely on a taxi driver as the main breadwinner?
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I I don't know, but I suspect if it was a single employer and that employer was at risk of a cataclysmic failure, the government would do something about it.
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And that's just one microcosm of it.
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So you're seeing this artificial intelligence, data as a commodity, as probably the most precious commodity that we've ever came across.
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How that is starting to affect things, how it's starting to affect our democracy, which is in real jeopardy, there's no doubt about that.
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How it's starting to affect the jobs market, you know, what happens if you end up with this class of people who are from an economic perspective not just exploited but irrelevant, entirely irrelevant.
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Yeah, it doesn't matter.
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Yeah, yeah.
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And so you know, the it excites me, it terrifies me.
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The thing that's on my mind just now is AI, and and I'm always I'm always intrigued by this, the the word innovation, right?
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So there's a great definition.
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I think it's the Harvard Business Review, do this the definition of innovation is new stuff made useful, right?
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And newness and usefulness are relative terms, right?
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New to me, no new to you, useful.
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So relative.
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But when you s when you actually start to unpick that useful bit, what you really get to is impactful.
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New and impactful.
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I suspect it's probably a slightly better definition.
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And the the technology that will have the biggest impact on us for the rest of our lives, our children, their children, and and uh everybody else's for the next 200-300 years is gonna be AI.
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And that's something which again, though, like we as technologists we're creating that.
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And the thing is we've got to have I would say that um ethics aspect into it because it is going to affect quite a lot of people, and in some ways, it can't get out of hand, it has to be kind of you know supporting the people who are.
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And I think I I think that I think that's an interesting place for entrepreneurs to be.
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I don't know if you're a big fan of TV, but one of my favourite shows is one called Halt and Catch Fire.
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Have you seen it?
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Absolutely.
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And obviously, uh for people who haven't seen it, it's basically about the dawn of the computer age and and a lot of what you talked about there, characters in that show.
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And so I guess my question for you is like what was the energy like around that time?
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Because I guess for many of us, we've grown up now as digital natives, and it's just second nature.
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But when you watch something like that, dramatized as it is, obviously, the energy and just there's a lot of just like really audacious people just go for it, don't they?
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Yeah, yeah, no, in fact, um uh Horton Catch Fire is a kind of a bit of an inspiration for me because it covers that whole period when the personal computer was born in 81 through to about mid-90s, when things were pretty much settled.
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We knew what was you know, I mean obviously things have advanced since then, but not new breakthroughs, not new ways of doing um stuff.
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And uh in fact, I've I've actually written a book um which I'll be coming, I'll be coming out later this year.
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Okay, um, basically around our web uh technology business and how we built that, but really it covers that period, the golden age of the personal computer, um and when it arrived.
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And the Hot and Catch 5 was a great example.
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The first thing they did was a beat IBM Speed PC clone, and then they did a word processor, and then they did a hypertext product.
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Um slightly weird, and then finally they did a multiplayer gaming system, and it was the same people every time trying and it never they never worked, they never succeeded.
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Yeah, but they they struggled to make it and it all the people in there are very recognisable.
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Do you think those people are shaped by their environment?
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Is it kind of like nature versus nurture?
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So um is there a pattern, do you think, for this, or is there something out there like you talked about the ecosystem?
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So is the ecosystem helping us to deliver those social entrepreneurs, or are they just made?
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Are they born and they just need a vehicle to get their idea out there?
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I don't I you know, nature, nature, nurture is something that I don't fully, I've not really looked into that and I don't fully understand it, but what what I think is that you know, just in the way we were talking about what's what what I did at the beginning, you know, and how I started and how I ended up in social enterprise.
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I think it's life experiences that shape you.
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Yeah.
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Um so you know, how have how have I ended up so so to start a business you have to have confidence and you have to be a bit of a risk taker.
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There are a number that you have to be a self-starter.
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There's all these different ingredients.
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Where do they come from?
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So for me, um one of the earliest things that I did as a as a young teenager or or as a teenager was I went to Spain on my own when I was 17 for three months and I didn't really speak Spanish.
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Um I'd I'd done first year here at Strathclyde, didn't really go to any of the lectures, did a crash course in Spanish.
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But I got to got to Barcelona and I thought I I can't string two words together here, and then also had the added uh joy that they didn't even speak Spanish in the family, it was Catalan, so I had to learn.
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But I thought, okay, I need to learn both languages at the one time.
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That was my response to that, which looking back at 17 years old, I look back at what I did then and think, God, I wouldn't have the courage to do that now.
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But I came back from Barcelona after 11 weeks, completely fluent in Spanish, completely fluent and um really understanding Catalan well, and that gave me complete self-belief that I could I could learn how to do do new things.
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Uh-huh.
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So actually setting up a business that in an area that had never done anything before didn't seem like a big deal because I'd proven to myself already that I could do new things, which is go live go and live alone in another country and learn a new language from scratch.
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So I think that is I I I don't think it is about you're born an entrepreneur, but I think your life experiences and your environment does shape you.
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Yeah.
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I I just admire what you've what you've done in very difficult circumstances.
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You know, often we talk about don't waste a crisis.
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My goodness, Claire, you have not wasted a crisis.
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Sorry, John, I'm speaking over you there, but actually, when I when I presented my recovery strategy, that was my first quote was don't waste a crisis.
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Because otherwise, you can either just sit and wait for it to pass and it might be okay.
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Or my absolute philosophy is when something hits you that feels bad or uncomfortable, you are being sent a gift from the universe that is asking you to change or learn.
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And if you seize that, it can actually be incredibly powerful.
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And that's what we did with the pandemic.
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So you are the curator and founder of TEDx Glasgow.
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Tell us a bit more about TEDx for those that aren't aware of it, and you know, you probably have been living under a rock if you're not aware of TED.
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I think probably the one of the largest platforms for spreading inspiring ideas.
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Uh but tell us a bit more about it and um what's the future looking like and what's coming up for TEDx?
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Oh well, I've met ministers in Scotland that have never heard of TED.
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Is that right?
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Yeah.
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So uh living under a rock is quite common, more common than you you'd think.
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Um what happened for me was I had a mentor, I've got several mentors.
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I recommend you get hundreds of mentors, tens of mentors, whatever, how many.
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Um, and one of my mentors suggested I watch TED Talks because I like learning about lots of different subjects.
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And then a year later, the same mentor said to me, Well, why do you organize a TEDx event?
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And I looked and it's a complete nightmare.
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It's like so many rules and processes, and you know, you've got to be a volunteer.
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And and then 10 years later, I'm still doing it.
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So all the characteristics of a of an entrepreneur I mentioned earlier: naivety and tenacity and grit, short-term memory are really helpful when you're doing something that you know it involves a lot of volunteering time and a lot of people volunteering their time as well.
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Um for me, the the the TED platform is a space for ideas sharing, but TEDx is a space for ideas doing.
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Okay, that's the big difference.
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So TED's you know, six billion views, sharing ideas, inspiring folk.
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So what?
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Yeah, let's be honest.
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You know, you'll be inspired by this podcast, hopefully, and then you walk out and you do whatever you want to do before you hear the podcast.
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You know, your life will continue as it did.
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Um, so for us, in particular at TEDx Glasgow, it's ideas worth doing is more important than ideas worth sharing, and that's how we built the last decade.
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But if you look at it, you know, the investment that we've had from government and the private sector, and it's probably 90% private sector and 10% government, um, we give a return of nearly double the money that's invested in social, economic, and environmental impact.
00:20:36.079 --> 00:20:55.759
Therefore, you'd think with the 18 million views that we've had online of the people that we've engaged with the talks from over 140 speakers, and a lot of them are Scottish relevant ideas or from Scotland ideas, you'd think that we'd have you know the red carpet rolled out and massive support from government because brand Scotland needs it.
00:20:56.400 --> 00:21:03.039
You know, Scott Scottish Scots have a great brand around the world, but there's a lot of countries competing.
00:21:03.279 --> 00:21:09.519
Berlin, Silicon Valley, you know, there's Amsterdam, there's lots of other countries that are competing and cities that compete with Scotland.
00:21:09.680 --> 00:21:27.039
So I I believe that that TED as a brand and a platform and TEDx as as a way of actioning people could be hugely influential in Scotland and as Scotland would be seen globally, you know, we're more than whiskey, haggis, and shipbuilding.
00:21:27.200 --> 00:21:30.319
You know, we've got a lot more things to showcase around the world.
00:21:30.480 --> 00:21:34.000
However, I'm just one of a handful of people that believe that.
00:21:34.559 --> 00:21:37.920
You know, I don't know why government doesn't get behind it more.
00:21:38.559 --> 00:21:40.319
And um, I hope they would.
00:21:40.480 --> 00:21:42.000
We have a 2030 plan.
00:21:42.480 --> 00:21:50.799
You know, we would love to be eventually in the hydro, we'd love to live stream globally, we'd love to showcase more of Scotland's ideas and engage the Scottish diaspora.
00:21:50.880 --> 00:21:51.200
Uh huh.
00:21:51.359 --> 00:21:54.160
You know, the I don't know how many millions around the world.
00:21:54.319 --> 00:21:59.119
Um, that would be incredible and change the mindset of Scotland and the image of Scotland globally.
00:21:59.200 --> 00:22:01.839
But that's an Aspiration that a handful of us have.
00:22:02.000 --> 00:22:04.079
What we really need is government to get behind it.
00:22:04.319 --> 00:22:12.160
And I guess I've I wanted to ask you about your purpose because you know it sounds like you've you've been on a journey, you've experienced lots of things, you've had lots of businesses.
00:22:12.240 --> 00:22:17.359
But what do you now think, looking ahead in the next 20 years, what's your purpose, Gurtu?
00:22:18.079 --> 00:22:23.119
Ha ha um so uh that's a great question.
00:22:23.200 --> 00:22:28.960
So my purpose has always been about how to help society at large thrive.
00:22:29.279 --> 00:22:30.160
Very, very simple.
00:22:30.240 --> 00:22:30.480
Yeah.
00:22:30.640 --> 00:22:32.400
And I tried to do that in Mexico.
00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:40.160
You know, I went there and thought, right, you know, get to know the locals, get to know the language, the culture, understand how things work and work with them.
00:22:40.319 --> 00:22:42.079
Don't come top-down with solutions.
00:22:42.160 --> 00:22:46.240
No, no, you know, try to understand what changes you can make working with other people there.
00:22:46.400 --> 00:22:48.240
And that's advice I would give everybody.
00:22:48.400 --> 00:22:51.680
You know, don't go in and into something with the arrogance that you know everything.
00:22:51.839 --> 00:22:55.039
Go in there as naive as you can and ask all the stupid questions.
00:22:55.279 --> 00:23:02.240
And then my mum said to me, you know, she said, Well, you know, you're doing all that stuff out in Latin America, why don't you do it in your doorstep?
00:23:02.319 --> 00:23:04.799
You know, why do you do it in your back garden, your neighborhood?
00:23:04.960 --> 00:23:09.359
And that's what brought me back to class with the opportunity to actually do things here.
00:23:09.759 --> 00:23:34.960
Um, the next 20 years for me, um I think it's about trying to help others succeed, and that's probably what I've been doing the last 10 years: finding amazing people and giving them the ability to share their ideas and drive action using the TED platform.
00:23:35.119 --> 00:23:38.400
You know, I I love what I do and and it's it's very powerful.
00:23:38.559 --> 00:23:53.119
Um, so um I respect it, and it it's a lot of responsibility, and uh, and I would like to continue doing uh that finding incredible people and helping them tell their story so that other people can collaborate rather than compete with them.
00:23:53.359 --> 00:24:01.200
Um so from a 20-year perspective, I think that's where I could have the biggest impact and influence.
00:24:01.440 --> 00:24:03.119
But I also have a young family, you know.
00:24:03.200 --> 00:24:10.240
I have two young kids, so I want to be able to spend a little bit of time with them and help them become better role models in society.
00:24:10.400 --> 00:24:16.079
So I just need to be careful that I have a balance, which I've not had most of my life, you know.
00:24:16.160 --> 00:24:20.559
I've always been a very extreme um in the things I do.
00:24:20.720 --> 00:24:24.160
Um, but I now need to maybe take a teeny, teeny, teeny step back.
00:24:24.240 --> 00:24:28.079
But you say that, and then all of a sudden you're inundated with new initiatives that you do.
00:24:28.400 --> 00:24:29.119
So, yeah.
00:24:29.200 --> 00:24:37.039
So for me, the next 20 years just kind of amplify what I do and scale it up, but then try to keep a little bit of balance for health and mental well-being.
00:24:37.440 --> 00:24:38.960
That's really, really, really good advice.
00:24:39.119 --> 00:24:43.440
So you're you're now you're one of Strathclyde's senior enterprise fellows, and great to have you here.
00:24:43.680 --> 00:24:48.400
Um, you're obviously part of that role is inspiring that next generation of innovators and leaders.
00:24:48.480 --> 00:24:51.680
Can you tell us a bit more about the role and what excites you about working with the university?
00:24:51.839 --> 00:24:52.319
Yeah, yeah.
00:24:52.400 --> 00:24:58.960
I mean, um obviously uh so Jim McDonald um is his leader here and he's driving things forward.
00:24:59.039 --> 00:25:04.240
And he's always been, I mean, I've known him for years, and he's always been very ambitious and trying to create things.
00:25:04.319 --> 00:25:10.160
He's also president of the Royal Academy of Engineering, which I'm a fellow of, um, and he's doing good stuff there as well.
00:25:10.240 --> 00:25:12.319
So he's such a driven person, you know.
00:25:12.559 --> 00:25:19.759
And um, it's good to see, you know, we're actually creating pretty much every subject you do at Strathclyde is a vocational.
00:25:20.000 --> 00:25:21.200
You've got a career ahead of you.
00:25:21.440 --> 00:25:28.480
Our industry engagement and the facility for placements and things, I think, are pretty much unparalleled in the sector, and I think that's why people come here.
00:25:28.720 --> 00:25:30.960
That's why students come here because they know they can get a job at the end of it.
00:25:31.279 --> 00:25:31.920
Exactly, that's right.
00:25:32.079 --> 00:25:37.839
And um, I mean, I've been involved in Glasgow businesses um uh for years.
00:25:38.000 --> 00:25:42.160
Um there's nothing that makes Glasgow any different from anywhere else, really.
00:25:42.480 --> 00:25:42.880
No, no, no.
00:25:43.119 --> 00:25:45.039
It's just as enterprising and just as go enter.
00:25:45.519 --> 00:25:47.279
People are friendlier, people are friendlier.
00:25:47.519 --> 00:25:48.880
That's that is actually true.
00:25:49.200 --> 00:25:50.799
I have to admit that's true.
00:25:51.039 --> 00:25:56.720
But the whole um you know, that Glasgow used to be the built half the boats in the world, you know.
00:25:57.359 --> 00:26:06.880
Built all the railway engines, you know, it used to be a massive enterprise uh business uh area, and the de-industrialisation of the 20th century didn't do any favours.
00:26:07.119 --> 00:26:07.359
No.
00:26:07.519 --> 00:26:09.119
And we need to rebuild now.
00:26:09.279 --> 00:26:09.519
Uh-huh.
00:26:09.599 --> 00:26:10.079
It's time.
00:26:10.319 --> 00:26:12.000
Yeah, no, I think you're absolutely right.
00:26:12.079 --> 00:26:17.119
And uh I'm excited to see what you can do and how you can support the university in that ambition.
00:26:17.519 --> 00:26:34.400
I'm interested in all of given all of the experience, probably a very very difficult question, but is there one lesson that your current role plus your other roles that that everybody but everybody should should learn at some point?
00:26:34.559 --> 00:26:43.200
Again, come back to the origin, what we're trying to do with Strathclyde Inspire, whether it's a student, a staff member, alum, what is it that they can do?
00:26:43.279 --> 00:26:46.160
Because we want to make a difference to society, that's the key.
00:26:46.319 --> 00:26:50.880
That's what our purpose is as a useful learn, uh place of useful learning.
00:26:50.960 --> 00:26:52.240
So is there one thing?
00:26:52.319 --> 00:26:54.319
Can it can there be such a thing?
00:26:54.640 --> 00:27:01.440
Um, so I think I've probably mentioned them already, and and they're sort of wrapped up in in my stories.
00:27:01.519 --> 00:27:10.079
I'm a very authentic, uh, purpose-driven person, so you can kind of hear almost my learnings in my journey.
00:27:10.240 --> 00:27:21.279
But um for me, finding your passion um as early as possible is something that I think is really, really important.
00:27:21.519 --> 00:27:31.440
Because if you are passionate about something, you believe in it, then you're gonna be good at it, you're gonna work hard at it, you're gonna stay focused on it.
00:27:31.599 --> 00:27:34.559
Um, and what that also does is it builds resilience.
00:27:34.720 --> 00:27:44.240
Because I tell you something, aside from my daughter's health and things like that, this job has been the hardest thing I've ever done.
00:27:44.400 --> 00:28:01.920
And there have been moments where I have sat with my head in my hands, I'm in the Emirates Serena now in the car park, not knowing how I'm gonna walk through the door and just like, you know, you think you take one step forward and it's ten back, no one was helping, particularly in those early formative years.
00:28:02.160 --> 00:28:04.799
It was like every door just got shut.
00:28:04.880 --> 00:28:07.279
And I was like, how I'm one woman.
00:28:07.359 --> 00:28:08.079
I was stressed.
00:28:08.160 --> 00:28:16.079
I was running these businesses, I was doing it on my own, nothing was going right, you're panicking about money, and it was just excruciating.
00:28:16.799 --> 00:28:26.799
But I believed in what I was doing, so that gave me the strength because I had to do that myself to keep going and to find those solutions and to push myself through it.
00:28:26.880 --> 00:28:44.160
And I always, you know, had the kind of Steve Jobs mindset in the back of my head that like truly successful people that that achieve things at that next level, um, there's only a few of them because actually the journey to it is so hard that most people will fall away on on the way.
00:28:44.240 --> 00:28:44.880
And that's okay.
00:28:44.960 --> 00:28:53.200
Like it's if I'd quit this at any point and gone and taken another job somewhere else, no, everyone would have gone, you did a great job, Claire.
00:28:53.359 --> 00:28:55.599
But if not me now, then who when?
00:28:55.680 --> 00:28:59.279
And I knew, I knew that it had to be me to drive it at this point.
00:28:59.440 --> 00:29:04.079
So because I was passionate, I kept myself going and I pushed through it.
00:29:04.319 --> 00:29:14.720
I think that sentiment, and also when you listen to my my journey, and this is something that I really push to women, is back yourself, like back yourself.
00:29:15.279 --> 00:29:18.480
I have talked my way into every job ever.
00:29:18.640 --> 00:29:24.000
I mean, I said I talked my way into, you know, getting my first ever job, and it turned out I was good at it.
00:29:24.079 --> 00:29:35.599
I then hustled, I worked really hard and I made sure people knew I was good at it, talked my way into the Glasgow Life job, you know, everything I do, I'm there, but I'm not, it's not hollow words.
00:29:35.680 --> 00:29:40.160
I believe I can do it, I can contribute something, and then I get in there.
00:29:40.240 --> 00:29:41.680
I don't have all the answers.
00:29:41.839 --> 00:29:44.559
And a lot of the time I figure it out as I go along.
00:29:44.720 --> 00:29:49.680
But we can't wait for everything to be perfect, and we can't wait or wonder what someone else has got.
00:29:49.759 --> 00:30:01.119
So if you if you believe in something and you think you can do it, then just as nervous as you are, your legs might be shaking, you might be doubting yourself, but just put yourself forward.
00:30:01.359 --> 00:30:09.599
Um, because once you're in there, you your own passion, your own belief will take you where you need to go.
00:30:09.759 --> 00:30:15.440
Just don't settle because you think it's easy, because it's really being miserable and doing the wrong thing and not being passionate about it.
00:30:15.519 --> 00:30:16.319
That's not easy.
00:30:16.480 --> 00:30:25.119
That is, I'd rather work hard and be stressed with something I absolutely love than be in the opposite environment.
00:30:25.440 --> 00:30:30.480
Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to listen to our inspiring conversations this year.
00:30:30.720 --> 00:30:34.079
We really hope you enjoyed and learned from these talks.
00:30:34.480 --> 00:30:42.640
To find out more about Strathclyde Inspire, visit the University of Strathclyde website or check us out on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
00:30:42.880 --> 00:30:44.160
See you next time.
00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:05.519
Hi, welcome to the Struffclyde Inspire Highlight video for 2021 to 2022.
00:00:05.919 --> 00:00:12.080
It's been a great year with many inspiring conversations involving some amazing entrepreneurial minds.
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Please sit back, relax, and enjoy some of our favorite clips from this past year.
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Yeah, really fascinating, I guess, in terms of your background, both academically, but also in terms of delivery and, you know, I guess even thinking about legacy and what that means within the context of innovation and enterprise, you know, here in Glasgow, where I guess we've got a strong history.
00:00:34.799 --> 00:00:42.079
Being at the University of Strathclyde, you know, thinking about some of the great innovators that have come through these doors and continue to come through these doors.
00:00:42.240 --> 00:00:55.920
But I guess how we build on that legacy and how we impact the communities that surround us here in Glasgow, you know, some of the most deprived communities in Scotland are not a throw away from our institutions and from the areas in which we live.
00:00:56.159 --> 00:01:03.280
And I guess, you know, what role do you think innovation has in tackling some of those societal disparities that we see?
00:01:04.079 --> 00:01:05.280
I think you're absolutely right.
00:01:05.439 --> 00:01:39.359
And I think when we look at research programs and and I think how they're structured, I think I actually think whether you're whether you're a company or you know, you know, representing almost like a microcosm of society or any sort of organization, or whether you are a local authority looking at how you tackle challenges on the ground, I think increasingly we now need almost like a sort of North Star vision, or we need to base what we're trying to do on sort of societal challenges rather than research questions.
00:01:39.599 --> 00:01:47.280
You know, so I think we I think we almost sort of need to sort of think more broadly, okay, what is the challenge that we're trying to fix?
00:01:47.599 --> 00:01:51.439
And who are the diverse minds that we need to get together to sort of fix that?
00:01:51.680 --> 00:01:54.879
So I don't think we can be as linear as we have been in the past.
00:01:55.040 --> 00:02:03.120
And we've often sort of thought, I guess, about um, you know, sectors, you know, sort of individual sectors.
00:02:03.280 --> 00:02:05.359
I'm not entirely sure how helpful that is.
00:02:05.439 --> 00:02:11.120
I wonder if we need to think about again, you know, what are the real life challenges that we're trying to fix?
00:02:11.280 --> 00:02:15.599
And, you know, and how do we sort of use our rich innovation assets?
00:02:15.680 --> 00:02:18.159
Because somewhere like Glasgow, we're so lucky.
00:02:18.240 --> 00:02:23.199
We've got so many skills and innovation assets within a relatively small geography.
00:02:23.360 --> 00:02:47.520
So, how do we coordinate those and and in a sort of coherent way and a really impactful way, um, whereby we can take a sort of challenge-led approach and bring in all the right people to design sort of the transformational solutions that will really have an impact on um communities and inclusive shared growth?
00:02:47.840 --> 00:02:59.199
Yeah, and I I guess you've got quite a unique experience, Susie, having worked, I guess, closer with local authorities, worked with uh national government, working with uh academic institutions.
00:02:59.520 --> 00:03:08.879
You know, what do you see as I guess some of the challenges and the opportunities within those relationships to really kind of make, as you said, that transformative societal change?
00:03:08.960 --> 00:03:19.919
Because I think there's a lot of messing around the edges with things and and you know, but it's you know, you talked a bit about policy earlier on like what you know, some of the policy changes you think need to happen to help us kind of move things forward.
00:03:20.080 --> 00:03:24.960
Like, where are some of the I guess where's that kind of uh nexus for you and some of that?
00:03:25.680 --> 00:04:07.199
Yeah, you know, it's funny, I remember a few years ago I went, I sat around uh uh I sat in a conference um and we were discussing similar things, and you know, in terms of the Glasgow context, um I don't think we quite realise how lucky we are in terms of the relationships, the tacit relationships between the universities, the town and gown relationships, as we would say, and and um our our connection to kind of local communities because actually this so that that that meeting was in Turin, and I remember the Italians kind of saying, God, you're so lucky, because actually the innovation community doesn't have as good a relationship with its its local authority, so we need to capitalise on that.
00:04:07.360 --> 00:04:26.319
Now there isn't a silver bullet that will answer that question, but there needs to be systemic and systematic sort of changes to kind of what what what we have and what we're doing to support communities, and I think that goes from everything from skills, um, you know, education.
00:04:26.480 --> 00:04:45.120
Education is obviously absolutely critical to sort of everything, and we need to invest in young people from um underrepresented communities who are tackling, you know, are having to, you know, every day they sort of have challenges that that they're facing, but we need to invest in those young people, you know.
00:04:45.199 --> 00:04:49.360
Often it comes down to resource, you know, and I know that's difficult sort of in these times.
00:04:49.519 --> 00:05:04.639
We need to prioritise resource, but I think education and um you know giving those young people equality of opportunity um is is is absolutely um critical to sort of rebalancing.
00:05:05.040 --> 00:05:08.560
So, what are the biggest challenges you're facing today and how you're overcoming them?
00:05:08.639 --> 00:05:11.199
Because it sounds like you knock them down when they get in your way anyway.
00:05:11.279 --> 00:05:12.240
But what are you doing about it?
00:05:12.480 --> 00:05:30.000
Do you know it's uh when you'd give you know you'd you'd ask me to have a wee look at some of the questions, and quite often I struggle with challenges because I don't challenges are just you know, I'm not gonna say something cliche, but they're there to be jumped over or whatever, but you know, chat challenges are there to just be jumped over, are they?
00:05:30.639 --> 00:05:40.240
Um I think that in terms of running a social business, if you like, the challenge is always balancing commercial decisions and social decisions.
00:05:40.399 --> 00:05:47.439
So you have to think with I always talk about running a social business as a commercial mind and a social heart.
00:05:49.600 --> 00:05:52.319
But actually the social thing is what makes it really, really different.
00:05:52.560 --> 00:06:02.720
So sometimes, you know, like there'll be decisions I make and they're not commercially the right decision, but actually they are the they are absolutely the right thing for the people that we're working with.
00:06:03.360 --> 00:06:15.439
So and and so then there's then the challenge is making sure that the investors and the people that are around you and your board respect that and also are on the same page as you so that you're not you're not being challenged about these things.
00:06:16.000 --> 00:06:24.319
Um do you have a methodology for that at all, or is it more like kind of you come with your gut in some of these things, or is there like a methodology?
00:06:24.399 --> 00:06:40.399
So if tomorrow you were kind of hit by a bus, god forbid, would the organisation have a a sense of how it would make decisions based on the those heart heart elements um that you've somehow embedded in the DNA, or is it very much down to you as a leader that a lot of that happens?
00:06:41.040 --> 00:06:43.360
What would happen if I was hit by a bus?
00:06:43.519 --> 00:06:46.800
Um I'm gonna be careful walking home after you've said that then.
00:06:48.879 --> 00:06:59.360
So I think if I think about the way that the senior team we the way that we all work together, uh I do the head and heart thing in my head just instantaneously.
00:06:59.920 --> 00:07:15.759
Alice, our chief operating officer, it's much more about head, she's much more about what does that mean than and the you know the consequences and setting precedents and what are the financial implications, and then Joey, who's our head of lightings and tenancy support, is probably a wee bit more about heart.
00:07:15.920 --> 00:07:16.079
Okay.
00:07:16.319 --> 00:07:22.639
So they would have a debate, but when I think about the different people on my board and our investors, they are imbalanced.
00:07:22.720 --> 00:07:26.079
Okay, so I think we would probably get to the same decision.
00:07:26.240 --> 00:07:53.439
And you know, one of the things when when I'm making decisions around the social or collectively making decisions about the social side, we always have the finances not very far away, so we can articulate look, we're gonna do this, and this will mean that this might be a reduction in profits of X amount, but we've already thought that through and we can we can handle it, so it's always very carefully you know, doing the right thing is is is always well, you know, we consider it carefully.
00:07:53.759 --> 00:08:01.600
Well no, as techies, we are always kind of like what is we're always looking at what's the next and what's not great and what's best.
00:08:01.920 --> 00:08:05.120
But I mean, and there's a lot of different changes going on.
00:08:05.360 --> 00:08:12.240
I mean, there's you know, we had COP in the city, and then I still believe that the the city can know leverage off the back of that.
00:08:12.560 --> 00:08:13.360
Yeah, absolutely, yeah, absolutely.
00:08:13.600 --> 00:08:17.360
So what's kind of what's kind of what's a getting what's the next big thing?
00:08:17.600 --> 00:08:23.439
Yeah, it's well yeah, so so that so I'm uh there's kind of two sides to me in this, right?
00:08:24.160 --> 00:08:38.960
And one is the the pure techie side, so I'm endlessly interested in new stuff, and it can be absolutely useless stuff, but I love it.
00:08:39.120 --> 00:08:43.919
Right, so it's the uh gallium nitride chargers.
00:08:44.240 --> 00:08:45.919
I don't know, you see these things now.
00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:51.440
So I I remember you'd buy a laptop and you'd a charger, you know, it was like a brick, it was bigger, it weighed more than a brick, you know.
00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:56.720
Now you get these wee things that are like two inches square, and and that's the same power.
00:08:57.039 --> 00:09:06.159
So there's a whole heap of stuff like that, but um I I think I'm wise enough now to realise that's sort of some self-gratification, you know what I mean?
00:09:06.240 --> 00:09:08.559
It's like anybody wants to hear about that.
00:09:09.360 --> 00:09:28.720
The thing that is that is constantly on my mind just now and probably has been since we started Data Lab is AI and how that's starting to impact the very fabric of our society.
00:09:28.799 --> 00:09:29.440
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:09:29.679 --> 00:09:35.279
So that you know that there's these things that there's things that interest me because they're shiny bubbles, right?
00:09:35.360 --> 00:09:37.279
And I know that that's the case.
00:09:38.080 --> 00:09:48.639
This thing interests me because it it is in the process of changing the world, and it's not clear how it's gonna work.
00:09:48.799 --> 00:09:51.120
Now I see how it's gonna work.
00:09:51.200 --> 00:09:53.679
It's not clear to me we're heading for a good place or a bad place.
00:09:53.840 --> 00:09:54.320
Yeah, yeah, okay.
00:09:54.559 --> 00:09:59.679
But we're at we're at we're at we're at a really interesting point in human history, I think.
00:10:00.240 --> 00:10:07.600
And and you know, I I when I first started programming, my gran used to ask me, What is it you do, son?
00:10:07.840 --> 00:10:08.080
Right?
00:10:08.159 --> 00:10:11.519
And I'm like, oh and I actually tried to show her one day, right?
00:10:11.600 --> 00:10:15.919
And did this so uh Visual Studio would come up, that was a C programme at the time.
00:10:16.080 --> 00:10:17.519
It's like wait till you see this, Gran.
00:10:17.759 --> 00:10:19.279
She's like, Oh, that that that's great, yeah.
00:10:19.360 --> 00:10:21.279
You can add two numbers together, brilliant, son.
00:10:21.600 --> 00:10:26.000
Uh but you know, and then I said, No, no, I've got to break this down in human terms.
00:10:26.159 --> 00:10:28.720
So, what what did I do on a human level?
00:10:28.879 --> 00:10:29.360
Yes, yeah.
00:10:29.519 --> 00:10:32.799
Well, I I went and sat with people who did a job.
00:10:33.039 --> 00:10:39.360
I tried to understand how they did their job, did then I got the computer to do their job and they get made redundant.
00:10:39.519 --> 00:10:39.759
Okay.
00:10:40.480 --> 00:10:43.919
The nice way of saying that is they got other more interesting jobs.
00:10:44.080 --> 00:10:44.960
Yes, yep, yeah.
00:10:45.679 --> 00:10:46.399
Debatable.
00:10:46.480 --> 00:10:46.639
Yeah.
00:10:46.799 --> 00:10:48.320
Uh but that's what we did.
00:10:48.559 --> 00:10:55.679
Now, when you're when I was at the start of my career, I could see that with some sense of arrogance and pride and bravado.
00:10:57.039 --> 00:11:01.120
But now, when I look at it, I think, right, okay.
00:11:02.159 --> 00:11:04.960
You know, self-driving cars, okay.
00:11:05.360 --> 00:11:15.200
You know, within the next decade, let's say let's say 10 years, okay, is it beyond the realms of possibility that you'll be able to have a fully autonomous car?
00:11:16.000 --> 00:11:22.639
Uh no, I would say it's not beyond the realms of possibility, maybe unlikely for full autonomous, but I don't think we're that far away.
00:11:23.279 --> 00:11:25.200
But what's the impact of society?
00:11:25.600 --> 00:11:30.399
How many households in the Glasgow area rely on a taxi driver as the main breadwinner?
00:11:30.639 --> 00:11:39.840
I I don't know, but I suspect if it was a single employer and that employer was at risk of a cataclysmic failure, the government would do something about it.
00:11:40.720 --> 00:11:43.919
And that's just one microcosm of it.
00:11:44.240 --> 00:11:54.399
So you're seeing this artificial intelligence, data as a commodity, as probably the most precious commodity that we've ever came across.
00:11:55.360 --> 00:12:02.240
How that is starting to affect things, how it's starting to affect our democracy, which is in real jeopardy, there's no doubt about that.
00:12:02.559 --> 00:12:17.840
How it's starting to affect the jobs market, you know, what happens if you end up with this class of people who are from an economic perspective not just exploited but irrelevant, entirely irrelevant.
00:12:17.919 --> 00:12:18.799
Yeah, it doesn't matter.
00:12:18.960 --> 00:12:19.360
Yeah, yeah.
00:12:20.000 --> 00:12:24.720
And so you know, the it excites me, it terrifies me.
00:12:25.120 --> 00:12:33.440
The thing that's on my mind just now is AI, and and I'm always I'm always intrigued by this, the the word innovation, right?
00:12:33.600 --> 00:12:34.639
So there's a great definition.
00:12:34.720 --> 00:12:40.480
I think it's the Harvard Business Review, do this the definition of innovation is new stuff made useful, right?
00:12:40.639 --> 00:12:43.519
And newness and usefulness are relative terms, right?
00:12:43.759 --> 00:12:45.679
New to me, no new to you, useful.
00:12:46.480 --> 00:12:47.440
So relative.
00:12:48.159 --> 00:12:54.720
But when you s when you actually start to unpick that useful bit, what you really get to is impactful.
00:12:55.120 --> 00:12:56.399
New and impactful.
00:12:56.720 --> 00:12:59.360
I suspect it's probably a slightly better definition.
00:13:00.320 --> 00:13:13.120
And the the technology that will have the biggest impact on us for the rest of our lives, our children, their children, and and uh everybody else's for the next 200-300 years is gonna be AI.
00:13:13.440 --> 00:13:17.200
And that's something which again, though, like we as technologists we're creating that.
00:13:17.279 --> 00:13:33.200
And the thing is we've got to have I would say that um ethics aspect into it because it is going to affect quite a lot of people, and in some ways, it can't get out of hand, it has to be kind of you know supporting the people who are.
00:13:33.679 --> 00:13:38.080
And I think I I think that I think that's an interesting place for entrepreneurs to be.
00:13:38.559 --> 00:13:42.799
I don't know if you're a big fan of TV, but one of my favourite shows is one called Halt and Catch Fire.
00:13:43.120 --> 00:13:43.519
Have you seen it?
00:13:43.759 --> 00:13:44.080
Absolutely.
00:13:44.399 --> 00:13:51.919
And obviously, uh for people who haven't seen it, it's basically about the dawn of the computer age and and a lot of what you talked about there, characters in that show.
00:13:52.080 --> 00:13:56.000
And so I guess my question for you is like what was the energy like around that time?
00:13:56.159 --> 00:14:00.879
Because I guess for many of us, we've grown up now as digital natives, and it's just second nature.
00:14:00.960 --> 00:14:10.159
But when you watch something like that, dramatized as it is, obviously, the energy and just there's a lot of just like really audacious people just go for it, don't they?
00:14:10.399 --> 00:14:24.240
Yeah, yeah, no, in fact, um uh Horton Catch Fire is a kind of a bit of an inspiration for me because it covers that whole period when the personal computer was born in 81 through to about mid-90s, when things were pretty much settled.
00:14:24.399 --> 00:14:31.519
We knew what was you know, I mean obviously things have advanced since then, but not new breakthroughs, not new ways of doing um stuff.
00:14:31.759 --> 00:14:36.799
And uh in fact, I've I've actually written a book um which I'll be coming, I'll be coming out later this year.
00:14:36.879 --> 00:14:47.039
Okay, um, basically around our web uh technology business and how we built that, but really it covers that period, the golden age of the personal computer, um and when it arrived.
00:14:47.120 --> 00:14:49.279
And the Hot and Catch 5 was a great example.
00:14:49.440 --> 00:14:56.639
The first thing they did was a beat IBM Speed PC clone, and then they did a word processor, and then they did a hypertext product.
00:14:56.799 --> 00:15:06.639
Um slightly weird, and then finally they did a multiplayer gaming system, and it was the same people every time trying and it never they never worked, they never succeeded.
00:15:06.799 --> 00:15:11.600
Yeah, but they they struggled to make it and it all the people in there are very recognisable.
00:15:11.919 --> 00:15:14.240
Do you think those people are shaped by their environment?
00:15:14.320 --> 00:15:16.799
Is it kind of like nature versus nurture?
00:15:17.120 --> 00:15:22.559
So um is there a pattern, do you think, for this, or is there something out there like you talked about the ecosystem?
00:15:22.639 --> 00:15:26.639
So is the ecosystem helping us to deliver those social entrepreneurs, or are they just made?
00:15:26.720 --> 00:15:31.039
Are they born and they just need a vehicle to get their idea out there?
00:15:33.600 --> 00:15:51.919
I don't I you know, nature, nature, nurture is something that I don't fully, I've not really looked into that and I don't fully understand it, but what what I think is that you know, just in the way we were talking about what's what what I did at the beginning, you know, and how I started and how I ended up in social enterprise.
00:15:52.080 --> 00:15:54.960
I think it's life experiences that shape you.
00:15:55.120 --> 00:15:55.679
Yeah.
00:15:56.000 --> 00:16:08.720
Um so you know, how have how have I ended up so so to start a business you have to have confidence and you have to be a bit of a risk taker.
00:16:08.879 --> 00:16:10.960
There are a number that you have to be a self-starter.
00:16:11.039 --> 00:16:12.559
There's all these different ingredients.
00:16:12.720 --> 00:16:14.080
Where do they come from?
00:16:14.320 --> 00:16:27.600
So for me, um one of the earliest things that I did as a as a young teenager or or as a teenager was I went to Spain on my own when I was 17 for three months and I didn't really speak Spanish.
00:16:27.759 --> 00:16:35.759
Um I'd I'd done first year here at Strathclyde, didn't really go to any of the lectures, did a crash course in Spanish.
00:16:36.159 --> 00:16:47.600
But I got to got to Barcelona and I thought I I can't string two words together here, and then also had the added uh joy that they didn't even speak Spanish in the family, it was Catalan, so I had to learn.
00:16:47.919 --> 00:16:50.960
But I thought, okay, I need to learn both languages at the one time.
00:16:51.120 --> 00:17:00.000
That was my response to that, which looking back at 17 years old, I look back at what I did then and think, God, I wouldn't have the courage to do that now.
00:17:00.320 --> 00:17:16.160
But I came back from Barcelona after 11 weeks, completely fluent in Spanish, completely fluent and um really understanding Catalan well, and that gave me complete self-belief that I could I could learn how to do do new things.
00:17:16.240 --> 00:17:16.480
Uh-huh.
00:17:16.640 --> 00:17:30.960
So actually setting up a business that in an area that had never done anything before didn't seem like a big deal because I'd proven to myself already that I could do new things, which is go live go and live alone in another country and learn a new language from scratch.
00:17:31.279 --> 00:17:38.559
So I think that is I I I don't think it is about you're born an entrepreneur, but I think your life experiences and your environment does shape you.
00:17:38.799 --> 00:17:39.039
Yeah.
00:17:39.279 --> 00:17:44.720
I I just admire what you've what you've done in very difficult circumstances.
00:17:44.880 --> 00:17:47.039
You know, often we talk about don't waste a crisis.
00:17:47.200 --> 00:17:49.920
My goodness, Claire, you have not wasted a crisis.
00:17:50.400 --> 00:17:59.200
Sorry, John, I'm speaking over you there, but actually, when I when I presented my recovery strategy, that was my first quote was don't waste a crisis.
00:17:59.839 --> 00:18:05.680
Because otherwise, you can either just sit and wait for it to pass and it might be okay.
00:18:05.920 --> 00:18:17.039
Or my absolute philosophy is when something hits you that feels bad or uncomfortable, you are being sent a gift from the universe that is asking you to change or learn.
00:18:17.119 --> 00:18:21.839
And if you seize that, it can actually be incredibly powerful.
00:18:21.920 --> 00:18:24.799
And that's what we did with the pandemic.
00:18:25.359 --> 00:18:28.400
So you are the curator and founder of TEDx Glasgow.
00:18:28.799 --> 00:18:34.400
Tell us a bit more about TEDx for those that aren't aware of it, and you know, you probably have been living under a rock if you're not aware of TED.
00:18:34.559 --> 00:18:39.759
I think probably the one of the largest platforms for spreading inspiring ideas.
00:18:39.839 --> 00:18:45.200
Uh but tell us a bit more about it and um what's the future looking like and what's coming up for TEDx?
00:18:45.839 --> 00:18:49.599
Oh well, I've met ministers in Scotland that have never heard of TED.
00:18:49.839 --> 00:18:50.319
Is that right?
00:18:50.480 --> 00:18:50.880
Yeah.
00:18:51.119 --> 00:18:56.079
So uh living under a rock is quite common, more common than you you'd think.
00:18:56.880 --> 00:19:01.279
Um what happened for me was I had a mentor, I've got several mentors.
00:19:01.440 --> 00:19:05.839
I recommend you get hundreds of mentors, tens of mentors, whatever, how many.
00:19:06.079 --> 00:19:11.920
Um, and one of my mentors suggested I watch TED Talks because I like learning about lots of different subjects.
00:19:12.240 --> 00:19:16.960
And then a year later, the same mentor said to me, Well, why do you organize a TEDx event?
00:19:17.200 --> 00:19:18.960
And I looked and it's a complete nightmare.
00:19:19.039 --> 00:19:23.200
It's like so many rules and processes, and you know, you've got to be a volunteer.
00:19:23.359 --> 00:19:25.920
And and then 10 years later, I'm still doing it.
00:19:26.079 --> 00:19:42.160
So all the characteristics of a of an entrepreneur I mentioned earlier: naivety and tenacity and grit, short-term memory are really helpful when you're doing something that you know it involves a lot of volunteering time and a lot of people volunteering their time as well.
00:19:42.720 --> 00:19:54.160
Um for me, the the the TED platform is a space for ideas sharing, but TEDx is a space for ideas doing.
00:19:54.319 --> 00:19:55.519
Okay, that's the big difference.
00:19:55.680 --> 00:19:59.759
So TED's you know, six billion views, sharing ideas, inspiring folk.
00:20:00.160 --> 00:20:00.880
So what?
00:20:01.119 --> 00:20:02.720
Yeah, let's be honest.
00:20:03.039 --> 00:20:09.359
You know, you'll be inspired by this podcast, hopefully, and then you walk out and you do whatever you want to do before you hear the podcast.
00:20:09.519 --> 00:20:11.519
You know, your life will continue as it did.
00:20:11.759 --> 00:20:21.359
Um, so for us, in particular at TEDx Glasgow, it's ideas worth doing is more important than ideas worth sharing, and that's how we built the last decade.
00:20:21.519 --> 00:20:35.920
But if you look at it, you know, the investment that we've had from government and the private sector, and it's probably 90% private sector and 10% government, um, we give a return of nearly double the money that's invested in social, economic, and environmental impact.
00:20:36.079 --> 00:20:55.759
Therefore, you'd think with the 18 million views that we've had online of the people that we've engaged with the talks from over 140 speakers, and a lot of them are Scottish relevant ideas or from Scotland ideas, you'd think that we'd have you know the red carpet rolled out and massive support from government because brand Scotland needs it.
00:20:56.400 --> 00:21:03.039
You know, Scott Scottish Scots have a great brand around the world, but there's a lot of countries competing.
00:21:03.279 --> 00:21:09.519
Berlin, Silicon Valley, you know, there's Amsterdam, there's lots of other countries that are competing and cities that compete with Scotland.
00:21:09.680 --> 00:21:27.039
So I I believe that that TED as a brand and a platform and TEDx as as a way of actioning people could be hugely influential in Scotland and as Scotland would be seen globally, you know, we're more than whiskey, haggis, and shipbuilding.
00:21:27.200 --> 00:21:30.319
You know, we've got a lot more things to showcase around the world.
00:21:30.480 --> 00:21:34.000
However, I'm just one of a handful of people that believe that.
00:21:34.559 --> 00:21:37.920
You know, I don't know why government doesn't get behind it more.
00:21:38.559 --> 00:21:40.319
And um, I hope they would.
00:21:40.480 --> 00:21:42.000
We have a 2030 plan.
00:21:42.480 --> 00:21:50.799
You know, we would love to be eventually in the hydro, we'd love to live stream globally, we'd love to showcase more of Scotland's ideas and engage the Scottish diaspora.
00:21:50.880 --> 00:21:51.200
Uh huh.
00:21:51.359 --> 00:21:54.160
You know, the I don't know how many millions around the world.
00:21:54.319 --> 00:21:59.119
Um, that would be incredible and change the mindset of Scotland and the image of Scotland globally.
00:21:59.200 --> 00:22:01.839
But that's an Aspiration that a handful of us have.
00:22:02.000 --> 00:22:04.079
What we really need is government to get behind it.
00:22:04.319 --> 00:22:12.160
And I guess I've I wanted to ask you about your purpose because you know it sounds like you've you've been on a journey, you've experienced lots of things, you've had lots of businesses.
00:22:12.240 --> 00:22:17.359
But what do you now think, looking ahead in the next 20 years, what's your purpose, Gurtu?
00:22:18.079 --> 00:22:23.119
Ha ha um so uh that's a great question.
00:22:23.200 --> 00:22:28.960
So my purpose has always been about how to help society at large thrive.
00:22:29.279 --> 00:22:30.160
Very, very simple.
00:22:30.240 --> 00:22:30.480
Yeah.
00:22:30.640 --> 00:22:32.400
And I tried to do that in Mexico.
00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:40.160
You know, I went there and thought, right, you know, get to know the locals, get to know the language, the culture, understand how things work and work with them.
00:22:40.319 --> 00:22:42.079
Don't come top-down with solutions.
00:22:42.160 --> 00:22:46.240
No, no, you know, try to understand what changes you can make working with other people there.
00:22:46.400 --> 00:22:48.240
And that's advice I would give everybody.
00:22:48.400 --> 00:22:51.680
You know, don't go in and into something with the arrogance that you know everything.
00:22:51.839 --> 00:22:55.039
Go in there as naive as you can and ask all the stupid questions.
00:22:55.279 --> 00:23:02.240
And then my mum said to me, you know, she said, Well, you know, you're doing all that stuff out in Latin America, why don't you do it in your doorstep?
00:23:02.319 --> 00:23:04.799
You know, why do you do it in your back garden, your neighborhood?
00:23:04.960 --> 00:23:09.359
And that's what brought me back to class with the opportunity to actually do things here.
00:23:09.759 --> 00:23:34.960
Um, the next 20 years for me, um I think it's about trying to help others succeed, and that's probably what I've been doing the last 10 years: finding amazing people and giving them the ability to share their ideas and drive action using the TED platform.
00:23:35.119 --> 00:23:38.400
You know, I I love what I do and and it's it's very powerful.
00:23:38.559 --> 00:23:53.119
Um, so um I respect it, and it it's a lot of responsibility, and uh, and I would like to continue doing uh that finding incredible people and helping them tell their story so that other people can collaborate rather than compete with them.
00:23:53.359 --> 00:24:01.200
Um so from a 20-year perspective, I think that's where I could have the biggest impact and influence.
00:24:01.440 --> 00:24:03.119
But I also have a young family, you know.
00:24:03.200 --> 00:24:10.240
I have two young kids, so I want to be able to spend a little bit of time with them and help them become better role models in society.
00:24:10.400 --> 00:24:16.079
So I just need to be careful that I have a balance, which I've not had most of my life, you know.
00:24:16.160 --> 00:24:20.559
I've always been a very extreme um in the things I do.
00:24:20.720 --> 00:24:24.160
Um, but I now need to maybe take a teeny, teeny, teeny step back.
00:24:24.240 --> 00:24:28.079
But you say that, and then all of a sudden you're inundated with new initiatives that you do.
00:24:28.400 --> 00:24:29.119
So, yeah.
00:24:29.200 --> 00:24:37.039
So for me, the next 20 years just kind of amplify what I do and scale it up, but then try to keep a little bit of balance for health and mental well-being.
00:24:37.440 --> 00:24:38.960
That's really, really, really good advice.
00:24:39.119 --> 00:24:43.440
So you're you're now you're one of Strathclyde's senior enterprise fellows, and great to have you here.
00:24:43.680 --> 00:24:48.400
Um, you're obviously part of that role is inspiring that next generation of innovators and leaders.
00:24:48.480 --> 00:24:51.680
Can you tell us a bit more about the role and what excites you about working with the university?
00:24:51.839 --> 00:24:52.319
Yeah, yeah.
00:24:52.400 --> 00:24:58.960
I mean, um obviously uh so Jim McDonald um is his leader here and he's driving things forward.
00:24:59.039 --> 00:25:04.240
And he's always been, I mean, I've known him for years, and he's always been very ambitious and trying to create things.
00:25:04.319 --> 00:25:10.160
He's also president of the Royal Academy of Engineering, which I'm a fellow of, um, and he's doing good stuff there as well.
00:25:10.240 --> 00:25:12.319
So he's such a driven person, you know.
00:25:12.559 --> 00:25:19.759
And um, it's good to see, you know, we're actually creating pretty much every subject you do at Strathclyde is a vocational.
00:25:20.000 --> 00:25:21.200
You've got a career ahead of you.
00:25:21.440 --> 00:25:28.480
Our industry engagement and the facility for placements and things, I think, are pretty much unparalleled in the sector, and I think that's why people come here.
00:25:28.720 --> 00:25:30.960
That's why students come here because they know they can get a job at the end of it.
00:25:31.279 --> 00:25:31.920
Exactly, that's right.
00:25:32.079 --> 00:25:37.839
And um, I mean, I've been involved in Glasgow businesses um uh for years.
00:25:38.000 --> 00:25:42.160
Um there's nothing that makes Glasgow any different from anywhere else, really.
00:25:42.480 --> 00:25:42.880
No, no, no.
00:25:43.119 --> 00:25:45.039
It's just as enterprising and just as go enter.
00:25:45.519 --> 00:25:47.279
People are friendlier, people are friendlier.
00:25:47.519 --> 00:25:48.880
That's that is actually true.
00:25:49.200 --> 00:25:50.799
I have to admit that's true.
00:25:51.039 --> 00:25:56.720
But the whole um you know, that Glasgow used to be the built half the boats in the world, you know.
00:25:57.359 --> 00:26:06.880
Built all the railway engines, you know, it used to be a massive enterprise uh business uh area, and the de-industrialisation of the 20th century didn't do any favours.
00:26:07.119 --> 00:26:07.359
No.
00:26:07.519 --> 00:26:09.119
And we need to rebuild now.
00:26:09.279 --> 00:26:09.519
Uh-huh.
00:26:09.599 --> 00:26:10.079
It's time.
00:26:10.319 --> 00:26:12.000
Yeah, no, I think you're absolutely right.
00:26:12.079 --> 00:26:17.119
And uh I'm excited to see what you can do and how you can support the university in that ambition.
00:26:17.519 --> 00:26:34.400
I'm interested in all of given all of the experience, probably a very very difficult question, but is there one lesson that your current role plus your other roles that that everybody but everybody should should learn at some point?
00:26:34.559 --> 00:26:43.200
Again, come back to the origin, what we're trying to do with Strathclyde Inspire, whether it's a student, a staff member, alum, what is it that they can do?
00:26:43.279 --> 00:26:46.160
Because we want to make a difference to society, that's the key.
00:26:46.319 --> 00:26:50.880
That's what our purpose is as a useful learn, uh place of useful learning.
00:26:50.960 --> 00:26:52.240
So is there one thing?
00:26:52.319 --> 00:26:54.319
Can it can there be such a thing?
00:26:54.640 --> 00:27:01.440
Um, so I think I've probably mentioned them already, and and they're sort of wrapped up in in my stories.
00:27:01.519 --> 00:27:10.079
I'm a very authentic, uh, purpose-driven person, so you can kind of hear almost my learnings in my journey.
00:27:10.240 --> 00:27:21.279
But um for me, finding your passion um as early as possible is something that I think is really, really important.
00:27:21.519 --> 00:27:31.440
Because if you are passionate about something, you believe in it, then you're gonna be good at it, you're gonna work hard at it, you're gonna stay focused on it.
00:27:31.599 --> 00:27:34.559
Um, and what that also does is it builds resilience.
00:27:34.720 --> 00:27:44.240
Because I tell you something, aside from my daughter's health and things like that, this job has been the hardest thing I've ever done.
00:27:44.400 --> 00:28:01.920
And there have been moments where I have sat with my head in my hands, I'm in the Emirates Serena now in the car park, not knowing how I'm gonna walk through the door and just like, you know, you think you take one step forward and it's ten back, no one was helping, particularly in those early formative years.
00:28:02.160 --> 00:28:04.799
It was like every door just got shut.
00:28:04.880 --> 00:28:07.279
And I was like, how I'm one woman.
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I was stressed.
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I was running these businesses, I was doing it on my own, nothing was going right, you're panicking about money, and it was just excruciating.
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But I believed in what I was doing, so that gave me the strength because I had to do that myself to keep going and to find those solutions and to push myself through it.
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And I always, you know, had the kind of Steve Jobs mindset in the back of my head that like truly successful people that that achieve things at that next level, um, there's only a few of them because actually the journey to it is so hard that most people will fall away on on the way.
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And that's okay.
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Like it's if I'd quit this at any point and gone and taken another job somewhere else, no, everyone would have gone, you did a great job, Claire.
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But if not me now, then who when?
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And I knew, I knew that it had to be me to drive it at this point.
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So because I was passionate, I kept myself going and I pushed through it.
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I think that sentiment, and also when you listen to my my journey, and this is something that I really push to women, is back yourself, like back yourself.
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I have talked my way into every job ever.
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I mean, I said I talked my way into, you know, getting my first ever job, and it turned out I was good at it.
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I then hustled, I worked really hard and I made sure people knew I was good at it, talked my way into the Glasgow Life job, you know, everything I do, I'm there, but I'm not, it's not hollow words.
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I believe I can do it, I can contribute something, and then I get in there.
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I don't have all the answers.
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And a lot of the time I figure it out as I go along.
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But we can't wait for everything to be perfect, and we can't wait or wonder what someone else has got.
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So if you if you believe in something and you think you can do it, then just as nervous as you are, your legs might be shaking, you might be doubting yourself, but just put yourself forward.
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Um, because once you're in there, you your own passion, your own belief will take you where you need to go.
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Just don't settle because you think it's easy, because it's really being miserable and doing the wrong thing and not being passionate about it.
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That's not easy.
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That is, I'd rather work hard and be stressed with something I absolutely love than be in the opposite environment.
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Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to listen to our inspiring conversations this year.
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We really hope you enjoyed and learned from these talks.
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To find out more about Strathclyde Inspire, visit the University of Strathclyde website or check us out on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
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See you next time.
