Managing is a challenge but doing is also a challenge. Prior to starting MicroPilot in 1994, I was managing a software development department and while I liked managing, I missed doing. When I earned my degrees in Engineering, and in Computer science, what I enjoyed most was making things work but as a manager there wasn’t much time for this. So I decided that, in my spare time, I’d figure out how to make a small model plane fly by itself and that decision started me down a path that resulted in my starting MicroPilot in 1994.
Running a business, especially a small business, is tremendously challenging and It’s hard for me to imagine another job that requires you to master so many disciplines. You have to know how to design a product customers want, figure out how to make your product, and then how to find your customers. You have to efficiently organize your operations while minimizing defects. You have to know how to choose the right people and then how to motivate them. You have to know about balance sheets, income statements and taxes (and sometimes for several countries). Finally you have to do all of this and earn a profit.
I’m tempted to say that running a business is the ultimate game except that there is a little too much at stake. Working at MicroPilot allows many dozens of people to make their mortgage payments each month. A fact that gives every responsible business person pause.
It’s been a fascinating twenty plus year journey and along the way I’ve learned lessons about running a business, drones, and technology. I’ve decided I should say something on these subjects. This blog will cover a variety of topics related to drones, some of the lessons I’ve learned running a business these past two plus decades, as well as the occasional observation on how technology affects our businesses, lives and work.
MicroPilot 