Captain Orr’s Archive

While moving some data around to prepare for our departure overseas I came across the columns I wrote for the magazine Data Management Review.

Since I shut down my last company’s web site, there has not been a full archive of these columns available online.

In the interests of the former customers, team members, keynote speech & cnvference attendees, and others in the industry who I still hear from, I posted an archive of all of the columns from 1995-2003 at http://www.egltd.com/dmrarchive/dmrarchive.htm  (The archive of all materials is at: http://www.egltd.com/ )

Included are the very columns that sparked the great BI data architecture wars of that era.

I even came across the column that initiated the bi-annual visits of the minions of the self-appointed grand master of the industry segment. At least twice a year they would sit across from me and, with a mixture of fear and loathing, spew out the immortal phrase “and if you don’t toe the line you’ll never work in this industry again.”

Of course, I never did toe the line.

And in the end, by my own choice, I didn’t work in that industry again.

That part about my own choice confused, and continues to confuse, a lot of people.

There aren’t a lot of folks who walk away from a position of industry leadership along with a very successful career and business.

I eventually arrived at a different perspective on things. 

I turned out to be Captain Orr to their Milo Minderbinder ethics based world.

(If these character names make no sense to you, click here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catch-22 )