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HBOS – On the Inside

Yesterday we dusted off our suits for the Bank of Scotland Entrepreneurial challenge which is worth about £35m in interest-free investment for the winners. Of all the times of the year to go to an event like that. You couldn’t script it any better.

Millions of words have already been written this week about the Lloyd’s / HBOS thing and thousands of jobs are disappearing, probably today.

It was fascinating to hear firsthand from pretty senior HBOS folk (who were mostly sales guys since it’s a clienty PR do) what it’s been like in the office this week. I think some of those who were there last night might be getting their P45s as I write this. They have no idea what’s happening whatsoever, and then when you contrast that with my own working environment, it’s about as far away as you can get.

I think the best quote came from the client manager chap who said:

What, you can actually wear shorts to work? Are you guys hiring?

The other highlight was the venue. I’ve not been to the Imperial War Museum since I was a kid, and eating dinner next to a Polaris missile is, frankly, epic.

Everyone was expecting the Gü Chocolate Puds guy to win. Some recruitment bunch won it in the end.

My takeaway was those of us who work in web, helping people do stuff better and solving problems, have it pretty good really.

Then we went home.