In 2005 the vision of one man set computer training down a new path.
It was clear that the old model of training - herding people into a training centre and cramming as many people as possible into a training room - was not working. You needed only to listen to what people said -
"I couldn't keep up and the instructor didn't have time to help me."
"I spent half the day twiddling my thumbs waiting for everyone else to finish."
"I had unanswered questions because the instructor had to stick to his schedule."
"I was in a class with 15 people I didn't know and I felt uncomfortable."
"It would be so much easier if we could have training at work."
A simple but radical idea emerged, to provide a mobile training service and go to the people. After all, wouldn't it be easier for one person to travel to an office to provide training rather than for everyone going off site for the day?
That man's name was Jason Morrell and he started Two Rivers Software Training.
Starting with a great idea, no clients and a car that was held together with sticky tape and prayer, Jason started attracting some clients and ventured to and fro throughout Queensland. Armed with a fistful of laptops and a projector, he visited many businesses and individuals to deliver training and rapidly built a reputation for providing excellent value.
People that tried it, loved it. They raved about it. And they couldn't believe how easy, convenient and inexpensive it was. Nor could they believe how effective it was to have training that was tailored to the work they actually did.
And the proof was in the pudding - many of those clients kept coming back for more.
I mean, why would you send people offsite for the day when an expert (albeit, slightly offbeat) instructor was prepared to come to you?
Then there was the cost. Most training centres charge in excess of 300 bucks per person. That's a flat rate. So if you sent 10 of your staff to a course it cost well in excess of $3.000. Two Rivers only charged a fraction of that. And still does. See for yourself.
Geograpiically, the boundaries were the Brisbane and Tweed rivers (hence Two Rivers). Those boundaries have loosened a little over time, having driven and flown to the far reaches of Queensland to places like Townsville and Palm Island and all the regional centres, but mainly sticking to the Brisbane, Gold Coast and Ipswich areas.
Fast forward to today. While many businesses are floundering and dropping by the wayside, Two Rivers Software Training has gone from strength to strength. The mobile approach works. It is well and truly proven.
Someone once said:
"People may not remember what you did.
People may not remember what you said.
But people will always remember how you made them feel."
For many people, that feeling is relief, excitement, anticipation, optimism, elation, triumph, hope, and a renewed confidence. Two Rivers stands by its solid reputation to deliver these results and the good name it has developed.
It all started with the Commodore 64.
Remember those from the mid 80s? In a world full of Spectrums, Vic 20s, Ataris and BBC microcomputers, this stood head and shoulders above them all. The king of the hill!
Like most teenagers from that era I got sucked into the whole game playing thing. Our first game was called Bonka. And over the following few years I spent much of my pocket money purchasing other titles. We started a club at school to swap games and tips and share the cost of this obsession.
Ah, great days.
There came a point where my interests turned from playing the games to writing games and exploring the limits of the machine. I got together with a group of mates from school and we used to create our own cool stuff. Hex codes, sprites, SID chips. It was like a secret language.
That was the seed. I did eventually emerge from this phase unharmed, but I chose all the computing related subjects at school, and then did the same at Uni. I graduated and became a programmer.
A dream fulfilled.
Except it wasn't all it was cracked up to be. It got quite boring after a while, doing the same thing day after day, week after week. Plus I discovered too late that I had been funneled into a technology that had a limited timespan - mainframe programming.
I decided to get out while I was still young. Before I was old and grey and kicked out with nowhere to go.
And that's how I got into training.
I was using the Microsoft programs as part of my job anyway, so I decided to take some time out. I bought some big thick Microsoft books studied hard, put myself through a series of Microsoft exams and got some experience under my belt as a trainer. To cut a long story short, I became a Microsoft Master Instructor.
I set up Two Rivers Software Training in 2005.
Several years later, it has been reinforced to me that you never stop learning. You can never become complacent and rest on your laurels. I have learnt much from observing how other people use their software. I've met lots of interesting people on the way and made some good friends.
I'm always looking to learn new things. I would describe myself as unconventional. I don't like to be boxed in and don't do things a certain way because "that's what you're supposed to do". I question everything and if something is not serving a useful purpose, it is removed. I try to simplify everything and make my processes as straightforward as possible.
Common sense is underrated and in short supply.
I'm known for being a straight speaker. I try to use the least amount of words to say what I have to say.
Having grown up in Canterbury in the UK, I married a true blue Aussie girl in 1999 and emigrated to Australia in 2002. Four kids later and I'm the busiest I've ever been. Wouldn't change a thing.
Autism is a bit part of our lives. Our eldest son is autistic and my wife does an amazing job running a home-based program for him. He has come a long way, and we're very proud of him.
Queenslander
We moved to Queensland in 2004.
It's a place that's made up of many cultures. Many of its occupants, like us, are imports. But you do occasionally meet people who were born here and are maybe even second or third generation. I love it but Queenslanders do have some strange ideas.
Not long after I first arrived, I was told that to be a true Queenslander, you had to be here for seven years. But when you reach the seven year mark, they say that you have to be here for 10 years, then 14 years. The goalposts keep moving.
I grew up thinking that a 9am start meant that you started at 9am. But here ... well ... a 9am start means you turn up at 9:15am for a 9:30am start! Honestly, people are so laid back they're horizontal.
A tie is optional unless you're a lawyer, you're from Victoria or you're a real estate agent (you can pick them a mile off). Queensland seems to be a place where you trade your business shirt for a pair of thongs.
And as for the roads ... how many of you can identify with these observations?
"Keep left unless overtaking" is translated as "pick any lane you like for the entire journey, protect it with your life, and get all huffy when someone overtakes you on the empy inside lane".
People will close up to within touching distance of the car in front to not let you in and save one car length.
In fact, people tailgate a lot. It's normally some young girl in a striped Suzuki Swift or a tradie in a ute.
You start overtaking a slow driver and they suddenly find an extra burst of speed from somewhere.
You are on cruise and somebody starts overtaking you until they're in your blind spot and stay there.
In a workplace everybody has a story about that terrible driver they encountered on the way in. Nobody is a bad driver in their own eyes.
Don't start me on caravan owners ... !
