We are mere hours from the opening ceremony for the London 2012 Olympic Summer Games, and I am so excited for the spectacle and competition to begin. Heck, the some of the prelim games has already begun with woman's soccer and a few other sports starting on Wednesday. The Olympics cannot get started soon enough from my perspective, for sports obsessed fanatic the Olympics are about as good as it gets. Who doesn't enjoy and anticipate falling in love with sports that dominate the news once every 4 years and heroes that emerge through stunning success and/or exemplary sportsmanship? I will be watching and bet that most of you will be as well.
One aspect that I love about the Olympic Games is the continuity that ties together the Olympics, from London, to Vancouver to Beijing and so on back in history while looking forward to Sochi, Rio, etc. Historically, it is easy to draw lineage back to the ancient Greece and the modern Games in and of themselves are into their second century. These competitions have been drawing the world into a single community, temporarily stopping conflicts and allowing us to find common ground. Does that sound a bit over the top? Perhaps, but that sentiment captures the best essence for these competitions and rings true to many around the world.
The bonds forged by coming together at these Olympics, for example over200 countries are expected to be represented at London, is mirrored by the goals and opportunities of technology/collaboration. The ethos such as openness and connection are bedrock to both, and that is why it has been such a pleasure working for those goals at Avaya. Through our solutions, millions of end users are connecting with their partners, peers and communities, wherever they may be in the world. Tangibly, here is an example I wrote about from the 2010 Olympics about a pivotal moment in the US hockey team quarterfinal game. This is a powerful direction in connection and one that will only increase in intensity moving forward.
The continuity from one Olympics to the next applies to Avaya as well. While Avaya is not a partner to the 2012 London Olympics, we supplied network communications equipment both directly to VANOC and to Bell Canada, the exclusive Telecommunications Provider for the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver, to deliver the first all-IP converged network at an Olympic Games. Avaya will have a similar role at the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia.
Personally, I can unequivocally state that working and reporting from the 2010 Olympic Games on behalf of Avaya has been the single most enjoyable and rewarding experience of my tenure at the company. For a technology company, the Olympics require precision, an ability to handle massive volume of data and get data/images throughout the world in real time and flexibility throughout. Avaya is proud to be part of the Olympic family and salutes its peers as they work tirelessly to ensure a successful Olympics.
In closing, I hope that everyone is able to enjoy the Olympics. Perhaps you love the pageantry of the opening and closing ceremony, or the glamour of basketball and track. Maybe swimming is your thing, or whitewater kayaking. It is a smorgasbord of competition and connection, and we all win in the end as a result.
Posted 26 Jul 2012 at 10:01 AM