Goodbye my friends the time has come it’s time to bask in Florida sun – to enjoy a simple quiet life, a peaceful Gartner afterlife.
The ride was long and rich and bold, a million journeys did unfold.
I laughed I cried I gave I got.
I learned so much I learnt a lot.
8970 days 9970 smiles
And accumulated lots of miles
Let me share some destinations, my many business infiltrations.

Amsterdam, Auckland, Portland, Disneyland
Calcutta, Karuizawa, Barcelona, Ottawa, Vancouver, Brasilia, Lima, Coolangatta, Canberra, Osaka, Jakarta, Chattanooga.
Taipei, Monterey, Byron Bay, LA

Take a breath there’s more to go a bunch of them that end in O

Tokyo, San Diego, Montevideo, San Paulo, Kyoto, San Francisco, Chicago, Cabo, El Dorado

More from places far and wide Gartner business in my stride

Porto Alegre, Belo Horizonte, Pune.
Mumbai, Chennai, Gundagai, Dubai,
Delhi, Paris, Sydney, Bunbury, Miami, the DMZ, Guatemala City, DC, Mexico City, Albany

Almost there so please hold on, the ones that end in in and on

Cochin, Darwin, Dublin, Irving, Lansing, Reading
London, Gurgaon, Wellington, Boston, Houston, Lincoln, Geelong, Wollongong, Hong Kong, Lexington, Akron, Burlington, Dayton, Inchon

And complete in overtime, the cities which they just won’t rhyme.

Adelaide, Bangalore, Bangkok, Bentonville, Brisbane, Buenos Aires, Jamshedpur, Kuala Lumpur, Canne, Charlottesville, Dallas, Edinburgh, Perth, Fort Worth, Little Rock, Madrid, Melbourne, Memphis, Minneapolis, Montreal, Nashville, New York, Newcastle, Perth, Phoenix , Pittsburgh, Seoul, Singapore,

Whilst the travel was a blast it was people – you the cast
Friends and colleagues, all the same, there’s just too many to name.
Who shaped my years, oiled the gears, opened spheres allayed the fears
No matter the place, allowed me space, kept the pace, and all with grace
Gartner is a special place!

Special mention of one departed, a man who simply was bighearted.
My dear friend Patrick Meehan, my Irish American middleman.
Who helped me navigate a land so strange, helped me manage massive change
Rest in peace my dear old friend – see you at the other end.

My first two years were in Sales
Carrying a bag and telling tales
Of Gartner’s superiority, ‘please will you just buy from me?”
“Meta’s not what it’s cracked up to be…”

And then to wonderful ExP, steeped in creativity
Along with colleagues in Asiapac, a formidable rat pack
Of building brand and starting new
Helping CIOs with what to do
New key countries the game plan
India, Korea and Japan

MVP to VP to GVP and PVP
Truth be told to some degree the titles mattered less to me
They added more responsibility, accepted that with glee
I needed constant reinvention, that was key and motivation
To grow and learn and lead with grace
Make Gartner a better place

In HR terms kept out of trouble, occasionally I burst the bubble
And all the letters were bestowed, from the toils that I had sowed
The -I- I got was almost fatal, Val to you forever grateful
For giving me a brand new start allowing me to play my part
Into R&A I poured my heart
First to lead the ERP a whole new world I got to see
Then “downsized” to MSE a business that was dear to me

Barb then called out of the blue
She called to see if I was through
To disengage the cruise control
She offered me my dream role
The one I always had desired
Truly engaged until I retired.

I leave with awesome satisfaction
And perhaps a modest impaction
Knowing that I did my best, leaving now to you the rest
The mission we all shared as one
There’s so much to still be done

25 years was such a treasure, every day was almost leisure
Working with the smartest tribe the role a guru would prescribe
Helping clients achieve success help associates progress
Sleeping very well at night from memories that shine so bright

I have nothing else but thanks
From being given such a chance
To play with a formidable expanse
That is Gartner, that is YOU.

Farewell my friends I wish you well
Continue to woo our clientele
And last and most importantly
Ensure Gartner remains the place to be*.

• https://time.com/collection/worlds-best-companies-2023/