| Biography About Me  I am Derek Jerome Vincent, a Swedish citizen, IT Consultant and Software developer. I live in Malmo Sweden and run my own IT firms. I am a very shy, and clean person with a more reserved personality. I like to socialise with a few chosen close friends. I do not drink or smoke. I consider myself a responsible, hardworking and friendly person. I dislike bad behaviors, idleness, dirtiness, lies, bad habbits, controls and threats. I am a family oriented person and I am caring, affectionate and compassionate. Family Background My parents originated from Nigeria (Roman Catholics). My father Vincent Iwuoha (born July 1923) studied Radiography at Glasgow University and my mother Victoria Iwuoha (born August 1929) studied Nursing in Glasgow. They both married in London. My father and mother returned to Nigeria in 1958 from London and my father became the Head of Radiography Department at University College Hospital Ibadan, Nigeria and my mother ran her own private maternity home in Lagos Nigeria. I was born at University College Hospital Ibadan, Nigeria in July, 1961. As the fifth child in a family of seven, I had the best upbringing and a very exciting childhood. At age 11, my parents separated (not divorced) but this did not affect me. I have six siblings Mary-Victoria Iwuoha (London), Nelly-Justina Jones (London), Rosemary Iwuoha (London), Vivian-Jonathan Iwuoha (Germany), Leslie Iwuoha (died January 2005 in car Accident), Henry Iwuoha (died February 1985 of drug overdose). My father Vincent Iwouha died in August 1994 of Liver problems. I changed my surname to Vincent after my father’s death. I am now known as Derek Jerome Vincent. My Education I hold a Bachelor degree in Political Science from Karlstads University, Sweden with a major in International Relations. I am currently taking a Master s degree in Political Science at Umea University, Sweden. Having spent the last 10 years in the IT/business sector, my major in International Relations is a compliment to the experience attained in my business career and my working life and provide for a diversity of veiwpoints and expertise. In line with my future plans to take up distance teaching at a Swedish University, I see my Master's degree and a Doctoral degree as an indispensable step towards that goal. My other educational attainment is spread across countries and fields of study. I attended Sacred Heart Private School, Ibadan, Nigeria – a British owned school from 1966-1974 and I also attended Lagelu Grammer School Ibadan/Comprehensive Technical school, Awo from 1974-1980. I proceeded to study Town Planning at Yaba College of Technology (now a University), Lagos from 1987-1989. I worked as a manager at Fassorg Architectural firm, Lagos from 1989-1991. In 1991, I moved to Romania to eventually complete my undergraduate studies in Architecture at a University in Romania, however due to the political situation in the country, in Autum 1992, I moved to England to pursue Computer Studies at London Academy and later Business Administration at Bromley College (part of Greenwich University), London, UK. My original plan was to go into Urban Planning studies since I had studied Town Planning at Yaba Tech, but I eventually became disenchanted with the idea. While I was at London Academy, I got hooked on the software side of computers and followed jobs in the IT field on completion of my studies in England in 1994. I proceeded to start my own IT firms in Romania, Sweden and UK in 1999/2000/2001 respectively, I took a partial leave of absence from my company to take Masters Degree in International Relations at Swedish University. My educational quest is one directed toward personal success rather than "the good life." It is not solely on the fulfillment of goals and final results (though there is a place for such "relative ends") but an approach that provides me the opportunity for an educational quest that connects my passions to learning. My Work  I wanted to do business all my adult life. Influenced by successes I had working for the company in senior management position in England, I sought to set-up my own firm. I worked hard at that for several years and ultimately decided England wasn't the best place for me to start a new firm. In 1999, I entered the IT field with the establishment of an IT firm in Romania (ITROM Computers & Internet SRL). While this new venture was fulfilling but hard due to economic situation in the country, I never gave up trying to use my business and programming skills to expand in a broader and more comprehensive way. Within six years I had established four more IT firms (ITROM Europe HB, Scienceicon Technologies HB, Press Illustrated Europe HB and ITROM UK). I had anywhere from 2 to 8 men and women working under me. This is what I wanted to achieve and aspire to. I have faced a lot of challenges but I always knew somewhere deep inside I had potential to grow. If I had to do it again I wouldn't change a thing. I guess it's just putting one foot in front of the other until you are there. Where I go from here, my opportunities are endless. My Innovations  I have developed more than twelve innovative software since 2003 including accounting, e-learning, communication, video, web publishing, rss aggregator, e-commerce, dating, email software etc. Two of my main software are (LiveAccounting – accounting software www.liveaccounting.com and LiveBlackboard e-learning software www.liveblackboard.com ). I am currently developing an email software (E-mail Reader www.e-mailreader.com) to be released soon. Two innovative software (LiveAccounting and LiveBlackboard) was shorlisted to receive funding from NUTEK (the Swedish Government) in January 2007 to help my company to expand its market share. My Home & Country I studied, worked and lived in United Kingdom most of my adult life. Having left England, I decided to go to the place I'd experienced the strongest emotions I'd ever experienced, Malmo City, Sweden. I moved here in February of 2003. Since then I've been much captivated by the warmth, friendly atmosphere and a culture that is always envied by all new-commers. (In fact, this little city is the most natural place I've ever seen.). I am also inspired by the warmth and friendliness of the Swedish people. The cultural differences has never been a problem for me privately or in my business. I acquired Swedish Citizenship and renounced my Nigerian Citizenship on personal reasons. I'd believe in owing allegiance to only one sovereign state. Above all, I have a strong loyalty, bond, commitment and emotional attachment to Sweden. I speak English and Romanian and Swedish. While I am now part of the European/Western cultural heritage, my highest vocation is to do something positive for Sweden, Europe and the whole world and in some way, it may help me to appreciate my cultural heritage. My Marriage & Family  In 1995, I married Ana Vincent (born July 1977, Swedish/Romanian). I met my wife while I was on study in her country. I had dated her while in Romania, fell deeply in love with her, and asked her to marry me. So after two years of dating, we did marry and moved to London. There were many differences between my wife and me and unfortunately, Ana and I separated in April 2006 in Sweden. We have a daughter, Elfrida, (born Sept 1997 in London, England/Swedish). She is 12 years old and studying in one of the best schools in Malmo, Sweden. My Hobbies Much of my spare time is spent on the computer and Internet. Working on the PC and software-writing consumes so much portions of my time. Writing software is my second love. My first is business, to which I admit an addiction so powerful that I attribute it to my historical and cultural roots. Since 2003 when I moved to Sweden, I have been running my business and most recently my time has been spent on writting many pieces of software. There is nothing like the feeling I got when I see the successes in my business. It truly filled me up with a sense of purpose in my life. I am enjoy driving, travelling, sightseeing and meeting people from different countries and cultures. I have travelled extensively and lived in many countries including United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Romania, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxemburg, Austria, Denmark, Norway, Finland. My Body & Health  Although, age is fast approaching, I look younger than my age. Except for a surgical operation I had in 2005, I am healthy, slim and eat good diets. I am tall (1.78m), handsome with no wrinkles or grey hair at all. I exercise daily and like to attend the gym at my spare time. My Properties  Apart from owning three companies in Sweden and UK, I also own a Peugeot 407 car. I live in a 2 bedroom rented apartment in Malmo, Sweden. I recently obtained a mortgage (bank loan) to purchase a villa or duplex in Malmo, Sweden in May 2009. By Derek Vincent |