For several months (maybe a year), I have not visited the ABIS & Associates website. I was thus surprised when I visited and found the following message at the homepage:
The Directors of ABIS and Associates Limited decided the company would cease trading as from 31st January 2011. Most of the services provided by ABIS & Associates Ltd may continue to be provided by our former employees and associates acting as independent consultants. Our web site will remain operational until further notice as an indication of the services and expertise available.
Members of RA fraternity who had the privilege of interacting with David Smith of ABIS would likely tell of his deep knowledge, flawless execution and the high quality which was characteristic of all his engagements. He is, in my view, a zero-BS consultant who is honestly passionate about enabling people rise to the best that they can. We have a shortage of such people. I was fortunate to have been David’s pupil during one of his many RA trainings.
I do not have details as to why ABIS ceased trading but I certainly hope David is still doing what he was doing best (and so are his colleagues) so that the spirit of ABIS will live on. And I dare hope that the many snake-oil salesmen who package all manner of gibberish as RA accreditations and issue shiny pieces of paper certifying everything except true understanding will take a leaf from ABIS.
When we last spoke, David said he was scaling back his workload, hence the decision to close the company. Given his many years of inspiring work, he surely deserves to enjoy more leisure time. However, I’d still like to ask him for one more favour. The talkRA podcast interviews have become rather… ahem… infrequent. I’m motivated by finding great guests and I’ve often found scheduling to be a challenge – the best potential guests also have the busiest diaries! David and I have talked about doing a podcast, so thanks for reminding me that we’ve still not got around to it. Many people would enjoy listening to David’s overview of the development of RA. It’s the interview that I most want to do, so let’s see if we can make it happen!
@Eric
A podcast with David would definitely be a fitting wrap. Let’s have it!
He has earned a good rest.
To capture the best of his reminisces, please make sure he is in the Caribbean, with a Cuban cigar and a peach margarita – apologies to Jack Nicholson for taking his line from Something’s Gotta Give.
regards,
Joseph