Robin Gaster
8200
Queen Anne's Drive
Silver
Spring MD 20910
Tel. 301-589-5965
Fax 1-978-246-8503
rgaster@north-atlantic.com
www.north-atlantic.com
Research Experience
North Atlantic
Research Inc. (CEO)
Directed
and participated in numerous major projects covering technology development and
public policy, content and electronic publishing, software development, market
assessment, urban development and technology, and a wide range of specific
industry studies. NAR’s research activities include:
Ø
SBIR
assessment (ongoing), National
Research Council (part of research team)
Ø
The 21st
Century Communications Company, a
survey and report for the Economist Intelligence Unit, covering likely future
trends in the telecommunications industry (principal researcher)
Ø
Electronic
healthcare networks (ongoing), for
Community Service Networks and the DC Asthma Coalition (funded by the
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation) (senior strategist and data analyst)
Ø
Living
Cities: Next Generation Strategies,
for the Brookings Institution and the Living Cities Foundation (with RW
Ventures)
Ø
Issues in
Electronic Commerce, a private report
for Deloitte and Touche, aimed at helping Deloitte position itself in relation
to e-commerce policy issues.
Ø
Bridging
the Atlantic, for the Economic
Strategy Institute, providing a review of TransAtlantic trade aimed at
reasserting the importance of the transatlantic economic relationship (co-funded
by DGXII, European Commission).
Ø
Opportunities
in the Market for Electronic Textbooks, for
Houghton Mifflin, designed to help create a strategy for the electronic
distribution and repurposing of traditional textbooks. (with Lightspeed LLC, New
York)
Ø
European
Technology Programs, for the Commerce
Committee of the U.S.Congress, analyzing the extent and impact of the
substantial European technology support programs.
Ø
Bit by
Bit: Toward a TransAtlantic Telecommunications Policy (M.E.Sharpe and the Economic Strategy Institute) (co-funded by DG XII,
European Commission), a book which at the time was the definitive analysis of
U.S.-European telecommunications issues.
Ø
The
Convergence Project, a $2m
partnership with Deloitte and Touche to build an information utility for the
telecommunications and internet industries.
Research
clients include: the European Commission, the Brookings Institution, Philips,
Olivetti, Bull S.A., Mitsubishi Research, Dataquest, Deloitte and Touche, the
Economist Intelligence Unit, the National Academy of Science, Houghton Mifflin,
U.S.Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, National Research Council,
Electric Power Research Institute, King Publishing.
See publications
for a complete list of publications and writing. For more information about
North Atlantic’s consulting activities, see http://www.north-atlantic.com/
LocalNet LLC
(CEO and founder)
LocalNet
was funded by angel investors to develop a comprehensive Web-based platform for
providing local services, information, and opportunities. Uniquely, LocalNet
worked closely with local partners to implement a vision grounded in the local
power of the Net.
Research
completed for LocalNet included a substantial assessment of local communities
online, for the Electric Power Research Institute, as well as the considerable
research underpinning LocalNet’s (angel-funded) business plan.
Office of
Technology Assessment
(Congressional Science and Engineering Fellow)
Two years
experience working on international technology and policy issues. Initial
research included an assessment of the sectoral character of economic growth in
the G-7 countries, and a review of US technology programs in the energy sector.
Other research included an extensive analysis of the impact of European
technology programs on the competitiveness of European industry.
Other work experience
§
CEO, SNIP!
Software
§
Fellow,
Economic Strategy Institute
§
Congressional
Fellow, Office of Technology Assessment, U.S. Congress
§
Assistant
Professor, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
§
Adjunct
Professor, U.C.Berkeley, George Mason U., American U., G.W.University
Skills
Beyond the
basic research skills developed in the course of more than 15 years experience
in the academy, and the public and private sectors, I have developed a range of
related business and professional skills. These include:
Project
Management and Operations
Extensive
experience as manager of major projects over the past 12 years, including
LocalNet projects, Convergence partnership with Deloitte and Touche, and
numerous research and assessment projects for many clients.
Online research
Extensive
understanding of electronic information management, including the development of
procedures for managing collaborative research online. Expert user of
collaborative research tools.
Business plans,
grants, and proposals
Substantial
experience formulating and presenting proposals, for government grant
opportunities, corporate projects, and nonprofits. Extensive work on formal
business plans, three of which have been successfully funded.
Presentation
Very
strong presentation, desktop publishing, and web skills. Author and designer of
many high quality consulting reports, as well as major PowerPoint presentations
(for the Economist Intelligence Unit and others) Extensive speaking experience
at industry and public policy seminars and conferences, and as professor at
U.C.Berkeley, U. of Virginia, and others DC-area universities. Strong
inter-personal skills. Innovative use of "quick start" project web
sites as a presentation aid and later as a key marketing feature. Very strong
written communications skills – held professional editorial positions at the
IMF and World Bank.
Business
planning and strategy
Ten years
of P&L responsibility, including Convergence project. Extensive
internal and external experience building comprehensive and successful business
plans, used to underpin the work of LocalNet , SNIP! Software, Enersphere
(Canada) (all funded), as well as other partners such as RW Ventures and Local
Net (California) Inc. Additional experience with major proposals and grant
applications.
Education and Other
Ph.D
UC Berkeley 1986 (Regent's scholar)
M.A.
University of Kent (U.K.) 1978
B.A.
(Honors) Oxford University (U.K.) 1976
U.S.
citizen. Hobbies include soccer, tennis, golf, poker,
music,
web technologies, and reading. Commissioner of local soccer league.
Email
list manager for PTA.
References
Available
on request