Bruce Kitto is a Senior Director of Research and Development for SAS.

What are you working on right now?

In addition to the Customer Intelligence projects, I have now taken a dive into the deep end in terms of the retail divisions both in Cary and in Middleton. This has given me an “opportunity” to spend a lot more time directly meeting with customers!

What are you reading?

I just finished a book called The Book Thief by Markus Zusak that had a very different writing style but I thought it was excellent. In general I alternate between what I’ll call a “quality book” one time and a “trashy spy novel” the next. Also sitting on my read pile at home is the training manual from SAS Assortment Planning, which earns me the “get a life” reference from family.

Tell us about one of your favorite experiences with a SAS customer.

There was a Marketing Automation customer based in rural Pennsylvania that I used to work with on site. While getting there often felt like the movie Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, the people who worked there were exceptionally friendly and I enjoyed it. I must admit I also loved the local coffee shop’s fresh homemade apple pie as well.

How do you know when you are learning something?

Its impact usually comes almost as a surprise in terms of learning the one thing and being able to then think how that applies to something else and something else and so on. It is rarely just a single fact. I like this “fan out” effect that I notice right away when I learn something new.

What do you do to unwind from a long day’s work?

I love getting home to my family. We live out in the country in an 1870’s farmhouse so by the time I get home the nearest neighborhood is a half mile away! It is very peaceful and gets your head out of the day-to-day rush of work. If I’m not hanging out at home, I love seeing movies. Even though a movie theater is pricey, I like seeing them there. I’d recommend The Dark Knight – Heath Ledger’s portrayal of The Joker is amazing.