Announcing P2P Consulting

It’s been a few months since we decided to close down Profian, the start-up we created around the Enarx project, and I’ve been working on what my next steps should be. The first, and most obvious, is that I started a couple of months back as Executive Director for the Confidential Computing Consortium, part of the Linux Foundation. I’ve also got far too good at a number of online games – too embarrassing to list here. But the other thing that I’ve been working on is starting a consulting practice, reflecting the expertise and experience I’ve built up over the past 25+ years in the industry.

There are a number of services that I’m offering:

• software patent strategy and harvesting
• open source strategy
• start-up strategy
• VC and PE due diligence
• cybersecurity

Some of them speak for themselves: I’ve been in what’s now called “cybersecurity” for over 20 years, and my previous role was as CEO and Co-founder of a start-up. I’ve also been involved in due diligence, which explains the Venture Capital and Private Equity offerings. I plan to write more about all of the offerings in future articles, but the other two – around software patents and open source strategy – probably deserve a little more detail at this point.

Here are the basic descriptions of these services – feedback is definitely welcome:

Intellectual property is a valuable resource for start-ups: for valuation, partnership and competitive advantage. Many start-ups know that they should be managing their Intellectual Property – in particular filing patents – but few have the skills or time to do so efficiently. P2P Consultancy runs in-person patent workshops to generate ideas (“harvesting”) and works with management on the appropriate company strategy, selecting harvested ideas that are best aligned. P2P Consultancy can then work through the process of taking each patent idea through the write-up, discussion and filing stages with patent lawyers, saving valuable staff time and helping the company internalise the skills and gain the experience needed to manage the process in future.

Patent strategy and harvesting

P2P Consulting offers services to companies looking to build a strong strategy for their involvement with open source projects and communities which is consistent with the commercial goals of the organisation.  Mike Bursell, P2P Consulting’s founder, has been involved with open source strategy for over 15 years, in companies ranging from multi-nationals to start-ups, considering issues ranging from community growth and involvement to open source licensing decisions, intellectual property protection and go-to-market.  P2P Consulting provides expertise and links in the open source ecosystem and insights into the opportunities and challenges associated with embracing open source as a strategic differentiator.

Open source strategy

I look forward to growing the consultancy alongside my other activities, and offering these services particularly to start-ups looking to consolidate their patent portfolios and expand their open source involvement. For queries, please visit the P2P Consulting LinkedIn page, the https://p2pconsulting.dev or email me at mike@p2pconsulting.dev.