AMSI Council Business Person of the Year 2017 Award for Michael Osborne

The annual AMSI Council Business Person of the Year award was presented to Dr Michael Osborne, managing director of OceanWise Limited, on 5 April 2017. The presentation was made by Mr Terry Sloane, chairman of the AMSI Council of the Society of Maritime Industries, during the Ocean Business Gala Dinner. The award is designed to recognise the individual who, in the opinion of the adjudicating panel, has made a significant contribution to the business of marine science and technology in the UK.

Improving Access to Marine Data

As one of his nominees said: “Dr Osborne continues to drive research and development in OceanWise by developing new ideas and initiatives both personally and through his leadership of the technical team which aims to make marine scientific and technical information more widely understood, appreciated and applied across both the growing professional but also non-expert audiences.

He is passionate about the marine, having spent many years tirelessly lobbying for improved access to and the greater re-use of marine data, establishing it as a valuable, often publically funded, resource that should benefit economic and socio-economic development. As such, he has contributed much to changing the way marine spatial information is valued and the way people use it.”

Changing Data into Information

Mr Terry Sloane said: “Having known Mike for many years, I can attest that he is a most worthy recipient this award. Mike has been successful because of his entrepreneurial spirit and deep knowledge of his subject. He and his team have taken on the tricky area of data provision.

Who would have foreseen when Mike began in the industry back in 1992 that we would need to process, move, archive and present quite as much data from so many sources, in as many formats as we do today. Mike has seen the importance of changing data into information and as a result has continued to lead the field.”