A tribute to David C. Ruberg

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Tomorrow, we celebrate the life of a great man as Tara, his family, friends, colleagues, and a global community lay David Ruberg to rest.

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David was not the type of person to rest easy nor rest very often. ?

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He just had so much to give … and to teach.?

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I had the great privilege to work for and to be mentored by David for over a decade.?

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When David and I met in the summer of 2012, I was interviewing for the position of Managing Director for the UK for Interxion after a wonderful initial referral from Clinton Hasell . ?

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Only minutes before my big interview with David, I was told by my partner that my beloved cat had JUST passed away.? I don’t know why I shared this very sad news with David, however, the tenderness and method of questioning by David in what could have been an awkward or ‘crash and burn’ interview was exemplary. We bonded instantly.?

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I even got the job.?

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Prior to my taking on the MD role, David said … “What do you think of … Switzerland?” There was a temporary leadership void in Zurich, and he asked me to first take on an interim MD role, oddly saying “I want you to go there this summer and do absolutely nothing. And I mean NOTHING”.

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We, of course, signed a lucrative, non-trivial, and strategic deal with a Swiss Bank despite this very clear directive. I thought David was going to fire me for insubordination before I even started the official role back in London.?

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David’s unique but powerful way of inspiring the pursuit of greatness helped set a precedent of incredible customer wins and wonderful relationships over the next decade.?

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Together.

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Once, in one of our countless Silicon Valley/San Francisco trips, a customer was delicately pointing out that a certain commercial impact wasn’t going to make the slightest difference by using a candid expression to make his point. I asked the customer to clarify his metaphorical reference by asking “do you mean a “P-E-A in the ocean or a P-E-E in the ocean?” The look on David’s face was legendary. Thank goodness the room erupted in uproarious laughter to break the ice.?

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David could laugh or cry at the most incredible and poignant moments.?

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When Jan-Pieter Anten supported an initiative to form a company band for an Interxion kick-off event, with Vincent in 't Veld on vocals, Daniel Thomas on sax José Luis Arnau on bass guitar, and myself on drums, after our stunning performance (i.e., because of the three-month secrecy of preparation, not necessarily the result!) David’s heartfelt exclamation of “I want to be a part of that!” to the audience moved us all to tears of joy.?

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He was so inspiring.

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David really stressed, respected, and reinforced ‘roles and responsibilities’ even if he occasionally erred on the side of caution on making difficult people decisions. David’s approach allowed us all to have quite “unique execution leeway”; thus, his fostering a truly outstanding, high-performance team … ultimately achieving rare chemistry amongst the countries and departments as we went about building a great business.

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Just part of David’s magic.?

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Just a few weeks ago, I spoke to David on the phone to thank him for providing a glowing and challenging reference for me, and just before we hung up, I added; “David … uhm, thank you ... for …EVERYTHING.” I could almost hear him smiling as we both choked up a bit before saying goodbye.?

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Being able to thank him this month only slightly reduces the sadness, the void. But I choose to celebrate the life of David, hence this heartfelt tribute.

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As I embark on my new role in the New Year, I will often refer to the question “What would David do in this situation?”?

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His advice was almost always the absolute right thing to do, for customers, for the business, and for the betterment of each other.?

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We can all try and be a bit more like David Ruberg each day.?

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David … we love you and already miss you.

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Rest in peace indeed.?

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