Duane Jackson talks old lags, Lords and the long-game

Guy talks to Duane Jackson, founder of KashFlow, Supdate and Staffology. After a turbulent childhood - separated from his mum at the age of 11 and growing up in care - Duane left school with no qualifications. In between IT contracting and looking for some fast cash, he became involved in his friend's drug trafficking business, but in 1999 at Atlanta airport, he was caught with over 6,000 ecstasy tablets and was handed a five-year prison sentence. On release, he set up as a web developer with support from The Prince’s Trust, but finding that accounting products such as Sage and QuickBooks didn't meet his needs, he developed a web-based application, initially for his own use; that software became Kashflow, and within 10 years, Duane had sold the company for an undisclosed sum, thought to be in the tens of millions of pounds. Duane’s story is one of adversity, resilience and redemption, with many personal and professional triumphs, including the full-circle achievement of becoming a patron of The Prince’s Trust.