Paul DeGroot worked as a journalist in small communities throughout British Columbia—Kimberley, Powell River, Parksville-Qualicum—before joining the staff of the Victoria Colonist in 1976, working there for four years. He moved to the Edmonton Journal in 1980, working as a reporter (including a stint as bureau chief at the provincial legislature and two postings to Parliament in Ottawa), editor, columnist, and newsroom IT expert. In 2000 he moved to the US as a business analyst and editor for a specialty IT publication focused on Microsoft strategies. In 2010 he started his own consulting business, optimizing customers’ software spending and guiding contract negotiations with Microsoft. His customers ranged in size from Google, Amazon, and Microsoft itself, to a 16-person pizza shop, with overall customer savings exceeding half a billion dollars. He moved back to Canada in 2018, with working for the BC Green Party as a key goal. He is an avid cyclist and photographer and is working on a book about economic issues.