You've worked for *a lot* of companies! Do you have problems staying at a job long?
No! I love working for startups and have had the good fortune to work for several and even founded a few. Some of those have been acquired. Some went out of business. Unfortunately, that's the downside of working for startups -- they often go away (for good or bad). I did stay at mPulse for four years :)
You have a lot of tech skills on your resume. Are you a coder?
No. I'm an enthusiastic amateur as far as coding is concerned. I know a few languages and how the magic happens; and I've even coded a few things. That's because I like to be informed about how things work so I can effectively manage apps and websites getting built. But I wouldn't pay me to code -- there are better people for that.
Have you managed people before?
Yes. I have managed as many as 50 people. I've managed both in-house and external teams (and combinations). And I've managed everyone from coders to product people to designers and analysts.
What excites you when working at a new company or on a new project?
Lots of things. I love to learn about a new industry or product. So working in new verticals or with new tech is exciting. I love figuring out how to solve problems with limited resources. I love to figure out how to improve process -- whether that's instituting some where none exists or making existing systems better.
What's your greatest accomplishment?
Excusing the obvious answer (the birth of my children), there are a few.
At Breathwrk, I came in as CPO and took the company from not shipping software (no major releases for over eight months) to shipping content and/or features across iOS, Android, and Web weekly, and increased retention, engagement, and monetization by double or triple digit percentages.
I started at mPulse as a Technical Product Manager, and over four years was promoted multiple times, eventually to VP of Product Management. During my time there, I grew the product org, including launching the Implementations Team (a separate, billable department for handling client onboarding and integrations); spinning up the Product Support Training Program (where we start entry-level employees as Product Support Engineers, teach them the business, then transition them to other roles. Everyone who went through the program in the two years I ran it became at least a full software engineer; only one engineer left the company; and we promoted one participant to Manager of Implementations); re-organizing Data & Analytics under product to make a more unified and comprehensive product offering; and helping grow the company's SaaS platform for healthcare consumer outreach to over one billion enagements per year.
I stepped in as CEO at Acquisition Labs with some core tech, an unmonetized website, and enough cash in the bank for four months. I monetized the website, pivoted, raised more cash, and was able to operate for a year while validating a new business model, before ultimately getting the company acquired.
At Acclaim Games (which became Playdom, which became part of Disney), I discovered just after the Playdom acquisition that we had a demo, some assets, and a set of WYSIWG tools for a new game. I was given four months to turn that into a shippable product. It took six months, but we put out a full MMORPG with 40+ hours of content. And it was a really cool game.
I've got a startup; or I'm just starting out; or money's tight -- can you help me anyway?
Get in touch, I'll see what I can do.
What's your favorite board game
Settlers of Cataan.