Leadership
Leadership: Board of Directors
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Chairman, W2 Group, Inc. Larry Weber is Chairman of W2 Group, a global marketing services ecosystem that helps CMOs in their new role as builders of communities and content aggregators. W2 Group includes public relations agency Racepoint Group, social media marketing firm Digital Influence Group and branding company Two Martinis. A public relations visionary, in 1987 Larry established The Weber Group, which within a decade became the world's largest technology public relations firm. Interpublic purchased The Weber Group in 1996 and in 2000, Larry was named Chairman and CEO of Interpublic's Advanced Marketing Services group. In 2001 Larry built Weber Shandwick, which today is the world's largest public relations firm. Larry serves on a number of boards for corporations, non-profit organizations and academic institutions. He is co-founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Innovation and Technology Exchange (MITX), the largest interactive advocacy organization in the world. Larry has also published three books about next-generation business. Sticks and Stones: How Digital Business Reputations Are Created Over Time and Lost in a Click was published in July 2009 from Wiley & Sons. Marketing to the Social Web: How Digital Customer Communities Build Your Business was first published by Wiley in 2007 with a second edition in 2009. The Provocateur: How a New Generation of Leaders Are Building Communities, Not Just Companies was printed in 2002 by Random House. |
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Chairman of the Board, Yankee Group Emily Green is the Chairman of the Board of Yankee Group Research, Inc., a storied technology research firm that for over 40 years has guided a global clientele through profound connectivity change. In this role she helps guide the firm's direction, speaks to the market and works with key clients. From 2005 to 2010 she was the firm's CEO, partnering with primary investor Alta Communications in its acquisition and leading the transition to researching the global connectivity vision it calls Anywhere. Prior to joining Yankee Group, she had been the President and CEO of Cambridge Energy Research Inc. (CERA), leading its sale in 2004 to IHS. From 1995 to 2003, she served with Forrester Research, helping the firm grow from a privately-held boutique to a publicly-traded market leader. Her first contributions there came as the Internet exploded onto the commercial scene in 1996, when she developed some of the market's earliest models for consumer adoption of online commerce and residential broadband. She later launched and built the company's European operations, including the acquisition and integration of two regional competitors. At her departure she was the general manager of Forrester's North American division, reporting to the CEO as an officer and responsible for two-thirds of the company's revenues. In earlier stints as a technology entrepreneur, she led product strategy and marketing for Fibermux, a venture-backed fiber-optic hardware startup acquired by ADC Telecommunications; along with several partners created the first 3D architectural design application for the Apple Macintosh; launched marketing and sales for a video services startup; and developed software on supercomputers for film and television special effects. In her long and varied career in technology as an engineer, entrepreneur, marketer and analyst, she has become respected as a thought leader on the impact of connectivity on networks, enterprises and consumers. Emily was granted a B.S.L. cum laude in linguistics from Georgetown University and an M.S.E. in artificial intelligence and computer graphics from the University of Pennsylvania's Moore School of Engineering. ANYWHERE, her book on the business impact of global connectivity, was published in January 2010 by McGraw-Hill. |
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Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP A Business Assurance Partner in the Technology, InfoComm and Entertainment practice, Vic is also the PwC Client Experience Leader for the US Firm. He was previously the leader of the Technology, InfoComm and Entertainment (TICE) practice for the firm's Northeast Region and the Global Leader for the Software and Internet Sector. His clients have ranged from start-ups to multinational companies, including closely and publicly held, high growth companies. His educational background includes a MS in Accounting and a BS in Economics from the State University of New York at Albany (SUNYA). Vic is a member of the Curriculum Advisory Board for the Accounting Department of SUNYA. He is a Board member of The Massachusetts Interactive Multimedia Council and an active member of the Massachusetts Software Council. He is also a member the American Institute and Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants. |
Partner, DLA Piper |
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Founder & CEO, BzzAgent, Inc. Dave Balter is the founder and CEO of BzzAgent, Inc. BzzAgent activates social influence to drive return for brands. He launched BzzAgent in late 2001, and today 600,000 consumers have joined the company's network, which spans North America and the United Kingdom. Since its launch, BzzAgent has been featured everywhere from the CBS Evening News to the BBC to The New York Times Sunday Magazine. Dave co-founded the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA), and he currently serves on its Executive Council and as Chair of the Association's International Committee. The author of two books on the subject, Grapevine and The Word of Mouth Manual: Volume II, Dave lectures around the world on trends in word of mouth and social media. BzzAgent is the subject of two Harvard Business School cases, and in 2007 the university dubbed him one of Boston's "Hottest Technology CEOs." In 2008, Dave was recognized as a Future Legend by the AdClub and he was named to the "40 under 40" list by The Boston Business Journal and Advertising Specialty Institute. Dave also sits on the advisory boards of the Wharton Future of Advertising Project, Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange, Mass Technology Leadership Council, Social Media Advisory Council, FitnessKeeper, Crowdsprout and the Boston Boys & Girls Club Marketing and Communications Committee. |
| SVP, Director, Fidelity Center for Applied Technology Sean Belka is Senior Vice President, Director of Fidelity Center for Applied Technology (FCAT), a unit of Fidelity Investments, the largest mutual fund company in the United States, the No. 1 provider of workplace retirement savings plans and a leading online brokerage firm. FCAT's vision is to serve as Fidelity's idea and innovation catalyst, helping Fidelity's employees and businesses to imagine and realize the possibilities of emerging technologies and new ideas. Mr. Belka joined Fidelity in 1993 to lead marketing and product development for Fidelity Trust Company. In 1997, he became Senior Vice President of mutual fund customer marketing for FPI. In 1998, he transitioned to FPI's Core Segment, where he led Fidelity's efforts to better understand and serve its mass market and mass affluent customers. From 1999 to 2000, Mr. Belka served in FPI's Online Brokerage unit, where he was responsible for Fidelity's strategic partnerships with online content providers, marketing partners and online capabilities providers. From 2001 to 2003, Mr. Belka led FPI's market research, database marketing, CRM, lead management and customer analysis and modeling functions. From 2003 to 2005, Mr. Belka led FPI's customer strategy and marketing efforts for Emerging, Engaged, Established, High Net Worth, Active Trader and Corporate Employee segments and was also responsible for FPI's direct acquisition efforts and online marketing. Prior to his current role, Mr. Belka was Senior Vice President, Online Strategy, where he led the re-design of fidelity.com, transforming it into a more content rich and engaging experience. Prior to joining Fidelity, Mr. Belka was a senior vice president for Digitas, LLC in Boston. His responsibilities included client engagement with start-up and blue chip companies, providing strategy, CRM, Web and direct marketing services. Previously, Mr. Belka was a marketing director for Advanta Credit Cards (now Bank of America) in Philadelphia, where he led customer acquisition, new product development and customer development and retention. He previously worked in strategic planning and new product development at Sallie Mae. Mr. Belka began his career at Citibank, where he was a member of the Management Associate program and a marketing executive in the credit card division. |
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Jeff is a General Partner at Flybridge Capital Partners whose investment interests and entrepreneurial experience are in consumer, Internet commerce, marketing services, software and wireless start-ups. He currently represents the firm on the boards of BzzAgent, ClickSquared, DataXu, digitalArbor, i4cp, Catera Commerce, oneforty, Ready Financial, SimpleTuition, and Transpera and was previously a director at Brontes Technologies (acquired by 3M), go2Media, and PanGo Networks (merged with InnerWireless). Jeff was recently appointed to serve as an Entrepreneur in Residence at Harvard Business School's Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship. He is also on the board of MITX, the Massachusetts Innovation and Technology Exchange and is a Founding Executive Committee Member of FirstGrowth Venture Network, a network of venture and angel investors supporting first and second time entrepreneurs building exciting companies in the New York area. Jeff's popular blog on helping demystify the venture business for entrepreneurs, "Seeing Both Sides", can be found at http://www.seeingbothsides.com/, which is syndicated by BusinessWeek.com, Reuters.com, PE Hub and others. Jeff's book on venture capital and entrepreneurship, Mastering the VC Game is an insider's guide for entrepreneurs on financing and company-building. Prior to joining the firm in January 2003, Jeff co-founded Upromise (acquired by Sallie Mae), was an executive at Open Market, an Internet commerce software leader that went public in 1996 and grew to nearly $100 million in revenues. He also worked with the strategy consulting firm, The Boston Consulting Group, and served on the executive team of Athena Design, an object-oriented software start-up. Jeff holds a BA in Computer Science from Harvard University where he graduated magna cum laude and an MBA from Harvard Business School where he was a Baker Scholar and a Ford Scholar. You can follow Jeff on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bussgang. |
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SVP, Global Services & Support, Brightcove Elisabeth is responsible for defining and executing Brightcove's go-to-market strategy, including working with major publishers, marketing and distribution partners. Elisabeth joins Brightcove from News Corporation's British Sky Broadcasting subsidiary in London. Over nearly a decade at News Corporation and Sky, Elisabeth held a variety of senior management roles, including directing Sky's broadband and new technologies strategy and operations, its new media division, corporate development and strategic planning roles. Elisabeth was also instrumental in the initial launch of Sky Digital, Sky's breakthrough digital satellite video distribution platform. Elisabeth also worked directly in the office of the CEO, helping to launch global joint-ventures as well as leading Sky's sports rights acquisition deals. Elisabeth was a Fulbright scholar, a graduate of Harvard University, and has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a JD from Columbia School of Law. |
| Managing Director, The Jordan, Edmiston Group David Clark, a Managing Director with JEGI, provides M&A advisory services to traditional and technology-enabled marketing services companies. Mr. Clark's focus and transaction experience also includes companies in adjacent markets, such as business information, market research, application software and information technology services. Mr. Clark has nearly 20 years of experience in investment banking and business development consulting. Prior to joining JEGI, he was a Managing Director at Deloitte & Touche Corporate Finance and a senior member of Deloitte's global TMT (Technology, Media & Telecom) industry practice. At Deloitte, Mr. Clark acted as financial and strategic advisor to US and international companies on cross-border M&A assignments, joint ventures and growth capital financings. Previously, he served as Vice President of the Bank of Tokyo's New York Investment Banking Group where his responsibilities included managing the bank's US venture capital and private equity relationships and investment portfolio. In 2008, Mr. Clark was elected to the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Information & Technology Exchange (MITX), the leading industry association bringing together digital technology, marketing, and media professionals to engage in "what is next" for the web and how it impacts the marketing and business worlds. Mr. Clark earned an MBA from the University of Virginia-Colgate Darden School of Business, an MA in International Studies from the University of Virginia College of Arts and Sciences, and a BS in Economics from Washington University in St. Louis. Mr. Clark is a certified NASD representative. |
CEO & Co-Creator, Holland Mark |
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Head, Online Video & Display, Google Head of Online Video & Display, Retail Technology - Google 2009 - Present. Boston. Display Regional Sales Manager - Google 2007 - 2009. Boston. Regional Sales Director AOL MN - 2004 - 2007. Boston. Managed New England team and relationships with New England partners. VP Sales - IMN (formerly IMakeNews) - 2002 - 2004. Managed Outside and Inside Sales, Reseller relationships, as well as Client Support for IMN, a Marketing Services ASP. IMN provides an emarketing publishing solution including newsletter publishing, blogs and RSS distribution to over 1000 customers in the US, and partners with International resellers. (2 years) VP Sales - 2000 - 2002. Newmediary. Newmediary created private label buying directories which were housed on branded websites. Newmediary then sold advertising and sponsorship programs in these directories. Managed Inside and Outside Sales, as well as Customer Support. The assets were sold to CNet and became the foundation of a very successful White Paper Directory and publishing offering. (2 years) Dartmouth College - Bachelor of Arts, Economics Resident of Marblehead, MA, married to Michele, father of two - Morgan and Liam. |
President, Compete Scott is a veteran in online marketing with deep experience in advertising, analytics, digital media and Web technology and over 20 years of sales, operations and management experience. Over the past decade, Scott has been working with world-class brands to help them improve their business performance through the online channel. Compete online measurement company that helps advertisers, publishers and agencies improve both their online and offline marketing effectiveness. The company has won numerous awards and had been recognized as one of the fastest growing private companies by Deloitte, INC Magazine and earned Honomichl Top 50 status before being acquired in early 2008 . Now within the world's largest marketing services company, the company is at the intersection of WPP, Kantar and Kantar Media digital strategies. As President, Scott oversees the company's overall strategic direction, integration into Kantar/WPP, global expansion and day-to-day operations. Under Scott's leadership the company has achieved average YOY revenue growth more than 50%, is the fastest growing internet measurement company with over 1,000 clients, is a recognized leader/brand and is profitable. Joining Compete in 2002 as a member of the founding management team, Scott has been integral in building the company's vertical go-to-market strategy, aggressive product expansion, launch of Compete PRO, sale of the company and building both the domestic and international businesses. Before taking over as President in 2008, Scott held the roles of Chief Client Officer and VP of Sales and Business Development. Prior to Compete, Scott served as Vice President of Sales, Corporate and Business Development for Personify, a web analytics and behavioral profiling software company. Joining in 1999, Scott launched the original sales model (enterprise and SaaS), built the team including direct, partner and OEM channels, and lead strategic partnerships including an acquisition, fund raising and sale of the company. Prior to Personify, Scott was Vice President of Sales at AdKnowledge, a digital marketing company offering ad serving, targeting, tracking and analytics technology which was acquired by CMGI/Engage. Joining in 1997, Scott was a member of the founding management team and built the sales team and partnerships selling to both advertisers and agencies. Over a period of ten years prior to AdKnowledge, Scott held various sales and marketing leadership roles in healthcare and health information technology companies. This experience included both large and small company experience which most notably includes the sale of Cemax to Eastman Kodak PACS division in 1996. Scott received his BS in Marketing and Entrepreneurial Management from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. While a Penn Scott was a varsity athlete, All Ivy League award winner, member of Phi Gamma Delta and Friars Senior Honor Society. Scott is also a graduate Phillips Exeter Academy. Scott lives with his wife and children in Concord, MA and on most weekends can be found either coaching or cheering on local athletes.
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Sarah Fay served as the CEO of Aegis Media North America, overseeing the operations of all of the Aegis Media operating units in the US and Canada. Sarah previously served as the CEO of Carat and Isobar U.S. Carat, a leading media and marketing services agency reinvented the agency model in 2007 after merging digital marketing powerhouse Carat Fusion with leading diversified media agency Carat USA. In her role with Isobar, Sarah managed the growth and integration strategies for Molecular, iProspect, Freestyle Interactive and Ammo Marketing. She is also a 20-year industry veteran of the media services business and a vanguard on media integration, Sarah established and managed an online media practice following roles in traditional media early in her career. Sarah is the recipient on many prestigious awards, including ad:tech's 2007 "Industry Achievement Award," Advertising Age's "25 Women to Watch," Media Post's "Top 100 media Influentials," and OMMA's "Top 50 To Know in Online." She was also one of B2B Magazine's Top 100 Business Marketing Influencers in 2002, 2003 and 2004 and recently was named a "Future Legend" by the Ad Club. |
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Founder & CEO, Experience, Inc. Jenny founded Experience in 1996, at the very dawn of the Internet era. Following her personal experiences with on-campus recruiting as a student and later as an employer, she knew that the laborious, complex and resource intensive approach to connecting students with employers wasn't working - especially for the students, who needed far more support in order to make informed career decisions. While Experience is consistently recognized for its leadership in technology and innovation, the mission of Experience is "to educate, assist and inspire" the next generation of talent - which encompasses far more than online career management systems or making job listings easier to find. Jenny's groundbreaking vision for how to enlist educational institutions, companies, governments and citizens around the world toward this important mission has been recognized by national press, and by industry leaders throughout academia and enterprise. The author of the upcoming book, The Innovation Generation: The Gen Y Way & How New Thinking Can Reclaim the American Dream, Jenny is a frequent speaker at nationwide universities and major business events to share her unique perspective on the up-and-coming workforce. She earned a BA in psychology from Dartmouth College and was a management consultant with Bain & Company in Boston prior to starting Experience. She also serves on the Board of Directors of Jobs for the Future and the Rockefeller Center for Public Policy. |
| Managing Director, Bain Capital Ventures As a Managing Director at Bain Capital Ventures, Jeff focuses on wireless, digital media and consumer marketing technologies. He has led investments for the firm in LinkedIn, Targetspot, ScoreBig and BlipNetworks. He also serves as a board member of a number of companies and industry associations including; Loc-Aid, Bzz Agent, and the Massachusetts Innovation and Technology Exchange (MITX). Prior to joining Bain Capital, Jeff was co-founder, President & CEO of m-Qube, Inc., a Bain Capital Ventures portfolio company acquired by VeriSign Inc. He led the company from start-up to becoming the leader in the North American marketplace for the management, delivery and billing of mobile content and applications. The company was named in 2005 by the Boston Business Journal as the fasted growing business in New England. Jeff was voted Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in New England and his business success and contributions to non-profits were recognized when he was named to the BBJ's "40 under 40" list. Jeff also held positions as Founder and President of Transactive Solutions/ Zooba, a consumer internet content and marketing company that was acquired by Bertlesmann. As Chief Operating Officer of Travelers/NETPlus, Jeff helped build a national sales and marketing organization with over 200 sales people. Prior to that he spent a couple of years as a strategy consultant with the Boston Consulting Group where he focused on multimedia and convergence technologies. Jeff received an M.B.A from Harvard Business School and a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from Amherst College. Jeff's entrepreneurial experience started before college when he learned to sell office furniture to corporations as a commission salesmen cold calling NYC corporations. He then started a direct marketing business while attending Amherst College that expanded across several other campuses. He later co-founded a second college marketing business shortly after graduation. He is active in fundraising for a number of non-for-profits organizations including the Brain Tumor Society, Amherst College and the Mobile Giving Foundation, a non-profit where Jeff was a Founding Board Member. Jeff has spoken on numerous occasions on the state of wireless, the impact of digital advertising on traditional media and entrepreneurship more broadly. As a "recovering" entrepreneur Jeff enjoys helping young entrepreneurs to get started and established CEOs think about the challenges of maintaining growth. Jeff lives in the Boston area with his wife Amy and has three children. |
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Executive Director, Digitas Boston and Detroit/EVP As Executive Director for Digitas Boston and Detroit, Barbara is responsible for operational and client leadership in those offices. She has over 17 years of experience leading relationships in CRM, loyalty, subscription, and retail marketing. Over the 10-plus years she has been with Digitas, she has managed client engagements designing and implementing digital marketing programs, Web builds, business processes, direct marketing initiatives, and customer-segmentation treatment strategies. Before joining Digitas, Barbara was the director of marketing consulting at Veridiem, a software company building a measurement and analysis tool for ecommerce businesses. Prior to that, she was an associate at Exchange Marketing Group (EMG), where she served as a senior relationship manager designing customer strategies and marketing programs. Earlier experiences include working at GE Investments and completing the Business Analyst program with McKinsey & Company, Inc. Barbara is on the board of the New England AAAA and leads the American Heart Association work for Digitas. Barbara has an MBA from Harvard University and a BA in Economics, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of Pennsylvania. |
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Chairman-CEO, Mullen Joe is president and CEO of Mullen, a leading interdisciplinary agency whose clients include the likes of JetBlue, Zappos, Swiss Army, Panera, Alberto Culver, BASF, Olympus, Stop & Shop, SC Johnson, and Timberland among others. Joe was one of the original partners at Mullen, joining the firm 27 years ago when it had 10 employees and didn't make the top 50 agencies in New England. No stranger to change and transformation, Joe has led Mullen through numerous economic booms and implosions as well as dramatic transformations in the advertising industry, rebuilding the agency after a devastating fire, then rebuilding it after losing 50% of his business in one year, selling the company to the Interpublic Group 11 years ago, expanding to multiple offices and, most recently, moving the agency headquarters to Boston after 40 years on the North Shore. Throughout, he has championed and evolved a strong and distinguishing company culture that is its engine for success. Joe started his career in media at Benton & Bowles and moved on to account work at Ted Bates. He was recruited to Boston by Hill Holliday in 1981. Joe's an Italian immigrant who's been a latch-key child, a near hoodlum, a construction laborer, a rock musician, a Harley-Davidson bike builder, a staff accountant and a shoeshine boy in his uncle's barber shop in Queens, NY. Each experience has added invaluable perspective to his life, which he loves to share with young people. Today he spends most of his time at the agency defining strategy and inspiring people to dream and exceed expectations. He also serves on, and has chaired, numerous boards in and out of the industry. |
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Brian Halligan, Founder and CEO, HubSpot
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President, HireMinds LLC David Hayes is the President and Founder of HireMinds, a professional and executive search firm specializing in the areas of digital marketing, technology, and science. In his role, David is responsible for the strategic leadership neccessary to ensure the achievement of HireMinds' performance goals and preservation of the core values established over a decade ago including fostering true partnerships with hiring clients and job candidates. David was a graduate of Columbia University with a Bachelor of Philosophy and entered the search profession with Source Services after beginning his career in marketing with IBM. In his first year, he was named Rookie of the Year and went on to be one of the top producing search consultants in the firm. He took on increasing responsibility, culminating in his role as Managing Director of the New York region until the firm was acquired by Kforce. A recognized leader on employment, leadership, and workplace related issues, David is regularly quoted in the Boston Globe, Boston Business Journal, The Wall Street Journal, Boston.com, and Mass High Tech. David is personally passionate about helping others achieve their goals, whether client, job candidate, or employee. He serves on the Board of Directors for MITX and is an active member of BIMA and MassBio. He is also a committed volunteer to the Cambridge based East End House community center. |
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Co-Founder & CEO, Spring Partners An experienced digital technology, media and marketing executive with a proven track record of identifying and developing new opportunities and new markets, Jeff Janer is Co-founder and CEO of Spring Partners, a venture backed consumer internet company responsible for Springpad (http://springpadit.com/). Prior to founding Spring Partners in January, 2008, Janer was CMO, Third Screen Media, a mobile advertising technology and services company, where he was responsible for the company's marketing and product management initiatives. Before joining Third Screen Media, Janer was Vice President of Marketing and Business Development for Britemoon, an online marketing solutions provider. In 2000, he was a founding partner of Traverse Partners, a firm providing strategic consulting and interim operational management to VCs and emerging growth companies. Prior to this, he served as Executive Vice President of Fidelity eBusiness. He was also President and CEO of Larry Miller Productions, a marketing communications firm acquired in 1998 by iXL, an Internet professional services firm, where he was an Executive Vice President. Janer holds a BA in International Relations from Brown University. |
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Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Harvard Business School lBrian Kenny is the Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at Harvard Business School, a role to which he brings two decades of experience in leading the marketing efforts of large global institutions. As HBS's first CMCO, Brian has oversight of the HBS brand globally, including coordinating the planning and implementation of all the School's marketing, communications and public relations efforts around the world. Working with the dean's executive team and leading HBS faculty, Brian oversees the alignment of branding, marketing, and media relations efforts across the HBS enterprise including the MBA program, executive education, external relations and HBS Publishing. |
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From creative director to user-experience leader, Keith has taken on just about everything throughout his sixteen-year digital career. At Arnold, he works across all accounts, including Dell, CVS, and Ocean Spray, and is responsible for establishing the customer experience across disciplines including information architecture, discovery, usability and interaction design. Prior to working at Arnold, Keith designed and architected large-scale, consumer-centric experiences for Staples, Stanford University, Harvard, Comcast, Viacom, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, and many more. Keith has written over 30 articles on every aspect of user experience, is a current contributing author to UX Magazine, and runs a global ux network on LinkedIn with over 16,000 members. In his spare time he's trying to figure out what the next thing is before it happens. |
Don McLagan is an information industry entrepreneur. Now he is advising start-up CEOs and writing poetry. Previously, he was Chairman, President and CEO of Compete, Inc. which was successfully acquired by Taylor Nelson Sofres in March 2008. Don serves as an advisor or Board member to the Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange (MITX), The Echo Nest, Performable, RunKeeper, Visible Gains, and Visible Measures. Don has been an innovator of business information services for forty years. He was the founder, Chairman and CEO of NewsEdge Corporation (1988-2000). Previously, he was Vice President and General Manager of the Information Services Division of Lotus Development Corporation (1985-1988); he was a founding employee and Executive Vice President of Data Resources, Inc. (1969-1984); he started the Advanced Computer Techniques Group within the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense, Comptroller (1967-69). Don has both B.S. (1964) and B.S.M.E. (1965) degrees from Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut and an MBA from Harvard Business School (1967). |
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VP, Product, TripAdvisor Adam Medros heads worldwide product development for TripAdvisor and is a member of the company's management team. Since joining the company in 2004, Medros has led efforts in search marketing and revenue optimization and has overseen developments to product functionality, merchandising, and acquisition integration. He was instrumental in TripAdvisor's 2007 launch of travel applications onto the Facebook Platform. These applications - Cities I've Visited, Local Picks, and Traveler's IQ Challenge -- have introduced the TripAdvisor brand to millions of new people around the world and generated a high volume of new content for the core site. Prior to joining TripAdvisor, Medros held Senior Analyst and Product Manager positions at Nordstrom.com, Amazon.com, and The Parthenon Group. He serves on the board of oneforty.com, the Twitter app store and is an advisor to Care.com. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a bachelor's degree from Dartmouth College. |
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Partner, Longworth Venture Partners Before co-founding Longworth, Jim Savage spent 20 years launching and building venture-backed internet & digital media companies. As CEO of PlanetAll, Inc., a pioneering social networking service, Jim directed the company from its first round of venture funding through to a successful acquisition by Amazon.com. Previously, Jim was a founding executive at ZDNet, a leading web media company, which enjoyed a successful IPO and was later acquired by CNET. Before ZDNet, Jim was an Executive Vice President at Thomson (formerly Prentice Hall), where he managed the online services of the tax publishing division. Jim started his career managing digital media initiatives at McGraw-Hill. Jim's investments include Constant Contact (NASDAQ: CTCT), uTest, Grab Networks and Softricity (acquired by Microsoft). In addition, he serves on the boards of the Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange (MITX) and Boston's Museum of Science. Jim graduated from Harvard University. |
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Former CEO, Shoebuy.com Scott Savitz was most recently Chief Executive Officer of Shoebuy.com, an operating business of IAC. Scott Savitz founded Shoebuy.com in 1999 and served as Chief Executive Officer until July 2011. Under his guidance the company has quickly become one of the largest retailers of footwear and related apparel on the internet partnered with over 700 brands representing over 700,000 products. Prior to founding Shoebuy.com, Mr. Savitz was a Director at BancBoston Robertson Stephens specializing in the investments of large high tech corporations totaling more than $6 billion. Previously, Mr. Savitz was in the mortgage business where he originated more than $100 million in mortgages in one year. In addition, Mr. Savitz managed a full service marketing company specializing in direct mail, telemarketing and list maintenance. Mr. Savitz also serves on the board of directors of Simple TuitionHe received a B.A. in English from the University of Colorado and currently resides in Boston, MA. Mr. Savitz is a frequent industry speaker and has received numerous awards and accolades including Ernst & Young's New England Entrepreneur of the Year. |
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Director of Sales, Google As head of Google's Boston sales office, he is responsible for overseeing Google's local businesspresence, including hiring, community engagement, and business strategy. Additionally, Brian is thenational Industry Director responsible for the Health Services business in Google's Large CustomerSolutions organization. Prior to building Google's Boston office, Brian led Google's national Online Sales Agency Team atheadquarters in Mountain View, California, overseeing Google's relationships with mid-marketadvertising, interactive, and search engine marketing agencies. Before joining Google, Brian managedclient services at iProspect, a leading search marketing agency. Earlier, Brian was Manager of NewMarkets at iPhrase Technologies, a venture-backed search software start-up. He also worked at ForresterResearch, advising clients on the impact of emerging internet technologies. He is a graduate of Middlebury College and has an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. He sits on the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Innovation and Technology Exchange(MITX) and the Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM).After years of living in cities such as San Francisco and Boston, Brian has recently relocated to thesuburbs of Concord, MA where he lives with his wife and two children. Raised outside of Philadelphia,he still roots for the Eagles and the Phillies. |
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CEO & Co-Founder, Wayfair. Niraj Shah is the CEO and co-founder of Wayfair, a $200M+ online retailer. Wayfair owns and operates 200 online retail stores including BedroomFurniture.com, Cookware.com, CSN Lighting and AllModern.com. Wayfair was founded in 2002, and today offers over 1,5000,000 items from over 4,000 brands, and is one of the largest online retailers of home goods in the United States. Wayfair is headquartered in the Prudential Center in downtown Boston, and has additional offices in London, Munich, and Galway, Ireland. Prior to co-founding Wayfair, Mr. Shah was the co-founder and CEO of Simplify Mobile, an Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR) at Greylock Partners, and the co-founder and CEO of Spinners, an IT consultancy. Spinners was sold to iXL, a publicly traded technology consulting firm with over 3,000 employees. Mr. Shah went on to become the Chief Operating Officer and member of the Board of Directors of iXL. Mr. Shah holds a BS from Cornell University, and lives in Boston, MA, with his family. |
Founder & CEO, FastIgnite, Inc. Prior to starting FastIgnite, Sim spent seven years as technology partner at Polaris where he made investments in the enterprise, online and mobile sectors and helped start four companies that Polaris invested in. Prior to joining Polaris, Sim was vice president of emerging technologies and chief architect at Macromedia (now Adobe). Earlier, Sim was a founding member and chief architect at Allaire, one of the first large Internet platform companies. Sim's expertise covers the gamut from strategy definition and positioning to R&D execution to go-to-market and alliances development. He has played a key role in more than twenty v1.0s and M&A and spinout transactions. Sim's innovation and leadership have brought about category-defining products with significant market impact: the first Web application server (ColdFusion), a pre-cursor to Web services and AJAX (WDDX), the best open-source Web services engine (Apache Axis) and the first rich Internet application platform (Flash/Flex). Sim's past investments include 8th Ring (a company he co-founded), Allurent, Archivas (a company he helped create which was sold to Hitachi Data Systems), Meridio (sold to Autonomy) and Veracode (a company he helped create). He serves on the board of directors of the Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange (MITX), the largest technology non-profit in New England, and on the advisory board of the Nantucket Conference. Sim has a master's degree summa cum laude in computer science from Boston University and bachelor degrees summa cum laude in computer science, economics and mathematics from Macalester College. His research interests have ranged from microcode simulation to soft artificial intelligence to shared multi-user virtual environments to economic modeling of Russian privatization. |
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Senior Director, Microsoft New England Research & Development Center (NERD) Sara Spalding is the Senior Director of Microsoft's New England Research & Development Center, where she leads the team responsible for Microsoft's R&D Campus and the company's technical and local outreach. Sara joined Microsoft in 1991, and has worked on wide range of products and technologies, including Windows, Internet Explorer, the .NET Framework and MSDN, in a range of roles including Technical Evangelist, Program Manager and Product Unit Manager. After a short vacation from the company in 2005-2007, she rejoined Microsoft in 2007 here in Cambridge. Sara has a BS in Computer Science and Math from the University of Puget Sound. She lives in Wellesley with her husband and two children. |
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VP, E-Commerce and Business Development Brian has nearly 20 years of e-commerce, business development and corporate strategy experience in retail and consumer businesses. He currently is responsible for Staples.com from an e-commerce and business development perspective. Specifically, Brian leads strategic and operational efforts to drive better customer experience and more growth from Staples e-commerce and mobile assets, as well as leads the development of new growth platforms. Brian received an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and his undergraduate degree from Tufts University. He resides outside Boston, MA with his wife and three boys. |
Head of Global Marketing Communication, Reebok Viktoria is a highly skilled performance oriented digital manager with over 14 years of global experience. She has an outstanding international track record, having helped developing global brands in digital marketing in Europe, US and APAC markets. She has strong management skills having founded, built and successfully managed a 35 people Digital Agency with a 30% profit margin. She is a strong leader, a quick thinker with a high rate of achievement and an appetite for new challenges. Viktoria has worked with global brands such as adidas, IKEA, H&M, MTV, Nokia and Microsoft. She is highly awarded in the international interactive industry. |
Entrepreneur in Residence, Polaris Venture Partners Prior to Joining Microsoft, Gus held various staff and management roles at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), where he is also an alumnus. Gus currently serves on the Boards of StreetWise Media, MITX, Governor of MA IT Collaborative, University of Pittsburgh, School of Information Science Dean's Advisory Council, The Capital Network, and the City University of New York, City College Computer Science Advisory Board. Gus resides in Clinton, MA with his wife and son. |
| Chief Development Officer, Akamai As Chief Development Officer, Robert leads Akamai's corporate development and strategic partnership activities, as well as long-term planning and strategic finance. He brings over 15 years of deal experience in technology covering a wide range of strategic transactions. Robert joined Akamai's Business Development group as it was being formed in 1999. Since that time, he has led Akamai's acquisitions of businesses including Speedera Networks, Nine Systems Corporation, Netli, Red Swoosh, and acerno. He has also overseen the development of joint ventures, spin-out transactions, international expansion, and numerous strategic partnerships. Prior to Akamai, Robert helped found the corporate electronic commerce and Internet practice at Alston & Bird LLP, one of the nation's leading law firms. He has completed more than $25 billion worth of acquisition transactions of technology companies and financial institutions. |
