I build businesses, launch products, and lead organizations through what’s next.
I’m a founder and executive who brings together product vision, commercial strategy, and operational leadership. I’ve led a $40 million business at AOL, built an award-winning consultancy, transformed operations at thoughtbot, and helped return Ruby Central to financial stability.
I do my best work where there’s something ambitious to build, a business to transform, or a difficult problem worth solving.
I've helped elevate
My teams have won
Leading
Long-form stories about the most important moments of my career
- Building the next chapter of thoughtbotSince 2023, grew from one of five Managing Directors to the only one, and reshaped how the Americas business sells, staffs and delivers.
- Launching new ventures and growing established products at AOLFrom 2011 to 2013, launched AOL Industry from zero, then ran AOL Entertainment, a $40M P&L and a 70-person organization.
- Wildebeest, a studio for products, platforms, and experimentsFrom 2014 to 2023, co-founded and ran an award-winning studio for clients including Google, YouTube, Disney and GM.
- Helping turn around the organization behind the Ruby ecosystemI joined Ruby Central’s board during a financial, legal and community crisis. As President, I helped return it to financial stability.
- Why do the best conversations at a conference happen after hours?I created The Ruby Underground for thoughtbot, an invite-only night in a secret location for the people shaping Ruby and Rails.
- What selling thousands of DIY kits taught me about who does the workJohn Gist and I started RELIC in my garage. Thousands of kits later, the biggest lesson is that the person who buys a kit is rarely the one who makes it.
- Produce pickups, movie nights, and a cleanup that’s still goingWhat I’ve organized in Ladera Heights, from a driveway produce pickup during COVID to a monthly cleanup that’s six years old.
- Bringing North Kingdom to the United StatesAs Founding Managing Director, I helped the Swedish digital studio North Kingdom launch its operation in the United States.
- Why Leave Astoria, a neighborhood network with more than 10,000 membersI founded Why Leave Astoria, a hyperlocal social network that brought neighbors together through events, charity, and local business partnerships.
- New digital experiences for NBC, from Heroes to the project that became HuluHow a TV network started building for the internet, from companion platforms for Heroes to virtual worlds and the skunkworks project that became Hulu.
Making·
Stagehand, a deck from a Markdown file
A simpler alternative to Slides and PowerPoint. Drop in or paste a Markdown file, or hand it to Claude, and present a polished deck with notes only you can see.
Making·
Qualifier, moving a sales lead forward with one emoji
A Slack app that turns a checkmark on an inbound opportunity into a qualified deal in our CRM, and helps me prepare for the meetings that follow.
Making·
Meeting Prep, a brief waiting before every sales call
A calendar service that books a prep block before each outside meeting and fills it with a brief on who you're about to meet.
Earlier
- Recreating a 1989 Pizza Hut jukebox for my gym
- Can a phone tell where a sugar packet landed?
- Pipeline Health, a grade for the sales pipeline that matches how it feels
- Is it AI? Looking for evidence instead of guessing
- Like Grandma Made, a cookbook of my grandmother’s recipes
- Delivery Copilot, an AI assistant that stays beside the work
- When to vibe code an app and when to hire someone
Work together
Let’s discuss what's next.
A leadership opportunity, a new venture, or a product worth building. Tell me what you’re working toward, and I'll do my best to help.
Start a conversation Leadership and consulting
Podcasts, panels and events are welcome too.