In 2018 our CEO asked me to “figure out new ways to make money” full time. I lead the “Partnerships” business unit at our company, and am responsible for driving seven figures of annual revenue. - Sell digital advertising to brands. I do my own direct selling, but also lead employees, contractors, partners, and advertising agencies who help with sales, revenue optimization, and reporting on our network of digital sports properties. I use data to optimize our mix of programmatic advertising, affiliate advertising, and direct advertising deals in order to maximize profits. - Forge SaaS partnerships with other companies: I negotiate and create partnerships with other SaaS companies in order to make our core product better. For the larger partnerships, I often own the launch of the new feature or service, which means I drive the strategy, marketing, reporting, and staffing until it gets absorbed by the rest of the company so I can create new partnerships. - Formulate new Initiatives and Features: I often create and launch new initiatives in the company. The goals range from improved efficiency, to “white space” ideas that need to be validated in the most efficient way possible.

I led the tech team of up to 40 employees/contractors, and advocated for a series B investment round so we could buy a larger competitor from Gannett Media called Schedule Star. As the most senior tech person on the team and founding board member, I was involved in the M&A process while we continued to disrupt the market. After the successful purchase, I oversaw the completion and launch of a million dollar initiative to make the core administrative product mobile-responsive for high school administrators, arresting the product's high attrition rate. We also began merging the two products, starting with the most impactful ones, and migrated most key systems to Amazon Web Services.

I co-founded BigTeams and then managed all operations including software development, product management, marketing, finance, sales (growing both client base and advertisers), and customer relationship management. I personally sold the product to several hundred school administrators via trade shows, public speaking engagements, cold calls, digital marketing, and on-site visits, all of which eventually led to a $1,000,000+ Series A round investment from professional investors.

Travel + Teaching + Exploring New Business ModelsAfter completing my service in the Peace Corps, I explored starting several new companies before landing on BigTeams. The other companies included a service that allowed travelers to buy seats on empty private planes, and a company that exported a new portable brick making machine. During this time, I also made several trips to Thailand to work as a Group Leader with The Experiment in International Living while teaching history as a long term substitute teacher at Kilmer Middle School in Fairfax, VA. I was ultimately offered a full time teaching job despite only having a BBA.

I sought and received a new and ambiguous job in the Peace Corps that essentially asked me to connect with my rural Thai community and hunt for ways to help. Eventually, these were my key projects:-Designed and implemented a marketing plan that dramatically increased the profits for a local business by helping them sell to international exporters-Taught English as a second language-Provided computer skills training-Initiated, developed, and launched an HIV awareness campaign, after convincing several Thai government offices to provide fundingMy work was featured in The Peace Corps Messenger and I was one of only two volunteers to score a 9 out of 10 on the official Thai language test.

I evaluated potential land development sites and presented findings to experienced investors.