Rob Colenso

Rob Colenso Email and Phone Number

Product Management | UX Strategy | Design Thinking & Innovation | Content Strategy & Development @ U.S. Naval Institute
Arlington, VA, US
Rob Colenso's Location
Arlington, Virginia, United States, United States
About Rob Colenso

Digital leader specializing in product management, new product development, and user experience strategy. Nearly three decades of start-up, mid-market, and enterprise experience across sectors including nonprofit associations, SaaS solutions, health communication, e-learning, retail e-commerce, financial services, and media. Leadership and management of teams focused on digital product management, new product development, user experience strategy, user interface design, content strategy and development, and social/community strategy.Frequent guest speaker and workshop facilitator on emerging user experience design topics for corporate clients, professional associations, and volunteer organizations. Active as a mentor to both individual designers and teams preparing for startup pitch events.Areas of experience include: • Digital product strategy • Product management • New product development and innovation • Design Thinking • Lean Startup methods • Agile Scrum software development • User experience strategy • A/B and multivariate testing• User interface design • Lean UX methods • Human-centered design • Content strategy/development • Product roadmap leadership • Feature prioritization • Data-driven product optimization • Media/publishing • Social/community strategy • Entrepreneurial leadership • P&L management

Rob Colenso's Current Company Details
U.S. Naval Institute

U.S. Naval Institute

View
Product Management | UX Strategy | Design Thinking & Innovation | Content Strategy & Development
Arlington, VA, US
Website:
usni.org
Employees:
116
Rob Colenso Work Experience Details
  • U.S. Naval Institute
    U.S. Naval Institute
    Arlington, Va, Us
  • U.S. Naval Institute
    Chief Technology Officer
    U.S. Naval Institute Nov 2024 - Present
    Annapolis, Md, Us
    CTO for the U.S. Naval Institute, a non-profit military association founded in 1873 to provide independent, nonpartisan forums for the debate of national security issues particular to the sea services. Overseeing the digital platform strategy and information technology infrastructure that support the Institute's print and digital journalism, conference and events, and book publishing operations. Driving digital business transformation and technology stack modernization initiatives.
  • Meridian Ux
    Founder
    Meridian Ux May 2018 - Present
    An independent digital consultancy providing services including digital strategy development, user experience research, rapid experience prototyping, user interface design, content strategy, and content development for enterprise, non-profit, and volunteer organizations. In addition to direct design support, we also provide strategic consulting, training services, and collaborative design workshop facilitation. Core services:• Digital strategy consulting;• User experience research;• Rapid experience prototyping;• Content strategy and development;• Design Sprint facilitation;• Visual brainstorming workshops;• Storytelling and pitch training;• Writing and editing services.Current & past clients: Verizon, Georgetown University, The Sports Bra Project, Devil Dog Ultras, Ultrarunning Magazine, Military Officers Association of America, Patient Advocacy Strategies, Renaye James Healthcare Advisors, and the U.S. Naval Institute.
  • Brightspot
    Director, Web Strategy
    Brightspot Aug 2023 - Jun 2024
    Reston, Virginia, Us
    Led a product team responsible for supporting the company's marketing and customer engagement platforms, with Brightspot.com as the flagship product. Role was eliminated in June 2024 as part of a broader company restructuring.
  • Rarelife Solutions
    Senior Director, Product Management
    Rarelife Solutions Dec 2019 - May 2023
    Westport, Ct, Us
    Head of product management, user experience strategy (and lead UX/UI designer), and audience development for a health communications technology startup providing curated and original content and online community solutions for individuals with rare diseases and those who support their care. In partnership with pharmaceutical companies and advocacy groups, rareLife's web experiences and mobile applications provide insight into the rare disease patient and caregiver journey to inform and accelerate treatment development and commercialization, while unifying and amplifying the voice of the patient, advocate, and caregiver in the treatment development process.Highlights include: Leading a user interface redesign of the company’s digital community conversation and education platform and associated e-mail newsletter templates to enhance credibility with users and partners, managing a technical re-architecture effort to reduce cost-to-build and increase speed-to-market, and implementing content personalization functionality to improve user engagement.
  • Strategic Education, Inc
    Director, Product Management - Campus Platforms
    Strategic Education, Inc Feb 2019 - Dec 2019
    Herndon, Va, Us
    Head of product management and user experience strategy for student campus platforms for Capella and Strayer universities. Responsible for digital product definition, feature requirements development, long-range product roadmap prioritization. and user experience optimization with emphasis on behavioral design interventions to improve educational outcomes. Highlights include leading two major platform migrations during 2019, consolidating to a common content management system (Drupal 8) and cloud hosting solution to improve operational efficiency.
  • Strategic Education, Inc
    Director, E-Commerce
    Strategic Education, Inc Nov 2017 - Feb 2019
    Herndon, Va, Us
    Senior product executive responsible for digital platform strategy and optimization in support of recruitment lead generation and student enrollment for on-campus and distance-learning higher education programs tailored to meet the needs of working adults. Managed a team of eight product managers, designers and software engineers supporting the Strayer University portfolio of owned marketing platforms. Highlights include winning C-level executive approval for a 50% increase in team budget to support rapid expansion of digital experience capabilities, with a particular focus on user experience personalization and associated user data capture, and leading the content management system migration of Strayer.edu from Drupal 8 to Adobe Experience Manager.
  • Total Wine & More
    Senior Product Manager & Ux/Ui Team Lead
    Total Wine & More Oct 2015 - Nov 2017
    Bethesda, Md, Us
    Product management and user experience strategy leader for the nation's largest independent retailer of fine wine, spirits and beer, with 150+ stores in 20 states, and $2.5B in annual sales. Led UX/UI optimization efforts; taught Design Thinking methods to key digital staff; and developed a UX research and usability testing practice employing quantitative data analysis, qualitative research and Lean UX methods to deliver solutions at speed that address identified customer needs and pain points. Led a 14-person Agile Scrum team as product owner, while also establishing and scaling a new cross-functional product design and optimization team of eight associates.Highlights include: • Delivery of a series of rapid user experience enhancements that contributed to a 38-point improvement in customer Net Promoter Score between Q4 2015 and Q1 2016; • Winning C-level executive approval to launch the company's first in-house product design team; • Leading a series of product initiatives that contributed to a 55% increase year-over-year in e-commerce revenue in 2016.
  • Capital One
    Director, Product Management
    Capital One Oct 2013 - Sep 2015
    Mclean, Va, Us
    Product strategist responsible for leading the rapid prototyping and piloting of innovative consumer experiences for Capital One’s line of financial services products using Design Thinking practices, Lean Startup methods, and Agile software development. Led a multi-disciplinary team of product managers, designers and developers to validate hypotheses and new product concepts in collaboration with internal and external partners. Translated business strategies into product concepts, prototypes and pilots. Led early-stage product opportunity explorations in the emerging payments sector during CY2015, focusing on the use of existing and emerging digital commerce security solutions, including tokenization, to rapidly prototype product concepts for next-generation secure transaction experiences for Capital One customers. In CY2014, my work focused on the prototyping and development of new products that leveraged the social media ecosystem to enhance corporate Big Data consumer insights. Highlights included the creation of a rapid prototyping process that facilitated the development of 14 functional proof-of-concept prototypes in 2014, including two approved for line-of-business pilots.
  • Gannett
    Director, Product Management, Gannett Digital
    Gannett Jun 2012 - Oct 2013
    New York, Ny, Us
    Program-level director responsible for managing the execution and evolution of product plans for Gannett Digital’s portfolio of 100-plus local news and information websites. Managed digital product definition, developed feature requirements, prioritized long-range product roadmaps. and optimized revenue and audience growth by analyzing web analytics, financial performance metrics and user feedback. Managed a team of two mid-level product managers. Highlights include: Directed the successful deployment of a metered pay wall and new mobile/tablet products to 79 local news websites, as well as the associated iterative development of the codebase for those sites. This business initiative led to a circulation revenue increase in 2012 of nearly 9% after three consecutive quarters of growth, and yielded an additional $100M in circulation revenue for Gannett Co. in 2013. Led product development and management planning and pilot-site launch for the phased transition of Gannett’s local site portfolio to a new desktop website experience and associated suite of back-end technology solutions including a custom-built content management system.
  • Gannett
    Director, New Product Development, Gannett Digital
    Gannett Jul 2011 - Jun 2012
    New York, Ny, Us
    Part of a five-person, start-up New Product Development team within Gannett Digital focused on web and mobile opportunities outside Gannett’s core product line. Defined processes for full lifecycle management of new product initiatives, created and managed the innovation portfolio, and leveraged human-centered design principles to identify product opportunities, rapidly prototype products and define business requirements. Highlights included: Leading the creation of an internal innovation grants program meant to cultivate entrepreneurial efforts across the enterprise; conducting multiple user experience field research engagements in support of corporate new product initiatives; and leading the planning and execution of staff transitions and technology transfers as part of Gannett's acquisition of Metromix.com, a local entertainment content provider.
  • Gannett
    Content Director, Contentone
    Gannett Aug 2010 - Jul 2011
    New York, Ny, Us
    Product development leader for an enterprise-level research and development team specializing in the conception and execution of new digital products and services for Gannett’s network of 100-plus newspapers and television stations. Identified opportunities to pair Gannett’s content resources with existing and emerging digital content distribution platforms. Led a team of three product development managers and one web developer. Applied human-centered design principles to create new products that address audience needs and create new revenue sources for Gannett properties. Product portfolio included location-based mobile applications and data visualization products, as well as blogger training and blog network development programs.
  • Gannett
    Vp, Marketing & Product Development
    Gannett May 2009 - Aug 2010
    New York, Ny, Us
    Marketing and product development executive for a Gannett-owned specialty news and information company (now known as Sightline Media Group) producing nine print titles, 12 websites, and broadcast content including a public affairs television program. Responsible for all aspects of marketing and marketing support, as well as online operations and product development. Marketing responsibilities included branding, promotions, conference marketing, trade shows, research, online store, and external relations. Digital responsibilities included business development, advertising operations, e-commerce and site design and development. Position included financial management with profit and loss responsibility, as well as management of 17 technical and marketing team members and operational oversight of 10 additional editorial staff.
  • Gannett
    Director, Online Operations
    Gannett Jan 2008 - May 2009
    New York, Ny, Us
    Executive-level manager responsible for determining online business strategy and managing all aspects of operations for 12 websites drawing a combined 1.5 million unique visitors monthly, including business development, advertising operations, marketing, e-commerce and site design and development. Duties included financial management with profit and loss responsibility, management and mentorship of eight technical and business team members and operational oversight of 11 additional editorial and marketing staff.
  • Gannett
    Interactive Editor
    Gannett Sep 2007 - Jan 2008
    New York, Ny, Us
    Product developer and project manager for editorial components of 11 websites. Duties included managing two web producers, database editor and community manager. Also provided day-to-day operational oversight of a five-person content publishing team. Served as editorial team lead for two Web site redesigns.
  • Gannett
    Managing Editor
    Gannett Feb 2001 - Sep 2007
    New York, Ny, Us
    Managing editor for various Gannett Government Media Corp. publications, including:• Features Editor, Military Times Media Group -- May 2006 - September 2007• Air Force Times -- September 2005 - May 2006• Marine Corps Times -- May 2001 - September 2005Highlights include a 2005 Associated Press Managing Editors association Award for Public Service for an investigation into military purchases of flawed body armor and extensive management of deployed reporter-photographer teams covering conflict in Iraq, Afghanistan, Haiti and beyond. Conceived and managed the company's first in-depth multimedia project, a coverage series of Marine officers in basic training published simultaneously in print and online. The Web video segments later formed the core of an Emmy-nominated documentary aired on 19 Gannett TV stations. This documentary received first-place honors for documentary editing and third place for video photography from the White House News Photographers Association in 2006.
  • Streetmail, Inc.
    Senior Editor
    Streetmail, Inc. Jun 2000 - Feb 2001
    North Adams, Massachusetts, Us
    Senior editor for a start-up e-mail media and direct marketing company specializing in delivery of local news and opinion content to 200-plus communities nationwide. Edited content and supervised a team of 16 editors leading 200-plus freelancer writers.
  • The Berkshire Eagle
    Reporter, North County Bureau
    The Berkshire Eagle Aug 1999 - May 2000
    Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Us
    Reporter in a two-person bureau office covering 10 communities for a 35,000-circulation daily newspaper.
  • Gannett Government Media Corporation
    News Editor
    Gannett Government Media Corporation May 1998 - Jul 1999
    New York, Ny, Us
    Content editor with Gannett Government Media Corp, a Gannett Co. subsidiary. Duties included assisting in supervision and mentoring of reporters; managing freelancers; assigning art elements; and editing copy. Edited content for publications including:Marine Corps Times -- January 1999 - July 1999Navy Times -- May 1998 - January 1999
  • Reporter/Progress Newspapers
    City Editor
    Reporter/Progress Newspapers Oct 1997 - Apr 1998
    City editor for a weekly newspaper in the Chicago suburbs. Duties included reporting, editing, photography, and page design.
  • United States Marine Corps
    Combat Correspondent (Sgt.)
    United States Marine Corps Dec 1993 - Dec 1997
    Washington, Dc, Us
    Four-year enlistment, ending as a sergeant. Served as a combat correspondent in Twentynine Palms, Calif.
  • Morongo Basin Broadcasting Corp.
    On-Air Talent, Kcdz 107.7 Fm
    Morongo Basin Broadcasting Corp. May 1997 - Oct 1997
    Part-time DJ for KCDZ 107.7 FM, a split format Adult Contemporary/Contemporary Hit Radio station in Joshua Tree, Calif., serving the 90,000-listener Morongo Basin market.

Rob Colenso Skills

Social Media Strategy Web Analytics Digital Media Blogging E Commerce Leadership Management Online Advertising Editing Marketing Product Management Content Management Publishing Editorial Digital Strategy Strategic Partnerships Copy Editing Newspapers Mobile Devices Newsletters Direct Marketing Start Ups Business Development Mobile Applications Content Strategy Journalism Social Media Marketing Marketing Strategy New Media Digital Marketing Business Strategy Product Development Marketing Communications Email Marketing Video Multimedia Web Project Management Seo Sem Publications Online Marketing Television Lead Generation Web Content Management Mobile Content Partnerships Newspaper Mobile Marketing Broadcast

Rob Colenso Education Details

  • University Of Maryland Global Campus
    University Of Maryland Global Campus
    Communications
  • Defense Information School
    Defense Information School
    Editors Course
  • Defense Information School
    Defense Information School
    Basic Journalist Course / Basic Broadcaster Course

Frequently Asked Questions about Rob Colenso

What company does Rob Colenso work for?

Rob Colenso works for U.s. Naval Institute

What is Rob Colenso's role at the current company?

Rob Colenso's current role is Product Management | UX Strategy | Design Thinking & Innovation | Content Strategy & Development.

What is Rob Colenso's email address?

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What schools did Rob Colenso attend?

Rob Colenso attended University Of Maryland Global Campus, Defense Information School, Defense Information School.

What skills is Rob Colenso known for?

Rob Colenso has skills like Social Media, Strategy, Web Analytics, Digital Media, Blogging, E Commerce, Leadership, Management, Online Advertising, Editing, Marketing, Product Management.

Who are Rob Colenso's colleagues?

Rob Colenso's colleagues are Calvin Cass Jr., Corrado Susan, Matt W., Kelly Oaks, Christopher Denzel, Caitlin Selba, Franklin Gunther.

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