Today is my last day at Gist

This has been part of the plan following the company's acquisition by Research In Motion back in February.

It is the end of what has been a fun, crazy, and rewarding few years.  I first sat down with founder T.A. McCann in mid-2008 to catch up and got the download on what was at the time called Mineboxx.  The company evolved to Gist, I began to consult on go-to-market stuff, and joined as full-time Vice President of Marketing following closing a Series A venture capital round in May of 2009.

There are lots of nuggets of wisdom gained during this time that I'll share more about going forward and can't say enough great things about my team and all involved. 

So, what's next for me?

I am enjoying "being generous" and helping companies think about how they are building their sales pipelines, developing their customer acquisition funnels, and going to market.  It's nice to share what worked as well as a few lumps from failure with the desire to accelerate their success and advance my understanding of what is possible.

Included in that is being a Mentor at TechStars/Seattle for the first time this year.  That program is just getting started and I look forward to working with the companies there as well as getting to know many of the other mentors I have yet to meet.

I'll also be working more formally as an advisor to LoopFuse.  They are an Atlanta-based marketing automation software company focusing on the SMB market with web analytics, lead nurturing/scoring, and email marketing all in one package.  I encourage every startup out there (every company, actually) to put a nurture program in place and with LoopFuse you can start and use it for free paying only when you begin to scale (a good deal!)

Other activities include living vicariously through my friend Joe Solomon and his Steamboat Springs, CO-based adventure travel company Iconic Adventures where I am helping a bit on the marketing front.

I have my eye on a few opportunities that include starting my own company.  I have worked in startups for the past ten years and am now at a place where doing something of my own makes sense.  What is it?  More details as the pieces come together but I am looking at sales & marketing processes, the inefficiencies that exist there, and how social, mobile, etc. technologies can be used to "hack" it. 

I'll also be enjoying a bit more time with my wonderful (and understanding) wife, amazing daughters, and loving but neurotic dog. Oh, and trying to catch up on training for the Portland Marathon on October 9th (my first full marathon) that Marel & I will be running together.

So, email me if you want to chat, have an idea, or are looking for a bit of advice on marketing and markets.  I'm happy to connect...

Comments

[Lmckeogh]

Good luck with the transition. It sounds like you've got a full schedule laid out for you. Never a dull moment which is good.

Look forward to the updates.

[Scott Clark]

It was great to meet you in Lexington. Good luck on the new direction. I'm interested in LoopFuse as LeadGen is a big part of my day working with franchises that have a big lead scoring problem (firehose lead flow, qualifications rare.)