Tuesday, September 11, 2012

At Responsys

An update from the professional front: I have joined Responsys as SVP Product Management.

Responsys is a software-as-service provider for interactive marketing: It helps companies communicate with customers via interactive channels like email, web, social, mobile, and display ads. As people increasingly spend time online, these channels are where marketers want to be. Plus, compared to traditional channels like television or print, in which you get the same message as everyone else, interactive channels promise to be more targeted and personalized—so you get what’s relevant for you.

Having been in the interactive marketing field since the beginning, I believe in this promise. It is good for companies and customers alike. The challenge is to make it real. Responsys is a leader in doing so, having gone public in 2011 (ticker symbol MKTG) after growing straight through the late 2000s recession.

So, I’m excited to help grow something that already has substantial scale, in a market that keeps renewing itself with new channels and technologies. If you want to join me, we have many opportunities across the company for like-minded people.

Monday, September 3, 2012

Back in the Bay Area

I knew I was back in the Bay Area when:

  • On the second day, exiting Highway 92, I was behind a Google self-driving car.

  • My new town’s waste-collection system gave me three cans: a big one for recycling, a big one for composting, and a small one for garbage.

  • I was walking along a trail, wearing an E*Trade hat I randomly acquired in the past. A guy walking the other way asked, “Do you know what E*Trade closed at today?”

Yes, after four-plus years in West Hartford, Connecticut, we–my wife, daughter, and I–are back. As I and others have said before, West Hartford is great. But for us, the Bay Area is home.