Living
I grew up in Grand Rapids, MI and have lived in Germany and Argentina which has helped me become conversational in German and Spanish.
Hobbies
Tennis, 3d Printing, Wood Working, Music Production, Art & Design
Travel
I’ve traveled all throughout Europe, South America, China, Japan, Australia.
Q/A
What type of people do I work with most effectively?
Someone who is not afraid to voice their opinion. Colleagues that are creative and willing to brainstorm. Those that are confident in what they do.
How Do I Resolve Personality Conflicts?
I try to resolve my differences with that person. Rather than focusing on the negative, I try to find something that I could admire about that person and and focus on that instead.
How Do I Delegate Tasks As a Manager?
I make sure to know the strengths and weaknesses of those working for me. When I assign projects, I make sure that they will challenge them, but won’t defeat them.
How Do I Solve Problems?
I try to understand the causes of the problem. I make sure to devote time researching exactly what went wrong. I often act like an investigator, determining all root causes of the problem and once I fully understand the situation, I devise a roadmap to prevent the problem in the future. As well, I make sure to document root causes to foster information sharing.
Describe a Challenging Project?
The situation: Discover why a client’s bounce rate was so high. Bounce rates were as high as 85% which were high for their industry.
The Approach: First of all I had to create a plan of action. 1) Obtain all data for the project. 2) Determine the goal and KPIs of the stakeholders 3) Set a targeted timeline. 4) Determine relevant external stakeholders to gather information from.
The Solution: After speaking with the external stakeholders I was able to uncover some issues with the overall flow. As well, through A/B testing these recommended changes, ended up dropping bounce rate a total of 15%.
An Instance of a Time I Had a Disagreement with a Coworker?
The Situation: I needed to create an automated email campaign in order to encourage engagement.
The Problem: My team couldn’t agree on the overall approach. We discussed the pros and cons of each strategy and came up with a unified solution.
Result: Implemented a successful strategy that increase engagement by 20%.
A Time You Needed To Manage Client Expectations?
I had a client that requested additional features. I worked with them to understand exactly what they were looking for. Looked into the feasibility of it and if it would be beneficial. In the end, I ended up not gaining that client, but I did point them in the direction of another competitor who could better server there needs. I used this as an opportunity to gain feedback and a point to research potential future solutions to implement.
What Three Qualities Make Me a Good Team Member?
My creativity, empathy, and ability to collaborate.
Creativity: I’m the person on a team that can think outside the box and bring my creative abilities as well. I’m a photoshop pro, music creator, and 3d model enthusiast.
Empathy: I make sure to consider the perspective of my teammates as well. I create an environment that makes it easy to share without fear of ideas being shot down or rejected.
Collaboration: I tend to make sure that all team members are participating and at the same time I’m considering everyone’s opinion. I utilize agile sharing tools to make sure all information is getting shared across the team.
How Do I Deal With Ambiguous Situations?
This is an issue I constantly deal with. Take for instance the startup CostBrain that I founded. Before I got to the actual development of the product, I needed to figure out what to develop! This meant gathering as much data as possible.
My approach: Talk to the actual possible external stakeholders and get their opinion of the pains they are experiencing. Make sure to document as much as possible. The main thing is making sure you aren’t already assuming the solution before you start the interview. Keeping my mind clear was the best way to hear what they actual said vs just trying to qualify an end hypothesis I already had.
My Solution: Once you have gathered enough data, make sure to dig deep and remember that even data that seems irrelevant may actually be relevant. If you feel like something is missing don’t be afraid to dig back into data sources to gather further analysis before tackling a problem. The more prepared you are, the easier it will be when actually getting to the problem.
Describe a Time You Had To Work With Cross-Functional Teams
I worked across departments all the time. This includes working with the C-suite of Marketing and Operations, then the Content and Communications department, Creative Services, and also Consumer Insights. I would make sure to meet on a weekly basis to discuss larger projects and then collaborate through the week as needed. It was a great set-up and ensured smooth progress at all project stages.
Qualities Make a Leader Successful
I believe the best type of person to work for, leads by example at all times. They are approachable, hardworking, and fair. Also, they don’t just talk the talk without walking the walk. It is irksome when a leader says that we need to put in the long hours but leaves earlier than everyone else, for instance.
Greatest ROI Marketing Campaign
My greatest ROI marketing campaign was for a shoe store who wanted to increase the value of their average customer. At the time, their average customer value was under $100, and they wanted to be aggressive, reaching nearly double that in under one year. My team worked on a variety of tactics including social media and print advertising, as well as taking advantage of their extensive email list