Career Stories

Why I Stayed at Kaleidico as CRO After the Acquisition

When Kaleidico had its acquisition and liquidity event, I kept 10% and stepped into the CRO role. Here's why — and what it taught me about structuring a deal that keeps the founder in the game.

Apr 24, 2026

How Quizzle Became Bankrate's Customer Acquisition Engine

I helped grow Quizzle — one of the first free credit report platforms — before Bankrate acquired it to fuel their customer strategy. Here's what I learned about building for acquisition.

Apr 16, 2026

Building EquityOnline: Inside Quicken Loans' First True Online Lending Platform

In 2004, I joined Quicken Loans to build EquityOnline — their first platform that gave borrowers a real offer online, not just a lead form.

Apr 14, 2026

From AFOSI to Fintech: How Intelligence Work Shaped My Marketing Career

Before I built lead generation platforms, I ran counterespionage operations for the Air Force. The skills aren't as different as you'd think.

Apr 9, 2026

Employee #7: What I Learned Building One of the First Internet Banks

In 2000, I left Air Force intelligence to join DeepGreen Bank as Employee #7. We launched the first unconditional online HELOC. Here's what building an internet bank looked like before most banks had websites.

Apr 9, 2026

How I Coined \"Lead Management\" — and Why CRMs Were Never the Answer

In 2005, I built a platform called icoSales and needed a name for what it did. It wasn't a CRM — there was no relationship yet. That distinction created an industry category.

Apr 8, 2026