I help turn big ideas into exceptional products, experiences, and businesses.
I started at NBC as an intern and ended up on the skunkworks project that became Hulu. Since then I’ve launched things at AOL, co-founded a studio called Wildebeest, and helped reshape thoughtbot. Closer to home, I’ve run drive-in movie nights and turned my driveway into a produce pickup.
Right now I’m Managing Director and a board member at thoughtbot, where I build a small AI tool for my team most weeks to find out what better really looks like. I’m also President of Ruby Central. I live in Los Angeles.
Some of the companies I’ve worked with
My work has won
Stories
The bigger work, told in full
- Helping stabilize the organization behind the Ruby ecosystem As President of Ruby Central, I helped rebuild sponsor support and reshape governance and funding during a period of financial distress.
- Building the next chapter of thoughtbot An established consultancy needed new ways to grow and deliver value. As Managing Director, I helped reshape how the Americas business operates, the opportunities we pursue, and the services we offer.
- Produce pickups, movie nights, and a cleanup that’s still going What I’ve organized in Ladera Heights, from a driveway produce pickup during COVID to a monthly cleanup that’s six years old.
- Wildebeest, a studio for products, platforms, and experiments I co-founded Wildebeest, an award-winning studio that built products, platforms, and experimental experiences for clients including Google, YouTube, Disney, and GM.
- Bringing North Kingdom to the United States As Founding Managing Director, I helped the Swedish digital studio North Kingdom launch its operation in the United States.
- Launching new ventures and growing established products at AOL I helped launch AOL Industry from zero, then led AOL Entertainment, a portfolio that included Moviefone, AOL TV, Cambio, and AOL Music.
- Why Leave Astoria, a neighborhood network with more than 10,000 members I founded Why Leave Astoria, a hyperlocal social network that brought neighbors together through events, charity, and local business partnerships.
- New digital experiences for NBC, from Heroes to the project that became Hulu How a television network started building for the internet, from companion platforms for Heroes to fantasy football shows, virtual worlds, and the skunkworks project that became Hulu.
Making·
Meeting Prep, a brief waiting before every sales call
A calendar service that books a prep block before each outside meeting and fills it with a brief on who you're about to meet.
Making·
A 1989 jukebox for my gym
A tabletop jukebox like the one I loved at Pizza Hut as a kid, built as a kiosk in my home gym so anyone can play the power ballads and hair metal I grew up on.
Making·
Can a phone tell where a sugar packet landed?
Yes, if you wrap the packet in foil. How a tabletop game idea turned into a question about touchscreens.
Earlier
- Pipeline Health, a grade for the sales pipeline that matches how it feels
- Is it AI? Looking for evidence instead of guessing
- Like Grandma Made, a cookbook of my grandmother’s recipes
- Delivery Copilot, an AI assistant that stays beside the work
- When to vibe code an app and when to hire someone
- thoughtbot analytics, one useful suggestion for every page
- Handbook Helper, a better way to read our company handbook
Work together
Got an idea, or a problem that won’t budge?
Usually the first step is working out what the problem really is, and the smallest useful thing that would help. Send me a few sentences and we’ll start there.
Tell me about your idea Ways to work together
For podcasts and events, you can reach me the same way.