Functional: research, strategy, planning, branding, new products, new markets, advertising, public relations, sales tools, sales management systems, market monitoring and competitive analysis.

Clients were among the most demanding and marketing-dependent—mostly consumer branded package goods (Procter & Gamble, Miles Laboratories, Sara Lee, Wakefield Seafoods)—plus major banks, a 100-unit fast food chain, a new brand of do-it-yourself tools, and a British manufacturer of radars.

In addition to working on established businesses, I was involved in the creation, test marketing and launch of five new product lines/brands.

Some specific accomplishments included:

• A rapid (8 months) business turnaround (minus 5%/year to plus 27%/year, even after factoring out new distribution and price increases), through strategic repositioning and disciplined advertising execution… in spite of decreases in marketing deliveries, product price increases and negative macroeconomic conditions.
• Foundation research, brand creation and market launch of a new product line from a new division in six months.
• Creation, production and pre-testing of almost four dozen TV commercials in one year, then planning and test market introduction of a new consumer brand immediately after achieving the highest research metric in the product category.
• The fact that I never lost a client, and that I enjoyed client loyalty on a personal and professional basis that extended across multiple agencies and continues, in some cases, to the present day.

The work also included detailed market-driven financial business planning for new product launches and new market expansions of successful regional businesses.

Of note were:

• A measured ability to generate new patients for a specialized medical clinic through advertising at a cost of $72 each; new patients had a probability-adjusted value of over $1100 each.
• A comprehensive new product launch-business plan, marketing plan, positioning, branding, packaging, advertising and sales management-that achieved 90% retail distribution on 100% of products within eight weeks of launch, generated spontaneous "street" playback of our strategic positioning, and achieved consumer pull-through within 9% of planned volumes.
• A "dark horse" upset win, with 57% of the vote, of a regional election in which no incumbent had ever been defeated, solely on the basis of high-efficiency strategically focused TV advertising, despite being outspent 3 to 1 by an incumbent having all newspaper and special interest endorsements.
• A highly focused direct mail launch of a new technology radar that—using only half the available marketing resources—resulted in total sellout (with backorders) of the entire production run of the product line during its first year.
• A service business re-naming and presentation toolset that paid out its entire investment in its first sales presentation.

I managed the development—physically, economically and graphically—of almost a hundred new products or product configurations (including some new brands) for this class of trade. I designed a sales management and tracking system, managed the creation of a customized order entry and reporting database system, and managed marketing funds programs on behalf of clients.

Some specific results:

• Creation of a new brand and product line (including packaging and product economics) that achieved and sustained substantial distribution and sell-through in the club class of trade, subsequently expanded into retail channels, and was sold for $50 million, with no underlying debt or production facilities.
• Creation and successful launch of a new consumer branded household cleaner on behalf of a leading institutional chemical and services client.
  

During this time, my work has also come full circle back to its technological roots, and the vast majority of the past five years has been spent on information technology businesses, both software and hardware. In many instances, I've worked as a "consultant's consultant," providing added depth to task-based teams in business analysis, business planning, financial modeling, market opportunity mapping, volume forecasting, research, strategic positioning, competitive insight and new product roadmapping.

Some comments*:

• "These three words alone (descriptor for new software applications category) are worth the price of the whole research project. This will keep us focused to develop in the right directions, and to guide messaging as we define this new space and carve it out for our new products."
• "The new positioning (software product release) is so simple, and it's so right on, the reviewers and analysts have just picked it up and run with it, and we're getting the kind of respect and adoption by serious users we weren't ever able to get before."
• "This picture of the market really makes it clear where we should be focusing our efforts, and which pieces we need to put off until the next release."
• "This analysis shows where the leverage points are in our business; we need to focus more on tracking those measurements and less on some of these others."
• "That's totally new information and it looks like you're right. This segment is not nearly as big as we thought. We should re-think how much we go down that path."
• "I'm amazed at the depth of the financial analysis you've brought to this plan. You brought in things we didn't even think about that show where this marketing approach really pays the biggest dividends."
• "Our new brand is so clear and so obvious, there's no way they can't get what we're trying to say."

• Founding Board of Directors, MIT Enterprise Forum of the Northwest
• Guest lecturer, University of Washington Graduate School of Business
• Guest lecturer, University of Chicago Graduate School of Business
• Guest speaker and expert panelist: MIT Enterprise Forum; Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute
  
  
• Governor's appointee to bipartisan/labor/management commission to revise labor relations legislation for the State Department of Transportation
• Kitsap County representative to Washington State Ferry Advisory Committee
• Founder/President, Washington State Ferry Consumers Union: Legislature, Transportation Commission and Department of Transportation issue advocacy, with demonstrable results
• Political campaign advisor/consultant: Seattle Port Commission election (nonpartisan); Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction election (nonpartisan); U.S. Senate Campaign election (independent); Chicago Aldermanic election (Democrat)
  
  
• Appearances/interviews: TV, radio, newspaper, public meeting

• University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, MBA in finance, accounting and marketing. Full tuition grant for academic performance.
• Princeton University, BSE in aerospace engineering, with honors.
• University of Washington, fiction writing program, certificate.