“BIG LESSONS: STAY CALM & GET THINGS DONE FAST!”
This week, we interview a former BYU student entrepreneur who in 1996 began building websites at the dawn of the Internet, John Pestana. His earliest company was JP Interactive, a company that he sold all his (and his wife’s) wedding gifts to buy a computer for, a company that eventually became Omniture. John and Josh James, his partner, put everything on the line to survive the dot-com crash, raise money, meet payroll, and land Fortune 500 clients. Through sheer determination and grit, they built Omniture into a successful public company that was acquired by Adobe Systems in 2009 for $1.8 billion dollars. Early investors in Omniture enjoyed 100x+ returns and hundreds of others, became multi-millionaires! Most founders would have immediately retired. John, like Josh, did not!
John Pestana went on to co-found ObservePoint, a SaaS company based in Provo that improves the technology and data quality of clients engaged in online marketing. Even though he is very busy managing a portfolio of real estate properties that include apartment complexes and commercial office buildings, he still feels most comfortable running another high-tech, high-growth company with Rob Seolas his co-founder and CEO of ObservePoint.
We have had the pleasure of interviewing many of the best entrepreneurs and business leaders in Utah, but no one quite like John. He is versatile and well-rounded, focused but very eclectic, a real Renaissance man! He owns a model train company, writes and records music with his band, SilentMonk, has the best “man cave” in the country–complete with very cool car collection, an amazing aquarium, arcade, recording studio, spa, and two slides, etc. John is also very generous in spirit and deed. We hope you enjoy this illuminating podcast with John Pestana!
INNOVATION AND BRANDING GURU – JEREMY ANDRUS
Everyone who knows Jeremy Andrus–one of the most innovative and charismatic CEO’s on the planet–is glad he decided to move to Utah in 2005! Jeremy graduated with a B.A. from Brigham Young University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School before joining Skullcandy, an edgy headphone company. Under his energetic leadership, Skullcandy went from a startup with a few million in sales to $300 million before their successful IPO in 2011. He was and is the right leader at the right time!
It’s difficult to label Jeremy. He was an “entrepreneur in residence” when he was just a kid, a title he later had with Solamere Capital after eight amazing years at Skullcandy. He is an impact player that has left his mark at Marriott, Monitor Company, BYU, Harvard, Lehman Brothers in London, and Skullcandy where he blew the brand through the roof with the Vans Warped Tour and funky music events with rapper Jay-Z.
For the past three years, Jeremy has led Traeger Wood Fired Grills out of obscurity and darkness to become the preeminent brand for grilling and chilling in the backyard. He is an amazing leader who can connect in Cambridge, recruit Kevin Durant of the NBA to sell Skullcandy headphones or add amazing new innovation and sizzle in a category (wood fired grilling) that is as old as the stone age. He has boldly transformed Traeger Wood Pellet Grills from being a small regional company into an iconic and innovative brand with a cult-like following. Please enjoy this Influence podcast. Jeremy has a humanity and passion and energy that makes everything he touches new and special!
“STRATEGY ON A SPREADSHEET”
Lately, it seems like the Wasatch Front is home to more startups per capita than any other mid-size market in the United States. Just a few weeks ago in downtown Salt Lake City, the Silicon Slopes Summit drew over 5,000 techies together to connect and learn and celebrate what we are building. It is against this backdrop that we had the pleasure of interviewing Kent Thomas, the founder of Advanced CFO Solutions. Kent launched Advanced CFO Solutions 20 years ago and is highly respected by many the leading founders of Utah’s most impressive high-growth companies.
Always quick to recognize his awesome clients and his friendship with CEOs like Paul Allen (Ancestry.com) and Jeremy Andrus (Skullcandy & Traeger), Kent Thomas is a recognized thought leader who has had a huge impact as a trusted advisor to many of the best executives in our growing ecosystem. More than anything, Kent has been successful in “putting strategy on a spreadsheet” and helping the founders of Utah’s most dynamic companies make the right strategic moves. Kent is humble, but he’s got game!
Kent seems far too young to “retire”, but he recently did just that, selling Advanced CFO Solutions to his able partners so he can now focus on his family and various “projects” that will undoubtedly become more great companies on Utah’s Silicon Slopes. Please enjoy the insights of this great man!