BRIAN NED TUCKER CURTIS
3 Ewing Street Brunswick, VIC 3056 Australia +61 (0)400 078 028 bntcurtis@gmail.com
About Me My life’s aim is to make the world a better place by improving people’s access to information. This is motivated by a personal love of learning, and an appreciation for the ability of knowledge to empower. Professionally, I have exercised this passion by working to deliver innovative digital products that delight users and create measurable value for customers. Work Experience
Sensis Pty Ltd
Melbourne, Victoria Australia
Manager, Digital Strategy & Innovation (December 2007 – present) My role at Sensis is to help deliver $1 billion of new revenue over the next 3 years for Australia’s leading publisher of business directories. Overseeing digital innovation initiatives for Yellowpages.com.au and Whitepages.com.au, my job is to ensure that Sensis maintains leadership in its print directories business while demonstrating strong growth through new online and mobile product development. Current responsibilities:
• • • • • Managing the business’s competitive intelligence resources for identification of new product development and new partnership initiatives Organization of technical and commercial trials of new online and mobile product ideas Evaluation of trial results through interpretation of usage metrics and market research data Forecasting and financial modeling for new digital product and partnership business cases Driving the company’s thought leadership for future trends in digital content, search, advertising, mapping, and mobile technology
Product Development Manager, Mobile Search (April 2006 – December 2007) Recruited into Sensis specifically to develop a mobile search engine to compete with Google and Yahoo, I was accountable for the lifecycle management and strategic direction of Sensis’s mobile search and advertising products. Over time, this role evolved into a partnership management position. Responsibilities:
• • • • • • Understanding market creation as well as usage and revenue growth strategies across the mobile application suite Business-casing new product and partnership initiatives for mobile search and advertising Negotiating contracts and revenue share agreements with search technology providers (Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Medio Systems); mobile network operators (Telstra, 3); and content syndication partners (Jamster, MIA, Cellmania) Line management of mobile search product managers and site producers Ownership of search relevancy initiatives across mobile products, including measurement and tuning tools Overseeing internal and external search interfaces, including syndicated partner search APIs
Telstra Corp
Melbourne, Victoria
Australia
Product Manager, Mobile Portals (February 2004 – April 2006) In this position, I was accountable for the strategy and delivery of Telstra’s mobile internet portals, including the WAP and i-mode services. My role was to drive uptake of mobile data services by providing a compelling mobile content experience to subscribers of Australia’s leading network operator. Responsibilities:
• • • • Growing the on-portal and off-portal mobile data business while maximizing mobile content downloads and subscription revenues Planning and launching four new mobile portals: i-mode, 3G (Telstra Active), BigPond Mobile, and the Telstra Business Portal Developing the business requirements for Telstra’s mobile portals and service delivery platform Analyzing and forecasting content consumption trends by market segment Melbourne, Victoria Australia
AgentArts Pty Ltd
Content Manager / Product Planner (March 2000 – October 2002) One of the original employees of this dot.com-era startup, I designed the functionality of search and recommendations engines for leading Australian and international B2B clients such as ISPs (BigPond), mobile network operators (Telstra), newspapers (Fairfax), and consumer e-commerce websites (Emusic.com). AgentArts was eventually acquired by Microsoft. Responsibilities:
• • • • Business analysis and systems design for internet and mobile entertainment products Strategic business intelligence on competitors and industry developments, with the focus on forecasting and influencing future trends Integration of in-house data production with licensed content from external providers Developing product specs and conceptualizing applications for advanced techniques in data mining, neural networks, peer-to-peer collaborative filtering, and machine listening Redmond, Washington USA
Microsoft Corp
Content Coordinator (September 1996 – December 1999) In the early commercial days of the web, I managed the editorial content for Microsoft’s Education, Geography, and Reference Business Units. I contributed to the launch of a number of version 1.0 online and CD-ROM products, including MapPoint and Expediamaps.com. Responsibilities:
• • Maintaining a geocoded database of spatial and editorial data for mapping products Microsoft Streets & Trips, Expedia Maps, and MapPoint Ensuring the accuracy of reference articles in the CD-ROM titles Encarta Encyclopedia, Encyclopedia Africana, Bookshelf, and Small Business Planner
Education
Melbourne Business School
Carlton, Victoria Australia
I am currently enrolled in the Executive MBA program at the top-ranked business school in Australia. (October 2008 – December 2009)
The program also featured an international residential module at the Kellogg School of Management (USA) and the Otto Beisheim Wissenschaftliche Hochschule für Unternehmensführung (Germany), as well as a study mission to visit local and multinational firms in China.
University of Melbourne
Parkville, Victoria
Australia
I graduated from one of Australia’s top universities with an MA in Cultural Studies. My thesis topic was “Advertising in the Age of Irony.” (February 2000 – March 2002)
Non-degree programs in project management, knowledge management, and usability and accessibility design at Monash University, Melbourne. (2004–2005)
Bowdoin College
Brunswick, Maine
USA
I graduated from one of the United States’ top liberal arts colleges with a BA in Economics and Sociology. (September 1992 – May 1996)
International study in third year at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and Stockholms Universitet in Sweden.
Personal Information Languages Studied xHTML, PHP, SQL, JavaScript; Swedish, German, Spanish, Vietnamese, Latin Interests Travel: North America, Europe, Australasia, Africa, Southeast Asia Outdoor sports: telemark skiing, whitewater kayaking, rock and ice climbing, mountain biking, surfing Team sports: lacrosse, soccer, ultimate frisbee, ice hockey Independent media: film, music, photography, print, digital Citizenship USA, Australia Right of abode: European Union, New Zealand
(References available upon request)