Ross Rankin

Ross Rankin: Startup Junkie, Technology Guru, Geek Extraordinaire

For over 20 years, Ross Rankin has specialized in creating and implementing high-performance strategies that have had a direct impact on the growth and profitability of Fortune 500 companies and young start-ups. Having worked in a number of disciplines within an organization gives Ross a unique and distinctive perspective when shaping strategy. With over 8 years of product management duties with multiple best-of-breed software companies, Ross excels at researching the market, digging out key differentiators, formulating inventive plans, and working to turn strategy into execution. Starting with a technical background, he excels at understanding the technical details and translating them into key business value drivers. Ross Rankin has briefed analyst firms, presented at industry conferences, and sold high-level visions to C-level executives.   His business acumen, technical expertise and leadership qualities have all contributed to the success of a number of highly visible projects and companies. Additionally, he offers a positive, proactive consensus-building style, a sincere commitment to personal integrity, a passion for responsiveness and a relentless pursuit of excellence. Highlighted Skills: Masters degree with an MBA core and a specialization in the management of technology  Founded a successful start-up and sold it to the largest provider in their vertical; excels at creation and vision  Seasoned cross-functional leader who has history of success in building cross-discipline teams  Technical, analytical and process-driven  Intimate understanding of technology release life-cycle from all aspects  Lead the solution sales process targeting companies with over $1B a year in revenue; focused on value selling  Experience doing business in both EMEA and APAC

VP of Engineering and Development at PictureU

August 2013 - Present | Atlanta, GA

Responsible for all Technology and Engineering related aspects of current and future products and services. Responsible for delivering innovative, quality applications and solutions that meet client requirements, industry standards, and company goals.

Chief Technology Officer at Ticket Alternative

February 2012 - August 2013

Assuring the successful execution of the business mission through development and deployment of the TA's technology. Ross leads the implementation of applications and technology, planning for risk and growth. In partnership with the company’s founders, he will identify opportunities and risks for delivering the company’s services, including identification of competitive services, opportunities for innovation, and assessment of marketplace obstacles and technical hurdles to the business success and growth. • Deployed new e-commerce platform on Ruby and Rails utilizing Spree • Built new event ticketing & box office system which increased online sales by 45% and total sales by 65% • Building new two new platforms

Chief Operating Officer at Triplingo

January 2011 - February 2012

TripLingo plans to be the leader in language e-learning mobile and web products. Our product upgrades trips for business and leisure travelers by making it easy and fun to learn the local language and culture. We create a customized learning experience tailored to the unique interests, needs, and preferences of each user. Our product is entertaining, feature and content rich, and practical. TripLingo is there when you need it, and can be accessed via the web and through native iPhone, Android, and Windows mobile devices.

VP of Engineering at Deposco

January 2009 - December 2010

Plan, direct, and coordinate all activities associated with creating software across the company. Prioritize and allocate projects, products, and resources both in-house and outsourced. Participate in the strategic decisions about technology, definition, and implementation of the software products. Plan, direct, and coordinate activities of a cross-functional technology organization.

VP, Product Marketing at Servigistics

June 2008 - December 2008

Define and refine strategies for all products and solutions on a global basis. Key responsibilities include creating sales and pricing strategies, designing solution messaging, developing collateral, ensuring field readiness, increasing market awareness, and compiling market and competitive intelligence.

VP of Solution Consulting at Servigistics

August 2006 - June 2008

Responsible for managing a team of pre-sales consultants. Focusing on staff development, process development and controls, and formulating and contributing to the strategies and plans for the sales organization.

Chief Technology Officer at Commerce Science

May 2004 - August 2006

Managed the hardware and software infrastructure of an ASP e-Commerce company. Focused on Product Development, Program, and Production management of the company. • Managed internationally outsourced development team • Created new product channel for Software as a Service for financial institutions • Designed and created specifications for two major product additions • Launched three new ASP programs for different market verticals

Owner at CareerFish

January 2003 - December 2005

Founder and Partner of an Internet job meta-search engine

CTO at MediaOcean

October 1999 - October 2002

Responsible for all technology strategy consistent with overall business strategy and market needs. Developed objectives, policies, budgets, and operating plans for the development, quality assurance, production operations, and information technology departments and directed their interpretation, implementation, and achievement. Worked with other executives to define product goals, direction, and schedules; ensured departments worked cross-functionally. Worked under the direct supervision of the CEO and managed 5 direct reports with a total of 67 employees.

Engineering Manager at Marimba

March 1999 - October 1999

Responsible for all consulting and sales engineering based in the Southeast. Provided sales, technical, and consulting support to all company’s southeast customers. Helped to provide single technical point of contact for all large customers’ needs in the Southeast. • Opened southeast office • Helped meet revenue goals in office’s first year

Consultant at IntelliNet

February 1998 - March 1999

Provided development, database, and Internet expertise to consulting projects around the Southeast. Managed small teams of consultants, created responses to RFPs, fixed bids, and project plans for customers.

Product Manager at BT Squared, Technologies

March 1997 - February 1998

Selected product features, assessed client needs, distilled requirements, and implemented product prototypes. • Created first Internet prototype in setting new product strategy • Created partnership with XcelleNet to add remote and mobile features to the product

Systems Engineer at Xcellenet

May 1995 - March 1997

Supplied post-sales support, consulting, and implementation to XcelleNet customers and partners. • Won Chairman’s Club award for 1996, granted to one employee of each department • Designed and Implemented a solution for over 5000 remote and mobile Pharma sales reps

Technical Team Lead at Crawford and Company

May 1994 - May 1995

New Healthcare technical group was formed, placed in lead role to research, propose, and implement new system for the Healthcare division. • Migrated indemnity mainframe system to new client / server managed care system

IS Manager at Blue Cross & Blue Shield of MD

March 1992 - May 1994

Managed the Information Technology for the Individual Market Division of BCBS/MD. Maintained servers, databases, routers, applications, and workstations for 160 people.

Systems Operator at DuPont

September 1990 - March 1992

Created, maintained, and ran batch jobs on two mainframe systems and one UNIX machine. Performed all system maintenance, LAN administration, and minor system development.

Georgia Institute of Technology

2005 – 2006

MS

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey-Camden

1989 – 1992

BS

Concentration: Computer Science

Movies, music, gadgets, software development, Internet culture, science fiction