About
I've always been more interested
in the person than the process.
Because the system only works if the people do.
The AdOut Story
Early in my career I managed a high-volume newspaper advertising production operation. We had two clerical staff whose entire job was to manually sort through printed ad orders every week and compile a deadline sheet by hand. It took days. It was error-prone, mind-numbing work — and it didn't have to be.
I taught myself FileMaker Pro and built a database to automate it. Not because someone asked me to. Because watching two people do brainless, stressful work when a system could free them bothered me more than I could ignore.
That database grew into AdTracker — a full production management system that eventually ran a 150+ person operation delivering 2,600+ newspaper ads weekly at 99.98% accuracy. But that's not the part I'm proud of.
The part I'm proud of is what the system made possible for people.
When a manager wanted to fire a quiet employee because she "didn't connect" with him, I pulled up her record. Zero errors. Months of perfect output. More ads produced than anyone else in his group. She wasn't disconnecting — she was working. She became the first person in the company to pass the Senior Production Artist test. Got a raise, got promoted, moved to the day shift. Left to that manager, she'd have been on the street.
Data doesn't lie. And systems built on honest data protect people that politics would otherwise discard.
We also built Key Commando — an in-house video game where terrorists attacked you with keyboard shortcut challenges. Defeat them by hitting the right key combo fast enough. It sounds ridiculous. Artists loved it. Speed scores went up. That's what happens when you design training for people instead of for compliance.
What People Said
I don't think I've ever had such a good instructor. I don't think I've ever learned a program so quickly — I think it's because you took the time to show us correctly and efficiently and with great patience.
Rubisel Ramirez — Production Artist, AdOut (1999)
The skills I learned while I was with AdOut have allowed me to totally rock at every position I accepted since.
Michelle Bohn — Former AdOut Staff (2011)
Then & Now
That was years ago.
The instinct hasn't changed.
At my last full-time role I worked with a junior team member learning Amazon AMS from scratch. I showed her not just the tools but the logic underneath them — how to read the data, how to make decisions, how to build a case for what she was doing. After I left the company she kept going. Today she works at an Amazon-focused agency as a recognized expert in the field.
I don't take credit for her success. But I do believe that when you teach people the right way — the why, not just the how — they carry it further than you ever planned.
That's the throughline. Every system I've built has been designed to make the people using it better at their jobs. Not just faster. Better.
Who I Am
I grew up in Los Angeles and have worked with newspapers, nonprofits, healthcare organizations, creative departments, startups, and cultural institutions from coast to coast. I founded an internationally distributed magazine. I built consumer electronics brands. I helped launch a Web3 gaming platform. I shipped an iOS game in five weeks.
I'm most proud of my role as a husband and father to two young kids who remind me daily that clarity, patience, and systems that actually work are not optional.
I hold a BA from UCLA — English and American Studies, with a minor in Political Science. I graduated with the President's Medal of Honor, awarded to three graduates who demonstrated exceptional commitment to advocating for fellow students. I've been drawn to that same instinct ever since — understanding what people need and making sure systems work in their favor.
I've been at the intersection of creativity and technology my entire career — desktop publishing, multimedia, the early web, app development, Web3, and now AI. The tools keep changing. The principles behind Deliberate Production™ don't. Today that means AI is part of the daily workflow — not as an experiment, but as a natural evolution of the same systems thinking I've applied for years.
Want to work with someone who builds systems people actually use?
I build creative teams who love how they work.