Sarina Simon: Influences and Influencers | Influence and Influencers in Digital Media

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Influences and Influencers Insights from Digital Media Insiders

How Much Work, If Any, Should You Do On Spec?

17 Nov 2015, Posted by Sarina Simon in Advice for Aspiring Producers, Advice for Edtech Aspirants, Bidding Process, Children's Media, Graphic Design, Managing Development Teams, Marketing, Mobile App Development, Responding to RFPs, Software Engineering, women in technology

I am varying from my usual format to share something I found very funny and highly relevant to the business of digital media. I recently came across this video from an ad agency in which they effectively mocked the ad industry’s practice of expecting work on spec, also known as working for free. The ad agency, Toronto-based Zulu Alpha Kilo, released the video on November 2 and it has already garnered over 1 million views. The video suggests that no other businesses operate this way, but as developers we know that at least one more, ours, does. (By the way…

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Jessie Woolley-Wilson: A Leader Who Inspires Others to Dream More, Learn More and Be More

01 Sep 2015, Posted by Sarina Simon in Advice for Aspiring Producers, Advice for Edtech Aspirants, Children's Media, Distance Learning, Edtech, Expert Interviews, kids' media, Learning Science, Online Math Learning, women in technology

Jessie Woolley-Wilson is Chair, President, and CEO of DreamBox Learning, Inc., the company that pioneered Intelligent Adaptive Learning™. She has 20 years of experience in K–12 e-learning and has held several leadership roles in prominent education companies. Before joining DreamBox Learning, Jessie was President of Blackboard’s K– 12 Group where she led the company’s growth for the virtual and blended online learning market. Prior to Blackboard, she was President of LeapFrog SchoolHouse where she established SchoolHouse as a leader in ed-tech and one of the fastest growing educational software producers in the U.S. Jessie also held leadership positions at collegeboard.com, the…

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Joanne Roberts: Innovating and Leading the Way

21 Aug 2015, Posted by Sarina Simon in Advice for Aspiring Producers, Children's Media, Edtech, Expert Interviews, interactive television, kids' media, women in technology

Joanne Roberts is an entrepreneur, you might say a serial entrepreneur, who’s been working in the media business for more than 30 years. She’s created three successful TV series, run several businesses and worked in new media since 1995. Her focus has been creating programming for kids, teens and women and most recently, she co-founded Now Next Media, LLC with her business partner Peggy Doyle. They’re currently 100% focused on growing WHAT NOW WHAT NEXT, a collaborative network for women entrepreneurs, 40+. Joanne is also the mom of a 16 year old daughter and spends her time juggling the full…

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Ellen Bialo: Edtech Pioneer and Networking Guru

27 Jul 2015, Posted by Sarina Simon in Advice for Aspiring Producers, Distance Learning, Edtech, Expert Interviews, women in technology

The woman with the glowing smile is Ellen Bialo, CEO, President and Co-Founder of Interactive Educational Systems Design (IESD), an educational market and product development research company recognized in K-20 publishing as a leader in research and analysis. She also founded the DOLS, a professional women’s organization that helps women who work in the business of education help one another. 1. I believe you began your career as a classroom teacher and later segued to the business of education. Can you explain how and why you made this transition? Yes, I was actually a middle school and high school math…

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Meet Paul Gartner: VP Software Engineering, National Geographic Society

19 Mar 2015, Posted by Sarina Simon in Edtech, Expert Interviews, Managing Development Teams, Quality Assurance, Software Engineering

Paul Gartner has spent the last 18 years in software development—much of that time running software testing teams. Paul has tested everything from ecommerce, education and content management systems to complex order management and financial software. In the recent past he spent 12 years with K12 Inc. running their software quality assurance department. Now he is at the National Geographic Society where he runs the software engineering team. He has also worked in startups like OneSoft and Etensity as well as large development shops like Ciber. 1. You came to software engineering and quality assurance with a degree in Communication and…

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Lina Chen—Innovator and “Strategic Hedonist”

12 Jan 2015, Posted by Sarina Simon in Advice for Aspiring Producers, casual games, Expert Interviews, Game Design, interactive games, Mobile App Development, women in technology

Lina Chen Lina Chen—Innovator and “Strategic Hedonist” Lina Chen is the Co-founder & CEO of Nix Hydra, which makes mobile games and applications for young women aged 13-28. The company has more than $5.6M in funding and made the hit virtual pet game, Egg Baby, which has about 11 million downloads. Lina was recently named one of the top 50 People to watch in Southern California’s tech industry. Lina manages company strategy, people, and money. Previously, Lina negotiated international mobile deals for Grooveshark, a streaming music startup, worked at the William Morris Agency, one of the largest entertainment agencies in…

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Who Says Women Can’t Make Games?– Meet Ariella Lehrer, CEO Legacy Games

13 Dec 2014, Posted by Sarina Simon in Advice for Aspiring Producers, Children's Media, Expert Interviews, Game Design, Learning Science, Mobile App Development, Online Games, Videogames

Ariella Lehrer Ariella Lehrer is a 30-year veteran of the games business. As a female, she is a rarity and a much admired pioneer. She has founded and managed three companies, all of which were involved in the design, production, and marketing of interactive games. Currently she is the CEO of Legacy Games, which is based in Los Angeles, with development studios in Hungary and Poland. Legacy began 16 years ago making medical simulations like Emergency Room, graduated to adventure games such as Law & Order, which morphed into hidden object games like Murder, She Wrote. Currently, Legacy is focused on casual…

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