I have recently accepted a new position at Esri, as the Defense and Intelligence Industry Manager. This job is in our marketing group and my mission will be to focus on Esri's go-to-market strategy in the Defense and Intelligence Community. I will be responsible for driving growth in new and existing markets. This will involve:

Market Research Analysis
Understanding competition
Presenting at Industry Events
Publishing thought leading content
Serve as liaison within Esri as the industry focal point

In some ways, I have been doing parts of these jobs for the past few years. I have only been able to work on these tasks part time and I am really looking forward to being able to focus on this as a full-time job. I have a couple of key team members that have years of experience in marketing that I will rely on to get me up to speed on the tough job I have.

The job I have is going to be challenging, the day I start I need to develop our comprehensive plan for 2017. When I met with Marianna (the head of marketing) she got me really excited about her new and ambitious vision for the Marketing department at Esri. Everything she has planned will make 2017 a very exciting year. I am glad I joined when I did!

I plan to stay technically proficient in the ArcGIS Platform. I think my experience with the technology will give me a unique advantage in this job and I don't want to lose that. With the fast pace change of our technology, this will be tough. I am counting on help from all the great friends I have made over the last 12 years. Please call me out if you see my skills slipping! I know I can't effectively shape our future without knowing where we are.

I am very excited about this new job! Stay tuned for future posts as I get my feet under me.