Meet the Mozzers!

Posted by jennita

Over the past few months, we've announced a number of exciting changes here at the mozPlex. Some of those include becoming focused on our software, new SEO tools and a cultural change with our TAGFEE Tenets. With that, we're committed to being transparent and authentic and feel we've done a great job keeping the SEOmoz community up to date on many of these changes.

However, one area we've been slacking is in ensuring that our community knows who we are, as a team. There are many mozzers who mainly work behind the scenes building tools, or providing excellent customer service to our members. Along with our shift from consulting, we've had a few organizational changes and people's roles have changed. Additionally we have a number of moz Associates that help contribute to the blog and provide expertise in Q & A.

We'd like to take this opportunity to introduce you to our team, and ask you to get to know us a little better. There are a few new mozzers that may even surprise you! This is an exciting time for us and the community and we're excited to introduce ourselves. Each mozzer was asked to provide their title, social media accounts, top moz moment (tools created, blog posts written, etc.), then I asked them to answer a few fun questions. So without further ado, I'd like you to meet the mozzers.

Development Team

Every team plays an important role to the success of SEOmoz and our tools, but the development team is key. Without this group we wouldn't have the suite of amazing tools that we have to offer our members today. Browse through the developers and see who has worked on your favorite tool, and learn more about the people behind the scenes.

Ben Hendrickson Sr Software Engineer @bhendrickson �moz Moment "From the day I started building the Linkscape prototype to the day we launched the first version was about 10 months. I think that project went well." �I am proud to answer questions like this in a confusing and self-referential way.	Chas Williams Software Developer �moz Moment "I work mostly on Linkscape these days. I wrote the code for anchor text distributions and the new views for OSE, so the OSE launch was a proud moment for me :)" My favorite Youtube video. �	David Joslin Systems Engineer David on LinkedIn �moz Moment "Since starting in August I have worked to improve our uptime significantly through monitoring, tuning, and application fixes. " On Saturday morning I hang out with my kids until my wife gets her beauty sleep and then I try to get a mountain bike ride in before working in the yard and other chores.
Jeff Pollard Lead Web Developer @nFluxx Jeff on LinkedIn moz Moment "I make sure your website experience is a wonderful one! :)" On Saturday morning I like to catch up on sleep. �	Kate Matsudaira VP Engineering @katemats �moz Moment "Helping bring SEO tools and technology to the next level" Why is the sky blue? Because of Avogadro's number - the number of molecules in a mole determine the wavelength of light reflected (I learned this in my physical chemistry class�when we had to derive Avogadro's number if the sky was yellow -- as a result I will never forget this bit of trivia).	Ken Woodruff Senior Architect Ken will have to remain a mystery for another day because he did not get me his bio information in time. To be continued...
Nick Gerner Senior Engineer @gerner Nick on LinkedIn� �Nick on Facebook� NickGerner.com �moz Moment Nick Leads SEOmoz API development and is currently working on solutions for historical Linkscape data tracking. On Saturday morning I go for a run, then chase my cats Garrison and Ira until my wife Susan wakes up.	Phil Smith Developer @philhsmith �moz Moment "Working on sooper-top secret project" The funniest job I ever had was… In high-school during the summer I would be the guy-in-a-foam-costume mascot for the local mall I worked at. Think giant purple dinosaur (but not barney.)	Roger Mozbot Needs No Title @roger_mozbot �moz Moment Standing on a crate in order to be as tall as Googlebot. Raised by a protein-rich, startup-obsessed race of robot aliens. Can't stand paying per click.

Marketing Team

Now that we are focused on our SEO tools, the consulting and marketing teams have been combined. There have been a number of changes in roles and we're now more focused than ever on getting our products launched, participating and leading our amazing community, and creating excellent content for our readers. Take a peak at our new Marketing team!

Danny Dover SEO Specialist @DannyDover Danny on LinkedIn �moz Moment Danny is at least half full of SEO know-how Rock, Paper or Scissors? Paper. On Saturday morning I… I sleep in, go to my cooking class and work on my book	Jen Sable Lopez Community Director @jennita Jen on LinkedIn �moz Moment Having worked remotely for 9 months, I LOVE being in the office. The funniest job I ever had was... in college one summer I tasted beef. It paid well, but was really disgusting!
Joanna Lord Director of Customer Acquisition & Engagement @joannalord Joanna on LinkedIn �moz Moment "My focus is on introducing new audiences to our awesome resources and SEO tools. " My favorite Youtube video is… The Sunscreen Song On Saturday morning I… wake up, make coffee, check analytics, and then go explore my new home--Seattle.	Scott Willoughby Director-Conversion & Retention Marketing @great_scott Scott on LinkedIn �moz Moment I rock the Whiteboard Fridays On Saturday morning I... wish cartoons were still as cool as they used to be.

Product Team

The product team leads the path to ensuring that the products being built meet the needs of our customers and they manage the projects from inception through deployment. Essentially they make sure we're all doing our jobs. :)

Adam Feldstein Director of Product Management �moz Moment Current Focus: 1) Ship a new version of the mozBar. 2) Something much bigger (that I can't talk about yet) Funniest jobs: I once played a rock/punk gig at a high school party. Ended up being extra fun when the lead guitarist locked his keys in the van with the engine running (fortunately I think we had already gotten the gear out).

Ben Huff Product Manager Ben on LinkedIn �moz Moment "I focus on herding cats. Recently that included getting Open Site Explorer out the door, safe and sound. I'm currently working on doing the same for the new Keyword Difficulty tool." The sky is blue because blue light waves are the shortest visible waves coming from the sun, and scatter off of molecules in the air the easiest.

Matt Heilman Art Director �moz Moment "I make SEOmoz look good"

Operations Team

Who keeps the company working like a well oiled machine? That's the Operations team of course! They jump in and help with any aspect of the company as needed and are often our customers first point of contact. Without their magic touch the office would be running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Thanks for keeping us from running into each other!

Arden Turnbull Customer Service Manager / Office Coordinator �moz Moment Arden keeps our customers happy!

Christine V. Director of Operations �moz Moment I do my best to increase the staff's level of happiness and productiveness, much like Tattoo on Fantasy Island. If SEOmoz was a Lifetime movie, I would be played by William Hung.

Sarah Bird Chief Operations Officer @SarahBird �Sarah on LinkedIn� �moz Moment I own legal, financial, HR, and generally help make everything run smoothly. I also champion the Marketing Department and the SEOmoz API. I love my job. :) On Saturday morning I… Sleep in and then go for a long run around Lake Union.

moz Associates

This is an amazing group of experts from across the search marketing industry. We're priveledged to have this group contributing to the blog, helping with Q & A and providing insight for new products. It sorta feels like we're showing off... because we totally are!�

Cindy Krum CEO & founder of Rank-Mobile - Denver, CO @Suzzicks Cindy on LinkedIn � Cindy on Facebook �moz Moment Cindy is a mobile marketing evangelist. She'll be providing help in Q & A on mobile topics. Why is the sky blue? Because that is the way Google wants it? (We're not sure if it will stay blue though - its still in beta and hasn't officially launched.)	Duncan Morris Founder and CEO, Distilled - London, UK @duncanmorris �moz Moment Given that I always drone on about information architecture I guess I should really point to this post though at the time it came out this was my most interesting post. On a Saturday morning I travel around the south of England to the coldest and wettest playing fields in existence to play field hockey for Wimbledon Hockey Club. Of course in the UK we just call this hockey, but that would give you all the false impression that I'm rock hard and can ice skate.	Jane Copland SEO Consultant, Ayima Search Marketing - London, England Jane on LinkedIn Jane's Personal Social Media Profile �moz Moment "I've written a couple of successful blog posts for SEOmoz (I worked as a full-time employee at SEOmoz from 2006 until 2009). My favourites are:�Don't End URLs in .0, What Rand and Jane Write When They're Drunk, the follow-up and� A True Story. It's about hookers." The funniest job I ever had was… I used to work for Rand ;)
Kate Morris Kate Morris, Search Engine Marketing Consultant - Austin, TX @katemorris Kate on LinkedIn �moz Moment "My favorite blog post on YouMoz was Paid Search: Detaching From an Agency, which is what got me speaking on my first panel at SMX East 2008." I'm proud to be an … Army Brat. My favorite Youtube video is … Louis CK - Everything is Amazing, and Nobody's Happy	Lindsay Wassell Q & A - Tampa Bay, FL @lindzie �moz Moment This post: Rethinking Duplicate Content On Saturday morning I… am awake before dawn caring for my newborn twins! I'm proud to be a… SEO	Michael Cottam Principal, Michael Cottam SEO Consulting - Portland, OR, Canada @Michael512 Michael on LinkedIn �Michael on Facebook� �moz Moment I like this one, and it seemed to generate a pile o' comments: http://www.seomoz.org/blog/its-a-feeding-frenzy-for-keywordrich-domains I'm proud to be a member of the downtown Portland Rotary Club and on the Ambassador Board of the Children's Cancer Association.
Peter Meyers President, User Effect - Chicago, IL @dr_pete �moz Moment The post: SEO Cheat Sheet: Anatomy of a URL My most popular post on my own blog (by a longshot) is 25 Point Website Usability Checklist.� The funniest job I ever had was… Stuffing photo envelopes with a pot dealer and Christian survivalist. Why is the sky blue? ... because The Flying Spaghetti Monster made it that way.	Richard Baxter Director / Founder SEOgadget.co.uk - London, UK @richardbaxter �moz Moment Hmm. I like writing about tools you guys do - Like this and this and pretty charts on ranking factors using Linkscape data like this.� And I really like talking about Microformats. My favorite Youtube video is… Eric Clapton Shreds - is pure awesome and always puts a smile on my face. One day match this level of guitar genius...	Rob Ousbey Search Marketing Consultant, Distilled - Seattle, WA (soon to be) @RobOusbey �moz Moment People seem to like my how-to and link building posts.� On Saturday morning I: often wake up to the smell of bacon The funniest job I ever had was: watching petrol drip down an inclined hot plate to measure the amount of residue. I won an award for it. Hotplate Rob they called me. Ahh, good times, good times.
Sam Crocker SEO Consultant, Distilled - London, for now! @crockstarltd Personal Fashions & Trends Blog �moz Moment I'm pretty new to the moz crew but I was pretty pleased with manning up to take on a "doozy" for my first Q & A and think I found a good solution to the problem I'm proud to be a… n Uh-merican, where at least I know I'm free! The funniest job I ever had was… working at McDonalds when I was 14 years old. My mom said "you can work for me for free 6 hours a day or you can get a job" we all know that Macky D's is one of the few places that will hire 14 year olds and the rest is history.	Tom Critchlow Head of Search Marketing, Distilled - London Baby. @tomcritchlow �moz Moment My most loved SEOmoz post was this one, mainly because of it's sensationalist headline... Headlines ftw. My proudest SEOmoz contribution was speaking at both the Seattle and London pro seminars in 2009 and getting some really positive feedback and comments. Rock, paper scissors? After years of playing poker I can now comfortably crush Will at rock paper scissors despite him claiming it's a game of chance. I will gladly play any game of any sort for money.	Will Critchlow Co-Founder of Distilled, UK & US - London, UK. Though anywhere rainy appears to do. @willcritchlow Will on LinkedIn �moz Moment Taking credit for lots of things done by our team, I'm probably most proud of the London PRO seminar in October last year. My personal favourite post, mainly for the title (just google "space monstering") is this one. Rock, Paper or Scissors? I always lose this to Tom. Rock.

Boss Team

Last, but definitely not least we have our co-founders Rand and Gillian. They may very well be the most well known of the bunch, but I bet you didn't know Rand used to be a black market Pokemon dealer! Without these two, we wouldn't be the team we are today.

Gillian Muessig President/Co-Founder @seomom Gillian on LinkedIn �moz Moment "I'm the corporate evangelist and international voice for SEOmoz. My role is to connect the the SEOmoz community with the SEOmoz team and to spread the SEOmoz brand to new audiences and markets." I'm proud to be a… 網路已經不再只是虛擬的遊戲, 他將顛覆未來的生活, 如何跟上瞬息萬變的網路資訊是領先未來的重要指標, 本部落格將定期更新各類網路趨勢與技術訊息與您分享! Mr. 6 - 趨勢．創業．網路．生活 載入中… 重灌狂人 載入中… Vista 2.0 - 維斯塔日記 載入中… 網誌存檔 ►  2011 (17) ►  3月 (17) ▼  2010 (1899) ►  10月 (5) ►  7月 (4) ►  6月 (8) ►  5月 (2) ►  4月 (461) ►  3月 (508) ▼  2月 (430) Hulu Takes Shot at YouTube via SNL Measuring Social Media with Web Analytics, Part 1 Trouble at Twitter? Citizen coverage of Hawaii tsunami? Admitting Role In Google Anti-Trust Complaints Mic... David Meerman Scott updates The New Rules of Marke... Bing Fast and Furious Not so big Bing China Bing + BlackBerry, a romantic Valentine’s Day date... Leftovers: A Blizzard of Search News More Google Legal Woes: Buzz Lawsuit and EU Regula... Gold Medal of Search: Who Has the Best Olympic Res... Quote of the Month Google’s Street View Finds More Trouble In Europe Google Adds Location to Search Options Panel Caprica and repurposed virtualities Yes, More Are Seeing A New Google Look-And-Feel Google Adds Local Search To Options Panel Update: Social Media Icons CMS Expo, Chicago, May 3rd-5th Click to Conversion Time & Your Revenue Attributio... It’s A Fatal Mistake To Copy Successful Web Sites DiggAds Off to a Good Start Webtrends Adds Facebook Measurement Capabilities Whiteboard Friday - 5 Things You're Not Doing (But... Forget Shorty: Long Tail Keywords Convert Cheaper Big change in the tech world Dropbox, AFP and the Olympics Need To Learn Search Marketing? Come To SMX Boot C... SPONSOR MESSAGE: The Best and Worst of Paid Search... My Droid gave out Want To Speak @ SMX Advanced London? Here’s How Companies Ask Courts, Regulators To Restrain Googl... ChaCha Taps Localeze for Local Biz Listings Yahoo Answers Gets A New Look Losing Google? Chinese Scientists Say It’s Like Go... Google Adds Facebook Updates to Real-Time Results MapQuest Expands 360 View (Seattle) Berkun + Wine + You: special event Speaking at The Economist Innovation event Opera Says Google Dominating Search On Mobile Web Local Search Complexity = SMB Frustration BigMouthMedia merge with LBi Last Call – SMX West in Silicon Valley Starts Next... Google Caffeine May Be Months Away & You Can’t See It The Advertiser Interview: How To Surface Key Goals Extending The Lifecycle Of Super Bowl Ads Through ... Meet the Mozzers! Google Advertises Chrome … On Bing! 3 Tools for Optimizing Page Speed Anti-Google Germans Close To Grabbing Pitchforks a... Facebook Fan Page Updates Now In Google Real Time ... Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Yelp Alleging “... Italian Court Finds Google Execs Guilty Of Violati... SES London blog coverage according to Bit.ly GUILTY: Italian Judge Hands Down Ridiculous Ruling... Buzzzy shortcuts app development for Google Buzz New Snippet Buttons 5 Landing Page Tips To Boost Your Conversion Rate A Practical Guide To Google’s Ad Extensions The 5 Rings Of Conversion Optimization Yahoo! and Twitter Strike Formal Partnership SEO Chrome Extension - Comprehensive View of Page ... What Can Mobile Do? Yahoo To Broadly Integrate Twitter Across Properties Is Redmond The Puppet Master In Google EU Anti-Tru... How to Get the Most Out of Your SEO Short Vs. Long Tail: Which Search Queries Perform ... Google Testing Comparison Ads In UK Using Linkscape Metrics to Prioritize Link Buildin... Multiple Login Forms with Highlighting CSS3 Dropdown Menu Xerox Sues Google & Yahoo Over Search Patent. Copy... Google To Drop Ad Manager For DoubleClick For Publ... Wired On Google’s Algorithm Link Building vs. Link Marketing: What’s The Diffe... Rentbits.com Revamps Search in Site Relaunch Footage.net Adds Getty Images Database Google Earth Now Available for Android Reply.com Files for IPO SPONSOR MESSAGE: Stop Being a Robot How Google Buzz Hijacks Your Google Profile Good beats innovative nearly every time NYT and NYU partner on East Village site Twitter Shows Off Hockey Stick Growth Not Done Yet: Four Ways To Squeeze Performance Out... What Would You Ask Steve Ballmer About Bing, Micro... SMX West Next Week in Silicon Valley – Register To... When to be worried Google Adds MySpace To Real-Time Results & Images ... Waiting Game Begins On Google Book Search Settlement Multiple Class / ID and Class Selectors Worthy Alternatives To The Useless SEO Data Provid... Local Search API’s For Fun & Profit Google Tests Enhanced Ads Directly in Local Search... Google Buzz 101 Applying Atul Gawande's Checklist Manifesto to SEO Olympic Viewers Turn to Facebook During Games The Future Of The Internet: Search Looks Bright Sneak previews of Online Marketing Summit 2010 and... ►  1月 (481) ►  2009 (1177) ►  12月 (436) ►  11月 (511) ►  10月 (230)