Why I Do Things Differently
I spent 25 years building products at big companies. Then I realized small teams could get the same results without all the bureaucracy.
Here's How I Got Here
What Big Companies Taught Me
You know those websites millions of people use every day? I built them. Stephen King's website? That was me. USA Today's redesign? I led that. AOL's search products that generated millions? Built those too. But here's what nobody tells you: The strategies that made those products successful aren't complicated. They're actually pretty simple. They just get buried under layers of meetings, approvals, and politics when you have unlimited budgets and 18-month timelines.
The Real Problem
Then I started working with smaller companies. They were drowning in advice meant for Google and Facebook. They'd try to implement 'best practices' that required 10 product managers when they only had 10 employees total. That's when it hit me: What if we took those same winning strategies but stripped away everything that doesn't matter? What if we focused on what actually works instead of what looks good in a conference presentation?
Why 'Bite Size Elephant'?
You know that feeling when everything needs to be fixed RIGHT NOW? That's what trying to eat an elephant feels like. But there's only one way to do it: one bite at a time. Your biggest challenges aren't impossible. They're just a bunch of small problems dressed up as one giant mess.
Start Small
Every big transformation begins with one small, executable step
Build Momentum
Success creates confidence, which creates more success
Stay Focused
The goal isn't to do everything—it's to do the right things well
Here's What I Believe
Good products don't come from perfect processes. They come from understanding what you actually need versus what Silicon Valley says you need. After 25 years of building products, I've learned one thing: The best solution is the one that works with what you have, not the one that requires resources you don't.
What I Help With
- Figure out what to build next (and what to ignore)
- Get your team working together instead of in circles
- Make decisions when everything feels urgent
- Build better products without hiring more people
What I Don't Do
- Push frameworks that need 10 people to manage
- Create processes that add more meetings to your calendar
- Sell you expensive tools you don't need
- Pretend one size fits all
Life Outside Work
When I'm not fixing product problems, you'll find me hiking with my family or trying to teach my kids that the best solutions usually come from the simplest ideas—not the fanciest tools.
Why This Matters
Living in Virginia with my family reminds me every day that real people don't care about your elegant framework. They care about whether something works when they need it to. That perspective shapes everything I do.
Let's Solve Your Problem
Stop struggling with what everyone else says you should do. Tell me what's actually broken, and I'll show you how to fix it.