Why I Social

Benson Hendrix ( @desertronin ) is Social Media Manager at University of New Mexico. His journey into higher education professionally (as we spoke about originally at eduWeb Digital Summit in Denver) is one that is tied to own personal journey. As a believer in the power of storytelling, his background in journalism parallels much of his journey and plays a major part in why he's found success.  H...

John Lee Dumas ( @johnleedumas ) is the host and founder of EOFire . He's also the creator of a Free Podcast Course. His story is one that stems from passion - leaving the world of 9-5 jobs - to pursue podcasting. Social plays a crucial role in the way John interacts with his audience - to the point that a snap led to John joining me on the podcast! Hear his story on this week's Why I Social.  Thi...

Kasandrea Sereno ( @KasandreaSereno ) is an Academic Advisor for the Communication Department at the University of South Florida. In addition, she also serves as a Lead Advisor for the university. She's also the creator of #HigherEdSocial - a Facebook group dedicated to social media professionals in Higher Education.  Hear her story on this week's Why I Social.  This Week on Why I Social, Kasandre...

Kristy Gillentine ( KrisGillentine ) is Vice President of Public Engagement for Drive West Communications. She initially came on my radar after her starting of a new Twitterchat, #ChatSnap and was later referred to me by podcast alum Chris McManamy.  What makes Kristy unique is her strong journalistic background across every sort of medium possible. Print, broadcast, you name it, she's done it! He...

Dean DeLisle ( @deandelisle ) is the Founder and CEO of Forward Progress . He's also a well-known speaker on the Social Media Strategies Summit . Dean is also a father and an outstanding storyteller whom has impressed me with something new and innovative every time we've met.  During this week's podcast, Dean tells a story about how ended up at Merrill Lynch. I would implore that people take a lis...

Diana Wolff ( @Di_Wo ) is the President of LRG Communications  and an experienced business woman with a background in writing and B2B. I first had the opportunity to meet Diana during a #LinkedInChat many years ago.  Over the time I've got to know Diana, I've been impressed with her background and her ability to educate those in less social businesses on the value that social media will offer them...

Jennifer Radke ( @radkejen ) is the Chief Executive Officer of the National Institute for Social Media - a role she recently began two months prior to the recording of this episode. Her career began in higher education as she found a passion for the world of education. In addition to her job as CEO, she also serves a board member for Women Entrepreneurs of Minnesota.  This Week on Why I Social, Je...

Carolyn Portanova ( @CarolynPortanov ) is  Communications & Marketing Manager  at The Brokerage Resource (Inc). She is also a returning guest as she previously appeared as a panelist during a live episode of Why I Social titled "Parenting In The Social Age" . She is a prime example of one of the reasons I started the podcast as her story from sales to social media is one that deserves to be told. ...

Jack Kosakowski ( @JackKosakowski1 ) is the Global Head of B2B Social Sales Execution at Creation Agency. His career focus has spent significant time as a leader in the social sales space.  Jack is also a blogger and an active social media user (it was his Facebook content that inspired me to ask him to join the podcast in the first-place).  You can also hear Jack on the podcast Sales Tech Talk Li...

Jessica Malnik ( @JessicaMalnik ) is a community manager, content strategist and blogger based in Austin, Texas. She recently spoke as part of the lightning round sessions at the 2016 edition of CMX Summit East.  Jessica, like many recent guests, has a background/interest in journalism which has played a crucial role in her career success. She is a graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia w...

  Martin Lieberman ( @MartinLieberman ) is a content marketer and social media manager for IBM. His career began as an intern at Ad Age in NYC and blossomed in Boston as he took on a multitude of roles at companies like Staples and Constant Contact.  Aside from his professional life, Martin is a sports-fan (I forgave him for cheering the Red Sox) and an avid-movie goer. While he was on a long-list...

Stephen Hoops (@ StephenHoops ) is a SEO and Content Marketing Specialist and a graduate of West Virginia University. My introduction to Stephen came through mutual friends and a few Why I Social Ambassadors.  On a personal note, I always enjoy the opportunity to talk to guests who possess the energy and spirit of someone like Stephen. He truly was a joy to connect with and learn more about how he...

Welcome to the second episode of Why I Social Sessions - where we bring you short discussions focused on one-singular topic. This is not your standard Why I Social episode where we learn about a guest - but instead - we focus on important topics impacting the social media space today. Today, on Why I Social Sessions, linguist and SXSW speaker Gretchen McCulloch ( @GretchenAMcC ) and I discuss the...

  Glenda Vaquerano-Briones ( @GlendaVee ) is Public Relations and Social Media Manager at Sexy Hair Concepts. Her PR background (including college) has lead her to a career as an experienced public relations and social media professional whom is also one of the funniest people I've had the pleasure of meeting on Twitter.  Glenda, whom I first met thanks to my #JVMChat co-host Jason Viglione's wife...

Carmen Collins ( @CShirkeyCollins ) leads social media forCisco's talent brand. She has previously worked for Mozilla andAOL. Her background and time at AOL corresponds with perhaps themost popular days of AOL in the late 90's and early2000's.  Collins comes to Why I Social through the recommendation of alumCasie Shimansky who has since taken a job at Cisco!  This Week on Why I Social,Carmen andI ...

Jonathan Brewer ( @HouseofBrew ) or perhaps better known as "Brew" is Director of Awesome at BTC Revolutions . If you're an avid Why I Social listener you may recognize his name as he made a brief appearance on this year's Community Manager Appreciation Day edition of the podcast. That's because Brew is a core member #CMGRHangout which takes place every Friday.  Brew's journey is certainly a uniqu...

Tracy Soren and Jessie Jolles ( @SorenandJolles ) are a comdy duo currently living in New York City. Their story together begins at a Upright Citizens Brigade improv class and has grown into a friendship which has been compared to that of Broad Street.  Their web series, Dibs , about the importance of friendship during life's little moments. They've also been described as NYC's Top 10 Up-And-Comin...

Allison Matherly ( @allisonmatherly ) is Coordinator of Digital Engagement at Texas Tech University. She's also a graduate of the same university and currently pursuing her Master's of Arts.  I first had the opportunity to meet Allison at eduWeb Digital Summit and was impressed by the drive and passion she brings to her job every single day. Her journey from student to intern to employee is one th...

Andrew Seaman ( @AndrewmSeaman ) is Senior Medical Journalist at Thomson Reuters. You may have seen his articles in other papers such as USA Today and Politico. In addition to his work at Thomson Reuters - Andrew is also Ethics Committee Chair for the Society of Professional Journalists.  This episode is also unique in the fact that I've had the absolute pleasure of being a part of Andrew's journe...

Noelle Seybert ( @NoelleSeybert ) is Social Media Manager at Pepperdine University ( @Pepperdine ). She has been working in higher education for more than four years and has been in the marketing industry since 2009. Seybert is also in the process of completing her Doctorate in Business Administration (with an estimated completion in 2018).  I crossed paths with Seybert at Kurogo's Mobile Conferen...

Jermaine Young (@Tigga7d6) is lead designer at A Sublime Creation Design Studio and the co-host of #Spoofchat. It's also worth noting that Jermaine is a father - something I daresay he would say is his most important job.  Jermaine's work on #Spoofchat includes a unique creative process which he discusses mid-way through the episode.  Note: #Spoofchat was previously discussed on Episode 49 featuri...

Frankie Greek (@FrankieGreek) is Social Media Manager at Fuse Media and Social Media Coordinator for the Shorty Awards. Her background in television and radio have also helped her establish the skill sets required to succeed in both Snapchat and live-streaming.  My actual introduction to her came when I learned she would be running the Snapchat account (which she launched, by the way) for the Time...

Bree Kelley ( @SmartSuiteBree ) is a community manager at Casual Fridays (based in San Diego). She works remotely from the other side of the country in Cleveland, Ohio. You may also remember that Casual Friday Founder, Tyler J Anderson, joined the show in the first episode of 2016.  Bree's "no-quit" attitude was always impressed me and this episode also opens with a fan question from listener Mart...

Michelle Pinchev is ( @CityByHeart ) is the founder of Pinch Social . She's also the executive producer of Social Media Week(i) Toronto , an independent Social Media Week. It's only appropriate that our path's crossed at this year's Social Media Week New York City... Shortly after meeting Michelle at the opening night event at Social Media Week (NYC), I knew  NOTE: The original description for thi...

Malia Probst ( @TheMalia ) is the host of The Real Virtual Reality Show and works full-time consulting on virtual reality. Her journey to living in Los Angeles didn't happen over night - but her interest in virtual reality pretty clear from the start.  From her experience in hospitality to her journey across the country, Malia brings a unique story to Why I Social that is is complete with passion...