The GFM Team

DAVE J. IANNONE
President/CEO
Product & Content Strategy, Marketing, Operations and Business Development

Dave is a progressive, dynamic eMedia, B2B publishing, marketing, content management, social networking and public safety veteran. His focus with clients will be overall content and audience strategies, marketing and community growth, business development and operational management.

At Red 7 Media, recently ranked by Inc. Magazine's as the nation's fastest growing periodical company, Dave led the launch of new career centers, professional networks, publication event sites, and web-based awards programs. This included the rapid growth of FOLIO: Magazine's Web site as the dominant online news and information destination for the magazine industry. The company's eMedia revenue has doubled in the last year and continues to skyrocket.

Prior to joining Red 7, Dave was Vice President of Interactive at Cygnus Business Media, where he led content, operational, marketing and business development across more than a dozen vertical markets. Major web launches included products in the security, aviation, supply chain and public safety markets. He joined Cygnus in 1998 after founding Firehouse.com, one of the most successful Web portals in B2B publishing.

Firehouse.com has grown to more than 600,000 unqiue visitors monthly. He led the acquisition and integration of the former Fire-EMS.net, and purchase and re-launch of Officer.com, now a top law enforcement online destination.

More than 100 Webcasts were produced, and dozens of blogs and podcasts launched, as well as the company's first video center, which included on-site filming and editing from one of the largest trade shows within Cygnus. Working with the publication group, Cygnus' Aircraft Maintenance Technology group launched one of the most aggressive Webcast-based training programs under Dave's watch, the FAA-endorsed IA Renewal Program, which allows technicians to be re-certified annually online.

He was one of MIN Magazine's 21 Most Intriguing People in Magazine Media in 2005. His sites have previously been recognized by the American Business Media Jesse H. Neal, American Society of Business Press Editors Azbee and FOLIO: Ozzie awards.

Beyond GFM: When he's not at plugging away for clients, Dave loves to check out the latest movies, Washington Wizards basketball, anything Terps, occasional creative writing and online networking. He also serves on the Board of Maryland Media, the non-profit organization which oversees the student publications at the University of Maryland. Dave is a Life Member of the Hyattsville (MD) Volunteer Fire Department and also serves on the Advisory Board of the National Junior Firefighter program.

CHRISTOPHER HEBERT
Vice President, Content & Operations
Content Strategy, Project and Product Management, Public Safety Client Lead

Chris Hebert specializes in online product development, content strategy, marketing and project management. Chris joins Go Forward Media after nearly a decade at Cygnus Business Media, most recently serving as the Publisher of the company's Public Safety Interactive group. He came to Cygnus in 1998 with Dave as Co-Founder of Firehouse.com, the Web's leading firefighting portal.

He has led content and product development on projects of all scales, ranging from breaking news to dynamic educational Webcast programs. He brings a deep passion for the Web to client projects to bridge great content ideas with the the latest Web technologies -- driving compelling, profitable Web products.

Beyond GFM: Chris spends his free time with his beautiful daughters, five-year-old Kyla and two-year-old Kamryn, and lives with his wife Jillyn in Upper Marlboro. Chris is a huge Minnesota Vikings fan (for some unknown reason). He's also a Firefighter Technician with the Washington, D.C. Fire & EMS Department. Chris is on the Board of Directors and Treasurer of the Hyattsville Volunteer Fire Department, where he is also a Life Member. He serves on the Advisory Board of the Responder Safety Coalition.

AMY PICKWICK
Senior Project Manager
New Launch Project Management, Product Development

Amy completed her Bachelor's in Business Administration, Marketing concentration, and a Studio Art minor at Salisbury University, on Maryland's Eastern Shore, before starting off her career in the IT industry during a brief stay in Georgia in the late 90's. Soon thereafter, Amy took on a role at Cygnus Business Media's Interactive division, where she worked with Dave, serving the needs of web sites: Firehouse.com, Officer.com, ImagingInfo.com, and many more of the fifty Cygnus online properties. Due to her attention to detail, mathematical skills, and reporting proficiency, she grew into a search engine optimization (SEO) role, and served as Marketing Manager - SEO.

Recently, Amy held a Senior Online Marketing Manager position for AT&T's Business Services division, managing organic and paid search marketing for a dozen enterprise business portfolios.

At Go Forward Media, Amy is Senior Project Manager, serving as a primary point of contact for clients. Her innovative approach, combined with her online marketing knowledge, helps to determine and implement best practice approaches and solutions for clients. Amy believes that there is one goal that is of upmost importance when delivering online solutions, and that is: "What is best for the end user?" From that, she can form a basis to measure achievable results to reach the highest ROI for each and every client project.

Beyond GFM: Amy is very active in the local community, having founded the Maryland Outdoor Club (MOC) in 2002. Today, the MOC is approaching 6,000 members in Maryland and the surrounding areas. She is also busy organizing events for various Meetup.com groups, and a women's social organization she founded in 2004. Favorite outdoor sports include: hiking, backpacking, camping, biking, kayaking, canoeing, travel, and she has recently taken up skiing, rock climbing, and scuba.

DIANE GILES
Director of Marketing

Diane rejoins the for-profit marketing world after more than nine years at The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers. As Director of Marketing and Creative Development, Diane managed all promotional and communications initiatives, including event marketing, member recruitment and retention materials, advertising and organizational branding. A hands-on professional, Diane brings expertise in both print design and web project management.

Prior to joining The Council, Diane was Director of Content Development for Solutions Factory, Inc, where she built content portals to complement clients' ecommerce sites.

Diane holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications, News-Editorial, from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Beyond GFM: Since relocating to Columbia, Maryland, Diane and her husband have enjoyed exploring the community hiking trails with their dog, Sadie, and discovering the area's many great restaurants. In her downtime, Diane is usually plugged in to online indie rock stations or reading a good paranormal romance (aka vampire smut).

TIGER SCHMITTENDORF

Tiger Schmittendorf is an author and frequent presenter on the subjects of leadership, safety, command, training, recruitment and retention. A firefighter since 1980, he currently serves the Erie County Department of Emergency Services as Deputy Fire Coordinator, leading 45 instructors, three training academies and the training and mutual aid operations of 97 fire departments and more than 5,000 first responders. He created a recruitment effort that doubled his own fire department’s membership and helped net more than 500 new volunteers countywide.

Tiger attended the Milwaukee School of Engineering and is a Nationally Certified Fire Instructor. He is an active participant on the Public Safety Task Force and the advisory council for the Fire Protection Technology and Emergency Management degree programs at Erie Community College, influencing curriculum content, direction and relevancy.

He serves on the incident management committee for the Niagara International Transportation Technology Coalition (NITTEC) and co-authored their Highway Safety Awareness training program. He is on the editorial board of Fire-Rescue Magazine and is currently involved in writing new volunteer management curriculum for the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services. Tiger is the editor of three blog sites – TigerSchmittendorf.com, FireRECRUITER.com and RuntotheCurb.com – and an Internet radio show, “Firefighter Storytellers,” on the FirefighterNetcast network.

Prior to choosing the fire service as his career 12 years ago, Tiger represented blue-chip corporations and brings 15 years of experience in engineering, sales and marketing management to promoting the product he loves: the fire service.

Beyond GFM: Tiger enjoys spending time with his wife Laurie and college-age kids Kathleen and Alex in Western New York. He actively serves on the boards of the Boys & Girls Club of Lake Shore and The 100 Club of Buffalo. When he’s not staying up late writing, collecting and sharing firefighter stories, he plays ping-pong, paintball and ice hockey and enjoys eating BBQ, helping his friends, mowing his lawn and lying in his front porch hammock. Not necessarily in that order.

SUNG HEE KIM
Creative Director
Web Design Lead, Project Management & Client Brand Strategy

With more than a decade of design experience, Sung Hee has established a time honored reputation for beauty, distinction, functionality and impeccable clientele satisfaction. Her designs have been acknowledged for distinctive awards and honors from design organizations such as Art Directors Club (where she has served as chairperson), Graphic Design USA and Rockport Publications. Her firm and team has won the Silver Spotlight Award for Excellence given by the League of American Communication Professionals (LACP) from 2004-2008.

Her extensive client list has included the Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Aviation Administration, Department of Homeland Security, Peace Corps, Smithsonian, George Mason University, Newspaper Association of America, and Americans for the Arts.

Sung Hee's work with GFM and recently for R7M has included design of FolioMag.com, e-commerce site Firefighter.com, the Event Marketing Institute, multiple microsites including Magazine Magazine Excellence, more than a dozen live event Web sites such as the Event Design Summit as well as the Go Forward Media and R7M corporate sites. She also recently developed the new corporate site for R7M client Sparks Marketing Group.

Beyond GFM: Sung Hee is a mother of an active 5 year old boy. Together they have a vegetable garden and share a love for seeing things grow. Every spring she looks forward to receiving Burpee Catalog in the mail and have a wonderful time growing heirloom tomatoes in all colors.

RANDALL FUNKE
Senior Programmer & Drupal Development Manager

Randy Funke has been developing successful web projects since 1999. He brings both a technical and artistic perspective to his projects with an emphasis on database driven media applications, and multimedia content delivery. His expertise lies in MYSQL development, PHP programming, Database enabled Flash objects, Javascript and HTML as they apply to multimedia and community driven content.

He has been developing using the Drupal platform since 2005 and has programmed and launched over 20 sites using drupal as his primary content management system. Notable drupal based sites developed by Randy include artistshousemusic.org, foliomag.com, and gatheringofthevibes.com.

Beyond GFM: In addition to being a senior level programmer, he is also a musician,recording engineer and video editor, having engineered over 100 records, live recordings and DVD's over the last 10 years. He has had the honor and privilidge to work alongside many of the industry's top recording artists in the Jazz and Rock genre including McCoy Tyner, Hank Jones, Chris Frantz & Tina Weymouth (Talking Heads/Tom Tom Club), Phil Lesh (Grateful Dead), Clark Terry, Frank Morgan, Gerry Mulligan and more.

THERESA HOGLANDER
Sales Operations & Client Services Manager
Sales Inventory and Project Management, Client Support & Service

Theresa started in eMedia just over 5 years ago when Dave hired her at Cygnus Business Media. At Cygnus she led inventory tracking and online revenue reporting.

As Sales Operations and Client Services Manager with GFM, Theresa works closely with the client's sales force and operations teams to coordinate , schedule, track and report of all third party (revenue driving/supporting) ad placement on sites, newsletters, product showcase e-mails, third party e-mail blasts, ad creation, revenue tracking, ad placement inventory tracking & availability, customer service, bi-monthly career site end-user promotions and third party newsletters.

Beyond GFM: Theresa has two teenage sons that keep her busy with sports activities. She has also enjoyed being a Volunteer Firefighter/EMT at Laurel Volunteer Fire Department for the past 13 years.