Launch Key

The most direct route off the corporate merry-go-round is you.

 Leverage your experience to launch digital products at any age. 

Join 1000+ execs and late career entrepreneurs reading the Launch Key newsletter as we share modern tools, old school wisdom and free knowledge gleaned from decades of digital innovation.

Founder | Publisher

EnergyXchain

EnergyXchain was awarded a National Science Foundation Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grant to conduct research and development work using blockchain technology for transaction processes in the natural gas industry. The company has a growing IP portfolio and patented technology processes that may also be utilized for energy transaction management via smart contracts, with equal applicability in sectors such as hydrogen, carbon attribution tracking, natural gas and electricity.

CEO, co-founder

Empowered

Empowered grew from one question: What if benefits enrollments were easy? Everyone struggled with insurance. Brokers needed more time with clients, HR managers drowned in paperwork and employees couldn't enroll in a basic medical plan without hassle. We wanted to provide everyone with a simple, transparent enrollment process. A process that made it easy for someone to pick the best benefits for their family.

In 2000, we launched our first consumer-driven healthcare programs, sprinting ahead of the industry by prioritizing people. Today millions of employees trust this platform for their benefits. Empowered is  wholly owned by Aflac.

Chief Innovation Officer, co-founder

Leader of the effort to redesign, develop and deploy EDA’s flagship data product as an online analytics tool. Product launch led to 20% increased sales and returned 100% of the investment in the first year post development.  

With the insight that EDA brings to the table, businesses can make better decisions by identifying trends, exploiting market opportunities, supporting sales service dealer strategies, being informed about regional hot spots, and emerging markets.

If you sell, finance or service capital equipment, EDA offers you the priceless information and timely market intelligence you need to get ahead. www.edadata.com. EDA is a Randall-Reilly company.

VP of Sales and Marketing

Vialogix

Web development company focused on user-based web solutions for internet, intranet and extranet applications.  Solutions included e-commerce, Web-enabled and database applications that enabled clients to reduce business costs or increase sales. The business cultivated long-term relationships with a broad client list that included Fortune 500 level companies Baker & Taylor, Bank of America, First Citizens Bank, National Gypsum, Novant Health, and Wachovia.

Rob Norris Communications

Built technology consulting practice specializing in digital asset management. Apple expertise used for creating networks, managing infrastructure with corporate clients - First Union National Bank, Interstate/Johnson Lane, Royal Insurance, advertising agencies in the Charlotte area. Created multimedia CD-ROM projects, interactive projects and first web based tools in 1994.

President

Coleman Lew & Associates

Recruited advertising and marketing executives for a retained search firm. Interviewed prospects and researched backgrounds. Wrote recommendations, presented candidates, negotiated salaries and benefits with clients.

Executive Recruiter

30+ years of business experience creating and leading innovative technology businesses. From the 90's internet to AI, I've carved out a living explaining and building solutions to solve business problems. 

Expertise in application development has been leveraged across energy, health care, financial services, ecommerce and data analytics businesses. I've sold to both Fortune 500 companies and SMB. I've bootstrapped and won National Science Foundation grants. There have been my fair share of entrepreneurial mistakes but have also published patents and even won a SXSW award. 

I'm not quite finished with technology and can help you avoid a few headaches with your own digital products. I recommend resources, and tools to add to your career portfolio and spin up your dream in weeks - not years. My network includes experts in literally every business function and I will happily recommend people who will level up your startup. Win/Win/Win.

Join the Launch Key newsletter for free: 
https://launchkey.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Rob Norris

Happy Thanksgiving 🍁 

And especially to entrepreneurs who have a lot to be thankful for. We never succeed all by ourselves. Take time to show gratitude to customers, employees, partners, mentors, backers but most importantly family. 

This weeks Launch Key ⬇️

Founder | Publisher @ Launch Key 🚀 | Add to your career portfolio with a passion project or side hustle. Join like-minded execs, SMB owners and late-career entrepreneurs reading the Launch Key for digital inspiration.

Open article: Thanksgiving for entrepreneurs by launchkey.beehiiv.com

This week’s Launch Key reminder is that there is no perfect career path. But there are plenty of options to make your own career portfolio far more interesting. 

Just 3 subscriber examples from Dean Otto, Tom Hewitt and Christopher Jones. 

Get in there and read about them for yourself ⬇️

Open article: Career portfolios by launchkey.beehiiv.com

We can't all have a bear steal a chainsaw on camera. 

But if we do, it's a chance to build an audience. Husqvarna social media folks effortlessly joined a funny online conversation and created buzz with humor and product giveaways. 

This week's Launch Key with a little more on the Creator Economy and using your wit. ⬇️

Open article: Creator economy of chainsaw bears by launchkey.beehiiv.com

Growing an audience with humor and experience

Did you see Taylor Sheridan's Billion dollar deal? 

In a time when Hollywood types are scared that AI will replace them, Sheridan just won generational wealth because of authentic talent. All because he bet on himself. 

That's the topic of this week's Launch Key 🚀

Outsized results are possible when you bet on yourself. 

Get in there ⬇️ 

https://lnkd.in/eMZntXVB

Open article: Bet on yourself by launchkey.beehiiv.com

Not all products are digital. 

Your late-career side hustle might not always come out of your work knowledge. Christopher Jones created a non-digital Bloody Mary mix while working on his weekend sailing hobby. 

This week's Launch Key 🚀  has the latest. 

Get in there ⬇️

Open article: Not all products are digital by launchkey.beehiiv.com

Turn your passion project into a late-career side hustle

LTIMindtree

Responsible for consulting, solution and sales of our Interactive business for Financial Services in North America. Capabilities span digital strategy, human-centered design, CX management, marketing execution, performance analytics, agile builds, enterprise platforms and operational excellence.

Interactive Lead, Financial Services

Farmingdale State College

Member of the Visual Communications Art and Graphic Design Advisory Board. The Visual Communications Department consists of two degree programs: Graphic Design and Interaction Design.

Board Member

Led engagements in Financial Services to create human-centered experiences and marketing, while achieving servicing and growth targets. Oversaw design, behavioral science, qualitative/quantitative research, marketing and engineering teams to create holistic journeys for both customers and employees, while mapping the data pipes and marketing platforms that underpin them. Implemented governance to drive operational efficiencies and improve ROI, increasing customer satisfaction, faster time-to-market and scalability of new experience management capabilities. Built an Adobe practice inclusive of mortgage journeys, flexible design systems, reusable solution blueprints, work management frameworks and turnkey marketing automation. 

Notable achievements include:
✫ Increased agent efficiency by 25% and new policy conversions by 17% within 10 months by leading a team to build a mobile-first, human-centered digital experience for Agents at a leading Life Insurer.
✫ Delivered a 10% increase in new card acquisitions, a 22% reduction in operating costs, and a 3x improvement in speed-to-market over 18 months by empowering a high-performing team to build new modular experiences for a Global Bank, including migrating content to the cloud, measuring and optimizing the customer journey, and creating a Refer-a-Friend experience.
✫ Achieved sales, revenue, and utilization targets through the recruitment of a high-performing team from top-tier consulting firms to establish an Adobe Partnership.
✫ Presented as a keynote speaker in prominent industry events, such as DigIn, SIFMA, American Banker, Adobe Summit and Adobe Experience Makers Live, to discuss emerging trends in Personalization, Digital Transformation, and Marketing Platforms.

Partner, IBM iX

Accenture

Led the solution, sales and delivery of human-centered experiences in Financial Services that challenged business norms and improved outcomes. Led experience architecture and delivery, redesigning organizations, and processes for clients such as USAA, American Express, Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs, resulting in new customer growth, improved retention and increased market share. Prioritized investing in teams and fostering a positive work environment to achieve exceptional results. Partnered with CMOs, CDOs, CIOs and CTOs to design personalized experiences and redefine business processes that drive measurable business outcomes.

Notable achievements include: 
✫ Launched Marcus by Goldman Sachs, inclusive of marketing technology, segmentation, omni-channel campaigns and operating model that resulted in 10,000+ loans in year 1.
✫ Re-imagined Investment Research for Credit Suisse, achieving $16M in operational savings via faster analyst authoring, easier collaboration with sales teams, and dynamic content distribution.
✫ Increased new acquisitions by 20% for American Express through marketing optimization, personalization, analytics reporting, and data-informed content production.

Managing Director, Accenture Interactive

Razorfish

Led teams to uncover consumer pain points by leveraging website analytics, surveys and market research. Conducted A/B and Multivariate Testing to validate hypotheses, then optimize journeys, landing pages and paid media campaign performance. Worked with marketing, design and technology teams to drive new business opportunities, lead delivery and grow existing accounts across retail, automotive, life sciences and financial services. Clients included CapitalOne, Morgan Stanley, Citibank, Ford, J. Crew, Starwood Hotels, Mercedes-Benz, Sanofi-Aventis, Johnson&Johnson, and Staples.

Notable achievements include:
✫ Led the marketing performance program for the Smart brand launch at Mercedes-Benz US, which included a segmentation plan, enterprise measurement plan, and marketing experiment design.
✫ Delivered an automated marketing dashboard for Sanofi-Aventis, monitoring global brand sites and campaigns across media, website, social sentiment, and survey data for each region.
✫ Designed a market research program for Citibank to identify key consumer segments and preferences, leading to the creation of new products and services.

Director, Consumer Insights

Atlas

Managed client relationships and delivery of website optimization programs, inclusive of user behavioral studies, A/B tests and robust multivariate experiments. Responsible for understanding experience pain points, making strategic test and learn recommendations to optimize websites. Led a team of data analysts, developers, designers and a client services team to drive measurable results. Clients included American Express, Citigroup, Geico, Monster, and Match.com.

Account Manager

Farmingdale State University of New York

Instructed evening courses in nearly all aspects of the Advertising curriculum, including: Campaign Design & Production, Digital Media, Advanced Web Design and co-directed the University’s In-House Agency. Under my guidance, students went on to win awards with the Long Island Ad Club and the Humane Society.

College Instructor

Welch Nehlen Groome Advertising

As part of the agency’s leadership team, tasked with building an internal web development department which included creating online campaigns and website design. Responsibilities included creative direction, business development, digital strategy, RFP responses and client pitches.

Interactive Director

Big B Productions

Founded a design firm and led a small team of designers and developers to deliver advertising campaigns and digital services. Responsibilities included creative execution, website design, package design, interactive demos, business development and client engagement. Clients included Merck, Teva, Excel, and Johnson&Johnson.

Creative Director, Founder

Customer Experience | Growth Marketing | Business Transformation | Human-Centered Design | Cloud Technology

Throughout my career with Razorfish, Accenture, and IBM, I have led teams that have measurably transformed Fortune 500 companies, turning insights from behavioral analytics and research into experiences that grow customers into advocates.

Specializing in financial services, my approach weaves together human-centered design with the precision of data science, marketing technology, and GenAI, all while championing a culture where diversity, inclusion, and new capabilities fuel creativity, innovation and growth. I integrate research, trends, and consumer insights to solve client challenges and to shape visions for the future — a future where finance is not just a service, but a stepping stone to fulfilling customer dreams. With empathy as my compass and agility as my pace, I consistently craft experiences that drive customer growth and retention.

Key strengths include:
►  Building Brands: Product Management, Digital Innovation, Customer Experience, Industry Disruption
►  Achieving Cost Savings: Process Improvement, Operational Efficiency, Automation, Customer Loyalty
►  Capturing New Business: Customer Acquisition, Sales Growth, Business Development, Market Expansion
►  Delivering Profitability: Financial Performance, Business Growth, Profit Optimization, Cost Management

Through a collaborative approach with my teams, I have also achieved success in employee growth and retention. I firmly believe that fostering a positive and growth-oriented work environment is crucial to a human-centered organization. By aligning shared values and goals, I build strong teams of designers, technologists, GenAI engineers and data scientists that drive exceptional results.

taplio

The Battle

Rob Norris

Brandon Gerena

Followers

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Performance ScoreRob Norris's LinkedIn Performance

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taplio

The Battle

Rob Norris

Brandon Gerena

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Rob Norris's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreRob Norris's LinkedIn Performance