Uncategorized
Open for Business: IIA Annual Conference 2011
Open for Business
The title of this year’s conference is Open for BUSINESS. The audience last year comprised senior managers, decision makers and key industry personnel.
The IIA Conference is unique in that it provides excellent content in an educational and networking environment. Keynote speakers come from companies such as Microsoft, Gruupy.com, and IBM. Click here to read more about the confirmed speakers.
This year will be our most ambitious conference to date. We have more speakers than ever before and it will include a full day of plenary sessions as well as parallel break-out sessions and clinics.
We want you to attend – but more than that, we want you to really join in! This conference is all about you and we’re taking the term ‘conference’ literally: lots of conferring with industry peers, sharing experiences and varying perspectives.
This is an industry conversation. Great speakers are important but we want to know what you think too. So get ready to join the conversation. In fact, if there’s a particular conversation you’ve been yearning to have then let us know in the next week or so.
There will be keynotes in the morning AND afternoon and panel debates morning and afternoon so book your ticket early and don’t miss out.
PRICE: As it’s mid-season sale time, the standard ticket price has been cut by 25% on last year, form €245 to €180.
The member rate is €150 and the early bird (limited to the first 50 tickets) is €120.
Contact Roseanne NOW at roseanne@iia.ie to get one of the 50 exclusive early bird tickets.
Conferences are really good when they are more than just an event – the IIA annual conference is part of a bigger process of dialogue between you, the delegates, the IIA as your representative body, and industry thought leaders, policy shapers and makers. This is your chance to make your voice heard and to change how business is done online in Ireland.
SPONSORSHIP & EXHIBITION OPPORTUNITIES
Sponsorship and exhibition opportunities for 2011 are available.
If you would like to be associated with the IIA brand and benefit from the exposure you will receive by being a sponsor of the IIA Conference in 2011 please download our Sponsorship Opportunities document or contact Joan Mulvihill on 01 5424154 for more information.
events, Meetball
Meetball in glorious technicolor
Wednesday evening’s Meetball was a grand evening of networking. As one Meetballer put it:
@enormous Great to meet you last night at the @iia Meetball. Great event. It was a biz-card orgy!
Sylvia Leatham
SylviaLeatham
As well as Alan’s demo about Toddle we were also told about YourLocal.ie by Emer Jameson. All Irish businesses are entitled to a free listing on YourLocal.ie – make sure yours is correct and up to date today. (And based on Des Martin’s blog post yesterday local search gets more important for business everyday.) Gary Mullan from Prosperity also talked to us about the importance about keeping the digitally skilled in Ireland.
If you would like to get along to the very next one on May 25th please register online (don’t worry I’ll remind you closer to May 25th!). Give me a holler on members@iia.ie or 01 5424154 if you would like to demo your company’s products or services.
Guest Blogger, events, search engine optimisation, training, mobile internet, online retail
Local Search Explained: Start your Campaign Today
In advance of his training course next week for the IIA, Des Martin of Local Search Marketing has written this blog post to impress upon us how important local search is for all businesses. If you think your business could benefit from learning more register now for Targeting Local Customers Online. This is a morning course taking place on March 30th and is keenly priced at âŹ200 for non-members and âŹ100 for members.
According to the Kelsey Group, â74 percent of internet users perform local searchesâ.
What is a local search? When you enter a location specific keyword you are performing a âlocal searchâ. For example searching for âdublin pizzaâ above. Many of you will have noticed that these local searches now trigger a map in search engine results from Google (Map highlighted in red above. Click on the image for a larger version.).
Note:Â Search queries with âlocal intentâ also appear. i.e. restaurant, pizza, butcher – by themselves can trigger the map results to appear.
This map and results are generally placed at the top of the search results. More recently Google have begun to blend the local map listings with what were traditionally the organic results (free listings). This can be seen in searches like âaccountant dublinâ below. The local ranking factors are playing a big part in these blended results (we have highlighted the map and local listing in red).
Google return local and mobile search results based on a different set of criteria to the traditional search results (SERPs). Effectively they use a different algorithm. Small and Local businesses can now compete for prime positions at the top of the search results without spending the large sums of money that were previously required. The key is to focus your efforts in the right areas by building up your company profile across the web. Local Search has been growing in importance for the last few years. It’s time to sit up and take notice.
Why have local searches become so important?
There are several reasons. One of the main reasons is the rise of the smart phone. There are now an estimated 1 million iPhone and Android devices in the Irish market. These people are no longer confined to their PC to perform internet searches. These people actively search for products and services daily while on the move. Whatâs more these people may be very close to your physical location.
When someone searches for a âcork restaurantâ on their smart phone, there is a very good chance that this person is close to the centre of Cork and is likely to have lunch/ dinner in the next hour or two. If your restaurant is in position on the search results, you have a decent chance of converting that searcher to a customer; if not you are ignoring a major segment of the Irish market.
Whatâs more, mobile searches last considerably less than their PC equivalent. So that person will make up their mind in a short space of time and may find many existing websites awkward to navigate on a mobile phone.
This is where the local listing (Google Places) comes into its own. See mobile screen shot:
Example of a local search conducted on an iphone above.
The mobile searcher is presented with Google Places page information. With the Place page you get information relevant for decision making, this being: map location, directions, click to call phone number. All of this is available in Google without ever having to enter the business website. This is hugely beneficial for mobile searchers. With one further click they can see reviews, street view images of the location and often additional images supplied by the business owner as demonstrated in the screenshots below:
Any Irish business in the retail/ hospitality trade needs to feature prominently for local searches that relate to their products and services. If you donât feature, you are losing customers.
People searching for local business online are further along in the purchase cycle, the cost of converting each consumer is lower and the return on investment is higher. Targeting these searchers produces real results for local and multi-store retailers.
This is where Local Search becomes an essential part of your online strategy
- Google Places listings are the tip of the Local Search Iceberg. They demonstrate what you can achieve by targeting local search results with Google Places. One million smart phone searchers in Ireland alone.
- Local Optimisation. Local Search can also be applied to onpage optimisation for websites, including designing website alternatives for mobile searchers. Google presents different results for mobile searchers. They rank these results partially based on how well the page will render on the type of phone that submitted the query. For more detail on mobile SEO, here is a great article by Cindy Krum < . This means having a mobile version of your website increasingly important.
- Local pay per click. Targeting local keywords reduces the level of competition and the bid price paid for local keywords in PPC programs like Adwords. Local keywords are more targeted and result in a higher click through rate which will in turn help with your Adwords quality score.
- Local Social Media. Lots going on in this space at present. Facebook recently launched their check in service Facebook Places in Ireland. Facebook Deals is due to follow hot on the heels of Places. This will allow business owners to target local consumers with âdealâ based offerings. This promises to be a great promotional tool for local business.
In addition business owners can reward and attract local consumers using existing social media like âFourSquareâ and local focused blogging. - Group Buying websites like citydeal.ie (Groupon) have exploded in the past few months. Increasingly local consumers are finding out about âlocal dealsâ through these websites. Local Business owners need to adopt a group buying strategy to maximize their return when running group deal promotions. Pay attention to building a relationship with the consumer and gain repeat business rather than be left one time consumer and ultimately a loss.
Begin your local search campaign today:
A local search campaign uses an integrated strategy involving
- Google places listings,
- pay per click advertising,
- search engine optimisation
- and social media
to convert local leads into new customers. An additional area that is fast becoming important for local business is Group Buying websites. These can be a great promotional tool, but you need to factor in the total cost and how to maximize the return on investment.
About the Author:
Des Martin is the director of Local Search Marketing who specialise in local search strategy. Their client list includes sole traders, SMEs, franchises and multi location retailers. Des will be presenting a series of training courses run by the IIA in the coming months.
Uncategorized
OWASP Announces Application Security Conference for 2011 in Dublin, Ireland
OWASP (The Open Web Application Security Project) will be hosting the 2011 Application Security European Conference (http://www.appseceu.org), the premiere web application security conference on the beautiful city of Dublin, at Trinity College Dublin on June 6th-10th, 2011.
AppSec EU 2011 will provide a venue for hundreds of IT professionals interested in securing web technologies to learn, interact, network, and attend presentations and training given by some of the world’s top practitioners of web application security, suitable for everyone from federal decision makers and management to application security engineers and developers.
Executives from Fortune 500 firms along with technical thought leaders such as security architects and lead developers will be traveling to hear the cutting-edge ideas presented by Information Security’s top talent.
OWASP events attract a worldwide audience interested in "what’s next". The conference is expected to draw 300-400 technologists from Government, Financial Services, Media, Pharmaceuticals, Health care, Technology, and many other verticals.
AppSec EU 2011 is currently soliciting presentations & training proposals from researchers, academia and industry on the following topics:
– OWASP Tools and Projects
– Cloud Application Security
– Government Approaches to Application Security
– Application Security Case Studies
– Application Security and Business Risks
– Metrics for Application Security
– Web Services Security
– Source Code Review
– Web Application Security Testing
– Secure Coding Practices
– Privacy Concerns
– Vulnerabilities/Exploits in the Web App World
– Defense & Countermeasures in the Web App World
Papers may be submitted to to https://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=appseceu2011 and must be received by Sunday 3rd April 2011. Inquires should be directed to Ireland@owasp.org.
Contact us today or visit http://www.appseceu.org for more information.
social media, personal branding, Web 2.0, search engine optimisation, new technology
An bhfuil Quora againn? (My Seachtain na Gaeilge post)
It’s Seachtain na Gaeilge this, em, fortnight and today is St. Patrick’s Day. As any stalkers readers who have been reading this blog over the last three years will know I am a fluent Irish speaker. In fact I write a monthly technology column for the long-running Irish Langauge Online Zine Beo! My editor has kindly allowed me to republish a recent article I wrote about Quora to help the IIA commemorate Seachtain na Gaeilge.
In this article I give a basic overview of this new curated knowledge site that came out of private beta at the beginning of the year to much acclaim. I didn’t write too much about the business applications of Quora. However I have obviously been thinking about that since and briefly I think they are as follows:
- Share your expertise: when answering a question on Quora you can adjust your bio to suit that question. E.g. I work for the IIA so when I’m answering the question “How can professional associations survive Web 2.0?” I make it clear that I am a membership manager with a professional association. However if I wanted to respond to another question in the Television category I might set my bio to refer to my credentials as a TV critic.
- Gain knowledge: Many complain about the mundanity of much of the content on Facebook and Twitter. “Oh there are two many updates like “I’m on the bus.” In contrast to this Quora is heavily curated and while you can follow those in your network (or not!) you can also choose to follow specific topics (e.g. I am following Social Media Marketing) In fact you can follow only topics and no people at all.
- Build your network: However following topics and questions relating to your industry will allow you to develop your network, especially internationally. Quora’s system which allows users to “vote up” answers will also allow you to quickly recognise who is rated among their peers. This could potentially allow you to scout partners in different regions or, in our case, potential speakers.
- Search: While Quora actively discourages mentioning brand names their site is completely open to the search engines so sharing your knowledge and expertise on a topic that your customers search for and using keywords
cannilynaturally in your responses will only lead those customers back to you. E.g. Check out this thread on “wine opener gadgets“.
What other potential business applications does Quora have? Share your thoughts in the comments below. Also you can read ReadWriteWeb’s thoughts on the applications for Small Business.
Agus anois for my patriotic duty!
TĂĄ giolla nua sa ghairdĂn a bhfuiltear ag tabhairt an âFacebook nuaâ air. TĂĄ an clĂș sin tuillte aige toisc an chosĂșlacht idir a sheirbhĂs agus âFacebook Questionsâ. NĂl an tseirbhĂs sin Ăł Facebook ar fĂĄil ar fud an domhain go fĂłill, ach tĂĄ seirbhĂs Quora i ngach cearn a bhfuil an t-idirlĂon ar fĂĄil. SĂ©ard atĂĄ i Quora nĂĄ ceisteanna curtha, freagartha agus coimĂ©adta ag an bpobal atĂĄ in ĂșsĂĄid. Is lĂ©ir gur thuig bunaitheoirĂ Quora go raibh daoine ag ĂșsĂĄid an idirlĂn chun ceisteanna a fhreagairt agus ba lĂ©ir Ăł leithĂ©idĂ Twitter agus Facebook go raibh siad ag cur nĂos mĂł muinĂn i bhfreagraĂ Ăł dhaoine in ionad a chur sna freagraĂ a fuair siad Ăł chuardach Google.
Is cĂ©im nĂĄdĂșrtha i dtimthriall cuardaigh iad Quora is a mhacasamhail. Thosnaigh cuardach le leithĂ©id Yahoo a bhailĂodh ĂĄbhar spĂ©isiĂșil agus a choimeĂĄdadh Ă© ar a son siĂșd a bhĂ ag cuardach eolais. Ach dâĂ©irigh an tIdirlĂon i bhfad rĂłmhĂłr, rĂłthapaigh agus cruthaĂodh Google. Ach anois tĂĄ an-iomarca tuisceana ar algartam Google agus tĂĄ an t-inneall seo faoi ionsaĂ ag na seoltĂłirĂ turscair is na scrĂĄbaire scĂĄileĂĄin agus is minic nach bhfaightear aon eolas feidhmiĂșil go dtĂ an dtrĂĂș nĂł an ceathrĂș leathanach.
ThĂĄinig ar an saol mar sin, nĂ hamhĂĄin Quora, ach na cĂ©adta seirbhĂsĂ eile atĂĄ ag dĂ©anamh iarracht an t-eolas a choimeĂĄd in ord agus in eagar don bhrabhsĂĄlaĂ idirlĂn. TĂĄ ar ndĂłigh, Yahoo Answers ann ach tĂĄ an suĂomh seo truaillithe nuair nach bhfuil cĂłras ceart coimeĂĄdta air. FĂ©ach mar shampla an bailiĂșchĂĄn seo de cheisteanna is de fhreagraĂ dochreidte. BĂ cĂșramach – tĂĄ an t-ĂĄbhar seo NSFW mar a deirtear in acrainim BĂ©arla (âNot Safe For Workâ).
NĂos DeisiĂșla FĂłs
TĂĄ neart suĂomhanna tĂ©acs agus meĂĄin saibhre ann a mhĂnĂonn conas rudaĂ a dhĂ©anamh is a fhreagraĂonn ceisteanna VideoJug, About, WikiHow agus fiĂș YouTube agus Wikipedia ach tĂĄ cĂșpla rud ann a chabhraĂonn le Quora:
- TĂĄ sĂ© simplĂ agus soilĂ©ir: tĂĄ an t-inneall cuardaigh ag an mbarr ar fad. Tar Ă©is cuardach a dhĂ©anamh, muna mbĂonn do cheist curtha cheana fĂ©in romhat, is fĂ©idir do cheist fĂ©in a chur. Sula gcuirtear an chĂ©ad cheist, caithfear ceacht sciobtha a dhĂ©anamh. TĂĄ trĂ shampla den saghas ceiste atĂĄ muintir Quora ag lorg agus caithfidh tĂș an sampla ceart a roghnĂș. Rud beag teagascach bâfhĂ©idir, ach is lĂ©ir go luath go bhfuil foireann Quora dĂĄirĂre faoi chaighdeĂĄn an ĂĄbhair ar a suĂomh.
- Agus ag caint ar fhoireann Quora: tĂĄ an feidhmchlĂĄr idirlĂn seo cruthaithe ag meitheal innealtĂłirĂ iar-Facebook, ina measc Adam dâAngelo an chĂ©ad phrĂomhfheidhmeannach teicneolaĂochta ar Facebook. Seo dream daoine a bhfuil saineolas acu, nĂ hamhĂĄin ar chruthĂș grĂ©asĂĄin sĂłisialta, ach ar ĂșsĂĄid, mĂ-ĂșsĂĄid agus ar fhorbairt grĂ©asĂĄin sĂłisialta.
- Tuiscint agus taithĂ: leis an tuiscint agus taithĂ sin, thĂłg bunaitheoirĂ Quora grĂ©asĂĄn a ĂșsĂĄideann an dĂĄ rudaĂ is tĂĄbhachtaĂ ar an idirlĂon le deich mbliana anuas: sĂłisialtacht agus cuardach. Chruthaigh siad feidhmchlĂĄr leis an eolas seo a thit i lĂĄr na deighilte eatarthu. Is fĂ©idir an suĂomh a chuardach ach is fĂ©idir cairde is comhluadar a leanĂșint nĂł is fĂ©idir brabhsĂĄil trĂ ĂĄbhar nĂł amlĂne. Ach mar bharr ar sin, tĂĄ Quora oscailte do chuardach Google; muna bhfuil spĂ©is agat mar sin, tumadh isteach i Quora fĂ©in, gheobhaidh tĂș freagra ar do cheist ar Google ar aon nĂłs. Chomh maith leis sin mĂĄ tĂĄ folĂĄirimh eocharfhocal socraithe agat ag Google.com/alerts, ba chĂłir go bhfaigheadh tĂș folĂĄirimh ar an ĂĄbhar gur spĂ©is leat Ăł Quora leis. Seo Ă©agsĂșlacht bhunĂșsach idir Quora agus Facebook: tĂĄ Facebook, don chuid is mĂł, dĂșnta Ăł chuardaigh Google. Ar an taobh sĂłisialta de, tĂĄ Quora go hiomlĂĄn nasctha le Twitter, Google agus Facebook trĂd a nApi-anna agus is fĂ©idir leat do chairde ar na grĂ©asĂĄin sin atĂĄ ag ĂșsĂĄid Quora a leanĂșint gan strĂł agus is fĂ©idir ceisteanna is freagraĂ a roinnt ar na grĂ©asĂĄin sin freisin.
- Daoine seachas ĂĄbhar; ĂĄbhar seachas daoine: Is minic a leantar daoine ar Twitter agus leathanaigh ar Facebook mar tĂĄ spĂ©is agat san ĂĄbhar atĂĄ faoi chaibidil ag an duine nĂł ag an leathanach sin. Ag tĂłgĂĄil ar an mian sin, is fĂ©idir tosnĂș ar Quora trĂ ĂĄbhar a leanĂșint in ionad daoine. Is fĂ©idir cuirithe a chur amach chuig cairde ar leith agus sa chuireadh is fĂ©idir ĂĄbhar ar leith a lua leo. Mar shampla, nuair a thug mĂ© cuireadh do mo mhĂĄthair, iarmhĂșinteoir Francaise, luaigh mĂ© lĂ©i trĂ eocharfhocal a bhuail isteach go mbeadh sĂ abalta âmĂșineadhâ âAn Fhraincâ, âTuismitheoireachtâ agus âFraincisâ a leanĂșint. NĂł i mbĂ©arlagair Quora fĂ©in âthugâ mĂ© ĂĄbhar di.
- MuinĂn: Ceann de na deacrachtaĂ is mĂł le Google, go hĂĄirithe anois Ăł tĂĄ sĂ© go hiomlĂĄn âimearthaâ ag na saineolaĂ optamĂș inneall cuardaigh nĂĄ nach fĂ©idir leat a bheith cinnte gurb iad na torthaĂ a fhaigheann tĂș na torthaĂ is fearr. Ar Quora is fĂ©idir vĂłta a chaitheamh ar son an freagra is fearr ar cheist, is fĂ©idir trĂĄchtaireacht a fhĂĄgĂĄil ar cheist agus fiĂș amhĂĄin, is fĂ©idir eagarthĂłireacht a dhĂ©anamh, nĂ hamhĂĄin ar fhreagra ach ar an gceist fĂ©in. Chomh maith leis sin tĂĄ cnaipe chun buĂochas a gabhĂĄil le freagrĂłir ar leith. Mar sin, go hĂĄirithe ar na hĂĄbhair is conspĂłidĂ, dâfhĂ©adfĂĄ a bheith cinnte go leor go bhfuil an pobal ag faireadh air.
SĂĄsamh
Seoladh Quora i lĂĄr an samhraidh seo chaite ach bhĂ sĂ© dĂșnta do chĂĄch seachas an dream a raibh cuireadh faighte acu. OsclaĂodh Ă© don saol mĂłr le mĂ anuas, ach cheana, tĂĄ daoine mĂłr le rĂĄ ar lĂne an-tĂłgtha leis, An Scobleizer fĂ©in ina measc, a scrĂobh
âIâm really loving it. I have a hard time explaining why. Iâm not the only one, either. Wow.â
Rabhadh amhĂĄin ĂĄfach: bĂ ar an eolas gur slogaide ama amach is amach Ă© an suĂomh seo agus nĂl aon nuĂĄlacht ag baint leis sin. Is fĂ©idir mise a leanĂșint ag http://www.quora.com/Roseanne-Smith
podcast, events
Audio: Conor O’Neill, Loudervoice, at â8 More Ways to Sell Even More Stuffâ
This is the sec
ond of the presentations from “8 More Ways to Sell Even More Stuff”, the IIA Conference for Online Retailers that took place in the Burlington at the beginning of the month. Please excuse the slow pace of releasing them – we’ll get there!
[podcast]http://blog.iia.ie/wp-content/uploads/coneillLoudervoice.mp3[/podcast]
In this audio you will hear Conor O’Neill, CEO of Loudervoice, talking about how customer reviews can add credibility to your business and ultimately boost your sales.
(You can also listen to Darren Grant’s case study in a previous post or get the lot via iTunes.)
C’mon he looks like James Bond: how could you not want to listen to a man as dapper as that!
| This event was sponsored by: | |
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podcast, events, online retail
Audio: Darren Grant, OrganicSupermarket.ie at “8 More Ways to Sell Even More Stuff”
Last week the IIA organised the second in a series of events for online retailers “8 More Ways to Sell Even More Stuff“. I plonked my digital audio recorder on the podium to capture the presentations to share them with you. You can also download the presentations from the Resources section of the IIA website (membership required).
[podcast]http://blog.iia.ie/wp-content/uploads/dgrantorganicsupermarket.mp3[/podcast]
This case study is presented by Darren Grant of OrganicSupermarket.ie who kicks off telling us that he opened The Organic Supermarket in Blackrock the day that the recession officially started. Their business plan was as he says, “A Celtic Tiger business plan” and so he had to think of another way to grow his company that didn’t require credit from the bank that wasn’t forthcoming. He looked to the internet to grow his catchment from 4.5k in the South Dublin area to potentially 4.5m across Ireland.
| This event was sponsored by: | |
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Uncategorized
2010 Tech Blogger Of The Year Sinéad Cochrane Joins Redfly
Hi Iâm SinĂ©ad, the newest member of the RedFly Marketing team. Iâm really excited about starting work with RedFly, as I have been searching for an innovative Irish company like RedFly for a long time. This blog post is just a little way for me to introduce myself to our readers.
You can read the rest of SinĂ©ad’s introduction here.
events, online retail
State of the Net 20: Only 23% of businesses selling online. Wha?!
The latest issue of State of the Net is now available online. This is produced in conjunction with Amas and if you are in business in Ireland you should read it. Hard copies are available: just contact the IIA HQ!
This issue covers how Irish Marketers Use Digital, Children Online, Broadband Growth, Businesses Online, Trust Online, and Online Banking.
I’m all about online business at the moment (when am I not?!) but most especially online retail. If you’ve had your head stuck in the sand in the last few weeks you may not be aware that we are holding a conference for online retailers on Thursday, “8 More Ways to Sell Even More Stuff“.
So the reminder of the Information Society Statistics, Enterprise Statistics 2010 from the Central Statistics Office that only 23% of Irish Businesses surveyed are selling online made me gasp for two reasons:
- It’s shocking low.
- That’s a helluvan opportunity
If so few businesses are selling online that means there is space for many more especially in niche markets. Our two case studies at our event on Thursday for example, Garrendenny Lane and OrganicSupermarket.ie are cases in point. Both are niche in their own way and revel in it! I’m looking forward to hearing all about their online business (and how they mix it up with their offline businesses) on Thursday. I hope you can make it along too!
Uncategorized
Christian Luedtke appointed Senior Vice President, New Ventures & Innovation at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
DUBLIN, Ireland — February 21, 2011 — Global education leader, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH), is delighted to announce that Christian Luedtke has been appointed Senior Vice President of New Ventures & Innovation. The New Ventures & Innovation group is focused on unlocking new possibilities for learning, working with entrepreneurs, educators, students, communities and business leaders to marshal the resources, talent and experiences to reach every student, and inspire the next generation of education.
In his new position, Christian will lead the development of a strategic framework for the New Ventures & Innovation team as well as developing the approach for the ongoing management of a portfolio of new high growth potential opportunities. In addition he will define and implement a framework for investment recommendations.
Fiona O′Carroll, Executive Vice President & General Manager, New Ventures & Innovation Group commented, “We are delighted to welcome Christian on board the New Ventures & Innovation Group. Christian’s wealth of experience will help us further harness innovative technology and education resources to create individualised learning solutions that will raise achievement in our classrooms, student by student.”
Christian joins HMH from Scoyo, a start-up web-based learning platform for children in the Bertelsmann Group, where he was Founder, Deputy Managing Director and Vice President of Content & Production. Prior to this, Christian worked with Bertelsmann AG, Europe’s largest media company, where he held the position of Vice President of Corporate Development.
Christian holds a Masters in Economics from University of Essen and a PhD in Economics from Braunschweig University of Technology.
About Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is a global education and learning company that is leading the way with innovative solutions and approaches to the challenges facing education today. The world’s largest provider of educational products and solutions for pre-K–12 learning, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt develops and delivers interactive, results-driven learning solutions that advance teacher effectiveness and student achievement. Through curricula excellence and technology innovation, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt collaborates with school districts, administrators, teachers, parents and students. Today, HMH education products and services are used by 57 million students throughout all 50 U.S. states and 120 countries. With origins dating back to 1832, the Company also publishes an extensive line of reference works and award-winning literature for adults and young readers. For more information, visit www.hmhpub.com.
CONTACT:
Aidan McLaughlin
Fleishman-Hillard
085 749 0484
aidan.mclaughlin@fleishmaneurope.com
Emma Doherty
Corporate Communications Manager
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
086 046 2166
emma.doherty@hmhpub.com
