Meet Jay Shaffer. His work with Health Connect South and other companies makes him a great resource and valuable member of ATL’s tech scene. Although he may be addicted to his MacBook and iPhone, he knows the ins and outs of business development and can bring valuable insight to any company. Jay is looking to join an emerging tech firm in a sales operations/account management position. Check him out & scoop him up.
What’s your current role?
Business Development at Health Connect South. Health Connect South is the platform for regional collaborations among top decision-makers, innovators, and students in the health community in the Southeast. A little “efficient serendipity” fostered in tech spaces like ATV, ATDC, Strongbox, etc. can go a long way in the medical world.
What startup/tech/creative projects have you worked on?
- COO and Business Development at Health Connect South
- COO and Co-Founder VoiceQuilt “music boxes that play memories”
- One of the first 20 employees when Sun Microsystems started a Professional Services group and helped grow that business to $80M in 5 years
What tech/tools are essential to you?
I break out in a rash if I’m too far from my MacBook or iPhone. I use Evernote for most meetings and events. My family says I’m addicted to my Fitbit. Depend on Tabata Pro for High Intensity Training (HIT) workouts 3X per week. (Guilty habit: IMDB = total time sink). Tools are the means to an end…I’m using Podio, Basecamp, and Streak for various projects currently.
How do you stay informed & on top of emerging trends?
Read the local tech blogs — e.g, Atlanta Tech Blogs – follow many key tech execs on Twitter. Two favorites: Benedict Evans and AVC. I’m also “old school” and like to savor my “Wired” and “Popular Science” magazines each month.
What are your best technical or creative skills?
I make things simple (but not too simple). Also, I have an extensive financial and operations background to keep the team focused on time and on budget.
What’s next on your list to learn?
Just completed Coursera’s “Learning How to Learn.” Audible subscription is great for a book per month — just finished Simon Sinek’s “Leaders Eat Last.” I’ve led so many projects over the years, I’m looking into PMP to fill in any gaps.
Why the interest in startups and the technology field?
My first job was an Engineer for Schlumberger in the Gulf of Mexico. For three years, I led a crew to oil rigs to make measurements (logs) of wells and other completion services (e.g., perforating). After business school, I was fortunate to work for Sun Microsystems and moved into 7 roles in 14 years – starting in Silicon Valley in a hardware group and ending up in Atlanta with Professional Services including positions in Software, Support Services and OEM along the way. The mantra at Sun was “we have to obsolesce our products or someone else will”…so continuous improvement seems to be part of my DNA.
Interested in working for a startup, mid-sized company, or a corporate giant?
I’d love to join an emerging tech firm in sales operations/account management — identify customer requirements, structure and negotiate contracts and set up for delivery — to scale with the growth of the business.
