HI GOOGLE, I’M JAMESAnd this is why I should be your next Product Manager

4 DAYS WITH NO FOOD20+ MILES TREKKED EACH DAY

HAND MADE FIRES, EAT WHAT YOU CAN FIND8 PARTICIPANTS, 3 INSTRUCTORS

SOUTH CENTRAL UTAH20 POUNDS LOST

RISKED EVERYTHING1 LIFE CHANGING EXPERIENCE

AFTER GRADUATING FROM COLLEGE IN 2008 I COMPLETED THE WORLD’S TOUGHEST SURVIVAL SCHOOL

I bootstrapped one of the first social games for corporate wellness

Something had to be done about health in the workplace

We were then accepted into The Brandery, one of the top startup accelerator programs in the country

I ran lean practices and customer development, user experience design, and built the team

Hustled to onboard 12 companies onto the platform

WELLTHY

AFTER WORKING A SALES JOB IN THE FAMILY BUSINESS, I SET OUT ON MY OWN IN 2010

Leap used the power of social support to help users reach goals faster

I was inspired by the power of groups to incentivize change

I worked with our designer to create an addicting and fun user experience

My marketing strategy acquired 50,000 downloads in a little over a month - with a $0 budget

I traveled to San Francisco, New York, and Chicago to pitch venture capitalists and angel investors

LEAP

THEN CAME “THE PIVOT” AND WELLTHY TURNED INTO LEAP

I joined the investment team as an Associate and scoured the country looking for disruptive companies

I did deep analysis on technology startups: customer diligence, market and competitive research, and product testing

Special projects for portfolio companies including redesigning on-boarding flows for consumer mobile apps, and consulting teams on product and customer acquisition

UNFORTUNATELY, LEAP FAILED. SO I BECAME A VENTURE CAPITALIST

LIGHTBANK

$200M CHICAGO BASED EARLY STAGE INVESTMENT FUNDCREATED BY THE FOUNDERS OF GROUPON

62 PORTFOLIO COMPANIES

My products have focused on behavior change (specifically helping people adopt healthier habits).

From ideation, to mockups, design, and code - I know what it takes to collaborate with other creators to bring concepts to reality.

Lean tests, talking to users, and using data to drive product decisions is something that I’ve lived first hand.

I’ve analyzed hundreds of startups and have spoken to as many entrepreneurs to find the next big thing.

New product creation

User experience

Startup mindset with boardroom

polish

Creativity

SOLVING PROBLEMS WITH TECHNOLOGY IS MY SUPERPOWER

I WANT TO BRING MY SKILLS TO GOOGLE BECAUSE I LOVE CREATING PRODUCTS AND I BELIEVE IN THE

POWER OF DESIGN TO SOLVE PROBLEMS AND CHANGE HUMAN BEHAVIOR

I’M A MAKERCreated and launched two products with design at their core

I’VE USED ITERATIVE APPROACHESTo learn from my users and direct my product team on the fly

CREATIVITY DRIVES MEAnd I know how to bring my ideas to reality

YOU CAN’T SURVIVE WITHOUT A TEAMBeing alone in the wilderness is very, very dangerous

I’m ready to create again.

My products were designed to change human behavior through game design, social pressure, and rapid iteration.

I know how to uncover insights from users and I have an eye for disruptive ideas.

I want to bring my experience as an entrepreneur and a VC to McKinsey Solutions.

IT’S TIME TO GET BACK IN THE GAME OF CREATING DISRUPTIVE PRODUCTS

www.linkedin.com/pub/james-dickerson/2b/43/949/

Books I’m reading• Choose Yourself by James Altucher• Power Questions by Andrew Sobel

James Dickerson

www.twitter.com/dickersonjames

www.dickersonjames.com

most other things can be answered here or you can ask me

LET’S TALK ABOUT WORKING TOGETHER

I WAS ONE OF 5 FOUNDERS IN THE COUNTRY Invited to the Clinton Global Initiative in Chicago to pitch Wellthy and Leap

INVITED TO THE DEPT. OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICESIn DC as part of a symposium of experts to help them figure out how to use technology to improve their organization

FLEW TO LONDON TO CONSULT MIND CANDYOne of the UK’s fastest growing startups. I worked with their mobile team for a week on a new product.

OH YEAH, HERE ARE SOME OTHER COOL EXPERIENCES I’VE HAD ALONG THE WAY