Bryan VanHaitsma

Lead Account Executive

About Bryan

What are your roles at Five Q?

My main role at Five Q is an account executive. Since we’re a distributed company I get out of cleaning the bathroom. (Yes I did this at former jobs.)

Where do you live?

Ludington, Michigan... (pointing to my hand to show you where in Michigan it is located)

What did you do before coming to Five Q?

I worked for about six years for a radio mission organization as both the web and IT “guru”.

Advice From Bryan

Bryan's advice about starting a project off right:

When you start a project, it is vital to define the single criteria that will determine if the project is a success or a failure. For instance, we may come in on time and under budget working on an online application project. But, if the application asks for name and address and where to mail the remainder of your information, then that project probably was not a success. Identify that key criteria determining success--we call it the project driver-- and communicate it to your vendors. It helps get everything in focus for the remainder of the project. If you sense that the driver is changing during the project (and it is ok that this happens), get everyone to the table and let them know, so the new project driver will bring success rather than put the project in jeopardy.

Bryan's advice about selecting your key project point person:

A project is set on the road to success if you identify internally who will be the single point of contact for your vendor. This person does not need to be an expert in all things web related, or a social media guru. They do need to:

* Be available to return messages within 24hrs (less is preferable)
* Be empowered to make minor decisions to keep the project moving
* Be trusted by their team
* Be able to synthesize feedback from their team to pass to the vendor
* Be able to prioritize, keeping the important things in mind and letting the minor things slide
* Have the ear of their team's leadership (or stake-holders) if an issue arises that requires major shifts in project scope