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Austin, TX, January, 18, 2012 — WhaleShark Media, Inc. (www.whalesharkmedia.com), the world’s leading marketplace for online coupon codes and deals, today announced that it has named Matt Howitt as the Vice President of Engineering, reporting into the company’s Chief Technology Officer, Paul Rogers.
“As WhaleShark continues to grow at a rapid pace, the company is focused on building a world class, global technology organization that satisfies the needs of consumers who in 2011 visited our portfolio of online coupon and deals websites, like RetailMeNot.com, more than than 300 million times,” said Rogers. “Attracting experienced talent like Matt Howitt to come to WhaleShark and help us innovate within our industry is a significant priority for this company, and I am truly excited to have him as a partner in growing this business.”
In his role as WhaleShark’s Vice President of Engineering, Howitt is responsible for the processes, tools and in-house team and external resources that build and deliver the company’s products and services. He also leads engineering operations.
Howitt, Rogers and Jag Bath, Senior Vice president of Product, also collaborate on defining the product development roadmap for WhaleShark’s portfolio of online coupon and deals websites.
Howitt has more than fifteen years of executive experience in the technology industry, most recently as vice president of product engineering at Lombardi Software, where he was responsible for the technical delivery of products and services to the market.
Prior to Lombardi, Howitt was a vice president at MessageOne, where he built the engineering organization that delivered the company’s product vision. He also helped develop MessageOne’s first two products, which included an awardwinning email continuity service. Howitt has held a series of executive positions from such notable organizations as Trilogy and pcOrder, where he was directly responsible for the technical component of the company’s $40MM contract with Compaq Computer Corporation.
Howitt holds a bachelor of arts in economics from Harvard University with substantial coursework in computer science.
In addition to Howitt’s appointment to his role at WhaleShark, the company announced that it would launch an aggressive recruitment campaign to attract and retain the most experienced technologists to join the company’s headquarters in Austin, TX. The drive launched in 2012 will include sponsorship activity at local events, like South by Southwest, and increased visibility through various civic initiatives in an around Austin, TX. Additionally, the company is embarking on a tour of college campuses both within and outside of Texas.
“It is critically important that we as a technology community in Austin expand the talent pool here locally and stop the trend of watching many of our best computer scientists leave Texas,” added Rogers. “Business and community leaders need to work together to demonstrate to potential employees that Austin is one of the best hi-tech cities in the world. WhaleShark Media will certainly be a partner in those efforts as we grow our savvy workforce.”
For technology career opportunities at WhaleShark Media, visit our careers page (http://www.whalesharkmedia.com/careers.html).
About WhaleShark Media, Inc.
WhaleShark Media, Inc. is the world’s leading marketplace for online coupons and deals. The company’s websites connect consumers seeking savings with discounts from more than 140,000 merchants, stores and retailers. WhaleShark Media welcomes more than 300 million visitors to shop its sites every year. The WhaleShark Media portfolio of coupon and deal websites includes www.RetailMeNot.com, the largest online coupon site in the United States; www.VoucherCodes.co.uk, the largest online coupon site in Europe; www.Deals.com; www.Deals2Buy.com; www.CouponSeven.com; www.CouponShare.com; and www.Gutschein-Codes.de. WhaleShark Media is a fast-growing, profitable company funded by venture capital firms Austin Ventures, Norwest Venture Partners, Adams Street Partners, Google Ventures, J.P. Morgan Asset Management, and Institutional Venture Partners (IVP).
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