Greg thrives on the energy of new ideas, where a day can bring tasks as varied as programming PHP, creating a new financial model, or brainstorming on online community marketing.

He has been bitten with the entrepreneurial bug a few times, founding three earlier startups before Bear Ideas.

In 2006, he was on the founding team at RealSelf.com, an advertising-based web business in the beauty and anti-aging sector with business school colleague Tom Seery.

Prior he was Director of Program Strategy and Services (biz dev) at Catalysis, a high-tech marketing and consulting firm serving Microsoft and global marketing agencies.

Prior to Catalysis, he co-founded World2Market, a Seattle-based e-commerce company selling socially responsible products sourced via microfinance, fair trade practices and non-governmental organizations. World2Market raised $8M in venture financing from a prestigious group of investors, was featured in the New York Times, USA Today, and on CNN, and had the unique claim to fame in 1999 of being the first e-commerce shopping experience for then-president Bill Clinton.

Before World2Market, Greg had spent four years working in the interactive media group at Microsoft creating version one CD-ROM titles.

Greg has two wonderful little boys, Jack and Sam and is married to Molly Kertzer who is an international editor and product lead for Cranium.

Greg is an accomplished jazz pianist, playing professionally during college, attending Berklee Music School, and studying piano with Andrew Hill while in Portland.  He has been involved with several social organizations throughout the Northwest, including Social Venture Partners.

He studied computer science and music composition as an undergraduate, and has his MBA from University of Washington, where he focused on finance and entrepreneurship.