The Team

As told by...

Brian Wm. Niles, CEO & Co-Founder

My experience with interactive recruiting goes back to the mid 90's when I was first explaining to a room of over 250 attendees at a national admissions conference what the letters "www" meant. We didn't call it "interactive recruiting" back then, but over the years as an admissions director, marketing manager and enrollment consultant in higher education, I've come to appreciate those things that are just so obvious yet difficult to implement at a college. Up until recently that obvious "thing" has been the Internet, but lately that's expanded into all forms of interactive recruiting that includes in-person events and yes, even some print marketing. I've searched for years to find the right mix of people who are so talented in their own special area and yet are such great people too. They get it — and that's refreshing for an industry that resists change. As colleges continue to scramble to figure "it" out, this is the team to help you "overthrow dead culture" and embrace the recruiting revolution.

Michael Crusi, CTO & Co-Founder

Mike is the guy with the cocktail napkin — the one who figured out how to send mass emails before anyone else. I've known Mike longer than anyone outside my family (give me a martini and I'll be glad to tell stories). He has been an inspiration to the team from the very beginning, always questioning and always persistent. He manages our technology solutions, but he will be the first to stand up and say that the value of TargetX is not the technology, it's how we serve our clients and solve their problems. Mike still prefers to take the bulk of the calls from clients who have questions or need help. One of Mike's greatest qualities is his ability to see the "other side" — to question how things can be done differently instead of the obvious. And it's this ability that makes him the cornerstone of TargetX.

Raymond Ulmer, Vice President, Communications

Ray and I worked at La Salle University for over eight years. He is one of the nicest persons I've ever met and yet that niceness doesn't get in the way of his talent as an aggressive public relations expert and marketing guru. He's directed communications and marketing departments in higher education for over 25 years, but when he heard about our ideas in 1998 to start an email recruiting business, he became so enamored with the effectiveness of email marketing that he was eager to join in. Ray is the wordsmith of TargetX with a talent for expressing in copy what I mean to say but can't find the right way to say it. He's a passionate, talented person that anyone would be lucky to work with. And I get to work with him every day.

J. Robert Mootz, Vice President, Sales

If you're interested in signing on with TargetX, you'll probably talk with this guy at some point. Bob heads our sales efforts. We call him "the cheeseburger guy" because he doesn't care about frills like what colors are on our website — he simply cares about solving our client's problems with high quality solutions. He is one of the most genuine sales people in the industry (we know you get a lot of calls from the typical sales person — you'll see that Bob's not one of them). Bob had a very successful technology sales career prior to joining the TargetX team. His journey to us came by way of making a full recovery from leukemia, and in doing so seeing the greater value in time spent with family and friends (something we all can learn from, I'm sure).

Kevin Corr, Assistant Director of Sales

The newest addition to the TargetX team, Kevin comes to TargetX after years of working in admissions and alumni relations at both a college and a prep school in northeast Pennsylvania. His primary responsibilities at TargetX are working with existing clients in renewing their services with us. Kevin fit in perfectly on the team with a smooth transition and his expertise in electronic and traditional recruiting methods. We like to joke with Kevin about the "dynamic demos" he gives to clients. He's got this habit of gesturing and pointing at his computer screen when doing an online demo — as if you were sitting next to him (a bottle of Windex is provided after his demos to clean off his screen of fingerprints). A small price to pay for a great addition to the team! Welcome!

Adrienne Bartlett, Client Concierge

A few years ago we hired Adrienne to be our sales assistant to work with Bob Mootz. We reached out to our network to find the right person — one with some admissions experience and the personality (and sense of humor) to fit into the lively TargetX team. It took us about a year to find her but as soon as I met her, I knew we found who we were looking for. She had been so good at her job with us, we decided to change it recently. Adrienne is our Client Concierge, a position which is exactly what it sounds like. She proactively contacts and responds to clients to help them better utilize our tools, offer best practice advice, or point them in the right direction. She also now writes a weekly XpertTip email for clients every Monday. Need help? Give Adrienne a call — she's at your service!

Gary E. Johnson, Account Manager

With the growth of the TargetX client projects, we needed a seasoned admission veteran on the team that has a huge amount of traditional recruiting and enrollment management experience yet understands and has embraced the recruiting revolution (a hard combination to find). But, we didn't have to go far — Gary was an early TargetX client. He's been in admissions for over 20 years (he says that once you past 20 years, you don't have to count anymore). Gary has begun to lead one college at a time to a better way of recruiting today's Millennial generation. When he's not building communication plans or consulting on campuses, you'll find him either camping in the mountains or leading the ski patrol on the slopes during the winter months.

Jeff Kallay, Experience Evangelist

I met Jeff a few years ago at one of the many "ACAC" conferences and realized this was a very unique person I had to get to know. Jeff brings a refreshing new approach to college recruiting. He is known as the "experience guru" and like no other person in our industry he has the unique talent for getting to the true heart of a college or university. He used this talent to get in the door and tour hundreds of colleges while working at a small creative agency in Atlanta. He's been to Disney World over 118 times and studies how they and other successful organizations know that it's more than the product or service that makes them great — "it's all about the experience". Colleges need to tell great stories and stage memorable experiences to stand out in a crowded marketplace. "All the cool kids are doin' it," he says. And colleges have a lot to learn from him.

Laura Klimitas, Director, Client Services

The TargetX philosophy in serving clients has always been "to exceed expectations." We did this by taking an "all hands on deck" approach — clients could call anyone to get an answer to their questions. But of course with success comes growth and with growth comes a need for coordination. We looked high and low for the right person — the person who embraces our philosophy and also fits into the hardworking, yet casual environment that is TargetX. She was right under our nose. Laura has spent over 20 years working in higher education admissions and truly understands the challenges, the trends and the data. She's an energetic, hardworking, fun person to be around. She is the perfect addition to the TargetX team and we're so glad to share her infectious smile, laugh and expertise with our clients.

Dara Corrato, Assistant Director, Client Services

The magic bullet to a growing company, in my opinion, has to be excellent customer service.  It's so easy to do, but hard to find the right people and the right culture.  So when we went looking for an assistant director, Dara was the perfect fit.  She spends a great deal of her time setting up and supporting our blog and social networking clients as well as backing up Laura with email, event and chat client support as well.  With a long history dating back to her teenage years working in admissions, she not only has the right experience but also the "exceed customer expectations" philosophy that is so TargetX!  And she makes an awesome batch of Christmas cookies too!  Dara, do you celebrate Christmas in July :)

Abey Mathews, Chief Programmer

Abey has become the genius behind the enhancements to our technology solutions from almost the first day on the job. Mike likes to refer to Abey as "his hero" because he seems to solve problems and create new solutions in record time. Abey is a very quiet, reserved young man who has an amazing ability to stay focused while all sorts of activities are going on around him. Most clients don't interact directly with Abey, but if you're wondering what goes on in the background at TargetX, picture Abey taking care of things for you. And never enter an office pool with him — he's certain to take the shirt off your back!

Scott Parks, Network Administrator

Scott has been a long time TargetX team member in an informal, backroom capacity role monitoring our servers at our previous co-location facility. But in 2005 he joined the team on a full-time basis to make sure the servers run smoothly, the network is flowing briskly and even does some programming too (he's the guy behind the eXpressPlan service). A man of many hats, Scott also is the morning drivetime DJ on WRFY "Y102" in Reading, Pennsylvania before heading into the TargetX office. So you might not speak with Scott on the phone, but you can call him to request a song if you're in the Reading area. He also has the coolest mugshot of all of us!

Linda Niles, Project Manager

O.K., the name looks familiar. Yes, she's related. This is my lovely wife and mother of our kids. Linda joined us in 2004 to oversee various company projects. She's a bright, energetic individual who loves talking to people on the phone. Some of the projects Linda is involved in managing include the very successful events we offer throughout the country on effective interactive marketing and keeping up on client payments. However, be warned that Linda is a very athletic person. It won't be long before I come into the office in the morning and find that she has everyone doing push-ups or jumping jacks to stay fit.

Tim E. Ogline, Designer & President, Ogline Design

Tim is the owner and President of Ogline Design, a full-service graphic design company, and has become part of the family at TargetX. He has tremendous experience in producing strong concepts and powerful designs for print and web as well as a keen understanding of furthering one's brand and marketing message. These qualities are a welcome addition to an industry (higher education) struggling to have a unique, consistent message. He's such a pleasure to work with because well focused ideas just seem to flow out of him. Not all of our clients are looking for the services of such a fine designer, but probably all could benefit.