Consultant

Posted on: 2006-04-07

Deborah J. Swenson 3717 Shepherd Hills Drive, Bloomington, Mn 55431 952-897-5222 Cell: 952-994-7512 [email protected] Summary Task oriented executive with diverse background in marketing, sales, recruiting, management, service, training and product promotions. Working primarily with "start-up" companies, multiple roles and responsibilities were assumed: Organizational development, key account sales, event planning, strategic planning, fund raising, public relations,recruitment, employee relations to include outsourcing, vendor relations and sales management. EXPERIENCE JD Marketing, Bloomington, MN 1986 to present Founder- Consulting services for venture capital groups and their portfolio companies. Spectrum Search, a division of JD Marketing was developed to meet the recruitment needs of "start-up" companies. Acting as Human Resource Manager, responsibilities were to evaluate existing staff, conduct due diligence on competitive employee packages in their markets, create organizational personnel strategy, identification and launch of key staff recruitment, contract negotiations, training and evaluations. Recruiting efforts included Board of Directors, Physicians, Scientific Advisory individuals, CEOs, CFOs, Engineers, IT, Sales Managers, Sales, Product and Marketing Managers, Chefs, and Clerical staffing. JD Marketing also offers strategic marketing and sales planning. Acting as National Sales and Marketing Manager, responsibilities included recruitment of distributors, dealers, agents, sales representatives, sales managers, district managers, both nationally and internationally. Experience in key account sales, event planning, training, telemarketing, product launch, public relations, packaging, video productions, trade shows, competitive due diligence and marketing strategy. Industry experience includes: Medical, Spa/Salon, Retail, Hospitality, Grocery, Drug and Pet. Major Accomplishments • Increased sales coverage of an orthopedic company from 38% to 83%, representing the marketing, recruitment, contracting, training and managing of 23 distribution groups. • Created strategy, sourced and contracted international distributors totaling $800,000 in first year sales commitments, along with establishing beta sites and direct sales to international officials to introduce products to Government Officials. • Created marketing program for event planning and catering organization, assisted with all aspects of the business which resulted in a $950,000.00 increase in sales. • Raised $1.6 million for R&D with start-up medical company and identified and negotiated a partnership that represented 29 distribution groups, commitments of $2.8 million in sales and an additional $1.2 million in residuals. • As Key Account Manager with a Minneapolis start-up, sold 15 product lines to Target Corporation, with revenues $1.3 million year one. Management Recruiters International 1983 to 1986 Responsibilities: Recruitment of medical sales and sales management staff for medical companies nationally. Evaluation of client staffing positions, sourcing candidates, interviewing, due diligence, "best fit" evaluation and salary package negotiations. Promoted to Management in 1984, managed 15 recruiters and recruited a wide range of personnel. Additional Accomplishments • Co-Founder and Board Member of Medical Alley Association with over 3,000 leaders in the Minnesota medical community. • Created scholarship programs with the University of Minnesota and start-up medical companies. • Created annual Awards dinner and program for medical, institutional, technical and financial community. Increased public awareness and stimulated growth. • Co-Founder of the Minnesota Collaborative Association with over 1,000 members. • Assisted Canadian Consulate with public relations to promote growth in import/export, new technologies and financial aid. • Recognized by Minnesota Governor Arne H. Carlson for business contributions, sighting my key role in the economic, social and cultural core of the State. • Nominated for Woman's Achievement award by Chamber of Commerce. Education: University of Hawaii, B.A. / Psychology, Art