We’re pleased to present our latest featured profile, designed to introduce you to our member consultants, advisors, executive coaches, clients, partners and other extraordinary people. These profiles go beyond the professional bio to provide a more personal glimpse and offer an opportunity for us to get to know each other better as people as we strive to create connections and build community. We’re pleased to feature Consultants Collective member, consultant, Big Data, and AI Digital Marketing expert, Mike Moran.
Mike provides a blend of marketing and technical skills to help clients to focus on the right marketing strategies as well as the most efficient ways to execute them. He is a bestselling author and frequent speaker, as a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) of the National Speakers Association. Mike is a Senior Fellow of the Society for New Communications Research and a member of the Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO) Board of Directors. He holds 12 patents in search technology and was one of just 400 IBM Distinguished Engineers.
What is one of your hobbies?
I am the Commissioner of my fantasy baseball league, where since 1987 grown men have pretended to own major league teams and trade real players to each other. I have won many times, which is impressive until I tell you that those are the only sports trophies that I have won in my life. Yes, I am quite the athlete.
What is your favorite quote?
“Ode to Procrastination: Hard work can pay off after a time, but laziness always pays off right away.”
“Hard work may pay off in the long run, but the benefits of laziness are immediate (p. 170).”
― How I Paid for College: A Novel of Sex, Theft, Friendship & Musical Theater
What is the last book you read?
I’d like to pretend that I read several books a week, but I don’t read anywhere near as much as I used to. I did just read The Accidental Taxonomist, which was very interesting to me in that I have been part of several accidental taxonomies in my career, where big companies set out to classify all of their content by subject. One of our products at SoloSegment, MatchBox, automatically classifies content, so I am trying to get more of a background so that I can avoid some of the mistakes I have seen before.
Who is your favorite hero in fiction?
I honestly don’t think I’ve read a fiction book since I was a kid, so I am going to go with the Hardy Boys.
Who is your favorite painter?
I am seeing a bad pattern here. My favorite painter is the last guy who did my house — he did a very good job, and not very expensive.
Who is your favorite composer?
I honestly am not sure that the music I listen to is classy enough to have composers — it is probably closer to decomposed.
Why do you do what you do?
Our company, SoloSegment, helps people find what they are looking for, and I have always had a passion for solving that problem. In the early 1980s, when I first started working on search engines, people told me I was dumb, because all the money was in databases. But databases are boring — they all can return the right answer. I liked search engines, because it was a debate as to what the right answer was, so I thought there were lots of interesting problems to solve. And, after 40 years, I am an overnight success.
What makes you happy?
I like helping people solve difficult problems. I remember when first starting out as a consultant, wondering how an introvert like me was going to be a salesperson. But it turned out to be easy. I just listen to people’s problems and help them. Eventually, they ask themselves, “If this is what he does for free, what would he do if we paid him?”
What is your latest accomplishment?
I’ve managed to get through almost this whole survey without having any real taste in books, art, or music.
What would you say is your chief characteristic?
Self-deprecating humor. No, really.
