Jim Gibson Professional Introduction

During these tough economic times, colleagues have oft heard me talk about the importance of innovation through invention.  I firmly believe that it's precisely these challenging times that the so called "overnight successes" are born - note, I said "born" but not necessarily all grown up. 

That's because there is really no such thing as overnight successes. 

This is true in entertainment, sports and, especially in business.  Entertainers hone their craft in relative obscurity for years, athletes train endless hours on end and businesses work through the daily minutia of building the company until one day and if it's done the right way, viola!, success is achieved.  The world only sees the ultimate success and thinks the path was quick and effortless but if you've ever been in any of these, or other similar categories, you well know that is the furthest thing from the truth! 

But, interestingly, dealing with constant naysayers could be the biggest challenge you face.  But the fact of the matter is, while many people are focused on the problems of a down economy, those who are open to and seize the “opportunities” are more likely to face real prospects of ultimate success.  Therefore, one must continually work hard during the "toils and tribulations" phase to ever expect to get to our ultimate goals - whatever they are.

I mentioned earlier the importance of innovation through invention but a critical component of this mantra should include re-invention as well.  Observers have recently noted a tremendous uptick in the number of people going back to school to earn additional degrees, re-enforce core competencies or just to learn something totally new.  Given the economic climate, this is not really news; however, the point this illustrates is that learning new things inevitably opens the door to new opportunities.  These opportunities may include progressing in your chosen line of work, learning a new craft or even starting your own business.

Taking on new challenges is a great way to jump start your life and often opens the door to new opportunities.  I, myself, try to practice what I preach.  Despite having my own job stresses and life constraints, I have made tremendous efforts to continue my education.  In the last year alone, I have earned certifications in advanced First Aid, CPR and have become an active member of my local CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) group.  I am currently completing FEMA's NIMS (National Incident Management Systems) course and plan to earn both ICS (Incident Command Systems) and SEMS (State Emergency Management Systems) by years end.  I've even graduated from the DMA's Search Engine Marketing course and earned a certification that will help me better execute on QuakeDog's mission to become the "de facto" brand in the marketplace!

Speaking of QuakeDog, our Company is a great example of innovation through invention.  And your efforts as valued members of our team have led us from a simple idea our CEO, Jay Everingham had a year or so ago to a truly one of a kind company that is leading the pack in our industry!  This all came about as a result of innate vision and a strong desire to create something new and exciting.

The bottom line is it's never too late to learn new things and there's never been a better time to take advantage of the given situation.

I was recently interviewed by the San Fernando Valley Business Journal's staff reporter, Mark Madler.  Here is the article published on May 25, 2009:

Change in Thinking Guides Entrepreneur in New Venture
By Mark R. Madler - 5/25/2009
San Fernando Valley Business Journal Staff

In his business career, Jim Gibson has worked at and headed companies providing long distance phone service, pre-paid calling cards, wireless connections and an online business directory.

Gibson is, in short, a serial entrepreneur – getting in at companies at their start up stage, helping them grow and then moving on.

Rather than pursue multiple ideas simultaneously and hoping one succeeds enough to bring in millions, Gibson prefers to take one project at a time and find ones that can build on – or cascade, as he likes to put it – the foundation created by a previous project.

The Glendale resident thinks he’s found such an idea in his current venture, QuakeDog, an online platform for a distribution network selling emergency preparedness kits.

But more, QuakeDog gives Gibson a greater sense of personal satisfaction than he found in other jobs. It is not just about making money but helping people get ready in the event they ever face an emergency or natural disaster.

“When I wake up, it’s ‘Let’s go save some lives,’” Gibson said. “It’s a lot more than ‘Let’s go sell a widget.’”

The 47-year-old Gibson said that growing older has something to do with pursuing what he calls a socially responsible venture. QuakeDog also reflects an evolution of his thinking in what an entrepreneur should do.

The business side of him, however, saw a great market potential and an under-served one at that.

Fellow entrepreneur Jay Everingham founded QuakeDog and brought Gibson on as president and to be the public face of the company. It’s a role Gibson has performed going back to the first telecom company he worked for after a brief acting career on soap operas and a few sitcoms.

His polished presentation and communication skills had him going before vendors, customers and potential investors.

Gibson is an excellent communicator because he can take complex ideas and boil them down to simple pieces, said Jason McDowall, who has known Gibson for about four years.

That and the ability to listen carefully have served Gibson well in his career.

“He really loves being the entrepreneur and creating something of value for the market,” McDowall said.

Those markets have been in telecom and online.

QuakeDog, for instance, is merely the virtual platform for independent salespeople to sell the survival kits and products. Service Omni, which Gibson started in 2007 and remains as chief executive, is an online directory to promote small businesses and create interaction between them.

Earlier in his career, Gibson helped build up Telis Communications Group to where it was sold for $12 million. While at Atlas Telecom Services, Gibson promoted pre-paid calling cards for the Hispanic market with images of Galaxy soccer players. Just a few years ago he helped turn privately-owned Continan Communications into a publicly-traded company. (The Securities and Exchange Commission in April ordered Continan to stop trading shares. The company has since changed its name.)

Contacts Gibson made as he transitioned from acting to the boardroom served him well. He and Everingham have known each other for 20 years, having worked at a telecom companies together.

“I never had to interview for a job,” Gibson said. “Everything I’ve done is a direct result of riding the coat tails of projects I’ve used as my learning.”

A quarterback in high school in Florida, Gibson has to be out in front and taking the lead. A lesson taken from his playing days is that a quarterback can field a successful team by surrounding himself with better players.

When assembling the executive core for Service Omni, Gibson went after the best people he knew in technology, finance and legal matters, said Ross Nordin, who did financial modeling and forecasting at the start up.

“His management style galvanizes people working together,” Nordin said.

A certain tenacity is also part of Gibson’s personality; not being easily frightened away when faced with a challenge.

“He does not give up easily,” McDowall said. “If one thing doesn’t work he’ll try another. He just keeps at it.”

Similarly, Gibson keeps looking for new business opportunities to pursue.

One involves creating video resumes and online tools for job seekers to advertise themselves more effectively. Another is expanding on the QuakeDog network and customer base with a fee-based monthly service as the value add to the physical survival kits.

Creating the online distribution network may have been Everingham’s idea but even he admits the successful execution of that idea rests on Gibson’s shoulders. Everingham brings the back office expertise and Gibson brings the marketing expertise, especially when it comes to using search engine optimization and social networking sites.

A fan club on Facebook and feeds through Twitter and Digg are the spokes bringing traffic to the main company website to achieve the goal of making QuakeDog the go-to brand for disaster survival gear.

Within three years, Gibson and Everingham want to have 1 million of their kits in the hands of individuals and families.

“Ambitious? Yes,” Gibson said. “Is it reasonable? We think so.”

Hitting the goal hinges on having the money available to do the necessary marketing, Everingham said. After that, it is all up to Gibson.

The future of Service Omni, the online business directory, also hinges on money.

The exit strategy for the company is to sell it but that cannot happen without more traction in the market, more revenue and more users. There is a list of 12 requirements needed to sell and Gibson admits not many have been reached.

The exit strategy for QuakeDog centers on building up its network of freelance distributor to make it valuable for any potential buyer.

As a serial entrepreneur there will always be another project waiting but for now Gibson is having too much fun and satisfaction and not quite ready to sell out yet.


Staff Reporter Mark Madler can be reached at (818) 316-3126 or by e-mail at [email protected]. He could do better with preparing for a natural disaster.