About me
Twelve years at Lonely Planet, across five roles and three major organizational transformations.
Background
My 12 years at Lonely Planet span five distinct roles and three major organizational transformations—from print-first to digital-first, from domestic to international focus, and from website to mobile app product development. I now lead a 15-person editorial operations team across 10+ time zones, delivering 200+ guidebooks annually and overseeing $5M in content operations.
I've led Contentful implementations, built Google Apps Script workflows that save 420+ hours annually, and drove content strategy for our mobile app launch across 100+ destinations — POIs designed as connecting nodes enabling "commission once, publish everywhere."
I've also served as a company spokesperson, representing Lonely Planet on TV and radio during major campaign launches.
Mission
Build content organizations that scale—the systems that power them, the teams that run them, and the culture that sustains them.
Core skills
Leadership
- Team scaling (8→15 direct reports)
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Change management
- Stakeholder communication
Content Strategy
- SEO-driven content architecture
- Multi-platform publishing
- Contributor network development
- Editorial workflow design
Technical
- CMS implementation (Contentful, Drupal)
- Workflow automation (Google Apps Script)
- AI/LLM integration
- Product development collaboration
AI & content
I've been using AI in real production workflows since before the current wave:
- Built and deployed automation workflows using Claude and ChatGPT that have run in production for 2+ years — not prototypes, but tools editors use daily
- Led the strategic response when AI reshaped search in 2024 — shifted investment toward differentiated content, kept the team effective through a tough year for digital publishing
- Built newsletter curation and SEO analysis tools that reflect how I actually think about AI: a practical capability you ship, not a credential you list
My perspective: the organizations that come out ahead will be led by people who can actually use the technology — and judge clearly where it doesn't replace human expertise.
Beyond work
Based in Nashville, Tennessee, I'm a father of two (William, 6 and Maggie, 3) and partner to Danielle. When I'm not building content systems, you'll find me:
- Running with the East Nasties running club and training for half marathons
- Photography including street and travel photography
- Home automation tinkering with Unraid servers and Docker