NEWBURYPORT, MA (9/16/2011) — Firebrand Technologies, a leading book industry technology services company, today announced several major organizational and personnel changes. First, Firebrand has launched a new affiliate company, Firebrand Associates, an independent management consulting organization. The new company will be led by Don Linn, former Book Group Publisher at The Taunton Press, and former owner and CEO of Consortium Book Sales and Distribution. “Don and I have been looking for an opportunity to work together for some time now,” said Fran Toolan, Chief Igniter of Firebrand Technologies. “As publishers struggle with managing both their existing print publishing programs and their growing digital publishing programs, there are urgent needs to reorganize processes throughout the organization.” “Firebrand has been very successful helping publishers implement complex software and services to help manage their product development and marketing processes,” said Linn. “We will be taking the same practical approach used by Firebrand to work with C-level executives on the thorny problems they face in today’s business climate.” Firebrand Associates will launch with a select cadre of seasoned veterans known for their pragmatic problem solving ability and focus on execution. The company plans to center its practice on operational issues related to publishing’s transition from print-centric to content-centric. The first member of the new team is Tim Cooper, former SVP with Harcourt and presently the President of his own consulting firm, The Consulting Garage. “Tim adds an incredible breadth of talents and has a laser-like ability to see the root cause of most complex issues,” said Toolan. “Discussions are ongoing with other like-minded individuals, and we expect the team to add several new members over the coming months.” Firebrand Technologies also announced that effective immediately, Doug Lessing is the new President of Firebrand Technologies, and Susan Ruszala is the new President of NetGalley. Toolan will remain as CEO. “I cannot say enough good things about Doug and Susan,” said Toolan. “In Doug’s twenty years with Firebrand, he has done every job there is to do, and has done it better than anyone who preceded him. He is an inspiration to all that work with him both internally and at our clients. I cannot wait to see how the company grows under his leadership.” “NetGalley is still a start-up company in many ways,” said Toolan. “Susan has done an absolutely amazing job of utilizing a small team with limited resources to build a service that is now the industry standard for publicists and professional readers alike. In a little over 18 months, NetGalley has welcomed more than 120 publishers, including all of the Big 6, and grown the professional readership seven-fold, to more than 38,000 readers. I am confident that under Susan’s leadership, NetGalley will continue to grow and flourish.” # # # About Firebrand Technologies |