Michael Klynstra

Marketing Director

Information Technology and Services | Greater Chicago Area, US

I am an extremely diverse professional with 12+ years in technology management and consulting. I've worked with XP, Agile and Lean software development practices specializing in the recovery of troubled projects and the execution of broader organizational programs of change. Additional experience includes the operation of a sole proprietorship graphic design firm and video and audio production for the marketing of technology products and services.

Specialties: Agile project Management and training for software development initiatives, graphic design for corporate identity, collateral, print, packaging and web.

Apr 2009 - Present

Marketing Director / Geneca
Oct 2008 - Dec 2009

Client Partner / Geneca
May 2002 - Jul 2008

Marketing, North America / ThoughtWorks, Inc.
Jan 2002 - Nov 2006

Agile Consultant and Project Manager / ThoughtWorks
Aug 2005 - Jun 2006

Owner & Creative Director / Bluetanium, Inc.
Oct 2003 - Aug 2005

Freelance Graphic Designer /
Jun 2001 - May 2002

Vice President, Client Delivery / Geneer
Apr 1998 - May 2001

Project Manager / Geneer
1990 - 1994

CAD Engineer / Rapid Die & Engineering

Websites:

My Blog, My Website, My Portfolio

foursquare

@the golden bowl

4 weeks ago

@the golden bowl

4 weeks ago
@Duckfat Tavern and Grill

9 weeks ago
@Boekhoff House (106 E. Market St.)

9 weeks ago
@Gibson's

10 weeks ago
@Ritz-Carlton Hotel Maui (1 Ritz Carlton Dr Lahaina HI 96761 USA)

5 months ago
@Kuma's Corner (2900 W Belmont Ave)

5 months ago
@Geneca (1815 S. Meyers Rd.)

6 months ago
@P.F. Chang's (2361 Fountain Square Dr)

6 months ago
@Skrine Chops (7230 Madison St)

6 months ago
@O'sullivans (7244 Madison)

6 months ago

blog

February 14, 10:12 AM

She's Got Good Taste

A retro cupid meets Mad Men card from Candy
September 11, 02:21 PM

The iTunes 8 "Genius $alesbar" er "Genius Sidebar"

Oh, Apple. I’m a confessed Fanboy. Why must you continue to test our relationship?

My first read of what the new “Genius Sidebar” will do for me tells me it will make a great mix of songs for me based on the attributes of one I select.My first reaction was: “iTunes is claiming to be able to make a great mix of MY own songs?” I take pride in my mixes and actually enjoy creating my own mixes. But I thought, “Surely if anyone could do it, perhaps Apple can. Maybe they did something great like partner with the Music Genome Project!” Umm, no.

Upon launching iTunes, the Genius Sidebar on the right instructs me to “Select a song in your library to see related music in the Genius sidebar.” And I do. And I get presented with the means to give Apple $30. Ugh. I see it now. The Mini Store is no longer the Mini Store. It’s the Genius Salesbar. And yes, I get it. I’m supposed to feel better about the merchandising because it’s not called a store. A genius is smart and helpful. After all they’re helpful at the Genius Sidebar — I mean the Genius Bar — at the Apple Store (or do we call that the Apple Product Boutique, now?).

Am I focusing on the sales part too much and not addressing the actual playlist capability of the meme? Okay, let’s explore that. Now … where do I find the functionality that’s supposed to be useful? It’s this big obvious button. I select my first song to get my Genius Playlist. I get this:

Hmph. Did I cheat and give it the hardest song possible? No, I selected a song in my library by a best-selling artist ranked in the top teens of sales on a major music seller’s site. Because the playlist capability isn’t the default Genius view and that it doesn’t even seem to work really well and that it’s available via the tiny little button tells me the sales come first.

One point in favor of the sidebar is that, thank god, it can be collapsed. And also, while it calls out to the store and pulls in a new list of songs to sell every time you select a different song in your library, it doesn’t appear to do so while collapsed. That would be just wrong. But everything else is … genius? *sigh*

Apple, I know I must look to you for Genius Playlists, but I’ll stick to the lesser Smart Playlists a mere mortal like myself can create. And when I want to go to the store, I’ll go. You needn’t stalk me at the gate of my iTunes Music Library.
August 21, 06:34 PM

I'm almost the default.

So close. I’m hoping to one day have the default birthday on an HTML form. What a time saver. I’m just one tick away in one of the boxes on this one.
August 19, 08:51 AM

I'm homeless. Time to ride a motorcycle.

2,076 Miles

Okay, perhaps I’m not really homeless. I move out of my old place on August 31 and move into the new one on September 6. What do I do until then? I say, it’s time to hop on the motorcycle, meander up to Canada and stay in a cabin on the lake in “The Capital of New Iceland.”

It’s aggressive, but I’m hoping posting this will help hold me accountable and make it happen. If I don’t make it up to Gimli, I’ll at least get lost somewhere. That’s good enough for me.

“The wheels” is a BMW R80ST. Fewer than 6,000 exist in the world and is the best hand-me-down I’ve ever received. You can check out its Datenblatt PDF if you’ve brushed up on your German.

Fingers crossed.

BMW R80ST

Michael Klynstra

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