Samuel Birger
has been in love with language all his life. He studied Philosophy and English at Clark and Wesleyan universities, graduating with a B.A. in 1985. In 1990, he entered the Linguistics Department at Harvard University. His thesis topic was "Reconstructions in Proto-Oceanic," for which he was granted a Master's degree. He continued as a Doctoral Candidate in that department, studying the Indo-European languages. His dissertation topic was "The Syntax of Negation in the Anatolian Languages."
He left Harvard in 1994 to devote himself to an increased workload as a naming consultant. He served as Director and Chairman of Whatchamacallit, Inc.® - a naming consultancy - from 1995 until 1998. He is now the President of
Nomenon. He has served as a naming consultant to companies including IBM, General Motors, Dell Computers, Reebok, Simon & Schuster, Wang, Eastman Kodak, American Express, Chevron, and ABC-TV, among many
others. He has appeared in many national and international broadcast and print media reports on names and the naming industry. These include appearances on CNN, NBC Nightly News, Fox News, and National
Public Radio; and in publications including US News and World Report, The Wall Street Journal, and The Boston Globe, among others. He has lectured on the topic at Harvard University, Boston University,
Golden Gate University, and elsewhere. He has also provided expert witness testimony in legal cases involving naming and trademark law. Sam has sailed competitively and professionally, and serves on the
board of the International Yacht Restoration School in Newport, Rhode Island. He is currently rebuilding a Herreshoff racing sloop constructed in 1905. His best time for a New York Times crossword puzzle is
eight minutes, twelve seconds. His favorite word is 'sesquipedalianism.' He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Laurie Barham
has spent a lifetime watching people and figuring out what makes them tick. She studied Psychology and Counseling at the University of North Carolina, graduating with a BA in 1979 and an MA in 1982. Laurie received an MBA from Wake Forest University in 1989 earning an academic scholarship along the way.
After establishing a career in the mental health sector, Laurie moved on to Brand Planning, which marries good marketing sense with consumer insight. She worked as an account planner at Howard,
Merrell & Partners in Raleigh, NC and Fallon McElligott in Minneapolis, MN before starting her own business, Laurie & Co. Laurie's Qualitative Research and Brand Planning experience has
included such brands as The Prudential, Magnavox, Swatch, A.T. Cross, and Ralston Purina. The latter won the 1996 Grand Effie for the Dog Chow 'Everyday' campaign. Laurie's New Product Development
experience runs the gamut from a new Coke product for Southeast Asia, to new Jim Beam and DeKuyper products for the 20-something crowd, to a new function for Monster.com.
In keeping with other members of the team, Laurie has excelled
in wind-powered sports. An expert rated skydiver , she is
currently trying to rein in her high-speed habits by learning
to sail. She lives in Marblehead, MA.
Bradford Hudson has consulted in strategy and marketing to more than 34 clients including Allstate, AT&T, Cadbury Schweppes, Cunard, Harley-Davidson and Nestle.
Brad is a former Assistant Professor of marketing and strategy in the School of Hospitality Administration at Boston University. He was also formerly Chief Executive Officer of The Bay Tower Company in
Boston, one of the 100 largest independent restaurant companies in the United States. Previously he was a Senior Consultant with The TQM Group, a manager with Four Seasons Hotels and a United States Navy
lieutenant. Brad holds a graduate management degree from the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University, where courses included finance and entrepreneurship at the Johnson Graduate
School of Management. He also holds an undergraduate degree in political philosophy from the University of Pennsylvania, where courses included economics and management at the Wharton School of Business. Brad has lectured in services marketing at Harvard and Cornell, and served as a judge for the Adrian Advertising Awards. He has published four articles in the Cornell Quarterly on subjects
relating to the development of new products and services. He has been quoted in a variety of publications including The Boston Globe, and cited in several textbooks including Marketing for Hospitality &
Tourism by Philip Kotler. Brad is a member of the Harvard Faculty Club and the Army & Navy Club of Washington, DC. He lives in Cambridge and keeps a 27-foot sailboat moored on Cape Cod. Top |
