About the Authors

Martin L. Abbott is an executive with experience running technology and business organizations within Fortune 500 and startup companies. He is a founding partner of AKF Partners, a consulting firm focusing on meeting the technical and business hyper growth needs of today’s fast-paced companies. Marty was formerly the COO of Quigo, an advertising technology startup acquired by AOL in 2007, where he was responsible for product strategy, product management, technology development, advertising, and publisher services. Prior to Quigo, Marty spent nearly six years at eBay, most recently as SVP of Technology and CTO and member of the CEO’s executive staff. Prior to eBay, Marty held domestic and international engineering, management, and executive positions at Gateway and Motorola. Marty serves on the boards of directors for OnForce, LodgeNet Interactive (NASD:LNET), and Bullhorn. He sits on a number of advisory boards for universities and public and private companies. Marty has a BS in computer science from the United States Military Academy, an MS in computer engineering from the University of Florida, is a graduate of the Harvard Business School Executive Education Program, and is pursuing a Doctorate of Management from Case Western Reserve University. His current research investigates the antecedents and effects of conflict within executive teams of startups.

Michael T. Fisher is a veteran software and technology executive with experience in both Fortune 500 and startup companies. “Fish” is a founding partner of AKF Partners, a consulting firm focusing on meeting the technical and business hyper growth needs of today’s fast-paced companies. Michael’s experience includes two years as the chief technology officer of Quigo, a startup Internet advertising company acquired by AOL in 2007. Prior to Quigo, Michael served as vice president of engineering & architecture for PayPal, Inc., an eBay company. Prior to joining PayPal, Michael spent seven years at General Electric helping to develop the company’s technology strategy and processes. Michael served six years as a captain and pilot in the US Army. He sits on a number of boards of directors and advisory boards for private and nonprofit companies. Michael has a BS in computer science from the United States Military Academy, an MSIS from Hawaii Pacific University, a Ph.D. in Information Systems from Kennedy-Western University, and an MBA from Case Western Reserve University. Michael is a certified Six Sigma Master Black Belt and is pursuing a Doctorate of Management from Case Western Reserve University. His current research investigates the drivers for the viral growth of digital services.