Elite Talent, OOH Tech, Boohma and The Future.
Part 3 of 3 – A Conversation with Benjamin Billups, Founder/CEO of Billups.
BBoard: You mentioned Industry stalwarts. Billups has, arguably, the brightest and most well-respected people in OOH working together in Rick Robinson, Jason Keifer, Matt Leible, Jennifer Lombard, Julie Nelson, Kristin Carlin, and Greg Taylor. How do you attract top talent and how do you keep them?
BBillups: We have outstanding people, no doubt. They’re the very reason we exist and thrive today. What we’re doing in the independent space is unprecedented conceptually and it’s absolutely because of our people, not me. And it’s not just the big names. There’s other elite talent that might be less well-known to the industry folks: Shawn Spooner, Muneer Mubashir, Alex Baker, Jeff Jan, Juan Garcia and Jordanna Howard to name-drop just a few. I could name everyone on my team and would feel it’s appropriate. I believe . It’s our willingness to serve one another respectfully that creates a healthy, competitive situation.
…it’s ultimately the culture and environment we’ve created where failure is accepted and “going for it” is the only option
BBoard: You just mentioned some of your Tech or software team. We listened in on your webinar last month of the introduction of Boohma. It was very impressive. OOH Today has sat in demos with 12 different OOH Industry software products. Your’s may be the most capable of all. Tell us about Boohma.
BBillups: Now, why would I do that with all of my competitors reading this? I’m kidding. We’ve been at it a long time — longer than anyone else, to tell the truth. And I’m very proud to say that Boohma is now its own entity. It’s been successfully peeled off from Billups. The combination of data science and software has grown beyond a simple internal tech project to the point where it’s creating its own revenue streams and opportunities.
We have a lot of experience understanding the OOH process gaps and client needs thanks to the daily demands of Billups. Boohma takes that experience and builds on it in a way that’s unleashing the power of OOH at a new level. Shawn Spooner and Muneer Mubashir have improved on my original vision dramatically in a way that’s incredibly exciting and speaks to the future of OOH. There’s more to come for the industry here. Stay tuned.
BBoard: Obviously you’re out of town now. Where will you be for the holidays ?
BBillups: I’m currently in London. As for where I’ll be for the Holidays? All I can say is that I love spending time with my family and am looking for something warm in December.
BBillups: I really enjoyed speaking with you Bill. Bill Board? Is that your real name? I dig the initials and the illustrated man. Is that you?
BBoard: Thank you Ben.
website: billups.com