Joel Vincent

Current

Director, Marketing at Meru Networks
Executive Director/Founder at OpenWine Consortium

Past

Partner, Marketing Strategy at VinTank
Principal/Founder at Vincent Group
Sr. Manager, Outdoor Wireless Systems at Cisco Systems

Director, Marketing at Meru Networks
Sr. Manager, Product Marketing at Conxion Corporation
Sr. Product Manager at Coppercom, Inc
Product Marketing Manager at NETGEAR
Technical Marketing Manager at International Network Services

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Education

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Recommended

11 people have recommended Joel

Connections

370 connections

Industry

Computer Networking

Websites

Joel Vincent’s Summary

I am currently the Director of Marketing for Meru Networks heading up the Social Media efforts and revamping product marketing and positioning.

Prior to my return to Meru Networks, I was a partner and one of the founders of VinTank - a Digital Strategy and Technology consultancy. I was in charge of Marketing Strategy both for the firm itself and for our clients. Vintank is a specialized development firm helping companies get into and manage online wine business and ecommerce.

I am also the Founder and Executive Director of the OpenWine Consortium (the OWC), a global trade association whose mission is to partner technology with the wine industry to open new avenues of business and networking in the wine world. With over 3300 members and businesses among its membership, the OWC runs education and networking events around the globe and maintains the largest online social network dedicated to the wine industry.

Prior to OWC, I led product marketing and management teams at Cisco, Meru Networks, CopperCom, Netgear, and Lucent where I successfully brought over 65 products and services to market worldwide, garnering awards ranging from Comdex best-in-show to a nomination for a ComputerWorld Smithsonian award.

I combine over 15 years of experience in the high-technology industry and a lifelong passion for wine with my degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to provide a visionary voice to technology industries.

Joel Vincent’s Specialties:

Product management and marketing for high technology companies. I focus purely on what it takes to move from a robust, extensible technology to high-value, business-changing solution. Smart people make great technology, I make technology great!

Joel Vincent’s Experience

Director, Marketing

Meru Networks

(Privately Held; Wireless industry)

June 2009 — Present (10 months)

Director of Marketing and Social Media
* Manage and direct all outbound technology and product messaging
* Manage and drive community and architectural fan base through social media
* Drive thought leadership and evangelism for Meru as a business critical system
Executive Director/Founder

OpenWine Consortium

(Marketing and Advertising industry)

February 2008 — Present (2 years 2 months)

OpenWine Consortium is a global, wine industry association featuring the newest generation of emerging companies, wineries, publishers, services and a motivated community dedicated to changing the world of wine.

The OWC was founded in February 2008 as an association of Internet business leaders in the wine trade with its doors open to all portions of the wine trade ecosystem. Internet technologies have changed the definition of “business” by enabling even single person publishing efforts to have global impact. OWC leverages this new age of business by operating the world’s largest online wine social network.

As a leading authority on Internet and social technology and its use in the wine value chain, the mission of OpenWine Consortium (OWC) is to partner technology with the wine industry to open new avenues of business and networking in the wine world.
Partner, Marketing Strategy

VinTank

(Think Tanks industry)

December 2008 — April 2009 (5 months)

I am a partner and one of the founders of VinTank - A digital strategy and technology consultancy. We believe that when ideas meet technology that markets are changed forever. Not just philosophically or esoterically, but practically.

Ideas are our guiding light, and we have a passion for thinking big. We delve deep into emerging trends, technologies, new businesses and we are always exploring the digital possibilities and what it means for business.

Ultimately, when our ideas meet Our Approach and Our Business Model then we can unearth new business opportunities together.
Principal/Founder

Vincent Group

(Management Consulting industry)

March 2008 — December 2008 (10 months)

Vincent Group is a consultancy uniquely specializing in product marketing for high technology companies. We focus purely on what it takes to move from a robust, extensible technology to high-value, business-changing solution.
Sr. Manager, Outdoor Wireless Systems

Cisco Systems

(Public Company; 10,001 or more employees; CSCO; Computer Networking industry)

July 2006 — July 2008 (2 years 1 month)

Roles and Responsibilities:
• Creating cross business unit vision for Outdoor Wireless technologies (Wi-Fi and WiMAX) and solutions
• Lead Marketing Team that determined market penetration strategy for Outdoor Wireless and executed marketing campaigns into key verticals globally (Metropolitan area wireless, Industrial)
Key Accomplishments:
• Launched Wi-Fi Mesh networking solution for Metro-area networks
• Moved Cisco from laggard to leader in Outdoor Wi-Fi within 12 months (according to analyst reports)
• Launched industry’s first Public Safety focused Wi-Fi solution
Director, Marketing

Meru Networks

(Privately Held; Wireless industry)

July 2003 — March 2006 (2 years 9 months)

Roles and Responsibilities:
• Build and manage Marketing organization for pre-launch company.
• Act as company evangelist, public spokesperson, and industry thought leader.
• Determine corporate and product positioning based on target customer needs and drive campaigns to create market leading “larger-than-life” image.
• Developing product roadmaps & go-to-market strategies for Meru’s wireless LAN products.
Key Accomplishments:
• Launched company in 2003 by positioning technology in Voice over WLAN. Created and advocated voice positioning to Sr management and won their approval. Meru Networks is still widely regarded the clear leader in that space worldwide.
• Established Meru to top enterprises as technology leader with placement in Gartner “Magic Quadrant” only 3 months after company launch.
• Won InterOp “Best-in-Show” for wireless category for product launch in 2005 over Cisco, Aruba Wireless, and other established companies.
Sr. Manager, Product Marketing

Conxion Corporation

(Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Computer Networking industry)

February 2001 — May 2003 (2 years 4 months)

Roles and Responsibilities:
• Build and manage the product marketing organization for the managed hosting service provider company.
• Manage the profitability of individual service lines – including Core Services and Storage Services.
• Develop, execute, and track marketing-generated sales inquiries and follow-up tools for the sales team.
Sr. Product Manager

Coppercom, Inc

(Privately Held; 201-500 employees; Computer Networking industry)

December 1999 — February 2001 (1 year 3 months)

Roles and Responsibilities:
• Manage product and go-to-market strategy for the voice and data Integrated Access Device (IAD) product line.
• Drive multiple cross-functional product teams (including manufacturing, engineering, sales, customer service, and finance) to create market-specific solutions for ILECs and CLECs.

Key Accomplishments:
• Established the product line strategic vision and execution plan for the industry’s first Voice over DSL (VoDSL) router.
• Designed and launched industry’s first VoBB Integrated Access Device. Successful trials in every top ILEC. Nominated for Computerworld Smithsonian Award in 2000.
• Established and executed the marketing plans for SMB and MTU/MDU market segments.
• Developed product plan for next generation MEGACO-based IAD.
Product Marketing Manager

NETGEAR

(Public Company; 51-200 employees; NTGR; Computer Networking industry)

January 1998 — December 1999 (2 years )

Roles and Responsibilities:
• Manage the small and medium business and home-based business product lines under the NETGEAR brand.
• Lead product planning - including defining market requirements, business plan development, marketing plan development, sales training, channel planning, and product line positioning.
• Manage OEM relationships and outsourced manufacturing relationships.
Key Accomplishments:
• Founded and managed the NETGEAR brand home networking product business. First commercial launch of 10Mbps (HPNA 2.0) products.
• Successfully managed 30 products from inception to launch worldwide (Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, and Africa) localized into four languages.
• Established process for outsourced manufacturing and distribution with partners in Taiwan, China, and Hong Kong. Strategy reduced manufacturing expenses by 35% in order to compete in the small business market.
Technical Marketing Manager

International Network Services

(Public Company; 1001-5000 employees; INSS; Information Technology and Services industry)

1994 — 1997 (3 years )

Managed product releases, competitive positioning, market research, sales analyses, marketing communications, documentation, white papers, and business development for EnterprisePRO (Network Management System).