Joi Podgorny

Current

VP, Interactive Development at Ludorum, Inc

Past

Children's Online Media Consultant (Self-employed)
Director of Online Community/User Experience at Star Farm Productions
Interactive Strategy and Audience Research at Star Farm Productions

President, junior auxiliary board at Chicago Dept of Cultural Affairs
Co-Founder, Director of Operations at Kidfu
Camp Director at Cybercamps / Giant Campus
Digital Media Instructor at Univ of Chicago / Chicago Public Schools
Online Community Manager at FreeZone
Pension Benefits Analyst at Hewitt Associates & Mercer
Credit Card Terminal Tech Support at Vital Processing

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Education

University of Chicago
Arizona State University
Arizona State University

EF International Language School

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1 more...

Recommended

6 people have recommended Joi

Connections

401 connections

Industry

Online Media

Websites

Joi Podgorny’s Summary

At Ludorum, I lead the integration of interactive/online strategies into Ludorum's television, publishing and toy properties.

As an independent consultant over the years, I have been able to help organizations with their online community strategies, as well as developing and implementing strategies in the realms of digital production, integrated marketing, and youth interactive research.

In my previous position at Star Farm Productions, I helped build, manage, and scale online communities for kids while developing and implementing the systems and infrastructure needed to make these communities viable. I was the primary interactive contact for all of our vendors/partners including Nicktoons Network, YTV/Corus, ABC (Australia), Neopets, Sparktop, Boys and Girls Clubs of America and more.

Being an entrepreneur in a newer company, at Star Farm I was also able to:
- Articulate our corporate integrated digital marketing strategies for 5 children’s entertainment properties,
- Design team management and organizational structures for our Web Content and Web Marketing departments,
- Lead 2 major website redesigns into include more fan interaction
- Develop a business plan for scalable online community infrastructure for internal and external partners
- Participate in a thorough VC due diligence process
- Develop initial animation production department workflow
- Produce 12 animated 2 minute shorts for broadcast on television
- Develop audience research programs both on and offline

I have been asked to speak at multiple conferences, including KidScreen, Digital Hollywood and YPulse Mashup. Before joining Star Farm, I began championing and implementing COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act) compliance and monitored networks at both Kidfu, a safe online community for children that I co-founded, and FreeZone, one of the first safe online communities for children.

Joi Podgorny’s Specialties:

Online/Digital/Interactive Marketing Strategy, Virtual Worlds, Toys, Social Network Strategy and Management, Safe Children's Online Community Building and Management, Focus Groups and General Research with Children, Project Management

Joi Podgorny’s Experience

VP, Interactive Development

Ludorum, Inc

(Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Online Media industry)

August 2007 — Present (1 year 4 months)

Ludorum is dedicated to developing, acquiring and marketing intellectual entertainment properties, in both the new interactive distribution channels as well as classic linear TV. At Ludorum, I lead the integration of interactive/online strategies into Ludorum's television, publishing and toy properties.
Children's Online Media Consultant

Self-employed

(Self-Employed; Myself Only; Online Media industry)

January 2007 — October 2007 (10 months)
Director of Online Community/User Experience

Star Farm Productions

(Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Online Media industry)

November 2004 — April 2007 (2 years 6 months)

User Experience (UE) Work:
- Develop positions, recruit, and hire all UE team members.
- Ensure new SFP employees are trained on company policies regarding audience management and screening ideology.
- Assess audience needs for properties online and develop strategies that dually satisfy the audiences’ needs as well as the company’s content and marketing directives.
- Lead UE team to facilitate the development, production and management of new property web strategies, to manage new content development for websites already in production, to promote and foster user-generated content from our audience, to continually improve our online community management policies to ensure our practices remain as best practices for the industry, especially in the area of children’s online safety and privacy.
- Manage UE team goals, budgets and schedules.
- Represent the company at targeted trade events, serving as an expert in safe children's online community development.
Interactive Strategy and Audience Research

Star Farm Productions

(Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Online Media industry)

November 2004 — April 2007 (2 years 6 months)

- Being resource for up-to-date online trend information within the demographics our properties are targeting.
- Developing online marketing strategies for SFP properties for use in potential property sales materials and process.
- Managing any promotional projects on our sites.
- Working with the Brand team to manage our brands web presence on non-SFP sites to ensure our marketing messages and branding stay on point wherever our brands our displayed.
- Managing banner ad campaigns on other sites.
- Seeking forward thinking strategies for online advertising budgets.
- Determining advertising solutions for our own sites, while ensuring our safety and content standards.
- Managing monthly site traffic statistics
- Developing audience research projects that are done online, including general market research surveys and specific property market research.
- Managing user testing sessions with members of our key demographics.
President, junior auxiliary board

Chicago Dept of Cultural Affairs

(Government Agency; Non-Profit Organization Management industry)

November 2002 — March 2005 (2 years 5 months)

• Served as an executive officer to a group dedicated to increasing young professionals’ awareness and exposure to Chicago Cultural Center.
• Established monthly newsletter and website and increased membership initiatives leading to a ten-fold increase in membership.
• Successful in fundraising – increasing event attendance by 28% and funds raised by 200% over a 2-year period.
Co-Founder, Director of Operations

Kidfu

(Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Online Media industry)

April 2001 — December 2004 (3 years 9 months)

• One of four owners of http://KidFu.com, a subscription based children’s community website.
• Managed operational concerns of business including accounts payable/receivable, budget design, and benefit management.
• Developed management, marketing and advertising strategies leading to the creation of the company.
• Tracked employee development from hiring through termination.
• Developed concept of KidFu Theatre Company; managed hiring of Managing Directors, auditions, casting, as well as show promotion and sales.
Camp Director

Cybercamps / Giant Campus

(E-Learning industry)

April 2003 — October 2004 (1 year 7 months)

• Directed a computer camp at 2 Chicago-land locations for summer sessions.
• Coordinated and led area training for Midwest camp locations.
• Managed counselors, while teaching multiple computer programs and disciplines to adolescents ranging from age 7-16 via computer based teaching modules.
• Liaison to parents, host-university’s campus representatives and the camp’s corporate headquarters.
Digital Media Instructor

Univ of Chicago / Chicago Public Schools

(Educational Institution; E-Learning industry)

October 2003 — June 2004 (9 months)

• Worked with technology coordinators in four Hyde Park (Chicago) Public Schools to develop a digital media after-school program.
• Taught lessons on Flash, Photoshop and other programs, assisted students with individual projects and facilitated teamwork.
Online Community Manager

FreeZone

(Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Online Media industry)

February 2000 — April 2001 (1 year 3 months)

Before joining Star Farm, Joi began championing and implementing COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act) compliance and monitored networks at FreeZone, the first safe online community for children.

• Developed procedures to help streamline daily routines including implementing a new statistics collecting method to track audience traffic and employee work loads.
• Made media contacts when necessary, acted as an audience liaison for disputes.
• Managed over 25 employees including hiring and training new employees, monitoring logs of other employees for quality assurance, and conflict management.
Pension Benefits Analyst

Hewitt Associates & Mercer

(Public Company; 10,001 or more employees; Outsourcing/Offshoring industry)

February 1999 — May 2000 (1 year 4 months)

- Responded to participant technical questions in regards to pension benefits and trained new employees.
- Client liaison with HR in client companies including National City, Sara Lee and RR Donnelley & Sons.
- Calculated pension amounts for various clients; drafted paperwork for pensions; handled plan provisions from multiple client teams; researched complications to retirement processing.
- Streamlined procedures for organization of information within the office; developed an efficient filing system for recently archived files.
Credit Card Terminal Tech Support

Vital Processing

(Banking industry)

February 1995 — July 1998 (3 years 6 months)

Joi Podgorny’s Education

University of Chicago

MA, Social Science, 2003 — 2004

• MA Social Science; focusing on education policy, public policy, museums and evaluation methodology.
• Thesis: "Studying Visitor Engagement in Virtual Reality Based Children's Science Museum Exhibits.”

Activities and Societies:

Internships:
- SCOPE - part of a children's science museum exhibit development team working with the Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics, SciTech Children's Museum in Aurora, IL and Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum in Chicago, IL
- CUIP - Digital Media Instructor - developed a program and taught digital media basics to 3rd through 8th graders in a variety of Chicago Public School afterschool programs
Arizona State University

BA, Mathematics, 1994 — 1998
Arizona State University

BS, Women's Studies, 1994 — 1998
EF International Language School

French Language and Culture 1994 — 1994

Studied French language and culture while living with a host family for 3 months

Additional Information

Joi Podgorny’s Websites:

Joi Podgorny’s Interests:

safe online communities, children and teen pop culture, project management, gaming, operational effectiveness, virtual worlds, diy culture, counter-culture art