Executive Biographies -> Management
Mike Detwiler - President and CEO
Paul Schmidt - Chief Financial Officer
Al Wojcik - Vice President of Sales
B. Andrew Pickens, Jr. - Vice President and Legal Counsel
Jennifer Gaddy - Director of Marketing
Mike Detwiler - President and CEO
Mike Detwiler has successfully managed growth and change inside some of the world's most innovative companies for more than 25 years. He has held senior management roles in major corporations and start-up companies, and his broad functional expertise includes business planning, product management, and strategic marketing. Mike has focused his career in the technology and financial services industries.
Prior to founding BLUERIDGE Analytics, Mike was president of The Detwiler Group, a consulting firm that specialized in taking emerging businesses to their next level of growth. Cllients included Shareholder.com, an Internet-based investor communications company; Darwin Partners, an IT consulting firm; and Mediastream, a marketing agency targeting clients in services, technology, and manufacturing. Acting as interim CEO, he led Mediastream to profitability by winning large contracts and establishing critical production and financial controls.
Mike has held senior management positions in major corporations and startup companies, such as The Boeing Company and Thomson Financial Services. At Thomson, he developed the business plan and secured corporate funding for Research Direct, an investment research platform that generated approximately $100 million of revenue in three years. His broad functional expertise includes technology sales, software product management, and strategic marketing. Mike earned an M.S. in computer science from Northwestern University and a B.S. in mathematics and computer science from Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania.
Mike believes in the power of teams and that effective leadership is strategy-based, process-oriented and grounded by integrity. This philosophy, combined with an unwavering focus on maximizing shareholder value, drives his daily decision-making at BLUERIDGE.
Paul Schmidt - Chief Financial Officer
Paul Schmidt has focused his career on providing hands-on financial, operational, and strategic leadership to emerging companies, from public microcap companies in high tech industries to private equity-backed high growth manufacturing and distribution companies in the middle market. He has directed business development efforts consolidating dozens of entrepreneurial companies in industry roll-ups, conducting both the due-diligence and integration efforts.
Paul currently provides BLUERIDGE with part-time CFO services. Paul is also Managing Partner of NaviscentGroup, LLC. As founding partner of this firm, Paul is responsible for its strategic direction and growth. Mr. Schmidt is a former CPA who has over 30 years of experience as a public accountant, controller and CFO for private and public companies.
Al Wojcik - Vice President of Sales
Al Wojcik is a global sales leader with over 20 years of experience in hiring and developing EMEA-APAC-US direct sales teams, channels,and distributors. Al is responsible for design and execution of domestic and international reseller channels for SITEOPS products. Al's key areas of expertise include strategic planning, relationship management, marketing, and new business development.
Prior to joining BLUERIDGE, Al held senior positions with Autodesk, PTC, and Engineous (later acquired by Dassault / Simulia). He has deep experience with international software distribution and aggressive growth sales strategy, and his most recent roles involved global sales and marketing of optimization technology and CAD / CAE software.
B. Andrew Pickens, Jr. - Vice President and General Counsel
Drew Pickens is a highly regarded corporate attorney with extensive corporate finance and capital markets experience. His practice has involved structuring, negotiation, and execution of a wide variety of transactions representing both domestic and international clients, including emerging growth companies. With an emphasis on trasactional work, his practice has included public and private debt and equity offerings, mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, commercial paper programs, and various forms of structured and other financings.
Prior to joining BLUERIDGE, Drew served as head of the capital markets practice area for a 750-person national law firm, working with major investment banks and key corporate clients. He also headed the capital markets/securities practice at a large regional firm based in Charlotte, NC, where he chaired the firm's securities committee and insider trading compliance team. Drew practiced law in New York for nearly 10 years after graduating at the top of his law school class, where he achieved Order of the Coif and served on the Managing Board of the Law Review. He is admitted to practice in both New York and California.
Jennifer Gaddy - Director of Marketing
Jennifer Gaddy is a creative, detail-oriented team member with a broad range of communications and design skills. Jennifer has 14 years of professional experience in marketing, graphic design, commercial printing, and curriculum content development. Jennifer’s combination of visual design capability with a strong writing and editing background gives her a powerful edge in marketing and public relations. Jennifer holds a B.A. in English from the College of Charleston.
Prior to her role with BLUERIDGE, Jennifer operated a freelance marketing and graphic design business. She also served as Creative Director for Topics Education, an educational design and development firm with a focus on corporate responsibility and community outreach curricula.
