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About Derek


Derek F Martin is the Chief Technology Officer with Scare Your Soul, a startup focused on creating a practice of courage.  Derek also leads the Perform Solutions LLC team, consulting with small to medium sized clients to leverage CRM and database marketing to increase customer acquisition and retention. 

Prior industry roles include Director of CRM and Marketing Technology with the International Rescue Committee, supporting a 75+ platform marketing stack to help drive donor engagement and donations.  Other roles include Executive Director of Customer Relationship Management with Laureate, Director of CRM and Retention with Metlife, and Director of Sales with Velti, developing and selling mobile solutions for loyalty, advertising, application, and SMS.

Before Velti, Derek was Director of Relationship Care(SM) for American Express World Services where Derek led customer engagement, sales, and retention for the global consumer telephone centers in 24 countries. He defined and established Customer Relationship Management strategy, performance metrics, marketing offer management, rep incentives and new capabilities to drive sales revenue and NPS scores. 

Derek developed his appreciation for operations as a director in the American Express Service Network Strategy and Engineering team, where he managed a $50MM portfolio in annual CAPEX investment and generated $65MM in six sigma reengineering savings. It was an labor of love to facilitate a team of cross functional leaders to define and execute the Platinum and Centurion Servicing strategy and contribute to these iconic branded products.

Before joining American Express, Derek was a VP of Strategic Sourcing with Broadlane and strategy consultant with Mitchell Madison Group. Derek has traded coffee with Cargill in Peru and was a business volunteer with the Peace Corps in Senegal, West Africa. Derek holds his MBA from the University of Michigan.

Outside of work, Derek enjoys playing music, surfing, and writing. He has six sigma black belt training and is a first degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.

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