The Operator's Notebook
Marketing, engineering, and AI — written from inside the work. What I'm building, what's working, and what isn't. No hype.
Read on SubstackThings I've built and shipped.
Owned properties, client work, and tools. Ordered by what matters to me right now.
The operator behind it.
I’m an independent operator building AI tools and marketing systems for small businesses. My work brings together 20+ years in digital marketing with hands-on software development: identifying useful applications for AI, building the systems, and making them work in everyday operations.
I came up through the work. Webmaster, then developer, then digital marketing leader, then VP of Digital Marketing at an agency where I drove 300% revenue growth and scaled digital properties to tens of millions of users. That experience taught me how businesses attract customers, build trust, and turn attention into revenue.
Today, my projects include AI-assisted marketing and compliance tools for independent financial advisors, content workflows, and web products I develop and run myself. I share what I’m learning about AI implementation and software engineering in The Operator’s Notebook.
I’ve also run LearnItalianPod since 2004, now past 28 million lifetime downloads, and built ItalianChat, an AI Italian tutor with a bilingual voice coach. Operating my own products keeps me accountable for the whole business: acquisition, retention, maintenance, and revenue.
I completed HarvardX’s CS50W, Web Programming with Python and JavaScript. I keep learning through the software I build, test, and maintain.
// off the screenI train hard. Strength six days a week, with close attention to nutrition. I’m a certified personal trainer and fitness nutritionist. Consistency matters to me, in the gym and in the work.