Curt Peterson

**** **** ****

Schererville, IN *6375

H: 219-***-****

qehn68@r.postjobfree.com

Senior-Level Marketing, Sales & Operations

Consumer, Manufacturing & Retail, Non-profit

Dynamic operations, sales and marketing management career building and leading top-producing partnerships and sales initiatives spanning 500 retail outlets and 75,000 customers daily in Fortune 500 and national markets. Expert skills in strategic sales planning, key account management, channel development, team leadership and mentoring within direct and indirect selling environments. Personal record of top-digit gains in revenues and market share ratings for competitive multi-million dollar markets. Creative and decisive with strong organizational talents.

Sales Team Leadership / Financial Optimization / Team Building & Motivation / Strategic Alliances / Territory & Distribution Alignment / Project Management / New Business Development / Proposals / Client & Vendor Relations / Presentations / Lifecycle Strategies / Competitive Analysis

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

The Lutheran Magazine, Chicago, IL 2005 to Present

$80M non- profit organization with a national denomination of more than 4 million.

Marketing Director & Publishing Manager

Manage operations, brand awareness, and sales volumes for multiple publications in national market. Spearhead key aspects of contract coordination and negotiation for subscription fulfillment. Communicate product strategies to 10,000 national contacts increasing visibility through outreach and marketing campaigns.

• Improved brand awareness and core retention 22% with integrated marketing plan involving web strategies, direct mail, loyalty promotions and extensive public relation campaigns.

• Inverted 8% annual sales volume decrease and improved market utilization 15% with evaluation of historical sales and market demographics followed with national campaign using direct mail, special events, loyalty programs and integrated communications.

• Boosted advertising revenue 6% and circulation rate 12% by developing premium and in-house advertising rates, including value-added with web incentives and tiered pricing plans.

• Spurred new revenue after identifying market opportunities and launch of communication plan using web strategies, direct mail campaign and strategic alliances with end-users increasing profit 10%.

• Reduced variable production expenses $12% as a result of identifying expense drivers and implementing margin improvement plans.

The Times, Munster, IN 2004 to 2005

$80M newspaper publisher with 85,000 daily and 95,000 Sunday subscribers.

Circulation Director

Recruited to highly visible position tasked with spearheading financial turnaround for underperforming operations. Accountable for revitalizing sales, service, collections and distribution of product with $16M in revenue and $7M in annual expenses. Supervised multi-site operations with 4 direct reports, 55 down-line employees and 350 independent contractors.

• Reduced distribution expenses $65K, improved bad debt write-offs $50K and spurred customer retention 20% by establishing execution benchmarks and managing by accountability performance objectives.

• Elevated brand awareness in highly competitive market through strategic alliances with market advertisers, product sampling and special event marketing.

• Bumped consumer sales 5% over prior years by developing forecasting model, executing market segmentation and applying strategic sales plan based on demographics.

• Increased revenue 5% through analysis of price elasticity to service and demographic variables, implementation of market-based pricing tiers, control of sales incentives and inventory management.

Curt Peterson - Page Two

Portland Press Herald & Sunday Maine Telegram, Portland, ME 2000 to 2004

$75M Statewide newspaper publisher.

Vice President & Circulation Director

Joined organization to lead marketing and sales activities for $15M in revenue operation and $7M expense budget. Supervised 4 direct reports, 52 down-line employees and 400 independent contractors.

• Improved department efficiency 10%, increased customer satisfaction 15% and propelled core retention 8% by implementing performance management standards in unionized department.

• Amplified revenue $200K by developing a market data base and leading new product initiatives with analysis, campaign roll-out and creation of new vertical sales channels.

• Slashed expenses $175K by reengineering distribution and operations of circulation department, including minimizing route deliveries, realigning territories, streamlining delivery patterns and negotiating distributor rates.

• Increased sales volumes 11% through market research, analysis and implementation of tactical sales promotions, including strategic partnerships with retailers and advertisers

Duluth New Tribune, Duluth, MN 1994 to 2000

$50M newspaper publisher spanning a three-state territory (MN, WI, and MI).

Circulation Sales Director

Held directly accountable for strategic leadership of circulation department related to $10M in revenue. Supervised 3 direct reports, 40 employees and 400 contractors.

• Received top-tier customer satisfaction rating and improved core retention 15% with “do-it-right-first” campaign and improving customer relationship with direct mail, telemarketing and loyalty promotions.

• Increased total revenues $300K by developing a marketing data base strategy.

• Enhanced profit $400,000 by streamlining operations and distribution into new segments.

• Increased sales volumes 10% through market analysis, forecasting and integrated sales campaigns.

• Enhanced brand recognition through special event campaigns, strategic alliances and major sponsorships.

Additional prior experience includes role as Regional Sales Manager and Field Sales Manager at The Chicago Tribune; recognized for contributions that boosted field sales volume 12% in mature market; conducted industry training seminars in Product Life strategies, customer service and loyalty as well as retail and consumer sales strategies.

EDUCATION:

M.B.A., Marketing

Keller Graduate School of Management – Chicago, IL

B.S., Business (minor concentration in Accounting)

Governors State University – Park Forest, IL

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT:

Circulation Management Association Board Member

Portland Downtown Business Council

Suburban Postal Customer Council

Audit Bureau Rules Committee

Community Leadership School

American Marketing Association

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