Team Leadership
A true “Driver,” Brunken Increases expectations and team throughput from day one. Endearment and trust are earned as the team recognizes Brunken’s passion for seeing others succeed. By harnessing the power of serving customers by first pouring into his direct reports, Brunken increases recurring sales. And Brunken ruthlessly weeds out processes that don’t create clearly identifiable value.
Strategy
Dedicated to the alignment of company and client interests, Brunken cultivates a richer client base by excising unfit accounts and prioritizing awesome customer experiences for high-value clients. His experience in litigation and business law enables adept maneuvering in high-risk environments. A maverick at heart, Brunken constantly looks for innovation opportunities and welcomes rocking boats.
Product. Assists entrepreneurs with iterating their MVP and value propositions to identify product-market fit, improve start-up traction, and secure initial sales. Prior experience as a litigation paralegal, operations manager, and horticultural products salesman uniquely qualify him to empower entrepreneurs with the breadth of skills necessary to bootstrap and commercialize a technical product
UX. Maps user avatars and customer journeys before conducting customer interviews that concisely identify customer needs and pain points. Years of customer service enable Brunken to empathize with customer experiences and generate exceptional experiences for high value customers
Omaha Austin Lincoln
SUMMARY
Technical product manager that cultivates an atmosphere of care, service, and product expertise because I believe that investing in team success is the predicate to the team creating customer success. Consults start-ups on refined value propositions, product-market fit, positioning, and team selection.
EXPERIENCE
Co-Founder, Chief of Product, BUYSBA.com
- Developed initial thesis and validated through hundreds of stakeholder interviews
- Directed all aspects of MVP development, including customer journey, creation of proprietary fintech tools
- Managed all iterations of BuySBA tech, including ShareCIM, the Deal Room, Broker Que, and Asset Purchase Agreement (APA) builder
- Commanded our community development initiative, resulting in value-enhancing partnerships with several University affiliates
- Lead contact for all investment and strategic partnerships
SR. VENTURE ANALYST, UNETECH
- Developed customer discovery framework for start-up accelerator to improve product-market fit, thereby boosting expected revenue and royalties
- Applied customer discovery findings to consulted medical device start-ups through iteration, and to “first dollar” (revenue)
- Supervised junior venture analysts creating business strategy reports. Our reports were employed to recruit entrepreneurs and advise on new business development
- Guided market research initiatives and special projects, including product and company valuations; worked directly with CEOs on product management initiatives
- Team produced six financial models, 18 strategy reports, and engaged 22 investors and entrepreneurs Conducted hundreds of customer interviews through cold-calling, surveys, and networking in the healthcare industry
NURSERY SALES CONSULTANT, LANOHA DEVELOPMENTS
Conducted virtual site visits to recommend tree options for commercial, development, and estate properties. Analyzed logistics, soil structure, and environmental impacts of spade trees prior to installation.
BRANCH MANAGER, KAW VALLLEY
- Operations: Led branch set up, conducted all hiring, training, and supervision
- Ranked: First among 65 locations in sales per square foot and per labor hour
- Leadership: Managed 18 direct reports as team manager
CLOSING MANAGER, ACE HARDWARE
- Transitioned processes from independent franchise to Lowe’s corporate-owned franchise while navigating retail operations through the Covid epidemic
- Directed inventory, purchasing, displays, and vendor relations
- Leadership: Managed 10 direct reports as training lead
Highlights
Team Management Product Management
Product Owner Innovation
Advanced Excel & Word Market Analysis
Business Development Go-to-Market Strategy
Customer Discovery Hubspot; Asana
Market research Consultant
Customer Success Apollo.io; Pitchbook
EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA – OMAHA
BBA-MBA, Investment Science
LIBERTY UNIVERSITY
Business & Paralegal Studies
Magna Cum Laude
CERTIFICATES
Paralegal Certificate
Customer Insights, University of Illinois 2022
SPECIALIZED COURSEWORK
Mergers & Acquisitions
White Collar Criminal Defense
Strategy for Executives
