We think that all of our staff members are impressive, but our VP of Business Operations Chris Sarette just showed us all up.  He was recently named The Best Product Person (TBPP) of 2011, which is the leading international award honoring excellence in Product Management.  Established in 2010, TBPP is awarded annually in association with The Product Guy and The Product Group, which gives our staff a year to step up our game until the next award is presented.

The purpose of the award (besides the awesomeness of digital praise) is a way for the Product community to get together to recognize excellence amongst the ranks, as well as to provide insights into that excellence in a manner we can all learn from and leverage.  There are countless things we could learn from Chris (how to mix cocktails, how to appreciate Russian-Georgian food, how to actually go to the dentist every 6 months) but the thing we’re most impressed with is his passion for the quantitative side of business.  He first signed on with Invisible Children to help with developmental strategy.  Chris then initiated and directed the Schools for Schools program before transitioning into his current position as VP of Business Operations.  He now manages IC’s core operations, including Technology, HR,  Shipping, Office Management, and Data Management.  In addition to those duties, he oversees Mend, IC’s social enterprise that produces high quality bags that are produced by Ugandan seamstresses that are former abductees, or wives to the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebel commanders.  Chris directly supervises the designs, prototypes, and supply lines.  We’re talking everything from threads, to buckles, to fabric decisions (read: this guy has great taste).

He started out as a self-proclaimed “numbers guy,” appreciating the math that accompanies sourcing, production schedules, and sales strategies.  He soon discovered an interest and affection for working in a hybrid creative/logistical space, and bringing a product from design, through sourcing and sampling, and into final production.

We are lucky to have him as our inspiring co-worker, and can only hope that his award-winning abilities will rub off on the rest of us.

-Krista