Steve is celebrating his 4 year anniversary at Stride—here’s a bit about his journey from a 7th grade advertiser to Stride’s Chief Marketing Officer.

Steve, you’re Stride’s Chief Marketing Officer—tell us a bit about what you do and what a typical day looks like as a CMO.

I’m responsible for making sure our marketing, partnerships, and member experience teams are set up to do their very best work. That means I spend most of my time talking with people who are interested in joining our team, helping the team understand our goals and priorities, and making sure everyone feels like they have the tools, time, and support to make an impact.

Where are you from originally?

I grew up in the southernmost part of New Jersey—an area called Cape May County—known as the very first seaside resort in America. It’s a beautiful place with rich history, amazing beaches, and incredible people. I miss it a lot.

What were you doing before you joined Stride?

I’ve spent the latter part of my career working at startups; right before Stride I was looking after marketing and sales at Imgur—a visual sibling to Reddit—where our mission was to help people discover some of the most entertaining images, gifs, and stories from all across the internet. Before that I worked at Pinterest and LinkedIn when they were both startups.

Why did you choose to work at Stride?

It was such an easy decision; Stride has this inspiring mission of helping independent workers achieve financial security, and an incredibly smart, collaborative, and driven team that genuinely wants to help people who really need it. To be a part of something that touches so many people’s lives in such a positive way was a no-brainer; it’s kind of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

What’s the most rewarding part about working at Stride?

Every day we hear stories from independent workers—delivery & rideshare drivers, caregivers, hair stylists, creators and artists, freelancers and realtors—who tell us what a difference we’ve made in their lives.

They say things like they haven’t had health coverage for three years because they were too intimidated by the process and didn’t think they could afford it. As a result, they’ve lived in constant stress, hoping they wouldn’t have any unexpected medical situations.

But they found Stride, and got themselves a high-quality, Affordable Care Act health insurance plan for $10 per month and did it all from their mobile device in 10 minutes. Now they feel so much better about their financial situation for themselves and their families.

It’s hard to think of anything more rewarding than knowing you’ve made a difference in someone’s life on that kind of level.

What’s your favorite memory at Stride (so far)?

Oh man, this is a hard one—there are so many! But it’s probably the scavenger hunt we did in San Francisco, where we split up into teams, dressed up in crazy costumes, and ran around the Mission District looking for clues to lead us to the next challenge. It was so much fun hanging out with teammates and learning about some really cool, yet obscure, aspects of The Mission!

What are some of your hobbies and interests?

I love being outside and get out every chance I can; I try to explore at least one new national park and visit one new country every year.

I recently rekindled my love affair with skateboarding—I wear a lot more padding than I did when I was younger—and started riding a Onewheel, which has been an absolute blast.

If I have some extra time I occasionally jump into a video game, especially those with deep, engaging stories.

What opportunities are you most excited for within the next year at Stride? 

Health insurance has never been more affordable for more people, and yet we still have way too many people who are uninsured—and a lot of those people are spending a lot of time in cars delivering food and groceries, driving us to airports, etc. So I’m really excited about making a big dent in that uninsured number.

What’s a fun fact about yourself that the team would be surprised to know?

I got my start in advertising in 7th grade. We had a class project where everyone had to start a little business so we could learn about economics; some kids decided to sell candy, others decided to sell pencils and school supplies, some kids sold crafts.

I couldn’t come up with anything, but I figured all of the other kids would need to advertise their stuff—so I started an ad agency and made their posters and flyers.

Favorite food? 

Cheese. On burgers, french fries, crackers, pretty much anything.

Want to work with Steve to help everyone get their own affordable benefits? We’re hiring!