Kurt Illian
VP, Business Development
Kurt Illian was the third person through the door at Solid Cactus. "I like to think of myself as our first domestic hire," he laughs. "Joe Palko, one of the co-founders of Solid Cactus wanted to bring Stas (Beletsky) and Andrey (Smagin) over from Kyrgyzstan. Once they had their visas Joe knew where he was headed and he hired me." Kurt came aboard with Solid Cactus in 2002. He has seen it all and done it all. Vice President of Business Development is where Kurt finds himself today.
"Before being Vice President of Business Development I was Director of E-Commerce at our sister company Neeps Inc.," Kurt recalls. "Before that I was a Senior Account Manager at Solid Cactus, a sales position. Before that, I was a Solutions Engineer. That involved sales too, but with more of a technical leaning. I was assigned to our more complex projects. Before that I was Director of Sales. Before that I was an Account Manager. These days we call 'em Project Managers. Back then I was one of two. Now we have at least ten. We've grown. Before that, it was more of a grey area."
How grey? "Well, back then I designed, I managed, I handled sales," says Kurt. "What can I say? There were 10 of us. We all did everything."
Kurt Illian found Solid Cactus the old-fashioned way. He looked for an industry he liked. "I studied Mass Communications at Kings College in Wilkes-Barre," Kurt recalls. "From middle school on I was fascinated by computers and even did my own designs. I took every design and Internet-related course I could in college. When I graduated I checked out local businesses by visiting their web sites. I saw one company I liked, but I liked their web site even better. I looked up who made their site and called. It was Joe Palko and co-founder Scott Sanfilippo. I told Joe I'd like to work for him and I thought I nailed the interview. He said if he could get these two guys over from Kyrgyzstan he'd hire me. When their visas came through, I came aboard."
Kurt says working for Solid Cactus has been a whirlwind. About the reaction you'd expect from a guy who watched his company soar from 3 to more than 100 in five years. "I came in excited about working for a cool design company," Kurt says. "Now I'm riding this incredible wave of growth. All the while some things haven't changed. The people here care about you. From the very beginning, from the top down they've run a flexible, relaxed and positive environment. Working at Solid Cactus, you know people want you to be happy.
"That feeds throughout the company. Joe and Scott have made sure to hire quality people. Sure, we've had a few who didn't work out, but only a few. We have quality people who care about each other and care about our clients. We're succeeding and we're passing that success on to our clients."
Spoken like a true Vice President of Business Development. But that positive attitude is what Kurt sells and he knows it works. He's seen the results. "The most fascinating thing about watching this company grow is how skillfully they place the right people in the right positions. It's wonderful to watch someone blossom with the freedom, responsibility and support they get here. It's great. I've had the chance to work on great accounts like Lance Armstrong's web site, Taylor Made Adidas Golf and many others."
Kurt loves the prospects. "I hope to ride the wave and continue to build this company," he says. "We have the chance to be one of the great e-commerce developers out there. I'll do anything I can to benefit Solid Cactus." Kurt Illian has proved that, literally from day one.
"Before being Vice President of Business Development I was Director of E-Commerce at our sister company Neeps Inc.," Kurt recalls. "Before that I was a Senior Account Manager at Solid Cactus, a sales position. Before that, I was a Solutions Engineer. That involved sales too, but with more of a technical leaning. I was assigned to our more complex projects. Before that I was Director of Sales. Before that I was an Account Manager. These days we call 'em Project Managers. Back then I was one of two. Now we have at least ten. We've grown. Before that, it was more of a grey area."
How grey? "Well, back then I designed, I managed, I handled sales," says Kurt. "What can I say? There were 10 of us. We all did everything."
Kurt Illian found Solid Cactus the old-fashioned way. He looked for an industry he liked. "I studied Mass Communications at Kings College in Wilkes-Barre," Kurt recalls. "From middle school on I was fascinated by computers and even did my own designs. I took every design and Internet-related course I could in college. When I graduated I checked out local businesses by visiting their web sites. I saw one company I liked, but I liked their web site even better. I looked up who made their site and called. It was Joe Palko and co-founder Scott Sanfilippo. I told Joe I'd like to work for him and I thought I nailed the interview. He said if he could get these two guys over from Kyrgyzstan he'd hire me. When their visas came through, I came aboard."
Kurt says working for Solid Cactus has been a whirlwind. About the reaction you'd expect from a guy who watched his company soar from 3 to more than 100 in five years. "I came in excited about working for a cool design company," Kurt says. "Now I'm riding this incredible wave of growth. All the while some things haven't changed. The people here care about you. From the very beginning, from the top down they've run a flexible, relaxed and positive environment. Working at Solid Cactus, you know people want you to be happy.
"That feeds throughout the company. Joe and Scott have made sure to hire quality people. Sure, we've had a few who didn't work out, but only a few. We have quality people who care about each other and care about our clients. We're succeeding and we're passing that success on to our clients."
Spoken like a true Vice President of Business Development. But that positive attitude is what Kurt sells and he knows it works. He's seen the results. "The most fascinating thing about watching this company grow is how skillfully they place the right people in the right positions. It's wonderful to watch someone blossom with the freedom, responsibility and support they get here. It's great. I've had the chance to work on great accounts like Lance Armstrong's web site, Taylor Made Adidas Golf and many others."
Kurt loves the prospects. "I hope to ride the wave and continue to build this company," he says. "We have the chance to be one of the great e-commerce developers out there. I'll do anything I can to benefit Solid Cactus." Kurt Illian has proved that, literally from day one.