I’m Jake McKee, aka: The Community Guy. I run Community5, a consultancy focused on helping organizations assess, design, and optimize their online communities and fan engagement programs. Basically, we help ensure that online spaces where customers connect are positive and effective, both for the community members and for the company.
Community5 is my second company. My first, Ant’s Eye View, was sold to PwC (PriceWaterhouse Coopers) in 2012. After I left PwC, I ran the Apple Global Support Communities, one of the largest online communities in existence.
In a past (work) life, I spent nearly 6 years as the Global Community Development Manager for the LEGO Company. My primary function was as a liaison between the company and the adult LEGO hobbyists. I worked on projects and activities that helped to integrate the adult fans in the daily operations of the company.
I was part of the Community Development Team, a group we lovingly called an “incubator for where projects go to be born”. The group was spread over no fewer than 5 countries, and covered a wide range of projects including the LEGO Club, and of course the adult fan relations. We worked to change the company’s approach to one of marketing with consumers, rather than marketing at consumers. (I talk about this in past tense only because I’m no longer part of the team)
I went to school for traditional 3-D product design, but in 1994 I found the Internet. I soon realized that the concepts of product designs applied, but in a brand new way. A few days after graduating with a Product Design degree, I left Oklahoma State U. to move to Dallas and start with i.con interactive, a rising Internet development agencies. Later, I ran the Web development team at NVision Design, the agency that was responsible for the email viral game Elf Bowling. If you know it, you know it well. If you don’t know it, you missed out. It was kind of a big deal…
If you’re interested in finding out more about my work experience, check me out on LinkedIn.
On the personal side, I’m a amateur photographer, and a proud father of the best kid around.