Management Team

At our core is a client-centric management team with a proven ability to deliver technology solutions on an enterprise level.

Michael C. Newman

Co-Founder & President & Chief Executive Officer

Michael C. Newman
Co-Founder & President & Chief Executive Officer

Since co-founding Accordent in 1999, Mr. Newman has brought the company from concept to commercial viability and software leadership in the webcast presentation authoring realm. Under his leadership, Accordent's cash revenue has grown in excess of 100% on a CAGR basis since 2001, and the Company has sold hundreds of software licenses to tier-1 enterprise, education and government clients around the world.

Newman is a frequent speaker at industry trade shows and conferences and is widely respected in the streaming industry for his expertise in webcasting technologies and business models. Under his leadership, Accordent has transitioned from a software development company to an enterprise Internet communications solutions provider.

Prior to founding Accordent, Newman was an attorney with the law firm of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP, where he specialized in corporate litigation and debt restructuring. During his tenure at Milbank, Tweed, Newman helped represent some of California's largest venture funds in litigation involving distressed assets, securities fraud, and accountant's liability. Newman is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and Allegheny College.

Michael R. Lorenz

Co-Founder &
Chief Technology Officer

Michael R. Lorenz
Co-Founder &
Chief Technology Officer

Mr. Lorenz has led the design and development of Accordent's award-winning software since the Company's inception. Today, Accordent offers a popular suite of economical, scalable, easy-to-use, media-rich and feature rich enterprise webcast presentation solutions.

Lorenz is highly knowledgeable in the core technology components of Accordent's webcasting realm, and has been named by the editors of Streaming Media Magazine as one of the "50 Most Influential People in Streaming," and a “Streaming Media All Star” for being among the 25 most significant industry figures over the last decade.

Prior to co-founding Accordent, Lorenz worked for the California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development ("OSHPD"), where he helped develop and maintain one of the largest healthcare data centers in the U.S., including designing OSHPD's information systems security programming and managing its Internet-based applications development team. Previously, Lorenz designed and managed technology systems for Pacific Gas & Electric, Florida Power & Light and other companies.

Jereme Pitts

Co-Founder & SVP
Sales and Marketing

Jereme Pitts
Co-Founder & SVP
Sales and Marketing

Mr. Pitts directs all of the Company's sales, marketing and business development activities. He has broad knowledge and understanding of the webcasting, web conferencing and web collaboration industries and their associated business models, technologies, products, pricing and competition. Because of his deep experience and knowledge, he is not only a frequent speaker at industry trade shows and conferences but also a frequent participant in global road shows sponsored by the Company's key resellers.

Prior to founding Accordent, Pitts was Vice President of Sales at Downtown Button & Supply and at Security Printing. During this time, Pitts implemented sales training seminars, managed sales forces in two of the company's divisions, and increased sales from $2.5 million to $15 million. Additionally, during his last two years at Security Printing, Pitts organized and executed the company's regional and national marketing campaigns, with a focus on national retailers with annual account potential in excess of $250,000.

Pitts is a graduate of the Executive Program at the Anderson School of Business of the University of California, Los Angeles.

Marc Haimsohn

Vice President
Business Development

Marc Haimsohn
Vice President
Business Development

Mr. Haimsohn has spearheaded the development and management of Accordent's domestic distribution channels. In addition to having forged key partnerships with leading technology companies and integrators like Intel, Oracle, and Hewlett Packard, Haimsohn has developed Accordent's reseller network throughout North America. At present, he manages partnerships that account for 70% of Accordent's gross revenue.

Prior to joining Accordent and over a fifteen-year span with high technology companies, Haimsohn served in a variety of global sales leadership positions with various technology and telecommunications companies. Most recently Haimsohn was a consultant for Knowledge Broadcasting, a Knowledge Universe company. Prior to that Haimsohn was a critical member of the management team that helped Justice Technology Corporation become the #1 fastest growing company in the U.S, as ranked by Inc. Magazine.

Haimsohn holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Southern California and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Jay Schwartzberg

Vice President
Eastern North America and EMEA

Jay Schwartzberg
Vice President
Eastern North America and EMEA

Mr. Schwartzberg is responsible for Accordent's eastern region direct and indirect sales channel strategies, with a focus on enterprise software sales to the corporate, public sector and education market segments.

A seasoned digital media sales management and business development executive, Schwartzberg brings nearly two decades' experience bridging the gap between media and information technology with expertise in video production, asset management, networking systems, web 2.0 and IP video solutions.

Prior to joining Accordent, Schwartzberg served as Vice President of Sales - Americas for Omnibus Systems, where he successfully sold video production software to broadcast and IPTV customers. Schwartzberg also has served as Director of Business Development - Telecom, Media & Entertainment Vertical for AMD, where he was responsible for developing & growing the company's presence worldwide via ISVs and Strategic End Users. Schwartzberg also served as Vice President of Sales & Business Development for VBrick Systems, a manufacturer of IPTV video solutions; and Regional Director - Video Networking Sales for Grass Valley Group.

Schwartzberg has a MS from Polytechnic University and a BBA from Hofstra University.

Darian Germain

Vice President
Marketing

Darian Germain
Vice President
Marketing

Darian Germain joined Accordent in 2006 to lead the company's brand visibility, media relations and lead-generation programs.

Germain has served in a variety of marketing management positions for Fortune 500 and start-up technology companies in the digital media and communications industries. Mostly recently, she directed global brand establishment and marketing programs for Anystream from start-up unknown to a well-established brand in the media and entertainment industry. Her experience spans both client-side and agency-based advisement, including serving in marketing communications and public relations management for Lockheed Martin Global Telecommunications, and international public relations management for Global One and Sprint International as well as in account management and business development roles for Montreal-based advertising firm Cossette Communications.

Germain holds a Bachelor of Arts from Smith College.

Steve Pattison

Vice President
Strategic Alliances

Steve Pattison
Vice President
Strategic Alliances

Steve Pattison is responsible for worldwide strategic alliances at Accordent. Pattison has over ten years of experience in the rich media and enterprise video software and technology markets, including deep knowledge of the capture, publishing, management and distribution spaces. Pattison has been the primary architect for a number of significant partnerships aligning leading vendors in the networking, video conferencing, encoding and storage industries. A key innovator in the formation of the enterprise video marketplace, Pattison has authored numerous articles and whitepapers, and has been a featured speaker at industry tradeshows, conferences and events.

Prior to joining Accordent, Pattison was Senior Vice President of Marketing and Business Development for Sierra Systems, a large-scale North American provider of IT software and service solutions. Pattison also has served as Vice President of Marketing and Business Development for Media Publisher, and has held executive positions at Interwoven (acquired by Autonomy) and Documentum (acquired by EMC).

Pattison holds an MBA from the Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania, and Bachelor of Science from the University of Minnesota in Marketing and MIS.