I can genuinely say that I've been a student of community development for nearly 14 years. In the mid-'90s, I helped re-build Apple's developer relations programs - reaching tens of thousands of developers (many of which felt forsaken at that time). I then spent the late '90's at Sun, creating the company's first-ever global developer relations programs. With the remarkable tail-wind of Java and Solaris, we built the largest and most successful developer programs in the world (yep, we even surpassed Microsoft).

Also, I've spent a good bit of my career near data and its analysis. After I left Sun, I spent a few years at Brio - helping to advance this venerable silicon valley brand. After we sold the company to Hyperion, I spent a couple of years at Informatica where I learned even more about world-class data warehouses and customers who appreciate deep analytics. So, Business Intelligence (BI software and products) has become a real passion.

Now at JasperSoft, the market-leader in open source Business Intelligence, I get to marry two of my favorite activities: building community and promoting business intelligence.

I hope to provide a feet-on-the-street view within this blog - by infusing real-world customer and community experience to keep the conversation on point. I look forward to participating and invite all ideas and feedback.

Brian Gentile
Chief Executive Officer
JasperSoft