Who Are These People, Anyway?

The Principals

Tom Griffith - Director of Communications
It's amazing what a stint at the University of London, a decade in the newspaper industry, fundraising more than $25 million for Mount Rushmore National Memorial and writing more than four dozen books will do for your ability to communicate. As a member of the prestigious Society of American Travel Writers, Tom has been able to match great travel authors with perfect destinations, facilitating national media coverage. He also has key contacts in the country music and western film industries. [connecting Deadwood to Hollywood.]

Monte Amende - Creative Director
Sure, this University of South Dakota grad has 15 years of design experience and more than a decade of website-building under his belt. Yeah, so he's got closet full of awards hidden behind his desk for great creative. He might compose music over lunch, and maybe his work has been featured on National Public Radio. But what makes Monte a key ARXUM principal is his talent for making solid branding principles and a strong marketing strategy play nicely with effective creative. [Well, that and his goatee.]

Jack Hughes - Director of Web Development
Jack has always been interested in saving the planet - first by spinning punk rock vinyl in the early 80s at WMMR in Minneapolis, then by launching his own recycling consulting firm in the Chicago area. Along the way, Jack discovered that he had a natural talent for harnessing the power of the Internet and digital media. After running his own media firm in Chicago for eight years and bringing website nirvana to dozens of clients in tourism and healthcare, Jack joined the ARXUM team in early 2008. [Not surprisingly, he drives a Prius.]

Dan Daly - Director of Public Relations
After a quarter-century of covering business, election and historic preservation beats as a newspaper columnist in Wyoming, Idaho and South Dakota, it's safe to say that Dan knows a thing or two about the media. Like how newsrooms look at press releases and news conferences. Or how they're likely to perceive a particular industry. Or what doughnuts they like [maple bars go the fastest]. This kind of insider insight - combined with some mad blogging skills - makes Dan supremely qualified to head up ARXUM's public relations efforts.

Dustin Floyd - Digital Strategist
He penned travel books for some of the nation's biggest publishers by his 25th birthday. He helped launch an online multiplayer video game. [And then there's that whole Oxford University-educated thing.] But being part of the first generation to start kindergarten with computers (starting somewhere in ancient antiquity with the Apple IIe), Dustin has unique insight into the way online trends are shaping the buying habits and attitudes of today's consumers. In between blogging and social networking, he's addicted to episodes of Futurama - and, in a true testament to his geekiness, he understands most of the jokes.