Om Announces New CEO

Today, Om announced the appointment of Paul Walborsky to the position of CEO at GigaOmni Media. When Om started GigaOm, he had a much larger vision for the company than just his GigaOm blog, hence the formal company name “GigaOmni Media,” which is the official name. We believed then that his vision for a new kind of publishing company in the business and technology news segment was a big idea. At True, we are used to big things starting small, but watching a great entrepreneur create and build never ceases to amaze and impress us. Om is that entrepreneur at GigaOm, and he has flawlessly built a very real company in a very exciting market. The blog-based media industry has changed dramatically in the last two years, and Om has consistently bet on the right people, products, and markets to navigate this industry. Om’s steady hand, bold vision, and sheer force of will created this opportunity for us all.

The promotion of Paul is a great example of a Om’s talents and judgment at work. Paul joined us in June of 2006 as the COO of GigaOm, but his relationship with Om went back many years before his start date. Like most good business partnerships, Om and Paul’s relationship was built on mutual respect and a tremendous amount of trust built over many years of working together. Paul’s abilities were appreciated on day one. He took charge of the business side of the house, which freed up Om to pursue his passion: writing, editing, and new products. Paul fit well with the team, and his focus and skill moved the company beyond the start-up phase. As partners this past year, Paul and Om successfully built additional products and blogs for GigaOm: NewTeeVee, Earth2Tech, jkontherun, Ostatic, WebWorkerDaily. They started a conference business and have a few other innovative products in the pipeline. Paul’s promotion today will allow the company to further these developments and expand in other significant ways.

As an investor, today’s announcement is a CEO hire of the best kind. Today, our Founder Om promoted someone he knows well and trust very much. Paul shares the founding vision of the company but also brings the depth of experience and judgment that we need to take the company to the next level of scale and growth. He is a natural leader, and his people skills and genuine empathy have made the GigaOm family stronger and tighter.

We are entering the next phase in the growth and professionalization of the blogosphere. This next phase will be characterized by significantly larger business opportunities but also additional risk and uncertainty due to the changes in the adjacent mainstream media markets. We are now in the world of higher table stakes and bolder moves on a larger scale. Bigger risks, and bigger rewards. These are exciting times ahead, and all of us at True and GigaOm feel privileged to have Paul as our leader.

Congratulations Paul, Om, and the entire GigaOm team on this wonderful achievement.

Well done, GigaOm!!!