Jack Dunn IV, FTI
Courtesy image
Editor's note: On behalf of the entire Law Technology News team, I send our warmest wishes for a joyful Thanksgiving. May you be surrounded by friends and family, and savor great conversations, music, and nourishing feasts. We send our wishes most intensely to our colleagues who are still coping with the aftermath of Sandy's fury; may your struggles be lightened quickly. The good news: the weather reports predict glorious weather across the country!
LTN will be closed Thursday and Friday. We'll be back first thing Monday with the latest legal technology news! — M.B.
>> Old School Media: Whenever I'm at Yankee Stadium, it always makes me smile to see the big FTI Consulting banner advertisement behind left field. I love that one of legal technology's high profile companies is a sponsor of my favorite team. When I'm with a vendor or a lawyer, it's almost-always the first topic of conversation — everybody is always curious about it. What I didn't know was the family history behind Jack Dunn IV, the company's president and CEO — until last week, when The New York Times' "The Boss" column featured Dunn, and told the story of his "life beyond baseball." Turns out Dunn's family owned the Baltimore Orioles, when it was a minor-league team, and his great grandfather recruited Babe Ruth.
"Four days after I was born, my father, then the owner, whisked me off to spring training," said Dunn in the article. "When I was growing up, and the Orioles were a major-league team, Brooks Robinson would come to my birthday parties. ... It was a fun-filled childhood," Dunn recalled in The Times.
Dunn's career path took him into the brokerage business, then to law school, before eventually landing at a financial services firm, Legg Mason. That company invested in Forensic Technologies International Corp. Dunn joined the board and became its CFO, and ultimately its CEO. The "next year they changed the name to FTI Consulting and went public." FTI, he says, now has 3,800 employees and operates in 24 countries. Along the way, Dunn bought an interest in the Orioles, and remains a part-owner. The secret to his success? "If you pick great leaders and are honest with employees, it can mean the difference between winning and losing," he said in the article.
I reached out to Dunn to find out more about the advertising. Turns out he only has the banner in the Bronx. But when the Orioles go head-to-head with the Yankees, he said, "I'm a true orange-and-black all the way." The fact that Dunn's great grandfather "adopted Babe Ruth and give him the name Babe kind of gives me a pass on too much grief," he said, while also admitting to be a Red Sox fan.
The response Dunn received from the Times column "has been tremendous," he said . "I have heard from everyone from dear friends of my dad's to a guy trying to sell me guitars." And as for the banner ad at the stadium, Dunn says it has been an "extremely effective placement." Indeed, we noticed. And you might notice FTI ads in other sport venues soon. Dunn has had a lot of offers since the story was published.
>> Mobile Stations: As waterfront areas of New York, Connecticut, and New Jersey continue to mop up after Hurricane Sandy, Eric Mangan, director of communications at Time Warner Cable, checks in to let you know that TWC has placed mobile device charging and Wi-Fi stations in hard-hit areas, as well as food trucks serving free, warm food. TWC is using social media to spread the word about the locations — @TWCable_NYC, and encourages all of us to spread the word.
>> Good News! Speaking of Sandy, I'm happy to report that consultant and retired U.S. District (N.J.) Magistrate Judge Ronald Hedges is out of the hospital, and doing well. He experienced the storm from an unexpected perch at Hackensack University Medical Center.
>> War of the Words: Many journalists were mesmerized this week by the use of social media in the Middle East. Here's an example of social media changing the world: the military wing of Palestinian political group Hamas and the Israel Defense Forces took their armed dispute into the virtual world. On Twitter, their accounts — @AlqassamBrigade and @IDFSpokesperson — posted about attacks, blog sites, propaganda, and provided YouTube videos. Mainstream international media are raising questions about whether U.S.-based Twitter and YouTube should censor the activity, but all accounts remain active as of this writing.
>> Apply, Please!Amazon recruiter Dakotta Alex also used social media and old-fashioned email to reach out to journalists, including LTN, to help to fill available jobs. "We're hiring across the board," he said from Corporate Operations in the San Francisco Bay Area. New projects are gaining traction, including streaming video, Amazon Lockers, and Amazon Fresh. "We need lots of talented people to help with developing these and other exciting projects," he said. Key jobs open: software developers and managers, and technical program managers. Reach out to him: dakottaa@amazon.com.
>> New Hire: Frederico d'Eaubonne has joined PitneyBowes' Legal Solutions unit as senior consultant and sales representative. He previously was a director of legal services at RR Donnelley, specializing in large volume engagements for electronically stored information services abroad.
>> Reminder: Deadline to nominate candidates for the 2012 LTN Innovation Awards is November 30. Details here.
Monica Bay is editor-in-chief of Law Technology News and a member of the California bar. Email: mbay@alm.com. Twitter: @LTNMonicaBay @lawtechnews.
