In this blog series, we interview a new member of the clypd team every month. Find out what drives us, what makes us tick, and what we do outside of the clypd office. In this month’s clypd Profile, we talk to Karen Murphy, Director of Business Development.

Can you walk us through your average day working at clypd?

First off, there is nothing average about working at clypd. Each day is an adventure…I suppose an average day would start off with an amazing cup of coffee, followed by a quick update of the latest news in adtech across digital, mobile, and of course, TV.

My days are usually peppered with in-person meetings and calls, where I have the opportunity to share the clypd story, how we started, and where we are headed. If there is synergy and further interest, I’ll dive into a demo where I get to show off the platform our team has developed. 

There’s always an abundance of food, drink, and great conversation in the office. Joshua and Doug do a great job of hiring really smart and interesting people, which makes for great lunch conversations! In addition, we have a lunch and learn program each Thursday, and beer and wine tastings on Friday.

What part of your job do you find most rewarding?

By default, as a business development  person, I’m pretty results-driven. So, the most rewarding part of my job is definitely when the person I’m speaking with understands our product and the value we are adding to the advertising ecosystem. Their validation normally comes in the form of a signed contract, which allows access to the clypd rails to launch a TV advertising campaign.

The landscape of advertising technology is pretty vast – how did you land in programmatic TV?

I’ve been in the programmatic space since 2008, when I first managed a seat for a small company in Buenos Aires, Argentina, who had access to digital inventory on AppNexus. From there, I took a role at Where/PayPal to help build demand for their programmatic SSP product. When the opportunity to work for a programmatic platform for television surfaced, I just couldn’t resist. I saw how it transformed the digital and mobile advertising space, and I’m simply convinced it’s going to work in television as well.

You’re pretty involved in the Boston startup community – what do you enjoy about working in the startup community?

I was more involved when I was at PayPal and part of the Start Tank program as a mentor. Now I’m a bit hidden, but I still love attending startup events like Demo Day and TUGG. And I enjoy taking meetings with startups to offer my advice and business development perspective.  I believe in the pay-it-forward concept – I’ve been lucky to learn from some of the greats in my different roles in startups over the years and I like the idea of helping others grow and learn along the way. Otherwise, what’s the point, really?   

If you could give your younger self any piece of advice, what would it be?

When I was 25, I was offered a position with the company I was working for to relocate to Buenos Aires and act as the country manager. I was very afraid of that title! I ended up relocating and doing the majority of the work, but my co-worker took the role with the title as the country manager. I wish I had the confidence in myself to have taken it. Looking back, I was much more qualified than he was and my boss saw it too. But I couldn’t see it at the time. So the advice that I would give looking back to my younger self would be: Girl, just do it. Don’t over think it. You already have the green light. GO. Believe in yourself and the rest will fall into place.

What’s your ideal vacation?

Sun, sand, waves, a foreign language in the background and smiling happy kids on the beach. And of course, wine – did I mention wine? A nice glass, cold and crisp, at the end of the day.

It’s 3pm on Sunday afternoon – what can you usually be found doing? 

Ha. This question makes me laugh. I wish my life were this predictable! This Sunday at 3pm I’ll be at a lacrosse clinic with my son. Other usual Sunday activities include family time, soccer, Candy Land, Uno, Connect Four, the beach, walking the dog, and cooking…don’t they all sound so exotic?

What shows are you currently watching on TV? 

I really don’t watch much TV. Right now, my kids (7 and 5) seem to be a bit obsessed with Jessie. When I do get the remote, I try to catch up on The Good Wife. I’ve heard I need to watch Ray Donovan..but my guilty pleasure is Law & Order….dun dun… I’m really a sucker for the show, as it doesn’t require much mental effort!

What’s something that not many people know about you?

I was the 600M State Champ in 1991!

Interested in joining the clypd team? Check out our Careers page!