William "Ryan" Hunt
I run marketing departments with an engineer's brain. 10:1 ROI at my current company. $5M/month in revenue at the last one. Turns out applying computer science logic to marketing strategy isn't just clever, it's profitable.
I run marketing departments with an engineer's brain. 10:1 ROI at my current company. $5M/month in revenue at the last one. Turns out applying computer science logic to marketing strategy isn't just clever, it's profitable.
The only marketing leader you'll meet with a CS degree, a Top Secret clearance, a White House appointment, and an MBA from Johns Hopkins. Who also lived in a van and on a sailboat.
I build marketing departments that print money. 10:1 ROI at my current company. $5M per month in additional revenue through A/B testing at the last one. 35% organic traffic growth in under a year at the one before that. I don't just run marketing, I engineer it. Every campaign gets measured, every dollar gets tracked, and every decision gets pressure-tested with data before it goes live.
Here's why I'm different: I have a Computer Science degree. Not a boot camp certificate, not "I taught myself Python last summer." A full BS in Computer Science from the University of Kentucky, plus an MBA from Johns Hopkins with concentrations in AI for Business, Entrepreneurial Marketing, and Executive Leadership. That means I apply the same algorithmic thinking to a go-to-market strategy that I once applied to cruise missile software. A/B tests aren't gut feelings for me. They're controlled experiments with statistical rigor.
Along the way, I lived in a van for five years (visited all 50 states), spent three years on a sailboat docked in DC while commuting to the Pentagon by dinghy, built data visualizations for the White House, managed teams of 50+ people, and now I speak at startup incubators about how to build marketing departments from zero. The resume doesn't make sense until you realize the through-line: I treat marketing like an engineering problem, and engineering problems have solutions.
When other marketing leaders say "we need a tool for that," I open my code editor and build it over the weekend (one time that saved $100K). When the analytics don't exist yet, I build the pipeline. When someone says it can't be done with the budget we have, I find a way. That's not a marketer who learned some tech. That's an engineer who learned where the real leverage is, and it shows up in every metric I touch.
The state's highest honor, awarded by the Governor. Yes, it's a real thing. No, I don't have a white suit (yet). But I do have the accent and the manners to match. My mama raised me right.
Because apparently 60-hour work weeks, two jobs, and an MBA weren't enough of a challenge. There's something about rowing that appeals to the engineer in me: pure physics, rhythm, and the knowledge that if you stop pulling, everybody sinks.
Appointed to the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board. Built the data platforms that tracked how $831 billion in stimulus money was spent. Presented data visualizations to the Vice President. Not a bad Tuesday at the office.
Traveled across all 50 states with a solar-powered mobile office I built myself. Took conference calls from national parks, debugged code at rest stops, and learned that the best business ideas come when you're 2,000 miles from the nearest office. Try explaining that gap on a mortgage application.
Docked at the Gangplank Marina in Washington, DC while working at the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill. Most people commute by car or metro. I commuted by dinghy. My neighbors were lobbyists and diplomats. My front yard was the Potomac River.
Founded and runs a local charity in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Because building software, getting an MBA, working two jobs, and running a walking group still left room to give back. The community you build is the legacy you leave. My mama definitely raised me right.
Published research on Bayesian Networks and lectured at the 19th Annual North American Conference on AI and the Conference for Undergraduate Research. I was doing machine learning before the term "machine learning" was mainstream. Before ChatGPT. Before it was cool. I just thought probability was fun. (I still do.)
Gives talks at startup incubators about how to build marketing departments from zero. Covers everything from hiring your first marketer to building your analytics stack to not wasting $50K on a rebrand nobody asked for. Someone should warn founders before they hire a "growth hacker" off Fiverr.
Numbers without context are just math. Here's what mine actually mean.
Most marketing directors make decisions on intuition. I make them on data, then build the systems to prove they worked. That's why my campaigns return 10:1.
Every campaign is a hypothesis. Every test has a control group. I don't guess what works, I prove it. That's how you get 10:1 ROI instead of "we think it's working."
A/B testing isn't something I do occasionally. It's how I breathe. At AARP, continuous testing generated $5M/month in additional revenue. Small improvements compound into massive results.
I treat every marketing dollar like it's my own money (probably because I've been broke enough to know the value of one). If a $50K tool can be replaced by a script I write in a weekend, the script wins every time.
From a research lab in Kentucky to the Pentagon, the West Wing, Capitol Hill, and a healthcare AI startup. The scenic route.
University of Kentucky
Research Assistant on the Bayesian Advisor Project. Published AI researcher. Lectured at the 19th Annual North American Conference on AI and the Conference for Undergraduate Research. Doing machine learning before the term "machine learning" was mainstream.
University of Kentucky
Bachelor of Science in Computer Science with minors in Mathematical Science and Business. The foundation for everything that followed: algorithms, data structures, systems design, and a deep understanding of how things actually work under the hood.
U.S. Navy (DoD)
Junior Software Engineer on the Tomahawk Weapons Control System. Writing code that goes inside cruise missiles tends to sharpen your attention to detail. Moved on to Apache Helicopter Simulators for the U.S. Army. When your code keeps pilots alive, you learn to ship quality.
JIEDDO (DoD)
Senior Software Engineer at the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization. Built and managed 30+ websites supporting counter-IED operations. Secret clearance. High-stakes web infrastructure at scale.
OSD
Web Manager building data visualizations that tracked DoD spending. Turning complex defense budgets into something a Congressional staffer could understand in 30 seconds. Top Secret clearance.
President & Chief Developer
Launched my own firm. Clients included the Census Bureau, NIH, and Hilton Worldwide. Full-stack development and data visualization. Turns out the skills that work for the Pentagon also work for Fortune 500 hotels.
Recovery Board, Recovery.gov, USASpending.gov
Web Project Manager for Recovery.gov, USASpending.gov, and FederalTransparency.gov. Made government spending data accessible to 330 million Americans. Data visualizations presented to the Vice President. Not a bad Tuesday.
Sr. Manager, Web Analytics
Managed 27 websites generating $5M+ in revenue. Saved $100K by replacing enterprise tools with custom Google Apps Scripts. Boosted organic traffic 35%. Named Employee of the Quarter within 3 months. This is where the CS degree met marketing, and things clicked.
Senior Digital Analyst
Built REST APIs, JSON integrations, and jQuery solutions serving 38 million members. Led A/B testing program that generated $5M+ per month in additional revenue. Adobe Analytics Suite. Mobile app experience optimization. Enterprise-scale digital strategy.
Web PM / Product Owner
SCRUM/Agile product ownership for Congressional web projects. Managing sprints and stakeholders in an environment where "move fast and break things" is definitely not the motto.
Director of Marketing & PM
Running marketing and project management for a healthcare AI company. CareDesk platform and Kara AI. Full-funnel strategy, demand gen, content, brand, SEO, SEM, and product positioning. C-suite strategy from a technical foundation. This is where it all comes together.
Carey Business School
Concentrations in Artificial Intelligence for Business, Entrepreneurial Marketing, and Executive Leadership. Golden Key Honor Society. Because a CS degree, 21 years of experience, three security clearances, and a White House resume weren't quite enough. (I'm kidding. Mostly.)
Code that ships. Strategy that scales. Results you can measure.
InvestorPlace Media
Replaced expensive enterprise analytics platforms with custom Google Apps Scripts I wrote myself. Managed 27 websites generating $5M+ in revenue. Boosted organic traffic 35%. Named Employee of the Quarter within my first 3 months.
White House Recovery Board (Obama Appointee)
Appointed by the Obama Administration to serve on the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board. Web Project Manager for Recovery.gov, USASpending.gov, and FederalTransparency.gov. Built data visualizations that made $831 billion in stimulus spending accessible to every American. Results presented to the Vice President.
Keona Health
Director of Marketing and Project Management for a healthcare AI platform. Leading strategy for CareDesk and Kara AI products. Full-funnel demand generation, SEO/SEM, content strategy, brand positioning, and C-suite product strategy.
Department of Defense
Weapons control systems. Flight simulators. 30+ counter-IED websites. Three security clearances (Public Trust, Secret, Top Secret). Eight years writing code where failure wasn't a bug report, it was a national security incident. That standard never left me.
AARP
Built REST APIs, JSON integrations, and jQuery solutions serving one of the largest membership organizations in the world. Led the A/B testing program that drove $5M+ per month in additional revenue. Adobe Analytics Suite implementation. Mobile app experience optimization at enterprise scale. Data-driven decision making at a level most marketers only read about.
Hunt Web Consulting Services LLC
Founded and ran my own web consulting firm. Clients ranged from the U.S. Census Bureau to NIH to Hilton Worldwide. Full-stack web development, data visualization, and the kind of client management skills you only learn when it's your name on the invoice.
A CS degree gives you the foundation.
Two decades give you the depth.
I could tell you I'm good. But you'd expect me to say that. Here's what people who've actually worked with me have to say.
"Ryan and I worked together for a few years on Public Relations, Advertising, Media, Social Media, News Articles and many other areas. He was always available to step in and make things happen. His skills in writing compelling articles is extraordinary. And, the collaboration was likely one of the best I have had in many years. Heartily and happily recommend him for any realm he wishes to pursue."
Rob Tanner, Independent Consultant, MEP Project Management
"Ryan's professionalism and charm makes him an asset to any professional setting. He is very easy to work with and pleasant for all who experience him."
Bryan Almond, Operations Management, Amazon Web Services
"Employee of the Quarter within 3 months."
InvestorPlace Media, 2013
"Published AI researcher at age 20. Lectured at the 19th Annual North American Conference on Artificial Intelligence."
AAAI Conference, 2001
"Led the web team responsible for making $840 billion in Recovery Act spending transparent to every American."
Recovery Accountability & Transparency Board, Executive Office of the President
"Kentucky Colonel Recipient, the highest honor bestowed by the Commonwealth of Kentucky."
Commonwealth of Kentucky
If you've read this far, one of two things happened: either you're genuinely interested, or you're procrastinating on something else. Either way, I'm glad you're here. Whether you need someone who can architect a data pipeline before lunch and present the strategy deck after, or you just want to talk about Kentucky basketball over bourbon, I'm your guy.