Heidi Messer facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Heidi Messer
|
|
|---|---|
_(1).jpg) |
|
| Born | August 28, 1969 |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Brown University, Harvard Law School |
| Occupation | Co-founder, Chairman, Collective[i] Co-founder, CEO, World Evolved Co-founder, President and COO, LinkShare. |
Heidi Messer (born August 28, 1969) is an American businesswoman and investor. She has started several successful companies around the world. Two of her most well-known companies are LinkShare and Collective[i]. Messer was a leader at LinkShare, helping to build the world of online marketing. This type of marketing is often called affiliate marketing.
Contents
Heidi's Early Life and Education
Heidi Messer grew up in a family of entrepreneurs. Both her parents and her grandparents were business owners. This means they started and ran their own companies.
College and Law School Journey
Messer studied history at Brown University. She graduated with high honors, showing she was a very good student. Later, she went to Harvard Law School and earned her law degree. While at Harvard, she helped write a paper about how the internet would change laws. She presented this paper to a Supreme Court Justice.
Heidi's Career in Business
Starting Her Career Path
Before and during college, Messer worked in her family's real estate business. After finishing law school, she worked as a lawyer at a firm called Baker & Botts.
In 1996, Heidi and her brother, Stephen Messer, started a company called LinkShare. This company created an online network. It helped websites earn money by showing links to other businesses. If someone clicked a link and bought something, the website would get a small payment. This is known as affiliate marketing. Messer was the president and chief operating officer of LinkShare. In 2005, a company called Rakuten Inc. bought LinkShare for $425 million. Messer left the company in 2006.
Creating Collective[i]
In 2008, Messer co-founded another company with her husband and brother. It was first called Cross Commerce Media, but later became Collective[i]. Messer is now the chairman of the company's board of directors. In 2014, she received two patents related to Collective[i]'s data analytics network. This network helps businesses understand large amounts of information.
Investing and Community Work
Heidi Messer is also the co-founder and CEO of World Evolved. This platform helps businesses invest and grow around the world. She is also an angel investor. This means she invests her own money in new startup companies. Some of these include Spire and Lifebooker.
Messer is involved with many groups and boards. She serves on the Brown Women's Leadership Counsel. She also advises companies like Dell Computers, NBC Universal, and American Express OPEN. Messer is also on the board of the Partnership for New York City. She helps judge and mentor young entrepreneurs in New York City.
Heidi's Public Appearances and Recognition
Speaking and Media Features
Heidi Messer often speaks at universities and conferences. She talks about starting businesses, digital marketing, and the future of the internet. She has spoken at places like Columbia Business School. Messer has also been featured in many well-known publications. These include The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Forbes.
Messer is also known for hosting a special all-female Poker game. This game was featured in Vogue magazine. It was seen as a new way for women to network, share ideas, and give to charity. Messer has also appeared on TV and radio shows, including the Today Show.
Heidi and her brother Stephen were featured in a book called Startup Playbook. This book also included famous entrepreneurs like Elon Musk.
Art and Innovation
In 2011, Messer organized an art show in New York City. The art had previously been shown on the International Space Station. The event helped raise money for the Challenger Center for Space Science Exploration. The famous astronaut Buzz Aldrin attended the reception.
Awards and Honors for Heidi Messer
Heidi Messer has received many awards for her work.
In 2012, Goldman Sachs named her one of the 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs. AlwaysOn also named her one of the 2012 Power Players in New York City.
Under Messer's leadership, LinkShare was recognized as a fast-growing technology company. This recognition came from Deloitte & Touche in 2002 and 2003. LinkShare was also named the Best Affiliate Network Provider in 2002.
Her current company, Collective[i], has also received honors. It was selected as one of OnMedia's 100 Top Private Companies in both 2012 and 2013. In 2015, Collective[i] was named a Top 100 private company for its Software-as-a-service solutions.
On November 19, 2015, Messer received the Technology Pioneer Award at the United Nations. This award was part of Women's Entrepreneurship Day.
