Infogroup Becomes Data Axle; Strengthens Nonprofit Unit

Data firm Infogroup is today being rebranded as Data Axle, the name of a portal service it launched in 2012; and has announced five senior hires.

The Omaha-based company was founded as InfoUSA in 1974 by Vinod Gupta, sacked twelve years ago following an investigation which found him guilty of 'excessive spending'. It bought researcher ORC in 2006 and sold it five years later to an equity-backed management group. It was sold to Court Square Capital in 2017 and currently has annual revenue of around $300 million.

The new name, Data Axle, was chosen because the firm is focused on building 'a data set in real-time for clients and end users' according to CEO Michael Iaccarino, who adds: 'It's not a list business at all anymore - we're building a subscription model'. Four employees were tested positive for Covid in March, and the entire operation was shifted to working from home in a matter of days - Iaccarino says '50% of the team have no interest going back to an office'.

The five new hires come in the group's Nonprofit Solutions Division. SVP Richard Geiger and Vice President of Strategy Katy Jordan will focus on new business and solution development; Senior Director of Data Strategy Amy O'Connor will strengthen the analytics and strategy team; and VP of Media Strategy Mark McLean and Senior Account Director Rozi Singh will work directly with a portfolio of clients, supporting new business wins.

Geiger trained as an urban and regional planner and fundraising analytics practitioner, and worked with organizations such as the American Cancer Society, March of Dimes, Feeding America, the Humane Society of the United States, Heifer International and the University of Arizona. Jordan worked in leadership roles at ForwardPMX and CDR Fundraising Group.

Singh joins from TAG / Blackbaud Target Analytics, where she managed new model builds and large sets of data for various large and small non-profits; and earlier worked with national nonprofits such as Habitat for Humanity at PMX.

O'Connor has seventeen years of experience in nonprofit fundraising. She also joins from Blackbaud, where she worked as a Senior Analytics Consultant analyzing fundraising trends and providing strategic guidance for major nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education.
McLean worked at ForwardPMX, helping to grow major fundraising programs using direct mail and integrated channels.

President Stephanie Ceruolo comments: 'We're thrilled that our clients will benefit from the deep expertise of these five experts in the nonprofit sector. Richard, Katy, Amy, Mark and Rozi know what it takes for nonprofits to thrive in times of uncertainty and change. All five of them will deploy advanced data solutions to enable nonprofits to acquire new donors and grow the lifetime value of the ones they already have'.

Web site: www.infogroup.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.