RonRivers.com

Education  |  Work Experience  |  Organizing

 

Education:  Present & Past

Bold means I highly recommended the text.

2020:

• Transcend: The New Science of Self-Actualization by Scott Barry Kaufman
• The Underground Railroad Records: Narrating the Hardships, Hairbreadth Escapes, and Death Struggles of Slaves in Their Efforts for Freedom by William Still
• The Great Transformation: The Beginning of Our Religious Traditions by Karen Armstrong
• The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever Conducted by T. Colin Campbell, Thomas M. Campbell II
• The Genius Plague by David Walton
• Race Matters by Cornell West
• Democracy Realized by Roberto Mangabeira Unger
• The Expectant Father:  The Ultimate Guide for Dads-To-Be by Armin A. Brott

2019:

• How We Get Free Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor
• The Knowledge Economy by Roberto Mangabeira Unger
  
• True Hallucinations by Terence McKenna
• Capital:  A Critique of Political Economy Vol. 1 by Karl Marx
• The Singular Universe & the Reality of Time by Roberto Mangabeira Unger & Lee Smolin
• Up from Slavery by Booker T. Washington
  
• The New Human Rights Movement by Peter Joseph

2018:

• The Religion of the Future by Roberto Mangabeira Unger
  
• Talking to my daughter about the Economy by Yanis Varoufakis
• Henry George School For Social Sciences
  • Business Cycles Lecture Series
  • Money & Banking Lecture Series
  • Principles of the Political Economy Lecture Series
• The Third Industrial Revolution By Jeremy Rifkin
  
• The Spirit Level By Richard Wilkenson & Kate Pickett
  
• Hacking Growth by Sean Ellis & Morgan Brown
• Roberto Unger Lectures
  • Progressive Alternatives Spring 2018

2017:

• Roberto Unger Lectures:
  • Progressive Alternatives: Institutional Reconstruction Today Spring 2017 Semester
  • Political Economy After The Crisis Spring 2017 Semester
  • American Democracy Spring 2017 Semster
• Becoming a Candidate By Jennifer Lawless
• Young People & The Future of News By Regina Marchi
• World Order By  Henry Kissinger
• Winner-Take-All Politics By Jacob Hacker & Paul Pierson
  
• Thinking Fast & Slow By Daniel Kahneman
• The Only Grant-Writing Book You’ll Ever Need  By Ellen Karsh & Arlen Sue Fox
• Profiles in Courage By John F. Kennedy

2016:

• Roberto Unger Lectures:
  • Progressive Alternatives: Institutional Reconstruction Today Spring 2011
  • Law and Legal Thought in the Twenty-First Century Spring 2012
  • Progressive Alternatives: Institutional Reconstruction Today Spring 2014
• Outliers By Malcolm Gladwell
• Originals By Adam Grant
• Principles By Ray Dalio
  
• Deep Work By Cal Newport
• Financial Intelligence for Entrepreneurs By  Karen Berman & Joe Knight
• The Singularity is Near By Ray Kurzweil
  
• Scaling Up By Verne Harnish
  
• Retail Revelations By Ritchie Sayner
• The E-Myth Revisited By Michael Gerber
• Zero to One By  Peter Theil
  

2015:

• The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx & Frederick Engels
• Good to Great by Jim Collins
  
• The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell
• The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli
  
• The Conquest of Gaul by Julius Ceasar
  

Institutional:
Henry George School of Social Sciences: 2018 Money, Credit, & Banking / Land Value Tax / Political Economy / Progress & Poverty
Hofstra University:  2002 – 2006  B.A Management / B.A Marketing (Dual Major)

 

 

Professional Experience

Rivers For Assembly:  State Assembly Candidate – NJ LD17 | March 2019 – June 2019

Summary:  With the support of activists from my community, I launched a bid for State Assembly in New Jersey’s 17th district.  We challenged an 18+ year incumbent as a Progressive in the Democratic Primary Election.  We developed the most comprehensive policy platform of any candidate, raised over $20,000 from 120+ donors – accepting no corporate or special interest money, developed a volunteer base of over 70 active volunteers, and earned 1876 votes from the ~9000 voters who participated.   I was one of eight candidates endorsed by the OurRevolution national chapter and received support and endorsement from Food & Water Action.

Skills Implemented:  Strategic Planning, Policy Development, Team Building/Recruiting, Network Building, Public Speaking, KPI creation & management, Advertising/Marketing, Event Management, Event Marketing

Knowledge Gained: Campaign Planning & Analytics, Volunteer Recruitment/Management, Fundraising, Canvassing, Messaging, New Jersey Political Infrastructure

 

OurSociety.org:  Founder/Executive Director | May 2017 – Present

Summary:  OurSociety is a non-partisan, 501c3 non-profit, founded to remove the financial and network barriers associated with running for local office.  In 2018 we launched our free Local Election Campaign Platform where any candidate can obtain a free profile to post their policies, plans, and vision for the future in both video and article format.  Designed with the citizen user experience in mind, we developed a social value matching algorithm to match citizens to candidates based on our growing pool of questions.

Our research program discovered that in 2018 77% of candidates running for local office in New Jersey had no online presence about their campaign.

Skills Implemented:  Strategic Planning, Brand Creation, Web/App Development Planning, Team Building/Recruiting, Network Building, Public Speaking, Advertising/Marketing, Event Management, Event Marketing

Knowledge Gained:  Grassroots Organizing, Basic MySQL Management, Likert Scale Algorithm methodology,  UX Design Theory, Government Operations, Developer Management

 

Love2brew Homebrew Supply:  Founder/CEO  |  Oct. 2011  – March 2019

Summary:  Love2brew was founded to help home beer and wine makers have a better experience sourcing their supplies both online and in the state of New Jersey.   We accomplished this mission by creating a website focused on user experience when, at the time, none existed.  Our service levels are considered industry best, our prices are fair, our shipping is free and fast, and we have a knowledgeable and dedicated staff who take pleasure in helping people learn a new skill and make some delicious beer.  Love2brew is a current industry leader in our space with one of the most visited websites and known brands.  In 2019 Love2brew was acquired and my tenure with the organization ended.

Skills Implemented:  Strategic Planning, Brand Creation, Team Building/Recruiting, Network Building, Sales, Excel, Sales Forecasting, Budgeting, HTML, Presentation Development, Public Speaking

Knowledge Gained:  Web Advertising (Google, Facebook), Bookkeeping (Quickbooks), Logistics, Operations Management, Supplier Negotiations, Beer Brewing, Wine Making, Auditing, Brewery Equipment, Event Management, Event Marketing

 

Bematech:  Vice President – North American Sales  |  May 2009 – April 2011

Summary:  Bematech is a Brazilian technology manufacturer that acquired the company Logic Controls here in the U.S. during 2008/2009.  The U.S. division imported, manufactured, and sold restaurant technology hardware such as Pole Displays, Point Of Sale Systems, Receipt Printers, and Kitchen Display Systems.  My first sales role was the management of a single division that focused on a reseller channel; my tenure managing the division resulted in three record-breaking sales months for the organization within my first year.  Afterward, I was promoted to lead an additional division, eventually being promoted to handle all the sales divisions as well as the Key Accounts.  Notable clients included Panera Bread, Churchs Chicken, Subway.

Skills Implemented:  Team Management/Recruiting, Network Building, Sales, Excel, HTML, Presentation Development, Salesforce,

Knowledge Gained:  Restuarant Hardware Configuration, Executive Sales Strategies, Distribution Sales Strategies, Collaborative Program Development, Distribution Channel Relations, Sales Forecasting, Budgeting,

….

Broadridge:  Operations Manager  |  October 2007 – May 2009

Summary: Broadridge is a financial services firm with annual revenue as of 2017 of four billion.   I trained under the majority of branches of the company during a ~6-month in a Management Training Program period before being assigned to an Operations Management position in the printing department.  I remained in that department until I exited the company for my job at Bematech.

Skills Implemented:  Team Management/Recruiting, Microsoft Office, Presentation Development, Data Analytics

Knowledge Gained:  Financial Operations, Corporate Culture, Fulfillment Operations

 

Vector Marketing (Cutco):  Sales Rep / Recruiter  |  June 2002 – Dec 2005

Summary:  Vector Marketing is the direct sales arm of the Cutco product line.  Cutco products are an assortment of kitchen and home use items with their main product line being premium kitchen knives.  Cutco is a commission-based direct sales company that requires participants to use their network of friends and family as first client prospects and eventually branch out to other people via recommendations.  After my first year of sales, I entered the management training program and went on to assist in numerous award-winning sales offices.

Skills Implemented:  Persistence,  Cold Calling, Presentation Skills,

Knowledge Gained:  Sales Fundamentals, Team Leadership, Advertising Planning & Budgeting, Recruiting, Sales Training, Public Speaking, How to cut a penny with a pair of scissors