Welcome to BizLand.com

Executive Bios

BizLand has assembled a cross-disciplinary team with a broad range of skills and experience. Senior management members are demonstrated innovators from the arenas of consumer products and services, financial services, software, and information technology.

Steve Sydness
Chief Executive Officer

Steve Sydness, chief executive officer, joined the BizLand team in September 1999. In addition to overseeing the company's day-to-day operation, he is principally responsible for determining its long-term strategy and directing its future growth. Steve has been instrumental in building BizLand's management team and securing its sources of capital.

Most recently, Steve served as executive vice president of worldwide sales and marketing at Great Plains Software, where he spent 12 years helping to grow the company's workforce from 100 employees to 1,100, and its annual revenues from $6 million to $150 million. Steve played a key role in leading Great Plains through a successful IPO, obtaining venture funding, and directing expansion into global markets. In 1992, Steve took a leave of absence to run for the United States Senate. He holds a B.A. in business administration and history from Principia College and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

Hari Ravichandran
Chief Technology Officer & Founder

Hari Ravichandran today serves as the company's chief technology officer, directing the activities of the site's development and engineering teams. As the individual most closely involved with creating BizLand's technological infrastructure, Hari also plays an integral role in BizLand's overall business development and strategic planning.

Before founding BizLand, Hari was with industry giant Sun Microsystems, where he served as a senior systems engineer. While at Sun, Hari helped design microprocessors, routers, massively parallel computers, operating systems and various other Internet architecture protocols. His algorithm and protocol designs have led him to file eight single inventor patents four of which have already been granted. Hari has also published in various leading journals and conferences.

Michael Sattler
Vice President of Engineering

Michael has been actively involved with the development of Web-based applications and with the strategic use of the World Wide Web for business purposes since 1994. His current responsibilities at BizLand include strategic design and development of BizLand's technology capabilities, and the day-to-day management of the Engineering department.

Michael previously co-founded both WebOnTap, Inc. and Highwired.net. Michael also served as President and CEO of The Ortelius Group, an Internet strategy consulting firm focused on small businesses. Under his direction, the firm designed and built sites for clients in industries ranging from law firms to business schools to technical consulting firms. Michael holds an MBA (magna cum laude) from the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College (1998) and a BA from Princeton University (1992).

Joe Bardenheier
Vice President, Corporate Development

Joe Bardenheier�s duties include the management of mergers and acquisitions, investment banking relationships, and private label sales to Global 2000 firms. Joe brings to BizLand over 15 years of experience building and operating companies and has had tremendous success in rapidly implementing marketing, sales and acquisition strategies for product and service firms alike.

Prior to BizLand, Joe was a Co-Founder, President and CEO of The Gavin Group, an apparel company that grew to revenues of more than $2 million in three years, and was sold to a publicly traded firm in 1992.

Previously, Mr.Bardenheier was the Senior VP of Sales and Marketing for Vanguard Sailboats, Inc., and a Senior Consultant with Ernst & Young LLP.

Most recently he was the Co-Founder of WebOnTap, which was acquired by BizLand in 2000. Joe holds a B.A. from Tufts University and an M.B.A. from the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College.

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