Michael Janda, CEO of Riser Media
Meet Michael Janda, CEO of Riser Media, one of the fastest growing companies in Utah. As a graphic design and development company, Riser Media has attracted some of the nation’s largest corporations such as Disney, ABC, AOL and Warner Brothers. With its impressive client list and its recent naming to the MWCN Utah 100 list, we thought it time to learn more about Riser Media.
Silicon Slopes: How did Riser Media come about and what do you do?
Michael Janda: In 2002, I ended a multi-year Hollywood stint as Creative Director for a couple of Fox’s Internet ventures (Fox Kids and Fox Family) and founded a creative agency called Jandaco. The relationships that I built while living in L.A. and working at Fox became the foundation for our client list in the early days. I was pretty much running the whole thing by myself and after a couple years of overwork, my wife compelled me to bring some other people on. The addition of another employee was really the first step in growing the company, and by the end of that year, we had office space and six full-time staff members and we continued to grow from there. The success of that company is what eventually morphed into Riser Media – one of the fastest growing companies in the state.
Silicon Slopes: Riser Media a full-service, creative agency, tell us more about your specific offerings and what sets you apart from your competitors.
Michael Janda: We offer services for web site design and programming, online game development, branding, and print design work. We’ve completed over 1,000 projects over the years for some of the world’s most recognized companies including: Disney, Warner Bros. Fox, NBC, HBO, National Geographic, AOL, and many others.
What really set us apart from other full-service creative agencies is the way we run our business. We’re fairly small when compared to some of the larger ‘New York-style’ agencies, but that actually plays to our advantage. Our team is comprised of some of the best creative designers in the state, but since we don’t carry the massive overhead typically associated with those larger agencies, we’re able to offer the same level of knowledge, skill and experience without having to charge an arm and a leg to cover our overhead. When a company works with us on a project they are working directly with our team. There is none of the back and forth trying to find the appropriate contact, none of the nickel-and-diming or headaches that normally come with hiring a large agency.
Silicon Slopes: You have a pretty impressive client roster, what reaction do you get when people find out you’re based in Utah? Does that affect your business?
Michael Janda: Most people expect an agency with a portfolio like ours to be based in one of the major creative markets like L.A. or New York, so I think many people are surprised when they learn that we’re a small company based in American Fork, Utah.
It used to be that, for an agency like ours to survive, we would have to be located in one of the major metropolitan areas. But with the technology available today, we can do projects and hold meetings with people all over the world without ever having to leave our back yard, which for us is great. We’ve always felt that Utah is home to some of the most creative minds anywhere and we’re really in a good place geographically, especially when you consider the technological innovation coming out of the state.
If there has been an effect on our business it certainly hasn’t been a negative one. We’ve been recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in the state for several years now.
Silicon Slopes: What has been the biggest key to your success?
Michael Janda: I think the biggest key to our success is our team. We are a very tight-knit group and we work very well together. We demand the absolute best from each other and expect nothing less than everyone’s best efforts. We would not be who we are without the insight, experience and hard work of each member of our team.
