Employee Spotlight: Creating a Canto community with Jack Huber
| March 31, 2020
At its core, Canto is all about helping teams connect to work better together. No one exemplifies that more than our Head of Community, Jack Huber!
Jack brings his all to the team, making both our customers and his coworkers feel valued as part of a thriving creative community. It’s our turn to show him some love! Read Jack’s employee spotlight to learn about his inspirations, his favorite podcasts and best Canto memories.
Tell us about your journey with Canto and everything you do for the company!
I used to work at a startup where we managed all our social media photos and videos on Google Drive. Although there were only five of us at the time, I still knew there HAD to be a better way to collectively share our visual files. After that experience, deciding to work at Canto was a no-brainer!
I started at Canto as a sales development rep, researching and contacting companies who I knew would benefit from the power of digital asset management. I loved it so much that I was allowed to build a team of SDRs to spread the gospel of DAM to anyone who would listen. Every person from that team has gone on to become a leader at Canto, which is something I’m incredibly proud of.
About a year ago, Jack McGannon (Canto’s CEO) realized that we had this fast growing group of amazing creative professionals using Canto, yet nobody was dedicated to helping this community thrive. So, I set to work listening to our customers and learning what they wanted beyond our primary DAM services as Canto’s Head of Community. This most recently manifested in the launch of an event series called #CantoConnect, where members of our Community meet each other and learn from inspiring creative professionals from other industries.
What inspires Jack Huber?
I’m inspired by the people and organizations who use Canto on a daily basis. We work with some of the most talented creative professionals in the world – hearing their stories and knowing that Canto helps them do the work they love motivates me to no end.
One of my favorite examples is how Don Meek and his team at the Surfing Heritage & Culture Center used Canto to expand the “Follow The Light” amateur surf photography contest to a global audience. This year’s winner, Nick Green, used Canto to submit his photos all the way over from Tasmania, Australia! As a result of winning, Nick won $5,000 and was flown to the North Shore of Hawaii to shoot on behalf of Vans. His life is forever changed.
What is the most exciting project that you’ve worked on so far?
If I had to pick, it would probably be launching our #CantoConnect series earlier this year. For our first event, we lucked out with two amazing speakers (shout out to Amelia Davis and Bridget Watson Payne!) and managed to fit almost 50 members of the Canto Community in this super cool artist loft in the SoMa neighborhood here in San Francisco. Watching our customers meet each other and build relationships was awesome. It was a special night!
We know you love podcasts. What are your top 3 favorites and why?
NPR’s “How I Built This” with the podcast master himself, Guy Raz, will always be my #1! Some people are inspired by athletes and celebrities, but I’ve always envied the entrepreneur. Hearing how legends like Yvon Chouinard and Sara Blakely built iconic brands like Patagonia and Spanx really gets the creative juices flowing!
“Against The Rules” provides a fresh perspective on American society from Michael Lewis, the best-selling author of books like Moneyball, Liar’s Poker, and The Big Short. (Malcom Gladwell’s “Revisionist History” is similarly entertaining!)
Lacrosse was my sport growing up, so I have to give a shout out to “Overtime” with Paul Carcaterra. Lacrosse is the fastest growing sport in the world and the only sport I watch these days, so it’s great to hear stories from the stars of the sport who don’t get as much attention as other professional athletes.
Tell us about your favorite memory with the team!
Oh wow, there’s been quite a few! My first cold call while sitting next to Max Whiting is definitely up there (Me: “Do you have a DAM?”, Prospect: “We use Dropbox.”, Me: “Sounds good, bye!”). Celebrating a successful quarter with the OG SDR team by hiking Alamere Falls and then feasting at The House of Prime Rib was special. And welcoming Adam D’Angelo to Canto with his first copita of mezcal was certainly a night I will never forget!
Most recently, I’d have to say it was hearing the whole office sing me virtual Happy Birthday over Zoom while working remotely due to COVID-19. The culture at Canto is incredibly special, so not getting to be with everyone in the office is truly difficult. Hearing everyone butcher my birthday song gave me hope that everything will be okay as long as we stick together as a team.