On Deck, announced that seasoned marketing executive Andrea Gellert has been named to the company's newly created position of Senior Vice President of Marketing.
Gellert brings more than fifteen years of marketing and client services experience geared towards the small to medium business market. Gellert joins On Deck during the company's rapid growth, which has experienced a 100% uptick over the past 12 months. She will oversee all of the company's marketing activities, including strategy for customer campaigns, advertising, direct marketing, social media and public relations.
Gellert joins On Deck from Group Commerce, where she held the position of Vice President of Client Services and Operations. She was responsible for client implementation and growth, merchant operations and customer service. Prior to that post, she spent 15 years at American Express, holding leadership positions in both the OPEN small business and Merchant Services divisions. In her most recent position as Vice President of Marketing for OPEN, Gellert spearheaded initiatives that greatly improved the customer experience, as measured by net promoter score and retention rates, and created the company's first small business recognition platform. Gellert holds an undergraduate degree from Harvard College and an MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University.
"Today's appointment of Andrea marks yet another critical growth milestone for On Deck, and we are thrilled to have her join our management team," said Noah Breslow, chief executive officer, On Deck. "Her extensive, direct experience with the small business market provides critical firepower as we build On Deck into the leading national brand serving the financing needs of Main Street America."
On Deck is the leading technology platform that solves one of the biggest challenges facing the U.S. economy: how to effectively deliver capital to Main Street. On Deck evaluates the financial health of small businesses based on factors such as cash flow and business credit data, rather than the traditional benchmark of the personal credit score. The On Deck platform can identify creditworthy businesses where others cannot, and to date has delivered over $300 million to the underserved Main Street segment through a process that is substantially faster and easier than a traditional bank loan.
"On Deck is an innovative company that is successfully transforming the way small businesses access the capital they need to grow, which is in turn, is driving the economy forward," said Gellert. "I am excited by the opportunity to advance On Deck's brand and to bring our message of accessibility and keen understanding of small business owners' needs to a national audience."