Get to Know My Family

Alon Matas

What can I say about my dear old Dad? As my Founder and CEO, Alon is entirely responsible for what I’ve become. He sets my vision and plans and also makes sure everybody else in the family are treating me properly.

Alon honed his managerial skills in the Israeli army where he supervised several major software projects. In 2000 he joined WizApp, a dot-com startup, where he served as the company's VP of R&D. In 2002 Alon founded Compile, an internet venture incubator. As the CEO of Compile, he initiated and executed several successful international web-based enterprises.

In the rare moments when Alon isn’t taking care of me, he enjoys spending time with his 2 daughters, watching Entourage and sipping a good cup of coffee.

Itai Rechnitz

My uncle Itai is a lot like the big brother I never had. As VP of Research & Development his goal is to actualize the creative ideas suggested by the rest of the family in a timely and efficient manner, and he’s taught me so much about how to turn ideas into reality. Itai has also taught me a lot about how to let loose – when he’s not managing projects at work, he’s usually motor biking or traveling. Sometimes he even lets me tag along!

Itai used to work at Compile, an internet venture incubator, first as team leader and then as VP of R&D. He holds a B.Sc. in Computer Science and Executive MBA from Tel Aviv University.

Tal Hart

Even a quick look at my uncle Tal’s red hair and funky glasses and you’ll be able to sense the creativity that is the essence of his personality. Before joining my family, Tal spearheaded the launch of seven successful (and extremely interesting) businesses, including TElNET, NetRate and Zoogy. With firsthand experience marketing everything from online dating services to online memorial services, Tal has developed an unparalleled understanding of Internet marketing.

As my Director of Online Marketing, Tal combines his ingenuity and technical prowess to initiate marketing campaigns that spread my savings across the internet. When he’s not using his creative juices in the office, Tal enjoys playing Texas Hold’em Poker or Guitar Hero on his kids’ Xbox. I’m both honored and privileged that Tal has joined my family, and I can’t wait to see what new ideas Tal will think of next!

Mani Rangarajan

Mani is the guy that makes sure everything works smoothly in our family. As the VP of Finance & Administration, he pays the bills (on time!), takes care of the house and generally keeps everybody happy – lawyers, accountants, employees, service providers, customers and of course… me!

Uncle Mani has almost twenty years of experience. Before he came to our family Mani consulted and advised several leading internet companies in U.S., Canada and India in finance, strategy, business development and operations. Prior to that, Mani spent six years at Yahoo! where he was Chief of Staff to the Chief Financial Officer and worked on several key strategic and operations initiatives. Mani was previously Vice President at Citigroup where he held operations and risk management roles covering businesses in over 20 countries in Europe, Middle-East, Africa and Asia. He graduated with an MBA from the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar. He also holds a management degree from IIM, Calcutta in India and is also a qualified management accountant.

Mani is not only fantastic in finance and operations but he is also a walking encyclopedia on everything that happens in the Web and the online world. He keeps surprising me with new sites and ideas and I love our brainstorming sessions where we discuss and set our family’s strategy and vision.

Nir Boger

My cousin Nir joined the family with extensive experience in software development, which he’s used to help build some of our highly successful programs. If he’s not at his desk, Nir can likely be found playing tennis or working towards his degree in Management and Computer Science.

Danny Bragonier

My cousin Danny always has all the answers. Whenever I want to know what’s happening in my savings club I just send him an email – or even better show up in his desk. He then quickly press a few buttons and give me the answer right away. But there’s more: Danny graduated from Cal Poly University with a degree in Statistics so he uses his analytical mind and tools to predict what’s going to happen and advise me on the best tactics I need to take so I can save more money to more friends. When he is not busy answering my questions you can usually find him mountaineering, watching a Giants game or hanging out with friends in San Francisco.

Jose Campos

Whenever a new movie comes out, my Cousin Jose is the first in line and sometimes he lets me tag along. Jose really likes them all: independent, horror, sci-fi, action, comedies, you name it. When he is not in the movie theatre or on his couch he is diligently working to make sure my partners are satisfied and happy. He is really great in this but he secretly told me that sometime in the future he really wants to be a teacher. I would really like him to teach my kids some day!

Rotem Dori

My cousin Rotem is, without a doubt, one of the most fascinating people in the family. Rotem has a degree in Management Information Systems (MIS) and a Master’s Degree in law. Although Rotem doesn’t currently practice law, she does make use of her practiced, analytical eye to troll my website for problems and ways to improve the site. Rotem enjoys making her own jewelry and clothing, and she always makes funky things. I’m hoping that she’ll make me a new bowtie in the near future.

Dikla Gefen

Although I’m no snob, I like to think of my cousin Dikla as my personal stylist, because she’s the one who is responsible for the way I look every single day. Dikla draws inspiration from children’s books, blogs and the obscure beauty of the real world, which she uses to ensure that I always put my best foot forward.

Prior to joining my family, Dikla worked at various entertainment magazines and online media companies. She completed her studies in graphic design and print in 2002.

Lorri Geiger

As the mother of 3 and owner of 2 dogs, Lorri has a lot of experience staying organized and managing hectic situations. Dubbed as a “human resource book” by friends and colleagues, my cousin Lorri is also an expert at finding what you’re looking for and researching obscure information when necessary, which makes her extremely useful and fun to have around. Lorri loves cooking and skiing, but what I love most about Lorri is her love of laughter and her ability to make others laugh at all times.

Ruthy Gold

My cousin Ruthy is always making sure everything works smoothly. As our Office Manager at the US Office, Ruthy wears a lot of “hats” like accounting, administration and HR. I am sure her many years of experience working in more than a few start-up companies in the Silicon Valley will assist her tackle all the responsibilities she has in the family. Her “can-do” attitude, accompanied with a smile :-), is what I love the most about her. When Ruthy is not making payments, creating a report or working on a procedure, you can find her with her two kids and her collie dog. Ruthy is an artist too, and enjoys painting in her free time on canvas, wood and murals. Maybe someday soon, she will paint a mural for my room…

Maoz Hanson

There are few people I know who have talents as diverse as my cousin Maoz. Not only is he a gifted programmer, but he’s also a talented film editor. And while those skills are certainly useful at work, what I find most inspiring about Maoz is his competitive spirit and love for sport orienteering. Not sure what that is? Neither was I, but Maoz explained that it’s a challenge in which you try to reach as many points on a map in the shortest time possible. If you ask me, it sounds pretty awesome. In fact, I’m thinking about asking him to be my partner on the Amazing Race.

Sari Holtz

As the primary content writer for my website, twitter page and Facebook page, Sari is responsible for publicizing my deals and making sure that the best aspects of my personality shine through. In other words, Sari makes sure that I am social at all times (which is necessary because otherwise I’d probably be too busy playing tennis with Nir to get out much). A New York native, my cousin Sari has the strongest accent in the entire family. Fortunately, it doesn’t come across in print! Before joining my family, Sari worked for an e-commerce company and did freelance writing for a diverse range of clients. When Sari isn’t scouring the internet for the latest deals and freebies, she will likely be playing Bananagrams or baking.

Kristin Koga

My partners really like my cousin Kristin because she is awesome in figuring out what they need and what’s the best way to help them. Perhaps what makes her so good in this is her broad experience in work and life: She attended school in Alaska, where she majored in Wildlife Biology and Sociology, got trained as an Emergency Medical Technician, worked in the real estate industry and then at an aquarium training seals and sea lions! Now she is working on degrees in Human Services and Psychology so I can only wonder – what’s next for Kristin?

Dan Lahav

My cousin Dan joined the family just recently so I’m still getting to know him. They say he has extensive experience in software development so I can’t wait for him to show how he can develop me. When he is not working on making me better Dan can likely be found at the kitchen or flying remote control helicopters with his father.

Philip Li

My cousin Philip graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a B.S. in Engineering, Mathematics and Statistics. He uses all his extraordinary brain power to plan, design, execute and analyze online campaigns that help new friends find out about me and my savings club. But Cousin Philip is not just a numbers geek! In fact, he likes to play guitar (primarily electric but also acoustic) and he has a wide taste of music just like I do – from Jimmy Hendrix to John Mayer. From time to time we’d meet at his place to watch his favorite TV show, Dexter.

Bobbie Jo Lanham

My cousin Bobbie Jo recently moved from Indiana and came out to beautiful California for a new perspective on life. She puts her years of experience in customer service and sales into connecting with lots of my partners and convinces them to provide amazing discounts to my friends. She is an outdoorsy girl who likes to hike, wake board, snow board and such. She is also obsessed with different genres of music and hopes to get into the California music scene one day. I really enjoy when she mimics my favorite artists at karaoke!

Yehuda Lasri

Yehuda doesn’t just work in computers, he lives computers. Yehuda is responsible for overseeing and adjusting my database to ensure that the information is both correct and secure. I’m so fortunate to have a cousin who is so passionate about and devoted to computers, and I sleep easier at night knowing that my most important information is in Yehuda’s hands. When he’s not working on my database during regular work hours, my cousin Yehuda can be found researching database enhancements at home. Yehuda has a degree in computer science, and, before joining my family, he worked as a consultant building and securing databases for multiple websites.

Yaron Marcus

I owe a big debt of gratitude to my cousin and godfather, Yaron, for giving me such a cool name. But of course, Yaron has practice in naming people, as he has 2 sons of his own.

Yaron has a degree in marketing, which enables him to serve as one of the strongest creative forces behind my savings club. Yaron previously served as the Marketing and Brand Manager at several e-commerce companies as well as at a luxury goods manufacturer. Although we don’t share many hobbies, Yaron is a great godfather because he is always available in the late-night hours when I need a bit of TLC.

Mali Nussbacher

With 4 children and a full time job, my cousin Mali has certainly figured out how to manage her responsibilities efficiently. Mali oversees the QA team to make sure that my website runs properly and that everyone on the team is working comfortably and effectively. Before Mali joined the family, she worked at Retalix, first as a QA team member and then as a team leader. When Mali isn’t taking care of me (or her children), she’ll likely be playing Sudoku…or catching up on some well-deserved sleep.

Eyal Purvin-Josch

As an avid juggler and pianist, my cousin Eyal is accustomed to concentrating intently on complex tasks. When it comes to his work, Eyal is extremely focused on running targeted advertising campaigns so that I can help those looking to save money. Before joining my family, Eyal studied physics and worked as an account manager at DSNR. Whenever he gets the chance, Eyal likes to play a quick game of ping pong. Although I know how much he likes to win, I am secretly hoping that one day I’ll shock him with a surprise victory.

Chris Ramos

I’m trying to keep track on what my cousin Chris is doing for a long time now but it’s getting more and more difficult every day. Between riding a motorbike, fishing, target shooting, baking (!) and powerlifting I don’t really understand how he has time to take such a good care of my partners. Did I mention he also tends a pet iguana?

Wayne Smith

Whenever my friends ask for more discounts and savings I always first go to Wayne. With so many years of experience in sales and marketing he is the go to man to persuade retailers, merchants and service providers to become my partners. Before Wayne joined my family he worked in the insurance lead generation industry where he managed over 500 accounts. Somehow he still find some time to DJ and create house music (don’t tell him, but house music is actually not my thing and I like Cousin Bobbie Jo’s music much better).

Ryan Souva

My cousin Ryan is famous in my family as the guy who seems to be everywhere and do everything. A video game loving computer scientist that does musical theatre and karaoke. He helps manage my partners accounts and at the same time he’s responsible for the operation of the systems that help all my partner managers work effectively. Ryan is really a cool guy but I would think twice before making him upset – I heard he has two black belts!

Ronit Twito

Ronit is the silent stronghold behind the entire family. She’s responsible for making sure that our computers are properly maintained, ensuring that all aspects of the office are running smoothly and stocking the fridge with goodies. I’m sure it’s no easy task to arrange family trips for the whole gang, but Ronit always does it efficiently – and with a smile. Before she joined our family, Ronit worked as a pastry chef. She doesn’t often bring her goodies to the office, but she does know how to throw a mean office party! If she’s not at her desk, you can bet that Ronit is reading or watching the latest episode of Grey’s Anatomy.

Alon Vodovoz

Alon joined my family after spending 3 years in the Israeli army where he served as a software engineering captain. He now builds programs that are used to power and market my savings club. Alon has traveled extensively, first throughout the country as a competitive tennis player, and then throughout Europe where he traveled by train through 5 countries in 21 days. Now that Alon is newly married and has settled down in my family, I’m glad to see that he’s around a bit more, especially because it means that my website is always up and running. When he’s away from the office, Alon is likely to be planning his next adventure or guzzling lots of seltzer.

Tomer Zisman

As the development team leader, Tomer works diligently to oversee and assist the development team in their building of software that makes my website easy and fun to use. My cousin Tomer previously worked at Compile and Walla! Ltd. When he’s not thinking creatively about software development, Tomer expresses his creativity in the kitchen by cooking up a storm, which works out well, since I really love a good home-cooked meal!