CoThrive

About Us

At CoThrive it’s not just our software that’s all about making and keeping commitments. Our people are too. You’ll find that working with us is like having an attentive, responsive partner, dedicated to your business success. See what others say about us.

History

CoThrive began four years ago as a professional services firm, delivering execution management services to some of the world’s most prominent companies, including Microsoft, Sony and EMC Corporation. The more expert we became in tackling and repairing major performance breakdowns, the more we realized that standard management tools and techniques fell short of delivering relief from out-of-control initiatives. We wanted to help businesses execute better and faster, even on short term, urgent projects that pop up unexpectedly.

In response to repeated requests from our clients, we developed the CoThrive Commitment Network, a web-based application that actually links, tracks, and measures people’s commitments within an organization.

Management

CoThrive is led by an energetic management team with decades of experience running divisions and companies – Sherman Rowland, CEO; Rachel Orston, COO; John Rowland, VP Product Development

Sherman Rowland, Chief Executive Officer

Sherman has over 20 years experience building and leading high performance teams and organizations in established enterprises and startups. Three of the organizations he’s led have been ranked #1 in their respective industries by leading analysts, and one of those companies grew from 318k to 6.5M in its first year. Today it’s a 100M+ business.

Sherman was recently the Director of Advanced Solution Development at EMC responsible for creating advanced storage solutions for high-bandwidth, media-intensive applications. Prior to EMC, Sherman was VP of Operations and Client Development of the Digital Media & Broadband Solutions practice at iXL Inc, a global professional services firm that merged with Scient Inc.

As an executive coach and consultant with Hecht and Associates, Sherman designed interventions and coached executives in the areas of leadership, management, sales, marketing and operations in a two-year executive MBA program used by GE's John F. Welch Leadership Center at Crotonville. Sherman has advised executives in Fortune 500 and start up organizations including Microsoft, GE, IBM, Allied Signal and Steelcase. Sherman holds a B.A. from San Jose State University and is a Graduate of Enterprise Performance's two-year Mastering Professional Management program. He has also completed three years in Strozzi Institute's Leadership & Mastery program.

Rachel Orston, Chief Operating Officer

Rachel has spent the last 10 years leading teams to develop and deliver large-scale solutions to Fortune 500 customers around the world.

Rachel was recently Global Marketing Director for EMC's Media & Entertainment vertical. She was responsible for all marketing initiatives and plans, including solution development, conferences and tradeshows. Prior to managing marketing, Rachel led development and delivery of partner solutions which included work with Accenture, Artesia, Documentum and Oracle.

Prior to EMC, Rachel was Director of Operations for the Digital Media & Broadband Solutions practice at iXL Inc, a global professional services firm that merged with Scient Inc. Rachel led development of iXL's overall intranet and content management infrastructure as well as started a new division devoted to live and on-demand streaming media solutions.

Rachel has extensive experience in the Media & Entertainment industry, having worked for Showtime Networks, Turner Broadcasting and CBS.

Rachel holds a BS in Journalism from Northwestern University and an Executive MBA from the Georgia Institute of Technology. She holds a certification in project management from the Project Management Institute (PMI) and a certification in product management from Microsoft.

John Rowland, VP Product Development

John brings over 25 years' experience building and leading high performance design and development teams in high growth industries for both established enterprises and startups. He has extensive hands-on experience in both design and manufacturing and has held a key leadership role in guiding the growth and success of a $160M/yr division.

John was recently Director of Design Engineering and Change Management at Celerity Systems and lead the development of the product design team responsible for establishing the company as the largest turnkey outsource provider of Semiconductor Gas Delivery Equipment. Prior to Celerity, he led a Prototype Equipment Design team developing custom factory automation and robotic solutions for Vernay Laboratories, a manufacturer of precision elastomers for the Medical and Automotive Industries.

John brings over 20 years experience in product design and development, with a very strong focus on speed to market and zero defects.

He has taken two organizations through the process of successfully implementing and certifying ISO 9001, most recently to the new 9001:2000 standard with Det Norske Veritas providing the certification. He has established expert teams in Agile Product Lifecycle Management, with a single division performing more than 2000 change orders per month. In addition, he developed and integrated custom workflows to support business processes throughout the product lifecycle.

John holds a B.S. in Physics from Miami University and has continued his education throughout his career with a focus on Business Process Design and Effective Leadership. He has completed a two-year executive MBA program used by GE's John F. Welch Leadership Center at Crotonville.