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Tuesday, July 5, 2016

Jay Verkler named interim CEO of Findmypast

Jay Verkler, former CEO of FamilySearch, has been appointed as interim CEO of Findmypast. Many of us remember Jay for the fact that he was the CEO when the RootsTech Conference was first held. I was very pleased to hear that he would be working with Findmypast.com.

Here is the announcement from Findmypast:

Former CEO of FamilySearch, Jay Verkler, takes over from Annelies van den Belt as interim CEO of Findmypast 
London, Tuesday, July 5th 2016 
Jay Verkler, former CEO of FamilySearch, has been appointed as interim CEO of Findmypast. He takes over from Annelies van den Belt who has stepped down after three years. 
In a decade as CEO of FamilySearch, Jay pioneered the digital transformation of the world’s largest genealogical organisation. He oversaw the shift from vast paper and microfilm record stores to accessible digital archives. He broadened the audience for family history by developing partnerships with genealogy and technology companies, societies and archives across the world. Since leaving FamilySearch, he has been a consultant on strategy, product and technology for many organisations.

Welcoming Jay Verkler, Richard Hall, chairman of Findmypast, said: “I am delighted that Jay is going to head up Findmypast for the next six months. He has the industry knowledge and the entrepreneurial experience to drive the business forward. One of our key markets is the US and Jay has the experience and knowledge to help us to continue to expand Findmypast’s growth in America.” 
Jay Verkler said: “I am excited about the opportunity to lead Findmypast. I have worked with the organisation over the years as a partner and advisor and am excited to work with talented team in a real determination to develop the business. There is great opportunity to build on existing partnerships and to establish new ones across the globe.” 
About JAY L. VERKLER 
Mr. Verkler currently advises and consults with executive teams in disciplines ranging from consumer services to enterprise information technologies. 
Verkler recently completed a decade tenure as President and CEO of FamilySearch International, the genealogical effort of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter‐day Saints. During his time as CEO, Mr. Verkler led the organization’s move to digital and online offerings and developed a more advanced and collaborative genealogy industry and community. 
He previously served in executive positions within various Silicon Valley companies including Oracle Corporation, inCommon Inc., TIBCO Software, Vitria Technology, and Sales.com. 
Mr. Verkler studied electrical engineering, computer science and chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as well as Japanese and Asian studies at Harvard University. 
About Findmypast 
Findmypast (previously DC Thomson Family History) is a British-owned world leader in online family history. It has an unrivalled record of online innovation in the field and 18 million registered users across its family of online brands, which includes Lives of the First World War, The British Newspaper Archive and Genes Reunited, amongst others. 
Its lead brand, also called Findmypast, is a searchable online archive of over eight billion family history records, ranging from parish records and censuses to migration records, military collections, historical newspapers and lots more. For members around the world, the site is a crucial resource for building family trees and conducting detailed historical research. 
In April 2003, Findmypast was the first online genealogy site to provide access to the complete birth, marriage, and death indexes for England & Wales, winning the Queen’s Award for Innovation. Since that time, the company has digitised records from across the globe, including the 1911 Census and the recently released 1939 Register which they digitised in association with The National Archives.

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