At BLOX Digital, we believe success starts with finding the right people. The work we do here is changing the local media industry, and these are the people who are making it happen. Today we shine a light on Michael Worringer, Senior Product Support Specialist.
What is your background?
After graduating from the University of Wisconsin with degrees in journalism and political science, I started my career as a copy editor for a Madison-based startup that provided digital solutions to local broadcast television stations. I would turn scripts created to be read over the air into readable article text. I later held roles in the account management and product management teams before being part of the company that spun out into a new startup, Field59, in 2015.
In 2018 BLOX Digital acquired Field59, and now I'm a senior solutions support specialist for that product as well as for BLOX Syndication services. I also set up new BLOX VMS accounts.
What do you love most about your job?
I really enjoy being a problem solver. Making a customer happy by digging into and solving their support issue can be really satisfying, especially if I can achieve it without needing to distract our wonderful developers from their mission of building new features. BLOX Digital has so many interconnected products that it can sometimes be difficult for a customer to figure out exactly how to achieve something. If I can help eliminate a pain point for them, I've done my job.
What are you currently working on that you’d like everyone to know more about?
We're always looking at supporting new integration points for Field59 VMS and BLOX CMS. Our developers recently added the ability to leverage BLOX Syndication to download videos from MRSS feeds into Field59 VMS—which will be great for customers looking to automate third-party video content publishing.
What are you most excited about for the future of the news industry?
Excited might not be the right word—the most urgent need I see is to keep experimenting with digital revenue models. That way we can expand digital journalism and hire the quantity of journalists the country needs to properly carry out the role of "the fourth estate." When that can be solved, that will be pretty exciting.
What's something people don't know about you?
My wife Brittani and I have 3 boys, ages 6, 2, and 3 months old. That doesn't leave a ton of time for hobbies these days. But I enjoy playing board games, riding bicycles, and following my various sports teams (go Badgers!)
