I am simultaneously disappointed and excited to announce that I will be departing Forrester in mid-February.  Being an analyst has been a terrific experience, but I’ve been offered the opportunity to lead community and collaboration at a Fortune 500 organization.  This is an excellent opportunity to dig deeply into the opportunities and challenges for a great organization, to return to leading and managing a team of bright and eager professionals, and to apply all that I’ve learned in my time at Forrester. 

Landing the analyst position at Forrester was, in many ways, a dream come true. I have enormous respect for the thought leaders at Forrester, and being part of their ranks was edifying, fun, and energizing. I cherish the many chances I was provided to meet great thinkers, both on the Interactive Marketing team and within the clients we serve.  There is nothing I will miss more than the analysts, researchers, project managers, and account and sales team members on the Interactive Marketing team. They are an incredibly smart, dedicated, and hardworking group of individuals. 

Please continue to read the Forrester blog for information, ideas, and report announcements about interactive marketing and social media from Sean Corcoran, Nate Elliott, Michael Greene, Melissa Parrish, and our newest addition to the team, Elizabeth Shaw.  Elizabeth will be holding down the fort covering social and emerging technology here in the San Francisco office; if you’re a vendor or client in the area and don’t yet know Elizabeth, I’d highly recommend you schedule some time to get to know her. She’s smart, charming, and enthusiastic, and I’m sorry we didn’t have more time to work together.

As I transition to my new and exciting role, I hope to maintain and deepen the relationships I’ve made via Twitter, my blog, and other channels. I hope you’ll continue to follow me on Twitter at @augieray. 

When one door closes, another opens — and in this case it may be a door for you.  Forrester will be hiring a senior analyst in North America to join its Interactive Marketing team. This analyst will cover social media and its relationship to other digital efforts. If you’re interested, you can apply directly from the job description or reach out to Christine Overby at coverby@forrester.com or on Twitter at @coverby.  (And I'd like to thank Christine for her support and the kind words she shared on her own blog post.)

I will greatly miss the terrific team at Forrester, and I look forward to their insightful reports and helpful consultation assisting me to be a better leader in the future.