Digiday Questionnaire: JetBlue’s Jonathan Stephen

1. What about working in the digital media industry makes you happy?
I love that the industry is moving rapidly, thereby presenting the challenge for organizations to keep up with the latest trends. It keeps me on my toes, and I know that my job will constantly evolve 12, 24, and 36 months from now.

2. What about working in the digital media industry makes you miserable?
It pains me to see some other brands poorly execute their digital strategies. I feel that there needs to be more education for brands and agencies to understand the technology and take complete ownership of the execution. I am very adamant that vendors should not be the ones defining strategy for an organization. The thought leadership should come from within the brand.

3. What is the worst fault you see in your area of the industry?
Hands down, QR codes being improperly used is one of the worst faults I see. Consumers need to be educated on how to use the QR code, and brands should incentivize the user for scanning the code. This isn’t a case of, if you build it, they will scan. There needs to be more engagement, and many retailers have dropped the ball in this area.

4. What positive changes do you hope to see in the industry?
I see our industry growing, creating more jobs, and defining new career paths. It’s an exciting time to be a part of this industry and I hope that this continues on into the future.

5. What is the quality you most admire in digital media CEOs?
I would admire their ability to connect with a team and have a good understanding of the organization’s strengths and weaknesses.

6. What tech company do you wish you started?
I would be crazy not to say Facebook.

7. Silicon Valley or Madison Ave.?
MAD MEN! All the way!

8. Track or Do Not Track?
Track, politely!

9. App or mobile site?
That’s a trick question, and great one at that! I feel they both play their own specific part in an overall mobile strategy. They should complement each other, not compete.

10. If you could only use one of these for these rest of your life: Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, Spotify, which one?
I would keep Spotify. I love music! Not having any of the others would encourage me to call my friends, meet up and hang out in person rather than send them a note. Don’t get me wrong, I love social media sites, but there’s nothing like that personal connection you can have with your friends and family. That’s what creates those lifelong memories. And with music, those memories have soundtracks.