Meet the Referential Founders: David Feber
DAVID WINE TASTING IN NAPA
Being one of the Managing Partners of Referential, David Feber has invested enormous amounts of time and effort in building the company up to where it is today. In 2001, he had become burned-out after years of corporate life – responsible for a $1B sub-business in a high-tech corporation and overseeing 3,000 employees – so he decided to join his wife’s consultancy business and help take it to the next level.
Dave’s academic background as an engineer serves as an inspiration and motivation to continually measure all aspects of advocacy, which always keeps work intellectually interesting and intriguing for him. It’s also what makes Referential a unique player in the market!
Apart from helping steer the company from a business perspective, he also handles the company’s IT strategy and oversees the asset creation team. To date, he’s edited well over a thousand case studies and he finds his hybrid technical/business background helps him train the writing team to translate the impact and success of clients’ offerings in a way that people can easily understand.
Dave stressed that it’s important to respect and do the right thing for employees; creating an organization where colleagues can have a good standard of living, and find it gratifying to be part of something significant. Dave gets a kick out of being able to work with people he enjoys being with. He takes his role as a mentor very seriously. He gets to see people steadily build their expertise; and loves witnessing the contrast of when they first started with Referential to becoming a seasoned customer advocacy professional.
Dave really likes the agility that Referential provides, enabling everyone to be nimble. For instance, if an opportunity suddenly arises, the team can decide on a course of action immediately without having to go through any complex pecking order. In a large corporation, it can take weeks or even months to make a similar decision. Having the flexibility enables Referential to do the right things for customers without having tons of bureaucracy.
DAVID AND HIS FAMILY ON A 10-DAY SAFARI!
Referential manages to maintain a very collaborative, supportive, and efficient environment. There’s a comfortable level of comradery without any overbearing formality, but it’s still professional at the same time. It has the key factors of a healthy workplace with the addition of a family-style atmosphere. Dave said it might sound like a cliché but he emphasized the importance of being inclusive to ensure that everyone feels part of the extended Referential family.
On a more personal note, Dave enjoys wine tasting, music, playing the guitar, flying (the family keeps a high-performance aircraft at a local airport), and practically anything to do with cars, mechanics, and woodworking. In fact, he built the majority of the family home; it serves as a tactile outlet for expression while also putting his engineering background to good use.
He wants all current and potential clients to know that he’s truly passionate about advocacy and showcasing their customers’ achievements through case studies, videos, blogs, and award submissions. He says it’s a pleasure to connect with people and establish bonds, and he’s grateful for the positive feedback and appreciation Referential receives in return. Dave is excited to see what the future holds!
