Roger Barnette

Over the past 20 years, I've been fortunate to work alongside many talented, dedicated people while leading and growing technology businesses. As CEO of MessageGears, my focus each day is on how to marry our long-term vision for growth with an eye toward ensuring our clients' satisfaction and success. Being CEO of a growing technology company requires boundless energy and the ability to be your company's biggest, most visible advocate, but it's also essential to surround yourself with exceptional people who can carry your vision through the day-to-day reality required to make any business a success. MessageGears is ranked as one of Atlanta's best places to work and is ranked by Deloitte as one of the 500 fastest growing technology companies in North America. Prior to MessageGears, I was President of IgnitionOne, a company formerly named SearchIgnite that I founded. I grew that business from inception to one of the world's largest digital media platforms. It was ranked one of the Best Places to Work in Atlanta by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Some of my previous growth leadership positions included Biltmore Communications (acquired by DIRECTV) and eTour (acquired by Ask.com). I've received numerous awards, including Atlanta Internet Marketer of The Year and Emory’s Goizueta Business School Outstanding Recent Alumni award. I'm on the Board of Directors of the Atlanta CEO Council, a member of YPO — Southern 7 Chapter and a mentor at Techstars Atlanta. I'm a frequent guest speaker at industry conferences and have been regularly cited in major media outlets. I earned an MBA from Emory University’s Goizueta School of Business and a BS in Computer and Electrical Engineering from the University of South Carolina.