Resume for Pete Van Baalen

Marketing, media, and project management professional with 30+ years of experience driving profitability and content excellence across various markets and formats. Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage complex projects, consistently delivering results on time and within budget. Combines a passion for quality with a dedication to continual improvement, yielding strong top-line growth and significant bottom-line savings. A creative strategist who increases revenue through both traditional and digital channels while maintaining operational efficiencies to boost profit. Known for building positive, productive team cultures and for simplifying complex challenges into clear, actionable solutions that drive team success.

Career satisfaction has come from positive outcomes from team building and innovation.

Pete's personal why statement: I excel at simplifying complex challenges and delivering clear, actionable solutions that drive team success.

Pete's personal leadership statement: I lead teams to achieve strong business outcomes by cultivating a positive and productive work environment.

Professional Experience

Sweetwater Sound, Fort Wayne, Indiana

January, 2019 to present

Current role - Director of Business Operations

Strategic E-commerce Expansion: Oversee large-scale e-commerce and major business projects, from planning through implementation, to drive company growth. Implemented wide-scale internal process improvements that enabled strong revenue gains while controlling costs.
Cross-Functional Leadership: Built and manage a high-performing operations team that collaborates across departments (marketing, IT, logistics, etc.), ensuring initiatives are executed on schedule and within budget. Foster a culture of transparency and accountability, improving project delivery outcomes
Process & Efficiency Improvements: Introduced new project management tools and workflows that increased productivity and reduced waste, contributing to measurable bottom-line savings and more agile operations.

Previous role - Director of Marketing, Sweet Family of Companies

Multi-Business Marketing Leadership: Directed marketing strategy and execution for 15 diverse business units, spanning retail, entertainment, and services under Sweetwater’s umbrella. Developed integrated marketing plans combining traditional advertising and digital media for each business.
Revenue Growth Under Adversity: Achieved double-digit growth across the portfolio despite the challenges of the 2020 pandemic, by emphasizing superior storytelling and a comprehensive multichannel marketing approach.
Integrated Campaigns: Led a team of marketers and content creators to produce cohesive campaigns (web, social, print, and broadcast) that strengthened brand engagement. Leveraged data-driven insights (SEO / SEM, email analytics) to continually optimize campaign performance.

Fort Wayne Newspapers, Fort Wayne, Indiana

May, 2016 to December, 2019

Role - General Manager

Operational Oversight: Managed all aspects of a multi-publication news organization, including editorial content (for the News-Sentinel and Fort Wayne Magazine), printing operations, distribution, and overall business administration. Held P&L responsibility and ensured alignment of departments toward business goals.
Sales Turnaround: Stabilized a declining sales department by implementing new training programs and a targeted recruitment drive. These efforts rebuilt a high-caliber sales team, boosting advertising revenues and improving sales morale.
Community Engagement: Built strategic community partnerships to strengthen the newspapers’ connection with local audiences and advertisers. This community-centric approach enhanced the publications’ relevance and opened up sponsorship and event revenue opportunities.
Profitability Improvements: Conducted an extensive overhaul of products and internal operations – consolidating offerings, reducing expenses, and restructuring teams – which dramatically improved the company’s profitability and stabilized the corporate P&L.

Elkhart Truth - Federated Media, Elkhart, Indiana

2014 to 2016

Role - Publisher

Executive Leadership: Led a multi-million-dollar, award-winning multimedia news organization serving Elkhart and surrounding areas. Oversaw the daily newspaper, weekly TMC (Total Market Coverage) product, niche magazines, and a suite of digital platforms. Full accountability for editorial quality, advertising sales, production, distribution, and financial performance.
Community Reengagement: Reinvigorated the publication’s role in the community through active involvement and strategic partnerships. Boosted readership and advertiser confidence by positioning the newspaper as a key community stakeholder and reliable news source.
Turnaround & Sale Preparation: Implemented sweeping changes to product mix and operations (redesigned content offerings, optimized distribution, aggressive cost management) that significantly improved profitability and the company’s valuation. These improvements were instrumental in positioning the business favorably prior to a successful ownership sale.

Community Newspapers Holdings Inc.

August, 2007 to October, 2014

Role - Vice President of Sales & Marketing, Regional Director

Regional Oversight: Directed sales and marketing for 30 newspaper markets across the Midwest (including 18 daily papers, 10 weeklies, and 2 shopper publications). Led a large regional team (14 direct market managers, 17 regional support staff, plus an 8-person inside sales call center) to execute advertising and marketing initiatives across all markets.
Revenue & Product Innovation: Developed and deployed advertising strategies that balanced core print products with new opportunities. Launched multiple new products and diversified revenue streams – introducing special sections, niche publications, and digital advertising programs – which expanded the company’s offerings and drove incremental revenue growth.
Team Building & Performance: Built a diverse, innovation-focused sales team. Implemented clear goals and tracking systems for day-to-day activities and long-term objectives, creating a culture of accountability and continuous improvement. Under this leadership, regions consistently met or exceeded revenue targets year-over-year.
Operational Collaboration: Worked closely with other business units (editorial, production, finance) to increase productivity and reduce waste. Identified process inefficiencies and led initiatives that yielded significant bottom-line improvements in operational costs across multiple markets

Earlier Experience

Group Publisher, Hendricks County Flyer & Westside Flyer – Indiana (2005 – 2006). Oversaw all facets of two regional weekly newspapers (combined circulation ~50,000) including advertising, editorial, distribution, and finance. Developed and implemented the annual strategic plan for the publications, and managed cross-department operations to ensure growth and profitability. Additional experience in sales, sales management, writing, and radio broadcasting provided a strong foundation in media and communications.

Additional experience in sales, sales management, writing and radio broadcasting

Education

Bachelor of Science in Marketing Management – Western Governors University (WGU)
Associates Degree in Radio / TV and Communications - Butler University, Indianapolis

Certifications

Project Management Professional (PMP) – Project Management Institute (PMI)
Google Project Management: Professional Certificate - Google / Coursera
CompTIA Project+ Certification