Wiland Blog

In recognition of his dedication and pioneering work to advance the success of the direct marketing community, Phil Wiland was honored on November 29 with the inaugural DMAW Changemaker Award. The recipient of this prestigious award is recognized for exhibiting these virtues:

• • An agent of impactful change whose efforts have led to tangible and measurable positive outcomes, creating transformative change in the communities they serve and causes they champion.
  • A demonstrator of marketing or fundraising excellence whose visionary approach, strategic thinking, and ability to adapt to the ever-evolving marketing landscape have led to amazing results and successful campaigns.
  • A collaborator and mentor who has shown a willingness to guide others and share their expertise and knowledge.
  • A champion of integrity, transparency, and ethical practices who sets an exemplary model for others to follow.

Phil has exemplified these virtues throughout his distinguished career. His commitment to helping fundraisers and direct marketers is evidenced by the thousands of organizations that turn to Phil and our company every day to fuel their growth and success. From groundbreaking new data and audience products to game-changing analytic systems, Phil has pioneered numerous innovations in data-driven marketing for many years, including:

• • The first national directory of postal carrier routes—the initial enabler of the presort discounts that mailers enjoy today
  • One of the first highly accurate and effective merge/purge software solutions
  • One of the earliest fully integrated CRM systems
  • A new approach to cooperative databases, utilizing AI and machine learning response modeling as a standard—well over a decade before AI was popularized
  • Recent dramatic growth in the number of transactions in The Wiland Transaction Database
  • Current projects to enhance and supplement Wiland’s AI and machine learning algorithms that are powering superior results for thousands of clients across the direct marketing spectrum

This new DMAW Changemaker Award follows Phil’s many other such recognitions over the years, including the Marketing Club of New York Silver Apple Award and the ANA Nonprofit Federation Max Hart Achievement Award.

In the spirit of continuous improvement, Phil inspires an ethos of innovation at our company. He leads by example not only in innovation, but in fostering our culture of honesty, integrity, and goodness. His inspirational leadership is succinctly expressed by the sign outside his office that reads: “Work hard and be nice.”

Congratulations on this outstanding award Phil! It has been a privilege to work alongside you for many years. I can’t wait to see what’s next in the data-driven innovations you will be creating.