Manthan “Monty” Mehta
Product Manager
Joined the Orchard November 2010
Let’s start mildly for once: Monty, what the #&@$ do you do?
Well, in order for you to get a good idea of what I do here, I need to start from the beginning:
I actually originally came to The Orchard as a Business Analyst, but that changed within a few months and my current title is Product Manager (but I still prefer Business Analyst… lol).
From November 2010 to about February 2011, I worked on the beginning phases of what is now The Marketplace (boy has that come a LONG way). I helped write the requirements for the “Press Kit” and “Promo Player” apps, and I also tested the developer portal.
From February 2011 to about September or October 2011, I worked on the music video element of Release Builder. I did everything from writing the requirements to testing it to addressing post-launch bugs… it’s my baby.
From October 2011 to about December 2011, I floated around working on various projects. I helped John DuPre with The Marketplace and the SoundCloud Connect app, I slowly started to get involved in the Store Integrations project, and last but not least, I was the “go to” guy for any music video issues in Release Builder.
I’m sorry Monty, but there are a few too many approximations in your description. Let’s be specific here. What’s been on the agenda for January 2012 and beyond?
Well, since you ask… I’ve now taken on the role of Product Manager of Internal Tools. That means that if you have any issues related to our internal systems, you should talk to me so that I can put it into the backlog and have that resolved in one of the upcoming sprints. In addition to that I’m also working on the Store Integrations project I mentioned earlier, which basically just focuses on updating our current store profiles and setting new ones up so that we can expand our reach. I’m also working on something else that currently needs to have a tight lid on it but you’ll soon begin to hear about it…
Oooh, secret project… Now you’ve really perked us up!
In the meantime, I’m dying to know, what’s the story behind the “Monty” nickname?
There’s not an interesting story behind my nickname. I just thought that Monty would be easier for everyone to pronounce. I got tired of being called “Monton,” “Manhattan,” “Man-tan,”…
OK, OK, Monty it is! Here’s another funny thing I heard through the grapevine… You auditioned to be on The Amazing Race! Details, please!
Who told you that?! Well, it’s true… I did audition for The Amazing Race. I went to Atlantic City in late 2011 for the open auditions, and man was that an AMAZING experience! I left on a Friday night and gambled the entire night in order to actually stay awake. At around 8-9AM on Saturday, they started to take teams of two into a room they had booked at the Trump Taj Mahal. I went in with my team mate and we actually made it through to round 2!
That’s impressive, Man-tan! I mean Monty… Now that I know what the #&@$ you do, I’m really glad you didn’t end up racing around the world.
