Name: Brad Koontz

Family: Lauren (wife, UGA class of 1996), Kate (daughter, 21), Sam (son, 18), Ricki Bobbi (yellow lab rescued from Talladega Motor Speedway), Layla (black lab, troublemaker)

Hometown: Atlanta

Current Town: Dunwoody, Georgia.

What Years at UGA: 1990-1995.

School/Degree: Grady College, Advertising. Georgia State, MBA.

Profession: Technology executive.

Accolades: Boring tech stuff that would put BI readers to sleep.

What life lessons did you learn while at UGA? 

Pick your friends carefully; if you are lucky, these will be your friends for life.

What professor did you most admire? 

Coleman Barks. I took creative writing with him; he taught us to trust our gut and find our voice in our writing. He is an accomplished poet and published multiple volumes of translations of the 13th century Persian poet Rumi’s work.

What do you consider your greatest achievement? 

Without question, my marriage to Lauren and raising funny and confident kids.

Which historical figure do you most identify with? 

Anthony Bourdain. He was a big fan of winging it and letting the the journey leave marks on you, both good and bad.

Who are your heroes in real life? 

My dad, John Koontz, who passed away earlier this year. He started his successful career in technology back before PCs were even a thing. He did it all and put family first and taught us how to be a great father and how to have a successful marriage.

Quote to live by: Every roadtrip my family took in the 70s carried the soundtrack of inspirational sales tapes. “You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help other people get what they want” Zig Ziglar.

What is your idea of perfect happiness? 

Low tide at Gould’s Inlet on SSI with my family and friends, dogs running in the surf, Tropicalia in hand, Fillmore East on the speaker.

What is your most marked characteristic? 

Optimism and resiliency.

What do you most value in your friends? 

Humor and history. I am blessed that I still have great friends from my time in Athens and before.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I would drink more water.

Who are your favorite writers? 

Hunter S. Thompson. He was one of a kind, invented gonzo journalism. Reading his political coverage from the 70s, we are reminded that history may not repeat itself, but it definitely rhymes.

Fave social media and who to follow? 

Although he recently “retired” it still has to be Club Pro Guy. I have a personalized license plate that says “NET5.”