The leadership team at Firebrand Technologies is dedicated to building more than technology—we’re building connections. Guided by experience and a commitment to community, the Firebrand leadership team works to create technology solutions that strengthen relationships, empower people, and make a meaningful impact.
Connecting people, technology, and opportunity.
Our mission is to guide more content into the minds of more readers with technology solutions that serve the publishing industry.
We believe that intelligent technology paired with human expertise is the key to increased accessibility, sales, and efficiency, igniting publisher success and bettering lives.
Angela became CEO of Firebrand Technologies and NetGalley LLC in February 2023. Before that, she was Chief Executive Officer of the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), a position she held for 9 years.
With over 20 years of book industry experience, Angela has spent her career creating and nurturing the kind of collaboration that builds best-in-class products and services. In 2019, she was named aPublishers Weeklynotable person of the year for her work moving the causes of independent publishers forward. In addition, she has served on the boards of the Book Industry Study Group (BISG) and the International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF). During her service to BISG, she was awarded both the Community Builder Award and the Industry Champion Award.
Angela has a master’s degree in Book Publishing from New York University and a bachelor’s in English with a minor in Gender Studies from Indiana University Bloomington. An avid reader, she lives in Redondo Beach, California where she runs a monthly book club of over 700 members, practices yoga as often as possible, and crochets blankets that are always looking for a good home.
Tom Shawver
Chief Technology Officer
Tom Shawver is a life-long technologist who has spent over 15 years leading companies ranging from seed-stage to the Fortune 500 in embracing cutting-edge solutions to drive growth and customer delight. Before Firebrand Group, Tom was the Chief Technology Officer at 360 Media Direct, working with both book and magazine publishers to drive digital content adoption among readers.
Starting at the ground level of the cloud computing boom, Tom specializes in building software platforms that scale globally, react quickly, and stay highly integrated with other industry-leading software. He maintains and contributes to widely used open source software products that power thousands of companies worldwide, focusing on security and customer identity. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from Albright College, where he also studied in the Music and Digital Media programs.
When Tom's not building technology strategy, he enjoys kayaking with his wife and three children in New Jersey, writing music, designing electronics, and keeping his nose firmly planted in a sci-fi novel. His education was funded largely by a 13-year career in stage magic, so Tom is not to be trusted around a deck of cards.
Rob Stevens is Director of Operations at Firebrand Technologies, where he has spent more than 25 years helping lead operational excellence, customer success, and cross-functional collaboration across the organization. He has extensive experience managing teams spanning product operations, software development, quality assurance, support, and metadata services, with a strong focus on improving efficiency, strengthening client relationships, and driving continuous improvement. Rob is passionate about combining practical innovation with operational leadership to help teams and customers succeed.
Joshua Tallent
Director of Sales & Education
Joshua Tallent is the Director of Sales and Education at Firebrand Technologies, where his focus is on helping publishers of all sizes learn about, and find solutions to, their workflow and metadata problems. Joshua’s background is deeply rooted in ebook development, metadata, and other publishing technologies, and he is an acclaimed teacher and guide on the role of data in publishing.
He serves as the Immediate Past Chair of the BISG Board of Directors and is the host of the BookSmarts Podcast (https://booksmartspodcast.com), which features practical discussions and interviews about publishing data and technologies.
In his spare time, Joshua enjoys teaching Bible studies, playing complex board games, and fiddling with his home automation system.
Nick Rourke
Director of Professional Services
Nicholas Rourke is the Director of Professional Services at Firebrand Technologies, with over a decade of experience in publishing technology and enterprise systems. He has led digital transformation initiatives and major trade publishers including Hachette Book Group and HarperCollins. Nicholas brings a practitioner's perspective to helping clients modernize workflows, implement new technology and scale their operations. His team bridges the gap between publisher needs and technical solutions, delivering practical results.
Michelle Pavao
Director of Finance
Michelle Pavao is Director of Finance at Firebrand Technologies, where she is helping guide fiscal strategy, financial excellence, and cross-functional resource planning across the organization. She has extensive experience with more than 30 years managing teams in accounting, financial planning & analysis, treasury, and compliance. Her focus is on driving sustainable profitability, optimizing resource allocation, and strengthening financial integrity. She is passionate about combining data-driven insights with strategic financial leadership to ensure continuous business success and long-term growth.
Annie Johnston
Director of Eloquence on Demand
Annie Johnston is Director of Eloquence on Demand at Firebrand Technologies. In her 25 years in and around book distribution, she has helped publishers of all sizes maximize their digital reach, improve workflows, and navigate the ever-evolving publishing landscape. She is known for building strong relationships with publishers and trading partners, untangling knotty issues, and finding pragmatic solutions. She brings a collaborative, hands-on approach to her work and enjoys helping clients turn industry challenges into opportunities for growth.
Ben Todd
Senior Manager, FIT Product Strategy
Ben Todd is a forward-thinking product strategist with deep experience spanning publishing, consumer products, and manufacturing. Drawing on his MBA from Vanderbilt and his current role as Senior Manager of Product Strategy, he combines creative vision with analytical rigor to deliver high-impact results. Ben is passionate about driving innovation through every stage of the product development process — leveraging market research and long-term strategic thinking to position products ahead of the curve. He consistently delivers value through operational efficiency, a relentless client focus, and a talent for turning complex challenges into clear, actionable solutions.
Brock Lyman
Senior Project Manager
Brock Lyman has spent his career engaged in all aspects of the software development life cycle including directing the Quality Assurance, Application Development, and Professional Services teams to build best in class software products and services for book publishers. This work has given him a deep understanding of the publishing industry's unique processes and challenges. In his current role as Senior Project Manager, this broad experience across multiple disciplines allows him to bridge the gap between complex technological concepts and practical business needs to ultimately deliver eloquent and lasting solutions to Firebrand’s clients.
Kent Safranski
Director of Cloud Services
Kent Safranski is Director of Core Services at Firebrand Technologies. With over 25 years in software engineering, he has worked to develop technical solutions across numerous industries, focusing on agile processes and team leadership. His approach centers on combining cutting-edge technology with iterative project management to build scalable, maintainable solutions that deliver customer-focused results. Kent is passionate about growing high-performing engineering teams and creating systems that evolve with the business.
Interested in joining the Firebrand team?
Learn more about open positions at Firebrand Technologies.
