Our Story

Founded by two entrepreneurs, Grasshopper has been making it easier to start and grow a small business since 2003. Back then, we started as just two guys with a dream and to date have served over 100,000 entrepreneurs (and we're still growing).

The Grasshopper virtual phone system helps entrepreneurs sound more professional and stay connected from anywhere. Features include toll free and local numbers, custom greetings, multiple extensions for employees, call forwarding to any phone anywhere in the world, voicemail to email, and much more. Unlike a traditional phone system, Grasshopper is managed all online and in the cloud - there's no hardware to purchase and no software to install.

Today our commitment to helping entrepreneurs is stronger than ever, and we continue to develop new and innovative tools to help them change the world.

Management

Siamak Taghaddos

Co-founder and CEO

Siamak Taghaddos oversees the strategic direction of Grasshopper and serves as the company's brand and product visionary. A life-long student of marketing, Siamak could be described as a one-man, full-service ad agency. Prior to serving as CEO of Grasshopper, Siamak founded a communications company and developed marketing campaigns targeting the elusive youth market for College Coach, Bright Horizons' educational consulting division. Siamak serves as a judge for numerous Babson entrepreneurship competitions, is an advisor to EntrepreneurShares, and is the founding supporter of National Entrepreneurs' Day. Siamak was born in Iran and grew up in Boston. He graduated from Babson College with a Bachelor of Science degree in entrepreneurship and marketing where he won the Business Plan Competition and received the Student Business of the Year Award.

Career Highlights

• Inc. | "30 Under 30" list
• Inc. | #66 on the Inc. 500 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America
• CNN | "Young People Who Rock"
• BusinessWeek | "Top 5 Entrepreneurs Under 25" list
• American Venture Magazine | "40 Under 40" list
• Boston Business Journal | "40 Under 40" list
• Entrepreneur Magazine | "Power Player"
• U.S. Small Business Administration | "MA Young Entrepreneur of the Year"
• Founding supporter of National Entrepreneurs' Day

David Hauser

Co-founder

David Hauser oversees the strategic direction and operations of Grasshopper and serves as the company's technology visionary. A passionate technologist, he's the guy you go to when you have a question about how the universe operates (or if you simply want to consult his encyclopedic inner search engine). As champion of the company's Core Values and work culture, he strives to create an environment that is professionally and personally rewarding for all employees. A technology start-up veteran, David was co-founder of Return Path, an e-mail performance management company. David's strong entrepreneurial spirit has allowed him to serve as a consultant for various companies as well as a mentor to emerging entrepreneurs through his alma mater, Babson College. He has also been a speaker at LessConf, Big Omaha, FOWA, SuperConf, and other events. David was born and raised in New York City. He graduated from Babson College with a Bachelor of Science degree in business.

Career Highlights

• Inc. | "30 Under 30" list
• Inc. | #66 on the Inc. 500 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America
• CNN | "Young People Who Rock"
• BusinessWeek | "Top 5 Entrepreneurs Under 25" list
• American Venture Magazine | "40 Under 40" list
• Boston Business Journal | "40 Under 40" list
• Entrepreneur Magazine | "Power Player"
• U.S. Small Business Administration | "MA Young Entrepreneur of the Year"
• Founding supporter of National Entrepreneurs' Day

Dominic (Don) Schiavone

Chief Operating Officer

Don oversees Grasshopper's enterprise-wide operational processes to create an outstanding customer experience that drives tremendous growth. Don boasts a 17-year track record of helping businesses of all sizes scale their operational processes. Before joining Grasshopper, Don was the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Sagebridge Consulting, LLC, which develops web solutions for entrepreneurs and small businesses. Don also served as Vice President of Professional Services for Granitar Inc., a top-tier Internet consulting firm, where he provided technology solutions to Fortune 1000 clients including State Street Bank, Fidelity, Amtrak, New York Times Digital, and Standard & Poors. In addition, he has held leadership positions at firms such as Mitchell Madison Group, Siemens, Westinghouse, and IBM. Don combines his technical and operational expertise with a passionate, business-driven perspective. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer and Electrical Engineering from Clarkson University and an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Michael Morris

Vice President, Customer Acquisition & Retention

Mike manages Grasshopper's customer acquisition and retention activities including product management, marketing and customer support. Mike's marketing and customer relationship experience spans more than 20 years including leadership positions in product management, consulting and client management. Most recently Mike was Vice President of Product Management at Fidelity Investment's HR outsourcing business where he built and launched the self-service applications and customer support for Fidelity's mid-market HR offering. Prior to that Mike held senior product development and product management positions at Affiliated Computer Services and ANSYS, Inc. where he specialized in developing and executing market entry strategies for new products. In addition, he held client management and consulting roles at Granitar, Inc and Deloitte Consulting where he worked for a number of Fortune 1000 clients. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Nuclear Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and an MBA from the Tepper School at Carnegie Mellon University.

Mark Salomone

Vice President, Finance

Mark joined Grasshopper in early 2010 and was quickly promoted to VP, Finance, where he oversees the finance, accounting, legal, and business intelligence functions. Before joining Grasshopper Mark was an Associate with Collard Advisory Group; a provider of CFO services to top-tier VC backed portfolio companies. At CAG Mark led twenty plus engagements ranging from seed to Series C financings, in a variety of technology sectors. Pre-funding he worked with management teams to construct financial models and pitch investors. Post-funding he owned the general ledger and was responsible for reporting to management and the board of directors. Mark received a B.S. in Business Administration with concentrations in Finance and Economics from Babson College, cum laude.

Core Purpose

To empower entrepreneurs to succeed.

Vision

To create a global communications company empowering 1 million entrepreneurs with products they love to use, that are invaluable to their businesses, and are passionately created and supported by a team of entrepreneurs.

Core Values

Go Above and Beyond

We strive to exceed the expectations of the people we work with and the entrepreneurs we serve. From taking ownership of responsibilities outside of our job description, to remaining committed to a project from start to finish, we go above and beyond to make a positive impact on everything we do.

Always Entrepreneurial

Being an entrepreneur means taking the initiative to find new and innovative solutions to daily challenges. This proactive approach to problem solving requires us to effectively calibrate risk while still thinking creatively and strategically.

Radically Passionate

Passion fuels our lives and ultimately paves the way to greatness. We create, evaluate, and innovate with pride and enthusiasm reinforcing our position as company ambassadors.

Your Team

Successful teamwork requires listening, sharing and keeping an open mind. Teamwork is achieved by leveraging individual strengths and overcoming differences to produce the optimal results. Working in this way cultivates trust and respect for each team member and maximizes productivity.

Giving Back

At Grasshopper, we make it a priority to give to organizations that advance entrepreneurs. Through charitable donations, volunteering, speaking, and mentoring new entrepreneurs, we give back to the entrepreneur community at large.

Careers

Grasshopper team members have a passion for entrepreneurship and a desire to work in a fast-paced, start-up environment. We're looking for dynamic team players that set the bar high, and then surpass it. We're not talking about automatons though; you've got to have a little soul. That means we expect you to play as hard as you work. Luckily, at Grasshopper, it's possible to do both.

Visit the Careers Center »