Our Team

Mike Mallaro

Christa Miehe

Rob Duryea

A retired 20-year member of the United States Marine Corps, Rob serves as the second president of VGM Forbin. In addition to his experience in the Marines, serving and leading in countries around the globe, Rob’s experience in both the classroom and in business is diverse. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in History from the United States Naval Academy, a Masters of Operational Studies from the Marine Corps and an MBA from Wake Forest University. He then spent three years as a Senior Group Leader at the Target distribution center in Cedar Falls. An energetic people-person, Rob uses his vast knowledge and humor to connect with both co-workers and clients. Outside of his job as president, Rob stays active with boxing, rugby, climbing and participating in triathlons. He enjoys reading most anything, working on his old Jeep and delving into creative woodworking projects. He also owns an extensive novelty clothing collection, ranging from Vanilla Ice to a vintage green leisure suit.

Christina Throndson

Google Certifications: AdWords, Analytics, Mobile, Shopping & Video

The dominant voice in the office, Christina can be heard chatting with clients or talking about the funny things in life. Christina regularly attends conventions and conferences in order to keep the pulse of the search and social industries, her two loves. She is both certified in Google AdWords and Analytics which allow her to further enhance the exposure of clients’ websites. When she isn’t working or being social, Christina consumes her free time with her friends and family, or can be found curled up on her couch investing in the “lame” hobby of crocheting. And in case you require it, Christina can marry you, as she is an ordained minister.

Beth Streicher

Beth joined the Forbin team with a great wealth of experience in administration, marketing and helping a business run smoothly from top to bottom. With 15-plus years of experience in sales, account management, training, motivating, marketing and other areas, Beth is able to provide rock solid assistance for administrative and marketing tasks within Forbin. She loves being a part of high-functioning team, passionate about customer service and adept a problem solving, all great qualities to have at our office. Outside of work, Beth stays busy with painting and Pinterest projects, remodeling and interior design. She also really enjoys camping, swimming and road tripping, and she’s always up for fun board game or game of bags.

Will Cousin

Donny Wilson

A recent addition to the Forbin sales team, Donny focuses on banking and financial institutions outside of the local area. The Iowa State graduate brings experience in business-to-business (B2B) sales, having worked in that area for the last 14 years. Though his degree is in zoology, Donny’s talent for sales with all sizes of technology and software businesses from startups to large corporations led him to joining our team to help expand our client base. When he’s not out on the road meeting with clients Donny is most likely working with his hands creating one-of-a-kind pieces of furniture and cabinets.

Areas of Expertise

Donny’s focus is on assisting banks and financial institutions improve their presence on the web and provide their customers with the products and services they need. Working with small, medium and large banks, Donny’s expertise with Forbin’s BankWeb system, as well as his knowledge of current banking trends, allows him to show clients how beneficial BankWeb can be. Donny can also provide a detailed look at Forbin’s Social Performance Plans, Custom Facebook Tabs and Search Engine Marketing plans to help with relationship building and lead generation.

Raquel Ita

Mandi Joyner

Joel Betzer

Darrell DeWinter

Josh Carroll

Jessica Benjamin

Taylor Rettig

Philipp Hoeltermann

Philipp joined the Forbin team having completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in Information Management from the University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Hannover, Germany. Working with the programming team is Phillipp’s first work experience out of college and in the United States, and he has proven to be a valuable addition. Tasked with quality assurance and security, Philipp combs sites that are being developed to find possible bugs, errors or security issues to be corrected before they go live. Philipp has a love for basketball, baseball and football that is “more than all other Germans combined.”

Morgan Kuhrt

Cassi Price

Google Certifications: AdWords, Mobile, Shopping & Video

Specializing in social media campaigns, search and social advertising and writing optimized content for websites, Cassi plays a vital role in Forbin’s web marketing. Before joining Forbin Cassi bolstered her skills as Director of Communications for the Orthotic and Prosthetic Group of America, and has attended conferences and completed the 7 Step Sales Process Training for Emerge Sales. A lover of music and anything outdoors, Cassi finds satisfaction in finding a client’s unique target audience through search and social advertising, as well as creating interactions through social media. Most nights find Cassi spending time outside with her husband and two daughters, then enjoying a glass of cheap-ish wine. She is also available as a wedding singer should you need one.

Matt Cunard

A relative newbie to the world of web development and marketing, Matt’s background is in writing for various media, public relations and communication design for print and social media. Working mostly on web marketing projects, Matt helps give companies a branded presence on Facebook and a voice through writing their blog postings. Matt writes content for Powerweb and custom websites; and also assists with search engine optimization and search engine management projects. Loving exercise and pretty much anything that keeps him active outdoors, this native of Kansas City likes to play (but is mediocre at) golf, interested in (and not bad at) cooking and really into (and very nerdy about) The Office.

Al Strain

Google Certifications: AdWords, Mobile, Shopping & Video

Al joined Forbin after gaining extensive experience in journalism. Originally from St. Charles, MN, Al graduated from Wartburg College with a communication arts major and history minor. His journalism experience includes writing for the college student newspaper, acting as the editor-in-chief for the newspaper, and being a reporter for the Owatonna People’s Press newspaper for over two years.  His experiences in writing on a number of different topics (including going up in the air in a stunt airplane twice) prepared Al for the writing-intensive work he does at Forbin. Al is greatly interested in the ever-changing nature of marketing on the web and the rapidly expanding skill set it requires. He is an avid Minnesota sports fan, as well as a Grammy-award winning singer when driving in his car. He also has a passion for making people laugh and for theater. His upbringing as an only child with no imaginary friend has made Al a very personable and friendly member of our team.

Eric Geistkemper

Eric joined the Forbin team having graduated from the University of Northern Iowa with his degree in marketing. Eric’s background in marketing, web and social media makes him a valuable resource to the Web Marketing team as he helps with polishing the master catalog and working on various social media marketing projects. His previous work with Blaine’s Farm and Fleet and Witham Collision Center has bred a passion for tinkering on vehicles and woodwork. Eric also enjoys traveling with his wife, messing with computers and brewing his own beer outside of his work at Forbin.

Laura Smith

Google Certifications: AdWords, Mobile, Shopping & Video

Laura brings vast experience in storytelling online, on-air and in print to the Forbin team. Having earned a B.A. (University of Iowa) and an M.A. (University of Northern Iowa) in English with an emphasis in creative writing, Laura is never short on ideas. Her experience in storytelling includes working with a small town newspaper and radio station in central Iowa, giving her a unique perspective. Laura has a passion for telling compelling stories that help a client’s customers feel like they are a part of the story. Laura’s storytelling experience extends outside of work as well. She has performed on stage in community theater, beat poetry, stand-up comedy and No Shame Theater, speaking to her eagerness to entertain. She is also part of an historical Viking re-enactment group that puts on public shows to demonstrate what life was like for Scandinavians living between the years 800-900.

Haylee Westendorf

Lisa Kotouc

Livvy Boeck

Kelly Herbert

Bailey Lubben

Nathan Hauser

An active outdoorsman by nature, Nathan's passion for web design and sinking his teeth into a variety of projects make him an invaluable member of the Web Design team at Forbin. Nathan's educational background includes degrees from Hawkeye Community College and the University of Northern Iowa, and his work at other area agencies brought him to Forbin with a well rounded skillset. Nathan's zeal for whatever project he's working on – full websites, updates or social media branding – allow him to do something unique every day. He loves coming up with out-of-the-box solutions to bring a product or service to life. This passion extends outside the office as Nathan has many interests and hobbies (take a big breath): camping, hiking, running, lifting weights, shooting pistols, leathermaking, inline & ice skating, swimming, long boarding, survivalist training and watching Philadelphia Flyers hockey.

Kyle Kramer

Having started web design and coding when he was 14 it’s easy to see why Kyle is part of the VGM Forbin team. Specializing in interface development integration, Kyle loves developing a site from only a graphic into a fully functional website that is alive with transitions and animations. Kyle likes to keep his designs clean and airy, but he has experience in designing with textures and also designing for mobile. A fan of Disney movies and movies from the ‘80s, Kyle is usually playing sports, video games or hanging out with friends when he’s not developing websites.

Mark Wubbena

Having a background in a smorgasbord of old-school art techniques and modern design and web applications, Mark brings both knowledge and varied experience to his work. A designer, drummer and daddy to his daughter, Mark has experience in working with drawing, painting, video post production, web and print design, video integration and Flash animation. In short, he knows a lot of useful stuff. While he loves design, Mark is infatuated with branding and helping companies develop a visually expressive exterior that reflects the interior values and inner workings of that company. Mark also takes his creativity and mind for design and applies it to his home, which he is usually renovating or remodeling in some way.

Cheryl Jenson

Chocked full of work experience and knowledge of a wide assortment of design and development programs and processes, Cheryl uses these tools to accomplish a variety of design tasks crucial to task completion. Whether she’s adding content to a website, creating a splash page or updating web pages, Cheryl always brings her best work to the table. Her creative edge appears outside the office as well, as she is a music, traveling and photography enthusiast. Cheryl’s skills also allow her to be flexible in her work, as she enjoys working on projects for clients in all kinds of industries. You can find her at concerts, watching movies or sipping on a hot cup of coffee when she’s not blowing clients away with her work.

Britany Miller

Britany brings a background heavy in design on numerous platforms to her work at Forbin. With degrees in both graphic communications and web programming & development, Britany brings the strong eye for visual detail and front-end development skills necessary to create websites to meet our clients’ needs. Britany is passionate about managing and building projects from start to finish, and really enjoys seeing a final product that offers the usability a client needs. She also enjoys learning new things, meaning she’s always expanding her skill set. Outside of work, Britany’s hobbies center around the outdoors and creativity, as she enjoys traveling, drawing, painting and photography.

Brett Schwickerath

Matt Kauten

Matt joined VGM Forbin in 2009 with a bachelor's degree in Computer Science from the University of Northern Iowa and an associates degree in Computer Information Systems. A Microsoft Certified ASP.NET Web Developer, Matt has an extensive knowledge of programming, database and web page development techniques and uses them on a daily basis to complete a variety of tasks at Forbin. Matt's focus at Forbin is to coordinate the work coming through the programming department at VGM Forbin.

A fan of movies and being outdoors, Matt’s bank of computer and technological wisdom makes him an often used resource for our programmers, designers, IT support, sales, and web marketing teams for current problems or future projects. Not one to be left behind on updates on the web, Matt likes to participate in ASP.NET user groups, as well as going camping in his spare time. He also loves spending time with his wife Sydney and his son Henry as well as his two dogs, Abbey and Charlie.

Mike Kirkpatrick

Motivated by the continuous daily changes to the web and technology, Mike enjoys applying out of the box thinking to his various programming duties. His background in computer science, robotics and automation and industrial technology has allowed Mike to develop and integrate functional and original programming into some of the larger sites Forbin produces. To know that Mike loves jumping out of perfectly good airplanes is not surprising considering his knack for pushing the limits of the web. Outside of programming, Mike likes watching movies, cheering on the Huskers (GO BIG RED!), swimming, camping and fishing from his boat if he’s not hurtling towards the earth like a meteor.

Justin Berning

Another team member in our multitude of UNI grads, Justin specializes in PHP programming. Having earned his BA in Management Information Systems, Justin uses his familiarity with various programming languages to create new custom websites, as well as fix minor bugs or other issues in current sites. Justin feels most accomplished when he’s created a site that works exactly how it’s supposed to to help a client meet their goals. A sports lover, Justin stays active outside of work, whether he’s shooting hoops at his apartment, out playing disc golf or enjoying a round of golf with some friends.

Erik Hanson

Josh Tanberg

Having worked at other area web development companies, Josh brings many fresh, new ideas to our team to help us refine our production process. At the time he joined Forbin, Josh had a mix of real-world and in-classroom web development experience. His passionate approach to being on the cutting edge of web development and design trends means Josh is always an asset in idea generation meetings regardless of which type of project is being discussed. He is by no means your cookie cutter web developer: Josh loves old cars (he drives a 1950 Mercury), plays guitar and is an Army Infantry Veteran, having completed three tours with the 101st Airborne.

Trevor Covington

Jade Manning

Dave Wirth

Dave has done everything and held nearly every position in web development, from programmer and trainer to sales support, IT staff and everything else. Dave graduated from Luther College with a degree in accounting and minors in math and physics. In 1973, he began working with the Cohn family at Santa Claus Industries in Waterloo writing programs. Over the course of time, Dave became the President and COO of ASI Computer Systems, also owned by the Cohn family; he retired in 2013 after 40 years with the family. Dave joined Forbin in late 2014 as a programmer and analyst. When he’s not programming or creating software, Dave has taken up golf (“not very successfully”). He and his wife, Carol, have spent much time in the past five years going to Coe College basketball games to watch their kids play. Dave also enjoys yearly canoeing and camping trips to the Boundary Waters near the Minnesota-Canada border.

John Friel

John is a bit of a unique employee because he actually started Forbin as an internet service provider in Cedar Falls, the first ISP in the Cedar Valley which he later sold to the VGM Group, Inc. In his second run with Forbin, John works with our programming team to support them with new technology, as well as assisting networking and computer clients. John’s programming career started in 8th grade when his teacher introduced him to FORTRAN programming. Since then, he has been educated (both by instructors and through self-education) in numerous programming languages that allow him to provide great insight into various aspects of Forbin’s products. When he’s not tinkering with code, John likes to tinker under the hood and drag race. He also collects Monopoly sets, and divides time between working on his HO Model railroad and learning to play the guitar.

Nick Dideriksen

Mike Schmidt

The longest-tenured member of our networking team, Mike has helped lead the way in the growth of Forbin as an Internet Service Provider, web development, design and hosting company. With an expansive knowledge pertaining to the software and hardware needed to keep our systems up and running, Mike ensures a high quality workflow across our entire team, meaning fewer interruptions and slow downs.

Glen Rocca

Glen’s voice is the one most customers hear when they call wanting help with their computer or technical issues. Having been with Forbin since 2000, Glen’s role has expanded from helping local clients to working with national and international clients as we have grown. His attention to detail not only allows Glen to pinpoint and fix technical issues of clients, but is also useful when he hunts and digs for rocks, minerals and fossils outside the office. A valuable member to our networking team that helps keep things running smoothly, Glen is the field trip coordinator for a local rock club in his spare time, allowing him an outlet to pursue his geological interests.

Michael Cormaney

Justin Wheelock

Austin Davis

Jared Hughes