Alumnus takes a little bit of BW to his career role at Netflix

Creativity and strategy unite in the mind of Ben Meadors '12, whose career has included roles at top companies — such as Netflix and Spotify — where his BW studies have been a foundation for success.

"I am a senior media systems engineer at Netflix. Our team is responsible for the design, build, support and maintenance of any room that's used to create or review content for Netflix globally," he explained.

"This could be theaters and screening lounges, post-production facilities like edit bays, color suites, audio mix rooms, as well as some production spaces like podcast studios and broadcast operations facilities. We recently opened a new production facility in Vancouver, British Columbia.

"We're also responsible for the technical infrastructure at the historic Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, where Netflix does premieres of new movies and TV shows," he added.

"It's a multi-disciplinary job. I have to understand construction, technical systems design, post-production and production, project management, cinema exhibition … the list goes on. It's a great job, and it's the most challenging and fun job I've ever had," noted Meadors.

Crediting BW professors, coursework

Meadors, who is originally from Indianapolis and now resides in Los Angeles, graduated from BW in 2012 with an undergraduate major in computer information systems (computer science) and an MBA. He credits his professors and coursework for providing an outstanding foundation he can tap into for professional and personal success.

"The holistic approach taken by the BW Honors Program really helped shape how I think about the world. It covered a broad variety of disciplines and topics. We were encouraged to explore our passions, form hypotheses and do research. The professors who oversaw the program held us accountable to a high standard of excellence," remarked Meadors.

"In addition, professors and coursework in the computer science program gave me a solid foundation of studies that I have used in my daily responsibilities in my current and past jobs," he went on to say.

"Probably most important was the knowledge I received from the MBA program. In particular, Dr. Param Srikantia's lectures on systems thinking and the 5th Discipline were very impactful. I use his demonstration of mental models all the time," said Meadors.

"Because of my BW MBA, I have a deep understanding of how businesses work, what drives and motivates people, and I have the ability to speak the language of business to leadership. These skills have supercharged my career. I'm able to communicate technical concepts to non-technical leadership and staff," he emphasized.

Prior to his role at Netflix, Meadors was a post-production technology manager with Spotify. Meadors and his team worked behind the scenes to provide the tools to create original and exclusive podcasts and videos for Spotify Studios. 

Special YJ4L connection

In addition to crediting BW for being a launchpad for his professional success, Meadors also has a personal reason for keeping the university close to his heart. He married BW alumna Shannon O'Boyle '12, a music theatre major who has been in two Broadway productions — "Kinky Boots" and "Once" — and is still a working actor in Los Angeles.