# Executive Dossier: Pepper Minton ## Quick-Reference Card --- ### Visitor Snapshot | Field | Detail | |-------|--------| | **Name** | Pepper Minton | | **Title** | Chief Technology Officer | | **Company** | SnackStack Technologies | | **Industry** | Food Tech / SaaS | | **Company Revenue** | $2.1B | | **Employees** | 12,000 | | **Headquarters** | Austin, TX | | **Account Tier** | Strategic | | **Account Health** | 78/100 (Stable but Strained) | --- ### Relationship Summary | Field | Detail | |-------|--------| | **VVIP Tier** | Gold | | **SAB Member Since** | Q3 2024 | | **SAB Board** | Developer Experience Advisory Board | | **SAB Attendance (TTM)** | 3/3 (100%) | | **Executive Sponsor** | Carlos Diaz, VP Developer Experience | | **Sponsor Last Touchpoint** | Jan 2026 (Post-incident bridge call) | | **Engagement Score** | 78/100 | | **Relationship Stage** | Engaged (approaching Trusted) | | **Role in Buying Center** | Technical Decision Maker | | **Contract Value** | $1.28M ARR | | **Contract Renewal** | August 12, 2026 | --- ### Top 3 Strategic Priorities 1. **Auto-Scaling Architecture for Viral Traffic Events** -- SnackStack's recipe engine and user-generated content platform is subject to unpredictable viral spikes (TikTok, Instagram). Pepper needs battle-tested auto-scaling that can absorb 20x traffic in under 2 minutes without manual intervention. This is her #1 post-incident priority. 2. **Smart Kitchen Device Edge Computing** -- SnackStack is launching a connected smart kitchen device line in Q4 2026 (toasters, blenders, smart scales). Needs edge computing platform for on-device ML inference, recipe sync, and telemetry. Evaluating OpenShift for edge as the runtime. 3. **Developer Experience Improvements** -- Pepper is ex-startup and believes developer velocity is the #1 competitive advantage. Wants faster CI/CD, self-service platform capabilities, and reduced platform friction for her 400+ engineering team. She actively champions DevEx internally. --- ### Communication Style Profile | Dimension | Guidance | |-----------|----------| | **Style** | Fast-paced, startup-minded, zero tolerance for corporate polish | | **Technical Depth** | Very high -- will jump straight into architecture diagrams | | **Format Preference** | Whiteboards and live demos. HATES PowerPoint with a passion. | | **Meeting Preference** | Short blocks (25 min), standing options, working sessions | | **Communication Channel** | Slack/text first, email last resort | | **What Works** | Whiteboards, live coding, candid failure stories, speed | | **What Doesn't Work** | Marketing slides, process-heavy briefings, vague answers | --- ### Critical Flags | Priority | Flag | Detail | |----------|------|--------| | **HIGH** | P1 Production Outage | Recipe engine down 8 hours during TikTok viral surge in March 2026. 2M users affected. Auto-scaling did not trigger fast enough. Pepper publicly frustrated. | | **MEDIUM** | Overdue Architecture Review | Scaling architecture review was promised at last SAB (Jan 2026). Still outstanding. Pepper noted it in her post-incident summary. | | **POSITIVE** | Public Case Study | Pepper's team published a blog case study praising OpenShift auto-scaling pre-incident. Strong public advocate. Incident complicates the story but does not kill it. | | **OPPORTUNITY** | Edge Computing Pipeline | $1.8M edge computing opportunity for smart kitchen device line. Q4 2026 launch timeline. Platform selection decision expected by June 2026. | --- ### Active Pipeline | Opportunity | Stage | Value | Close Date | Notes | |-------------|-------|-------|------------|-------| | Smart Kitchen Edge Platform | Discovery | $1.8M | Q3 2026 | Device line launch Q4 2026. Competing with AWS IoT Greengrass. | | Auto-Scaling Advanced Tier | Proposal | $480K | Q2 2026 | Post-incident upsell. Pepper requested pricing Jan 2026. | **Total pipeline at risk**: $2.28M --- ### Products Deployed - OpenShift Container Platform - Red Hat Enterprise Linux - Ansible Automation Platform - OpenShift Service Mesh --- ### Recent Support History | Date | Severity | Summary | Outcome | |------|----------|---------|---------| | Mar 14, 2026 | P1 | Recipe engine auto-scale failure during viral surge | Resolved in 8 hrs. Root cause: HPA threshold misconfigured. Post-mortem completed. | | Feb 02, 2026 | P3 | Service mesh upgrade guidance | Resolved same day. Positive feedback. | Support relationship is recovering post-incident. Pepper wants engineering-to-engineering dialogue, not account management. --- ### Recommended Approach **Lead with direct acknowledgment of the TikTok viral incident.** Pepper does not want spin -- she wants honesty and a clear plan. Open the briefing by walking through what happened, what we learned, and how we will prevent it. Then transition into a live whiteboard session on auto-scaling architecture. **Key messages:** 1. Present the scaling architecture deep-dive at a whiteboard, not a slide deck 2. Offer a dedicated scaling workshop for Pepper's platform team as a no-cost goodwill gesture 3. Bring the smart kitchen edge computing story -- this is where future ARR lives 4. Have Carlos Diaz drop in mid-afternoon, coffee format, peer-to-peer engineering chat **Hard rules for this briefing:** - NO MARKETING SLIDES. If it has a logo wall or product positioning, leave it in the bag. - Whiteboards on wheels in every room. Fresh markers. - Standing meeting option at the 10:30 block. - Bring the engineers who actually ship the auto-scaling code, not product marketing. **Relationship goal:** Rebuild post-incident trust by demonstrating engineering credibility, then convert goodwill into the $1.8M edge pipeline over the next quarter. --- *Compiled from: CRM (Salesforce), VVIP Roster, SAB Meeting Notes, Incident Post-Mortem, Engagement History* *Data freshness: CRM export 2026-04-05 | VVIP roster 2026-03-15 | Incident data current* *Next refresh: Automated pre-briefing (T-24h)*