Bob Parsons is the CEO and Founder of The Go Daddy Group, Inc. Parsons joined the U.S. Marine Corps during the Vietnam War and received the Combat Action Ribbon, Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry and a Purple Heart Medal. Upon his return, Parsons enrolled in the University of Baltimore where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting. He is a Certified Public Accountant.
A serial entrepreneur, Parsons' first endeavor was Parsons Technology, a software company he started in his basement in 1984, after teaching himself how to write computer programs. After creating the company's initial software, MoneyCounts and Personal Tax Edge, Parsons used direct mail marketing to sell these and subsequent products.
When Parsons Technology was sold to Intuit, Inc. in 1994 for $64 million dollars, the company had nearly 1,000 employees, $100 million in annual revenue and three million customers. At the time, Parsons Technology sold more than 100 products, was releasing a new product or significant product upgrade every six days, and was sending more than six million pieces of direct marketing mail each month.
In 1997, Parsons started Jomax Technologies, using funds from the sale of Parsons Technology. He renamed the company Go Daddy in 1999, and in 2000, Go Daddy became an ICANN-accredited domain name registrar.
Today, The Go Daddy Group, Inc. family of companies is comprised of three ICANN-accredited domain name registrars, including flagship registrar GoDaddy.com and reseller registrar Wild West Domains, Inc., as well as Starfield Technologies, Inc., its technology development arm.
Throughout his entrepreneurial career, Parsons' business philosophy has been to create low-priced, feature-rich products combined with the highest levels of customer service.
This philosophy has fueled Go Daddy's growth, leading it to become the No. 1 registrar worldwide, both in terms of new registrations and domains under management. Go Daddy currently registers or renews a domain name every second, has more than 7.5 million customers worldwide, manages more than 40 million domain names and employs more than 2,500 people. Most of the applications sold on GoDaddy.com are developed in-house and none of its customer support is outsourced or off-shored.
Parsons has driven the expansion of Go Daddy's core business beyond domain names, to include Web site hosting, secure SSL certificates and email accounts. With more than 50 complementary products and services, Go Daddy is a one-stop shop that enables individuals to establish, maintain and evolve an online presence.
GoDaddy.com was also recognized with several 2007 Arizona Corporate Excellence (ACE) Awards, including the prestigious distinction as the state's "Most Innovative Company." Go Daddy also ranked number 2 on the ACE "25 Fastest-Growing" companies list and number 20 on the ACE "Top 50" companies list.
Parsons' personal web blog, www.BobParsons.me ranks in the top 1% of most visited blogs on the Internet, out of 100 million+ blogs worldwide.
2009 Best of the Best Award - Manufacturing & Technology Go Daddy has been named the "Best of the Best" technology company by Ranking Arizona in the Manufacturing and Technology category. Winners are selected by other top-ranked businesses, a voting group comprised of 175 of Arizona's No. 1 companies. The distinction represents the business community's favorite companies, or the Best of the Best, in each of ten major industry categories.
Practical eCommerce -- Most Popular shopping cart - 2009 Go Daddy Quick Shopping Cart for online vendors was rated "Most Popular shopping cart" in a 2009 survey by Practical eCommerce.
Ranking Arizona 2009 - #1 Software Company Go Daddy is listed as the #1 Software Company by Ranking Arizona: The Best of Arizona Business 2009.
Go Daddy moved up from #9 in the 2008 Ranking Arizona.
Domain Name Wire - Best Registrar Award - 2009 Go Daddy is voted "Best Registrar" in the 2009 Domain Name Wire annual survey for the 4th consecutive year. According to the survey results, Go Daddy is popular amongst all types of domain owners.
"Best Places to Work in the Valley" 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 For the fifth consecutive year, Go Daddy is ranked as one of the Valley's Best Places to Work. The award recognizes top employers in the Phoenix-metro area. These results are based 100% on employee surveys.
Inc. 5000, 2004 - 2008 For a fifth consecutive year, The Go Daddy Group, Inc. is listed on Inc. magazine's "Inc. 5000" list. This year, Go Daddy is ranked fifth fastest-growing company (with more than 2,000 employees). The list is comprised of the nation's fastest-growing privately held companies.
2008 Honorable Mention, Alfred P. Sloan Award The Alfred P. Sloan Awards for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility are part of When Work Works, a national project on workplace effectiveness and workplace flexibility. This is the second time Go Daddy has been honored with this prestigious award.
Linux Journal - Favorite Linux -Friendly Web Hosting Company - 2008 Linux Journal Magazine readers voted GoDaddy.com as their "Favorite Linux-Friendly Web Hosting Company."
Domain Name Wire - Best Registrar Award - 2008 Go Daddy is voted "Best Registrar" in the 2008 Domain Name Wire annual survey for the 3rd consecutive year. This time, Go Daddy earned more than half the votes.
Domainers Choice Award for Best Hosting Company - 2008 Domainers Choice Awards recognized Go Daddy as the "Best Hosting Company" in the industry. Winners are chosen by people who are heavily involved in the domain name industry.
"Best Places to Work in the Valley" 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 For the fourth consecutive year, Go Daddy is ranked as one of the Valley's Best Places to Work. The award recognizes top employers in the Phoenix-metro area. These results are based 100% on employee surveys.
Deloitte Technology Fast 500, 2007 Go Daddy once again is recognized as one of the fastest growing, private or public, technology companies in North America based on percentage fiscal year revenue growth over five years (2002-2006). Deloitte, an accounting firm, has bestowed this honor on Go Daddy three previous years.
2007 "Most Innovative Company" ACE Award Go Daddy was recognized with several honors from the 2007 Arizona Corporate Excellence (ACE) Awards, including designation as the state's "Most Innovative Company." The ACE Awards contest is judged by top-ranking business leaders to recognize the significant impact of Arizona's largest privately held companies on the community and the economy. In addition to being named a leader in innovation, Go Daddy also ranked number 2 on the ACE "25 Fastest-Growing" companies list and number 20 on the ACE "Top 50" companies list.
2007 Arizona Business Leadership Award Go Daddy and CEO Bob Parsons received the 2007 Arizona Business Leadership Award. The Arizona Business Leadership Association gives the annual award to the Arizona business that best exemplifies industry leadership, financial growth, ethical conduct, community service and business education. Go Daddy has proven it's a powerhouse in the domain industry, amassing a larger portfolio than its next three competitors combined. Founder and CEO Parsons also makes large charitable contributions and acts as an industry watchdog on issues of importance to the Web, such as stopping Internet predators and phishing scams that can result in identity theft.
2007 Domain Name Wire Award for "Best Registrar" Go Daddy was named the "Best Registrar" in the business for the second year in a row. Domain Name Wire, a news source for the domain industry, surveys computer users each year to determine the industry leader. In both 2006 and 2007, Go Daddy was the big winner. The company got a whopping 33 percent of the votes in 2007, about one-third of the entire group that voted, despite the fact that Go Daddy has hundreds of competitors. Go Daddy's affordable prices, fantastic customer service and great security features were named factors in the decision.
2006 Finalist, Alfred P. Sloan Award The Alfred P. Sloan Awards for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility are part of When Work Works, a national project on workplace effectiveness and workplace flexibility.
Bob Parsons - Ed Dennison Business Leader of the Year, 2005 This prestigious award is presented to an individual who contributes to Arizona's technology industry through sustained growth of their business and is announced at the annual Governor's Celebration of Innovation in Arizona.
5-Star Rating, Review Place Known as the "go to" source for consumers who shop online, Review Place has a staff of experts who review hundreds of products and services, recommending only quality companies and Web sites. In its comments, Review Place noted "Go Daddy is a bargain deal for an excellent service."
Ranked #8, Inc. 500, 2004 Each year, Inc. Magazine publishes the Inc. 500, a list of the nation's fastest-growing privately held companies. Of the privately held technology companies on the list, Go Daddy ranked #1.
Users' Choice and Largest Net Gain, 2006, Name Intelligence In 2006, for the second consecutive year, Go Daddy was awarded both the Users' Choice award and the Largest Net Gain award from Name Intelligence. Go Daddy remains the world's largest Internet domain name registrar, while still maintaining a satisfied and loyal customer base with pricing and service that are second to none.
Editor's Choice Award-Discount Domains, CNET "Go Daddy has been the fastest-growing registrar for several consecutive quarters. Why so popular? In a nutshell, price and service. If you intend to forward your domain's Web traffic and email to existing Web sites and email boxes - Go Daddy offers the lowest price among ICANN-accredited registrars. The Go Daddy site is well-designed and customer friendly; the company provides a nice price upgrade path; and the support is decent, too. And let's not ignore the David-vs.-Goliath angle; Go Daddy took Network Solutions to court for predatory marketing practices and won." Source: CNET Networks, Inc. Editors' Choice Awards.
Ranked #11 on the Inc. 500 in 1992 and # 131 in 1993. The Inc. 500 is a listing of the fastest growing privately-held companies in the United States published by the Inc. Magazine.
Governor's Industrial Economic Impact Award in 1993 and 1995.
Eastern Iowa Goodwill Employer of the Year in 1994.
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