BERT SPERLING, Founder and CEO

"The guy who picks the best places" - The New York Times

Personal Blog: http://www.bertsperling.com

Books Published:
"Cities Ranked and Rated" & "Best Places to Raise Your Family"

Read: Latest Studies & Research

Crowned the "Guy Who Picks The Best Places" by the New York Times, demographic expert and three-time author Bert Sperling has been helping Americans find their best place to live since 1985. His free-to-use website bestplaces.net gets two million visitors each month and is the premier resource for information and data on places. His research and data has been referenced on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Simpsons, and Good Morning America, among others.

Sperling was born in Brooklyn and has lived in Florida, California, Alaska, and, most currently, Oregon. He's also toured the U.S. by car several times, most recently in 2015 when he documented his travels on YouTube. He's consulted cities across the country on how they can improve their quality of life and business health. Sperling is a graduate of Oregon State University and recently received their esteemed Weatherford Award for outstanding alumni.

BERTRAND SPERLING, Chief Operating Officer

Bertrand Sperling is the COO of Sperling’s Best Places. He heads the company’s daily operations and oversees its research, content, and product development. Bertrand is the son of the company’s founder and CEO, Bert Sperling. While Bertrand has been an essential component of the company’s executive team for eight years, research and data analysis of cities and places has been running through his blood since he was a boy.

Prior to officially joining the Best Places team, Bertrand worked with the William Morris Endeavor (WME Entertainment) agency, contributing to the motion picture literary and television departments. Bertrand holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Dartmouth College.

AL OLSEN, Chief Technology Officer

Al is an engineer (in typical succinct engineer style, this is all Al wanted us to write).

Al started his career in technology over 20 years ago. He is originally from Montana and was an awesome wrestler in his youth. When he isn’t being an engineer or making sure our servers are up and running he is busy raising his 7 kids, collecting rocks, and making jewelry. Al holds a B.A. in Information Systems from Brigham Young University.

NICK ARNOLD, Data Analyst / Web Cartographer

Nick is, above all else, a Geographer. As a youngster, he explored the world through Cartography and would often recite the Capitals and largest cities of each State. As a young teenager, alongside his family and a crop of young collegiate Geographers, he spent a month of each spring Storm chasing in the Great Plains. His interest in Geography carried straight through his studies and into his career as an expert in geographic data and mapping. His work at BestPlaces combines modern Computing and traditional Geography.

Background: Cartography, GIS, Web Development

JASMINE BRIGGS, Customer Service Representative

Jasmine is the Customer Service Representative of Sperling’s Best Places. She has over 4 years of experience in customer service. She currently works at a government agency in Human Resources. Jasmine manages our customer service inbox and deals with all customer inquiries.

She holds a B.A in Business Administration, and Management from the City College of New York. When she is not working, Jasmine is spending time with her friends and family, playing with her cat, and traveling.

JASON STOYLES, Mobile Developer

The day when Jason first learned that anyone can create content and instantly share it with the world, he embraced the possibilities and never looked back. It was around the summer 1996 when Jason began learning HTML and teaching himself how to code. Since then he has never stopped learning and now embraces the many possibilities offered through various web and mobile technologies. He even works with local start-ups and universities from time to time to help others learn how to better leverage these technologies.

As someone who loves to travel and find great new places to visit, and maybe even live some day, Jason is passionate about helping others do the same. As part of the Best Places team, his efforts focus on putting the best data about the best places in our pockets, wherever we go with our mobile devices.

Background: Web and Mobile Developer, Entrepreneur, Traveler