Norman W. Hoffmann, Adjunct Professor, Finance
College of Business and Public Adminstration

With almost three decades experience in business development and media acquisitions, Norman Hoffmann brings a wealth of real-world experience to the classroom and consulting assignments.  As a founding manager and Chief Financial Officer of Trader Publishing Company, he was integrally involved with its development into a $1.3 billion revenue enterprise.  While there, he served as:

• Executive founder of AutoTrader.com and Traderonline.com, national Internet services;
  
• Architect of the national network of localized Auto Mart and Employment Guide magazines, two free distribution magazine publishing groups;
  
• Founder of Vehicle Web Services, an Internet site hosting company;
  
• Acquirer of over 70 companies; and
  
• Creator of several business concepts which flourished or crashed and burned.

In 2006, Virginia Business Magazine named him as a finalist for the award of Chief Financial Officer of the year; and he has regularly lectured at graduate business programs, including those at Duke University and the University of Utah.

Commencing his career as a business planner with Landmark Communications, Hoffmann was subsequently named general manager of the Los Alamos Monitor, a small daily newspaper which he transformed into a top-tier performing publication while earning the state's "General Excellence" award and scores of editorial awards from both the New Mexico Press Association and the American Newspaper Publishers Association.

Earning a promotion to the position of Chief Financial Officer of Landmark Community Newspapers, Hoffmann managed several of the company's new ventures, researched niche publishing opportunities, and negotiated acquisition of approximately 20 media businesses, including several classified advertising publications which became the core operations of what became known as Landmark Target Media.

In 1991, Landmark Target Media was merged with a similar division of Cox Enterprises to found Trader Publishing Company, a joint venture between Landmark Communications and Cox.  As its Chief Financial Officer, Hoffmann continued acquisition and business development intiatives, working with the company's top management team to establish strategic direction and to define and advocate development of new business opportunities.  He identified and negotiated the acquisition of over 50 companies; developed the Auto Mart magazine prototype; assisted with the expansion of the national network of Employment Guide and Travel Discount Guide magazines; and acquired the Dealer Specialties data collection and window sticker franchisor.

In 1995, Hoffmann led creation of Trader Electronic Media to launch and develop AutoTraderOnline.com (now AutoTrader.com), Traderonline.com, ForRent.com and dozens of other Internet businesses, including Vehicle Web Services.

Following Landmark Communications' reacquisition of several of Trader's constituent businesses to create its wholly owned Dominion Enterprises subsidiary, Hoffmann was named President of Dominion Innovations, a division devoted to the expansion of Internet marketing portals like Boats.com and website hosting services like those offered by the company's PowerSports Network.

Hoffmann earned his MBA from the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill) and his A.B. from Duke University.