Mark Cipcic
I'm a Developer
Who am I ?
I was born in 1986 in Rijeka, Croatia, and spent part of my childhood near Munich, Germany before returning to Croatia in 1993. I completed elementary and music school by 2000 and achieved early recognition in regional programming competitions, placing first in LOGO and second in BASIC programming in 1998 and 1999.
I graduated with highest honors from an electrical engineering high school in Rijeka in 2004 and went on to study Business Economics and Information Technology at the University of Zagreb in Varaždin. During my studies, I focused on web applications and began my professional career as a Junior Developer and Technical Support specialist prior to graduating in 2007.
After advancing to Project Manager, I co-founded an eCommerce agency in 2011 that became the most awarded in Croatia, leading the company to a successful exit in 2017. I later transitioned into the Medical Technology sector with IS Design Studio (acquired by DMT Group) and subsequently joined FileCloud as a Solution Executive, a position I held until 2024.
In 2021, I also co-founded the Unlock Rab conference, which I continue to co-lead annually. As the conference operates on a yearly cycle, I am currently seeking my next full-time engagement.
- Birthday: 21 February 1986
- Phone: +38598849527
- Email: mark.cipcic@gmail.com
- LinkedIn: in/markcipcic
- Languages: English (C2), German (C2), Croatian
- Age: 38
- Degree: Master
- City: Rab, Croatia, EU
- Timezone: UTC/GMT +1H
Hard Skills
My technical journey began with my curiousity at age 10 in exploring LOGO and BASIC, which evolved into Visual Basic then web development (during the GeoCities era), where I mastered foundational front-end technologies like HTML, CSS, and later JavaScript. Through high school and college, I gained hands-on IT experience via apprenticeships at T-Mobile and Valamar Riviera, followed by a rapid transition from junior developer to project manager within 18 months. Over the years, I’ve expanded my full-stack expertise to include PHP frameworks (CodeIgniter, Laravel), Python/Django, and infrastructure management, witnessing and adapting to industry shifts—from bare-metal servers to modern containerization (Docker, Kubernetes) and cloud-native architectures (AWS, Azure, GCP, Alibaba Cloud).
Soft Skills
I've always been curious about what drives us as humans, general psychology and particularly in the context of motivation. Throughout my career, especially in customer-facing roles, I've had the opportunity to fine-tune and understand my soft skills. Working closely with others, I've gained a deeper understanding of how empathy, communication, and emotional intelligence can not only enhance relationships but also inspire growth and collaboration in teams.
Resume
Dynamic leader with 15+ years of experience driving enterprise SaaS adoption, retention, and expansion across EU and US markets. Proven background as a founder with a successful exit, enterprise Solutions Executive, and technology advisor. Expert at aligning customer goals with product capabilities, increasing lifetime value, reducing churn, and building long-term strategic partnerships with C-level stakeholders.
Professional Experience
Unlock Conference | Co-Founder & Community Builder
2021 - Present
Croatia / Annual Event
- Bootstrapped and designed a high-value conference and experience in Croatia. Attracted speakers from: Google, McKinsey & Co, EPAM, Rimac-Bugatti, Mashable, Wire, FIS Global, Span, Flippa, Aircash, Infinum, Producteev.
- Built and nurtured a community of 100+ founders, executives, and tech leaders, focused on AI, SaaS, and innovation.
- Developed long-term relationships with sponsors and partners, driving repeat participation from 82% of partners.
- Leveraged the conference as a platform for relationship-based customer success and advisory engagements.
FileCloud | Solutions Executive → Account Executive (Enterprise)
2021 - 2024
Remote / EU & US
- Owned post-sales success for a portfolio of 15 enterprise accounts, ensuring onboarding, adoption, and long-term value realization.
- Partnered with CIOs, CISOs, and IT leaders to align platform capabilities with business outcomes, resulting in 27% increase in product adoption.
- Led onboarding programs, solution workshops, and ongoing enablement sessions, reducing time-to-value by 30%.
- Conducted executive QBRs and success planning, contributing to 17% net revenue retention (NRR).
- Identified and executed expansion opportunities (upsell/cross-sell), generating $367K in expansion ARR.
- Acted as the voice of the customer, collaborating with Product and Engineering to influence roadmap priorities and improve customer satisfaction.
IS Design Studio | Client Success Lead (MedTech Solutions)
2017 - 2021
Croatia / EU Travel
B2B SaaS solution for med-tech and pharma compliance lifecycle management.
- Led client success and delivery for [X] MedTech and regulated enterprise clients, ensuring solutions met business, compliance, and operational goals.
- Acted as primary client contact throughout the lifecycle, increasing customer satisfaction scores by [X]%.
- Coordinated cross-functional teams to deliver complex solutions, reducing project escalations by [X]%.
- Supported renewals and long-term account growth through trusted advisor relationships.
MARKER.hr Agency | Co-Founder / COO
2011 - 2017
50% Remote | Varaždin, Croatia, EU
Led the strategic and technical direction of a growing business, overseeing operations, client relations, and technology management for a 35-employee company generating $2.8M in annual revenue.
- Built and led a client-centric agency serving [X]+ enterprise and mid-market customers.
- Owned end-to-end customer relationships, resulting in [X]% client retention over multiple years.
- Scaled delivery teams while maintaining high customer satisfaction and repeat business.
- Successfully exited the company in 2017 after building a strong, loyal client base.
LogIT I.S. – Jr, Developer / Project Manager
2008 - 2011
Varaždin
From 2008 to 2011, I served as a Junior Developer then Project Manager at a fast-growing SaaS startup based in Zagreb, Croatia, specializing in CMS, ERP and cloud-based collaboration tools for SMEs across Europe. This hybrid role allowed me to bridge technical execution and project leadership, contributing to the company’s expansion from a 10-person team to a 50+ employee organization serving clients in 15+ countries. The product focused on multilingual project management software, integrating time-tracking, invoicing, and GDPR-compliant data storage—critical for EU markets. Key Responsibilities
- Delivered outstanding customer service across phone, email, and live chat with professionalism and empathy.
- Processed orders, applications, and requests while maintaining accurate records.
- Led and mentored a team of junior representatives, ensuring high efficiency and satisfaction.
- Resolved customer complaints swiftly, enhancing the overall experience.
- Collaborated with internal teams to streamline service processes and improve support workflows.
- Maintained expert product knowledge to provide accurate, timely responses to customer inquiries.
Summary
Mark Cipcic
EXPERTISE Business Development, Customer Success, Digital Transformation, Digital Marketing, Product Strategy, User Journeys, Program Management, Design Thinking, Challenger Branding, Partnerships, Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Mentoring
INDUSTRIES Technology, Financial Services, Marketing, Advertising, Media, Automotive, Industrial Controls, Med Tech, Consumer Electronics
Education
Bachelor of Business Economics and Information Technology
2004 - 2009
Faculty of Organization and Informatics, VZ
Additional accomplishments: 2nd Rector's Academic Achievement Award (Complete Business Challenge). Member of "FOI CORE" & AIESEC Union
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Computer and Telecommunications Technician
2000 - 2004
High School of Electrical Engineering and Computing, RI
- Member of "Radio Amateurs Technicians" Union.
- Additional courses in Visual Basic Studio.
- Additional courses in Windows / MS-DOS.
Elementary & Music School
1992 - 2000
Primary School, Rab
- 1st place BASIC champion (Programming).
- From age 11 till 14 school assistant for Informatics.
- National championship for LOGO and BASIC (Programming language).
- Giving lessons for students with problems in Math and Informatics.
- Played piano and later guitar in Musical School.
Certifications
Development, Networking, DevOps, GDPR, NLP
2006 - 2023
Online & In-person
Over the years I tried to pursue what was meaningful to me at the time, or what would be a great upgrade to my overall skill set.
- Global Dev Experts – DevOps Professional (2023)
- GDPR Guru (IOSH approved and CPD certified) (2022)
- Information security Essentials (2022)
- Code of Conduct Essentials (2022)
- Quality Awareness Training (2022)
- TranceFraming – Leadership, Coaching & Mindfulness (2015-2019)
- Google AdWords – Ability to create and optimize campaigns to meet specific marketing objectives. (2013)
- Google Workspace Partner – ex. GSuite Onboarding companies to work more effectively from the cloud. (2012)
- NLP Master Practitioner – Neuro Linguistic Programming (2008-2011)
- CISCO Networking Academy – Cisco Certified Network Associate Routing & Switching (2011)
- Academic whitepaper published:
Community oriented system for information aggregation based on a template operated HTML parser (2010) - W3Schools (2006-2008)
- HTML5
- CSS3
- JavaScript
- PHP
- Python
Portfolio
Over the years, I've had the privilege and honor of working on a wide range of projects, spanning from custom eCommerce platforms and WordPress sites to complex B2B and Microservices development. From 2011 to 2017, I contributed to building dynamic eCommerce experiences for brands like bio&bio, Cute, Drogerija, and Emporium. During my earlier years, I focused on custom B2B and website development with clients including abies.hr, akvant.hr, and hotel-balise.hr. Beyond development, I was also leading teams, overseeing projects end-to-end, and managing full client sign-off. If I wasn't developing the project entirely myself, I was ensuring its success through strategic leadership and technical oversight. My expertise spans PHP, Python, JavaScript, and WordPress, along with DevOps lately and server management in Linux environments, enabling me to deliver seamless and scalable solutions tailored to each project's needs. In addition to that latest SaaS was compliant with ITAR, HIPAA, GDPR, NIST 800-171, the Saudi PDPL, and other regulations.
- All
- (2007 - 2011) LogIT
- (2011 - 2017) Marker Agency
- (2017 - 2021) IS Design Studio
- (2021 - 2024) FileCloud
Testimonials
What my co-workers and clients say about me:
Mark Cipic was a valuable member of my sales organization, serving as an Solution Executive. His arrival came at the perfect time as I sought a salesperson who possessed a strong understanding of technology and excelled in solution selling. Mark was the first hire from Europe, instrumental in expanding FileCloud's presence in the region. With his background in eCommerce technology and experience managing complex projects, it was evident from our initial conversation that he was technically adept, articulate in presenting solutions, and personable.
Manoj Mahondas
CSO & Co-Founder, FileCloud
Mark quickly familiarized himself with FileCloud, potentially being the fastest among all the Solution Executive hires. He wasted no time and fully embraced the art of solution selling. He dedicated himself to understanding customer needs from both technical and budgetary perspectives, ensuring that the intent to sell them on FileCloud was well-founded. It was impressive to see how rarely he relied on Sales Engineers for demonstrations, confidently handling the majority of the sales process himself. I hold great admiration for his creativity in securing Volkswagen Group as an adopter of FileCloud. Additionally, he demonstrated initiative by promoting FileCloud in Croatia through a technology event he organized. (Unlock Rab)
Madhan Kanagavel
CEO & Co-Founder, FileCloud
Mark's was very meticulous with his insights and empathetic with understanding of our client stories. Coming from a background steeped in tech innovation and social entrepreneurship, he challenged the status quo by introducing personalized, data-driven engagement methods. His approach was leading cross-functional workshops that empowered clients to see technology as a partner in growth rather than just a product. Also, he has a knack for bridging cultural nuances which redefined our approach to customer engagement. He not only absorbed the intricacies of our portfolio at lightning speed but also tailored our solutions to resonate with clients diverse needs.
Filip Hlebarsky
CEO @ UnaniTibb
When Mark envisioned a collaborative forum to bridge gaps between our team and global clients, it wasn’t just a meeting—it became a catalyst. His approach didn’t just open doors in untapped markets; it rewired how we connect, turning casual partners into invested allies. What sets Mark apart isn’t just his knack for dissecting data or steering teams with empathy—it’s how he stitches these strengths into the fabric of everyday strategy. I’ve watched him navigate high-stakes deals with overseas collaborators, not merely resolving tensions but uncovering hidden avenues for growth that others overlooked. In an era where adaptability is currency, Mark operates like a compass: precise, forward-leaning, and attuned to the nuances of diverse cultures. For teams hungry to innovate and elevate their impact, his presence isn’t just an advantage—it’s a spark.
Aleksandra Basovski
CEO @ DMT Group Systems
I am delighted to share my experience working with Mark on the development of our website. From the outset, Mark demonstrated exceptional professionalism and a keen understanding of my vision. He transformed my ideas into a stunning, user-friendly website that perfectly encapsulates my brand. Mark's attention to detail and commitment to excellence were evident throughout the project. He was always open to feedback, making adjustments promptly and effectively. His expertise not only met but exceeded my expectations, delivering a site that is both aesthetically pleasing and highly functional. I highly recommend Mark to anyone seeking top-notch web development services. His dedication and skill make him an invaluable asset to any project.
Raoul Ćurlin
CEO @ IS Design Studio
Working with Mark on our Systems integration was an exceptional experience from start to finish. His professionalism, technical mastery, and ability to translate abstract ideas into a dynamic digital presence truly set him apart. Mark not only grasped my brand’s core identity instantly but elevated it through a sleek, intuitive design that resonates deeply with our audience. What impressed me most was Mark’s meticulous eye for detail and his proactive approach to problem-solving. He welcomed feedback with genuine enthusiasm, turning revisions into opportunities for refinement rather than obstacles. The final result? A platform that seamlessly blends striking aesthetics with robust functionality—exceeding every benchmark we set.
Joris Björn
CEO @ DMT Group
Contact me
Now that you know a bit about me, I would love to hear from you!