Mac Cummings

Mac’s Journey: Entrepreneur to CEO

Mac Cummings is a dynamic entrepreneur and the visionary leader of Terakeet, where he serves as Chief Executive Officer. Terakeet, which is headquartered in Syracuse, New York, was co-founded by Mac and Patrick Danial in 2001. 

Using the field of telecommunications as a launchpad for Terakeet, the duo built their own voice recognition software, a promising technology ahead of the industry curve at the time, which, unbeknownst to the pair, was on the brink of the dot-com crash. As the new era unfolded, unforeseen challenges emerged that required Mac and Patrick to reassess the future of their business at a defining moment, leading to a difficult but ultimately fortuitous pivot by Terakeet.

Shifting into the search engine optimization (SEO) space, Mac and Patrick built a referral website that was the first of its kind. Undaunted by the post-bubble burst environment, they became SEO pioneers, turning a previously undefined discipline into a repeatable, scalable, and effective search channel strategy.

Shortly thereafter, Mac and his team built ReputationManagement.com as a platform for education around reputation topics. As the sister site to Terakeet, it was one of the earliest resources available on the internet for brands and executives in need of such services.

Leading Terakeet into the Future

Today, Terakeet is a force in the reputation management industry, representing the world’s largest and most recognizable brands and leaders. From its roots in traditional SEO, Mac has led Terakeet through many iterations, raising the bar of excellence while fostering the company-wide tenacity needed to succeed in an evolving — and competitive — marketplace. Along the way, he instilled a set of core company principles that permeate Terakeet’s culture to this day.

In his role as CEO, Mac oversees the direction and growth of Terakeet’s technology, product offerings, and client success. Throughout Terakeet’s history, Mac’s scrappy, startup-founder ambition has remained a throughline. From day one, he has championed Terakeet’s capabilities, leveraging his passion and effectiveness as a spokesperson and salesperson to drive the company’s momentum. 

He succeeded in guiding Terakeet through the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic by adopting a flexible work-from-home policy that prioritized his employees’ safety. This decision is one of the many reasons Terakeet remains a certified Great Place to Work to this day. 

Throughout his tenure at Terakeet, Mac has gained widespread recognition for his innovative approach to brand reputation management, enterprise SEO expertise, and executive leadership. Both he and Terakeet have garnered dozens of awards, including Glassdoor’s Top CEOs, Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur Of The Year®, Inc.’s Best Places to Work, Fortune’s Best Places to Work in New York, and many more. In addition to these honors, Mac has been featured in several reputable publications, including Financial Times, AP News, and Entrepreneur.

Deeply committed to uplifting underserved Central New York communities, Mac actively engages in philanthropic efforts, including Cause For The Cuse (CFTC), a Terakeet-led initiative that supports students in Syracuse’s inner city, and Boys & Girls Clubs of Syracuse. Each year, Mac takes an active role in spearheading fundraising for CFTC’s golf tournament, the proceeds of which go towards local Syracuse City School District students.

Mac and his family split their time between Palm Beach, Florida, and Syracuse, New York, traveling down south for the winter and spending their summers at Skaneateles Lake.