A look at the people behind the numbers in area business:

A look at the people behind the numbers in area business:

Title: vice president of marketing

Age: 44

Brett Boyum, recently promoted to vice president of marketing at Marvin Windows and Doors, says one way to succeed at marketing in a recession is simply to keep marketing.

Boyum, a Rosemount resident who has been with Warroad-based Marvin since 1997, helped lead the development and execution of some of Marvin's most successful products and programs despite the historically tumultuous times facing the housing industry, Susan Marvin, the company's president, noted in announcing Boyum's promotion.

"We do not need to wait for the market to come back," Boyum said. "We continue to invest in our people, we invest in new products, we invest in marketing, we invest in sales and channel support. That is helping us generate sales now, but it positions us to grow even stronger when the market strengthens."

Boyum, formerly director of marketing for Marvin and sister brand Integrity Windows and Doors, succeeds Tom Angelis, who retired as vice president of marketing.

"Today, it's really becoming part of our integrated marketing campaign," Boyum said. "It's hard to look at anything anymore without saying, 'How are we going to integrate Twitter or Facebook or a blog into this?'"

QWhat was life like this past December, when President Obama mentioned Marvin avoiding layoffs in the recession?

AThere was a buzz like I've never been a part of. We did not know the president was going to mention it, so we reacted as quickly as we could to get the news throughout the company and out into our channel and to our customers. The response was amazing. It showcases the immediacy and the viral nature of social media.

QWhat's kept you at Marvin and in the industry?

AStaying at Marvin has been easy. There's a value system that aligns really strongly with my personal values, that's about taking care of people, taking care of the customers and taking care of your community. We're selling a product that's part of a customer's life, it's part of their family, it's their home.

AWe're starting to hear a little more optimism in the last month or two than what we've heard in the last six to eight months. I think we'll see more positive things than negative things over the next six to eight months than in the last six to eight months. It's going to be a market-by-market recovery. It's going to be a long, slow recovery.