Meet the Shepherd team

Ben

Ben is one of the founders of Shepherd and keeps the wheels on the bus going round-round-round.

Meet Ben

I love to read, travel, take long bike trips, eat delicious food, and use my imagination. I am a long-time entrepreneur and love turning ideas into reality. At some point, I decided it was better to be a pirate captain than an admiral. I am married to an amazing woman who makes my life more fun, and we have a 9-year-old who makes our lives infinitely more interesting.

Here is more about me and why I started Shepherd. My email is [email protected] if you want to chat.

What do I love to read?

I love historical fiction, science fiction, fantasy, crime & procedural fiction, history, biography, and economics. I am currently reading The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William L. Shirer, as part of a research project on the rise of fascism.

Márton

Márton is one of the founders of Shepherd. He is an amazing developer who created everything at Shepherd from its birth through the end of 2023. In December 2025, he joined as a founder as we gained momentum and started building our own apps.

Meet Márton

Whenever I am not building software, you will find me on my bike in the nearby forests or hiking in remote mountains. I'm also a passionate reader and haven't stopped since I got hooked on Jules Verne's adventures and Robinson Crusoe as a child. I still remember reading through entire weekends, unable to stop.

What do I love to read?

I read in three languages nowadays, mostly science fiction, adventure, crime stories in fiction, psychology, business, and self-help books in nonfiction.

Cathy

Cathy is our part-time head of smooth operations. She takes care of all our authors and handles all the odds and ends to keep us running smoothly.

Meet Cathy

I'm a mom of 3 residing on a beautiful island south of Manila in the Philippines. Like our founder and my teammates here at Shepherd, I also love to read. I discovered my love for reading as a child when I started browsing my father's collection of novels. I instantly fell in love with how the stories transported me to another place and time.

Whenever I have spare time, I spend time with my family, communing with nature, and pouring out my thoughts and emotions onto paper.

Elo

Elo is our new full-stack developer and is focused on the Book DNA app in addition to Márton.

Meet Elo

I asked a lot of questions as a child, about anything that caught my interest, to anyone in earshot. Each answer I got posed another question, so it went on and on. It must have been exhausting, but my parents, to their credit, were good sports about it and never shut me down.

After I learned to read, somebody realised they could shut me up for a few hours by handing me a book, which my Mum gratefully did. I asked questions of books and developed a range of interests, including history, religion, aliens, and animals, among others. And then asked myself questions and experimented with a few hobbies, including chess, writing, architecture, and disc jockeying - to name a few.

Two decades later, there are still questions, with some influencing life choices like the decision to switch careers and others influencing my work, like the choices I make in software design. I've kept up with most of my hobbies in some form, and lately I'm interested in what role (if any at all) we play in our own development as a species.

Whenever I have spare time, I spend time with my family, communing with nature, and pouring out my thoughts and emotions onto paper.

Johanna

Johanna is our part-time data wrangler, creating book, author profiles, and other important work.

Meet Johanna

I was a bibliophile before I could spell it--books have always been one of my favorite escapes. When I’m not lost and buried in good books and fictional worlds, I’m on the volleyball court pretending I’m six feet tall. I tried jogging once— my knees went on strike and said “Absolutely not,” so my running shoes have been snoozing in the chambers collecting dust since. I've also recently discovered a love for exploring the Philippines—Cebu and Davao are checked off, and Bukidnon is on my list for this year.

What do I love to read?

When I'm on the hunt for new books, I gravitate towards stories that blend humor with depth. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett is next on my to-read list. Who can resist a little humor sprinkled over the end of the world? I’m all for fantasy and thought-provoking stories that make me laugh and think at the same time.

Roman

Roman is our part-time designer and UX expert. He is why everything looks so good on the website.

Meet Roman

After graduating from high school, I worked in an office for only a year. That was enough for me, and from then on, I became a freelancer. I love the freedom of getting up late, working when I want, and going for a walk when I want. Besides reading, I like spending time with my daughter, watching musicals, playing Dota 2, and very slowly writing my book about the future of education. I hope I will finish it in 5 years. Or more.

What do I love to read?

Basically, 3 kinds of books. If it's science fiction - it should have a philosophical, psychological, or sociological accent. If it's a fantasy - the fictional world should be original and well-developed. If it's a philosophical or popular science book - it should be smart and eye-opening.

Attila

Attila is our part-time backend developer who keeps our public website and supporting code humming.

Meet Attila

AI gained work experience by contributing to Hungary's first social network, where I met Márton. I worked for Prezi.com in its early stages, learning invaluable lessons during that time. Subsequently, I joined a small, early-stage startup.

I enjoy mountain biking and have twice competed in 24-hour solo races, having developed a passion for bike training. I am a father of three and now make a living from farming on the Hungarian Great Plain. I am now learning about regenerative agriculture and trying to put it into practice.

What do I love to read?

Nonfiction, science fiction, Russian literature, Hungarian literature, and lately, poetry.