By Cara Sievers

Aviv Melmed wanted her MTV. Well, actually, her brother did. This channel manager for iTEMize Technologies has her little brother, Alon, to thank for the experience of a lifetime. He dragged her to audition for an MTV reality show, and she was picked to do the show.

MTV’s Real World/Road Rules Fresh Meat Challenge filmed in October and November 2006, and aired May through September 2007. For six weeks, Aviv enjoyed the Byron Bay area of Australia. “It was absolutely gorgeous,” Aviv recalled. “I had my first surfing experience and loved it!”

But the adventures didn’t stop at surfing. Twelve teams of two — one Real World or Road Rules alumnus joined with one new person or “fresh meat” — were challenged to rise to the occasion, beat out the competition, avoid exile, and therefore, elimination from the game. All teams had their eyes on the grand prize of $250,000, and they were asked to swim with sharks, wade through oatmeal, solve complicated puzzles and practice perfect paintball technique for a chance at the cash.

Aviv and her partner, Darrell, who was originally on Road Rules Campus Crawl, made it to the final challenge, which was a 10-mile run on the beach and up a mountain with 75 pounds of extra weight. Aviv was able to solve a puzzle, allowing them to drop their weight, pull far in front of the other two teams and cross the finish line two hours prior to the other competitors for the grand prize.

 “This was one of my greatest learning experiences,” said Aviv. “I truly got to participate in real-life Darwinism — survival of the fittest; a true test in adaptation.”

Aviv said she would do it all over again in a heartbeat as long as it didn’t interfere with her career. Currently, Aviv is a channel manager with iTEMize Technologies, where she develops and maintains partner relationships, while supporting the pre-sales business opportunities of the telecom expense management provider’s partners.

This high school athlete might not miss the sharks or oatmeal, but she stays active by teaching aerobics and spinning classes. Now a bit of a celebrity, Aviv has been recognized by fans, invited to walk the red carpet at the Video Music Awards, asked to host a variety of events and has even done a few commercials, the most recent being for Cincinnati Bell with recording artist Nick Lachey.

What did Aviv do with the grand prize cash? She invested most of it after paying off school and car loans and a $1,000 shopping spree.

First job: Aviv’s first job, at age 18, was in Israeli Air Force intelligence at Tel Nof air base in Tel-Aviv, Israel.

Aspiration: Aviv loves to cook and is working on her first cookbook.

Words to live by: “You do what you do, and that’s what you do.”

Greatest wish: That the dishes and laundry would wash themselves.

Thoughts on telecom: “Now is a great time for the TEM industry. TEM is a great solution during tough economic times; everyone is trying to reduce their expenses.”

Do you know someone who has Personality+? We’re looking for interesting characters in telecom to take the spotlight! Please send nominations to Cara Sievers at [email protected].