Leadership Shakeups Ignite Innovation in Pacific Northwest Tech Sector
Several technology companies announced key leadership changes today, with Smartsheet, Outreach, and Concord Technologies all making significant C-suite appointments.
Smartsheet has promoted Cynthia Tee to the position of chief technology officer. Tee, who has been with the Bellevue-based enterprise software company for nearly three years as senior vice president of engineering, brings extensive experience from her previous two-decade tenure at Microsoft, where she served as partner group program manager for Windows. The appointment comes shortly after Smartsheet’s transition to private ownership following its $8.4 billion acquisition by Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners.
In another notable move, Outreach welcomed back Drew Laxton as its new chief financial officer. Laxton, who previously held the position of senior vice president of finance and analytics at the Seattle-based sales automation company, returns after a stint as CFO at Extensiv. This appointment follows recent leadership additions at Outreach, including Chief Revenue Officer Nadia Rashid and Chief Marketing Officer Holly Simmons, amid organizational changes that included a 9% workforce reduction in November.
Concord Technologies underwent a significant leadership transition as William Cavanaugh assumed the role of CEO, succeeding founder Chris Moore. Moore, who led the Seattle-based secure document exchange company for more than 29 years, will continue his involvement as board chair. Cavanaugh joined Concord as president in September 2022 before taking on this expanded role.
Additional executive appointments across the technology sector included Jay Yonamine joining EdgeRunner as chief product officer. EdgeRunner, a Seattle startup specializing in AI model deployment technology, emerged from stealth mode last July with $5.5 million in seed funding. Yonamine brings experience from Gene Pool Technologies, which he co-founded, and Google.
Portland-based Smarsh appointed David Brolsma as CFO, drawing on his extensive experience including over nine years at WP Engine. Seattle’s Gradial, a marketing operations AI startup, strengthened its team with three key hires: Lisa Hillmann as head of customer success, Cara Olson as senior account executive, and Jason Michaels as head of
partnerships.
In the biotech sector, Aurion Biotech, focused on developing blindness treatments, named Donald Munoz as CFO. Munoz joins the company, which recently filed for an IPO, from NuCana where he served as CFO for nine years.
The technology sector saw additional movements with Sanjeev Khanna becoming chief operating officer at Caddis Cloud Solutions, bringing experience from Oracle, Microsoft, and Intel to the data center development firm. Pacific Science Center’s CEO Will Daugherty joined the Technology Industry Alliance board, while K&L Gates strengthened its intellectual property practice with the addition of Samuel Breeze as partner in Seattle.
The Washington Research Foundation also expanded its team, appointing Frank Yin as investment associate to support its technology transfer and grant-making initiatives for state institutions.
These leadership changes reflect ongoing dynamics in the Pacific Northwest’s technology sector, as companies position themselves for growth and innovation in an evolving market landscape.
