Leadership transitions and strategic appointments are reshaping the technology and economic development landscape across several U.S. states. Andrea Chartock has been appointed head of Washington’s Office of Economic Development and Competitiveness, bringing over two decades of international development experience from DAI, where she worked on USAID initiatives in countries like Liberia and Moldova. Her most recent focus was on economic revitalization in Ukraine before funding was cut. Commerce Director Joe Nguyễn praised her background, stating she possesses the expertise to strengthen Washington’s business ecosystem.
The state’s Department of Commerce oversees more than $8 billion across 485 programs, though it recently scaled back a key economic development initiative due to budget constraints.
In the private sector, Julie Brill, former chief privacy officer at Microsoft, joined the board of Ethyca, an enterprise software firm specializing in data privacy infrastructure. Brill, who left Microsoft after eight years and now serves as an expert in residence at Harvard, emphasized Ethyca’s role in enabling responsible AI scaling for global enterprises.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has also appointed Rolf Harms, a long-time corporate vice president, as an advisor on AI economics. Harms, who authored a foundational paper on cloud computing economics in 2010, will guide leadership on the financial implications of AI integration. Nadella stressed the need to rethink internal economic models, comparing the AI shift to the earlier cloud transformation. “This platform shift is all about building a new AI factory and family of Copilots and agents that drive diffusion and usage across the full stack,” according to a memo obtained by Business Insider.
In sports business, Sean Coury has been named CFO of Seattle Reign FC and Seattle Sounders FC, joining from Bezos Academy, the nonprofit launched by Amazon’s founder. Coury previously held financial roles at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Apptio, where he contributed to the company’s public listing.
Amplitude, the software analytics firm, announced the departure of Francois Ajenstat, its chief product officer. Ajenstat, formerly CPO at Tableau and a Microsoft veteran, leaves after a tenure marked by product innovation.
At the University of Washington’s Institute for Protein Design (IPD), Neil King has been promoted to deputy director as Lance Stewart retires. David Baker remains director. The IPD also added Jenny Cronin as translational research director, Roseanne Hampton Reich as assistant administrative director, and Justin English as strategic development director. Cronin comes from AI2 Incubator and is a venture partner at Pack Ventures, while English holds a PhD in pharmacology and was previously an assistant professor at the University of Utah.
Alex Pettit is returning to Oregon as its digital transformation projects director after serving as Colorado’s chief technology officer for nearly six years. He previously held top tech roles in Oregon, Texas, and Oklahoma, and aims to modernize legacy systems and enterprise architecture.
Brian Bishop has taken over as CEO of Skip Technology, a Portland-based startup developing long-duration, grid-scale batteries. He succeeds Brennan Gantner, the company’s co-founder. Bishop brings over 30 years of experience in engineering and manufacturing, including time at Salt Creek Capital.
Kelly Goetsch has transitioned from COO to president at Pipe17, a Seattle e-commerce logistics startup that raised $17.5 million in Series A funding. Goetsch also helped launch the first open standard for commerce system interoperability, overseen by the nonprofit Commerce Operations Foundation.
Lastly, Tom Mara has stepped down as executive director of SIFF after his contract was not renewed, according to the Seattle Times. Mara previously led radio station KEXP before joining the film festival in 2022.
— news from GeekWire
— News Original —
Tech Moves: Washington names economic development leader; Nadella taps new advisor; IPD leadership shuffle
— Andrea Chartock is now the head of Washington’s Office of Economic Development and Competitiveness, a division of the state Department of Commerce. n
Chartock spent more than 21 years with international development company DAI, working on United States Agency for International Development (USAID) initiatives in countries including Liberia and Moldova. Her most recent efforts focused on economic growth in Ukraine before USAID was defunded this year. n
Commerce Director Joe Nguyễn said that Chartock “has the experience and dedication needed to elevate our existing business community and foster growth in innovative ways.” n
The department earlier this year scaled back a key economic development program amid the state budget crunch. The department currently manages more than $8 billion across 485 programs, Nguyễn said in April. n
— Julie Brill, Microsoft’s former chief privacy officer, has joined the board of directors of the enterprise software company Ethyca. n
“Ethyca’s approach puts privacy, security, and policy at the heart of enterprise data infrastructure. I’m excited to help guide the company as it works with global organizations to scale AI responsibly,” Brill said in a statement. n
Brill left Microsoft in July after more than eight years. Her title included corporate vice president for Global Privacy, Safety, and Regulatory Affairs. Brill is also serving as an expert in residence at Harvard University. She previously shared plans to open a consultancy this fall. n
— Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella named Rolf Harms, a corporate vice president at the tech giant, as an advisor on AI economics to work with the company’s top leaders. Business Insider obtained a November memo from Nadella to Microsoft executives announcing Harms’ expanded role. n
Harms has been with Microsoft for nearly two decades and penned a foundational whitepaper in 2010 addressing the economics of cloud computing. n
“We need to rapidly rethink the new economics of AI across the company — just as we once did with the cloud,” Nadella wrote, according to BI. “This platform shift is all about building a new AI factory and family of Copilots and agents that drive diffusion and usage across the full stack.” n
— Seattle Reign FC and Seattle Sounders FC announced Sean Coury as chief financial officer. Coury joins the soccer clubs from Bezos Academy, where he served as CFO of the educational nonprofit launched by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. He previously worked in financial roles at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Apptio, where he helped the Bellevue, Wash., company go public. n
The Reign and the Sounders last month hired Ro Vega as chief marketing officer. n
— Francois Ajenstat is leaving his position as chief product officer at the software company Amplitude. Ajenstat was previously CPO at Seattle’s Tableau Software, where he spent 13 years, followed by a brief run at Salesforce that ended in 2023. Earlier in his career, Ajenstat was with Microsoft for a decade, holding titles including technical evangelist, product manager and senor director of environmental sustainability. n
— The University of Washington’s Institute for Protein Design (IPD) has multiple leadership changes. n
UW biochemistry professor Neil King is now IPD’s deputy director as Lance Stewart, former interim executive director, retires from the organization. King was previously an associate professor at IPD, and Nobel Laureate David Baker will stay in his role as director. n
“When I joined the IPD in 2013, it was clear that helping to build the IPD would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to contribute and observe firsthand the development of a whole new industry based on computationally designed proteins,” Stewart said on LinkedIn. n
The IPD made three additional hires: n
Jenny Cronin is now director of translational research, joining IPD from AI2 Incubator, a Seattle-based startup organization. Cronin is also a venture partner with Pack Ventures, a fund that backs startups with UW connections. n
Roseanne Hampton Reich is assistant director of administration. Her past roles include positions at lululemon, UW’s Division of Nephrology, Seattle Children’s and others. n
Justin English is director of strategic development, previously working as an assistant professor at the University of Utah. English holds a PhD in pharmacology. n
— Alex Pettit is returning to Oregon to serve as the state’s digital transformation projects director. Pettit has previously held top technology roles for Oregon, Texas and Oklahoma, and was most recently Colorado’s chief technology officer for nearly six years. n
“This next chapter allows me to bring hard-won experience from the field and apply it to familiar soil. I’m honored to once again contribute to Oregon’s technology future — helping modernize legacy platforms, evolve our enterprise architecture, and prepare for the demands ahead,” he wrote on LinkedIn. n
— Brian Bishop is CEO of Portland, Ore.-based Skip Technology, a startup building long-duration, grid-scale batteries. Bishop takes over for Brennan Gantner, who co-founded the hydrogen bromine battery company seven years ago. n
Bishop has more than 30 years of engineering, manufacturing and management experience in a variety of electronics-focused businesses. He was previously with Salt Creek Capital, which acquires and recapitalizes small companies. n
— Kelly Goetsch has taken a new title at e-commerce logistics startup Pipe17, moving from chief operating officer to president. The Seattle startup announced a $17.5 million Series A round earlier this year. n
Goetsch has also helped lead the creation of the first open standard to unify how commerce systems communicate, including AI-powered selling channels and payments, logistics and fulfillment. The effort was overseen by the nonprofit Commerce Operations Foundation, which released the initial standard this week. n
— Tom Mara, executive director of SIFF, has left the nonprofit following the decision not to renew his contract, the Seattle Times reported. Mara previously ran the popular Seattle radio station KEXP, then joined SIFF in 2022.