Mar 27, 2024

Strong Tower Consulting

Strong Tower Consulting, a Washington state-based management-consulting firm, announced that partner John Croswell has been named to the Staffing Industry Analysts 2024 Staffing 100 North America list of influential staffing leaders. Strong Tower is a certified Disability-Owned Business Enterprise, and women comprise 75% of its workforce. It is also a 100% carbon-neutral company. Since 2021, Strong Tower has expanded its operations across the U.S. and Canada, securing partnerships with technology and Fortune 50 companies. Strong Tower has created programs to support women such as the Women's Leadership and Development Group and Returning Caregivers program, which provide formal and informal mentorship.

Icertis

Bellevue-based Icertis, the global provider of AI-powered contract intelligence, was named a winner in the 2024 Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards program led by the Business Intelligence Group. Icertis was the only contract lifecycle management vendor selected for its commitment to AI innovation with the delivery of Icertis Copilots, featuring enterprise-grade generative AI applications that automate high-volume contract reviews, protect businesses from risk, and deliver data-driven insights to create value in commercial relationships. The Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards celebrate organizations, products, and people who bring AI to life and apply it to solve real problems. Icertis Copilots are now the fastest-growing products in the company's history, recently propelling Icertis above $250 million in annual recurring revenue. This recognition marks the second consecutive year that Icertis has been named an Artificial Intelligence Excellence Award winner.

Smartsheet

Smartsheet appointed Katie Rooney to its board of directors. Coinciding with Rooney's appointment, Brent Frei and Elena Gomez will be retiring from the Smartsheet board of directors effective June 18, 2024. As co-founder of Smartsheet, Frei played a core role in the inception and pre-IPO growth of the company. Gomez joined the Smartsheet board in advance of its IPO, and served over six years on the board's audit committee, five years as committee chair. Rooney is an experienced CFO, with global experience in finance, operations, business strategy, and investment banking. She is the chief financial officer and chief operating officer of Alight, a cloud-based human capital technology and services provider. Rooney holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in finance from the University of Michigan. Smartsheet is an enterprise work management platform headquartered in Bellevue.

Mar 26, 2024

Bellevue College

Bellevue College will begin offering a Bachelor of Applied Science in Radiation Therapy in 2025. Radiation therapy is a specialized form of cancer treatment that utilizes ionizing radiation to kill or shrink cancerous tumors. For almost 40 years, Bellevue College has offered an Associate of Applied Science in Radiation Therapy. The college is the sole provider of radiation therapist training in Washington state and one of only two institutions in the Pacific Northwest offering this specialized training. Linda Schinman, an instructor at Bellevue College who teaches radiation therapy, spearheaded the effort to create the new BAS in Radiation Therapy in response to the growing need for trained therapists and the advances in the field. Currently, most Bellevue College graduates find positions within six months of completing their degree. Quite frequently radiation therapists are hired by the clinics where they train as soon as they graduate, said Schinman. Bellevue College will begin accepting applications for the new BAS in Radiation Therapy starting in December 2024. The college's current Allied Health Associate of Applied Science degree will serve as a feeder program for this degree. The final cohort of students accepted for the AAS degree in Radiation Therapy began their studies in 2024 and will graduate in 2026. The first graduates in the new BAS in Radiation Therapy will matriculate in 2027. The addition of this degree will mark the 15th bachelor's degree offered at Bellevue College.

Lattice Semiconductor

Lattice Semiconductor has been recognized as a 2024 Top Workplace USA. Jim Anderson, president and CEO at Lattice, said, “The foundation of our innovation at Lattice is our talented employees around the world. Being named a top workplace is a testament to our innovative and collaborative culture that enables us to deliver breakthrough products and solutions that empower our customers to push the boundaries with their designs.” Top Workplaces USA celebrates organizations with 150 or more employees that have built great cultures. Over 42,000 organizations were invited to participate in the Top Workplaces USA survey. Winners of the Top Workplaces USA list are chosen based solely on employee feedback gathered through an employee engagement survey. Lattice is headquartered in Hillsboro, Oregon.

Executive Wealth Group

Focus Financial Partners, a partnership of independent, fiduciary wealth management firms, has entered into a definitive agreement under which Executive Wealth Group, a registered investment adviser based in Kirkland, will join Focus partner firm Bordeaux Wealth Advisors . This transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2024, subject to customary closing conditions. Executive Wealth Group, led by Sam Maxwell, provides customized financial planning and investment management services to senior corporate executives and their families, with a focus on serving executives in the aerospace industry. The transaction will increase Bordeaux's presence and market leadership in the Seattle market and enhance its ability to serve executives in the aerospace industry. Executive Wealth Group's clients will gain access to Bordeaux's investment platform, tax and wealth planning capabilities, experienced team of professionals and operational infrastructure. The key principals of both firms have been advising senior aerospace industry executives in the Seattle area for over 50 years combined. Bordeaux Wealth Advisors is an independent investment adviser with offices in Silicon Valley and Kirkland. Bordeaux provides wealth management services that include discretionary and non-discretionary investment advisory services, comprehensive and customized financial planning, tax planning, equity compensation planning, estate and wealth transfer planning for high-net-worth and ultra high net worth individuals and families.

Mar 22, 2024

Dorsey & Whitney

Uppal

Kiran Uppal has joined the Seattle office of Dorsey & Whitney as an of counsel in the Tax, Trusts & Estates group. Uppal advises on all aspects of estate and trust related matters, including the preparation of wills, trusts, and premarital agreements; modifying trusts through decantings and nonjudicial settlement agreements; analyzing estate, gift, and generation skipping transfer tax planning strategies; charitable planning; and probate proceedings and estate administration. Uppal has extensive experience advising family offices and private trust companies with respect to governance, beneficiary relations, and administration. Her clients include wealthy individuals and families, family business owners, banks and trust companies, trustees, and executors and private foundations. Uppal received her LL.M. in taxation from Georgetown University Law Center, her J.D. from Seattle University School of Law, and her B.A. from the University of Washington. Dorsey & Whitney has offices across the United States and in Canada, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region.

CougsFirst!

The CougsFirst! business network is bringing the 4th annual CougsFirst! QB Classic Golf Tournament back to Palouse Ridge Golf Course on April 26th, 2024, one day before the WSU Football Crimson and Gray Game. The tournament will feature over 20 former WSU Football quarterbacks and head coaches from the last 50 years, including hosts Jack Thompson and Coach Jake Dickert. Other former Cougar athletes and coaches participating are Gardner Minshew, Rueben Mayes, Mark Rypien, Mike Price, and Alex Brink. The tournament helps raise money for various organizations, including: Cougar Athletic Fund, the Quarterback Endowment with WSU Foundation, the Pullman Regional Hospital Foundation, the Cougar Collective, and CougsFirst!. BECU is the presenting sponsor. Teams will play alongside former players and coaches. There is still a limited number of teams available. Additional information is available at cougsfirst.org.

Outreach

Seattle-based Outreach, a Sales Execution Platform built for intelligent revenue workflows, has been named to Fast Company's list of the World's Most Innovative Companies of 2024. This year's list highlights businesses that are shaping industry and culture through their innovations. Outreach gives teams the tools they need to design, execute, and continuously improve a revenue strategy that is optimized for every stage of the customer journey. To compile its list, Fast Company's editors and writers identified the companies driving progress around the world and across industries, evaluating thousands of submissions through a competitive application process. The result is a globe-spanning guide to innovation today, from early-stage startups to some of the most valuable companies in the world.