May 20, 2022

Karat

Carlson

Following its recent $110M Series C funding round and the news of a strategic investment from Serena Williams, Karat announced that Teresa Carlson is joining the company's board of directors. She joins existing board members, including Karat co-founders Mohit Bhende and Jeffrey Spector, former Twitch COO Sara Clemens, and Parker Barrile, partner at Norwest Venture Partners, who was previously vice president of product at LinkedIn. Carlson most recently served as president and chief growth officer of Splunk and vice president for Amazon Web Services' worldwide public sector and industries businesses. She also held the role of vice president for federal sales and operations at Microsoft. Carlson currently serves as the non-executive chair of KnightSwan Acquisition. In April 2022, Karat announced that it has received a strategic investment from tennis champion Serena Williams to scale the company's Brilliant Black Minds program, which provides free technical interview practice and feedback to current and aspiring Black software engineers in the U.S. Karat, headquartered in Seattle, created the Interviewing Cloud to solve the global shortage of software engineers. The Interviewing Cloud is an always-on, scalable and consistent human + tech solution for conducting predictive, fair and enjoyable technical interviews 24/7.

Ultra Safe Nuclear

Novak

Ultra Safe Nuclear announced the addition of energy-industry veteran, Vladimir Novak, as chief commercial officer. Novak will be responsible for setting corporate strategy and leading commercial growth across global markets. He will also oversee the company's marketing efforts, educating industry leaders, partners, and consumers on micro nuclear technologies and the Ultra Safe Nuclear approach. He joins Ultra Safe Nuclear from Chevron where he held senior positions for the past 14 years, as well as various leadership roles at GE in technology and business development. Over the past three years at Chevron, Novak initiated and led the company's energy transition toward low-carbon fuels and next-gen vehicles. At Chevron, Novak received the EVP Transformation Leadership Award for his contributions to restructuring and focusing Chevron business units on clean-energy technologies. Ultra Safe Nuclear is a Seattle-based focuses on the deployment of micro reactors.

Flying Fish Partners

Seattle-based Flying Fish Partners announced the final closing of its second venture fund, Flying Fish Partners II, (Fund II) with $70 million in committed capital. Flying Fish invests in the artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) sector. Flying Fish makes seed-stage investments in software and mixed hardware and software companies that use AI or ML as foundations to their businesses, provide AI and ML products and services, or provide tools to AI and ML practitioners. Flying Fish has already made 10 investments in Fund II. Flying Fish's three founders – Geoff Harris, Heather Redman and Frank Chang – have complementary technical, operating and investing expertise. In Fund II, the company adds Adriane Brown as managing director. Brown is an accomplished executive and board member of Fortune 100 companies and previously served as a venture partner in Fund I. Vanessa Pegueros, a cybersecurity expert who served as a venture partner in Fund I, continues to serve as a venture partner in Fund II. Flying Fish also adds Lisa Nelson, co-founder of M12 and an active advisor and independent board member, as a new venture partner in Fund II. Notable companies in the firm's Fund I include Picnic, Symbl.ai, Reclaim and Phaidra. Portland-based Streem (sold to Frontdoor) was also an early investment in Fund I. While Flying Fish has invested in startup companies in the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada, its reach has expanded geographically. Several of its initial investments in Fund II are located along the East Coast of the United States and Canada.

Bader Martin

Advisory CPA firm Baker Tilly US has acquired Seattle accounting firm Bader Martin, effective June 1, 2022. For nearly 100 years, Bader Martin professionals have served the tax and accounting needs of affluent individuals and their families, family offices, family owned and closely held businesses as well as professionals, executives and not for profit organizations. Kelly Nelson, Bader Martin's managing principal will become Baker Tilly's managing partner for the Seattle market. Allan Koltin, CEO of Koltin Consulting Group, advised both firms on the acquisition. Baker Tilly US has offices in major regions of the U.S. and in many of the world's leading financial centers – New York, London, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Chicago. Baker Tilly is an independent member of Baker Tilly International, a worldwide network of independent accounting and business advisory firms.

May 18, 2022

Caron Architecture

Stock

Leung

Caron Architecture hired two new team members, Kin Leung and Matthew Stock. Leung brings 20 years of architectural experience, with a specialty in hotel and residential designs to the firm. Matthew Stock joined Caron Architecture earlier this year as a designer. He brings five years of experience designing a variety of project types across the US, in both the public and private sectors. He is currently assisting the team with a diverse range of project types.

Mahlum

Hollar

Olson

Misic

Walton

Hildebrand

Meyers

Goldblatt

Jacobs

Mahlum promoted three team members in its Seattle office and five in its Portland office. At the Seattle office, Erica Hildebrand has been elevated to the role of director of brand and communications, Jesse Walton has been elevated to the role of associate principal and Marijana Misic to associate.

With almost 30 years of professional experience, Hildebrand collaborates to create successful storytelling surrounding brand repositioning, leads complex project and award submissions, and spearheads all Mahlum's digital communication and media. In her role as director of brand and communications, she works with the firm's owners in furthering the firm's vision and increasing brand awareness both internally and externally. Hildebrand is also an active member of Mahlum's Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Continuing Education Committee. With more than 20 years of experience with educational clients, Walton is passionate about creating sustainable, healthy spaces for learners of all ages. As project architect and energy efficiency specialist he works closely with design teams and district staff to maximize efficiency, and thermal comfort. An early adopter of BIM, he is an office-wide leader in Revit documentation, building envelope design, and energy code compliance. Walton holds a Bachelor of Architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design. He is a registered architect in the state of Washington, a LEED-Accredited Professional, Certified Passive House Consultant, and serves on the National AIA 2030 Working Group.

Misic has 16 years of architectural experience. Her focus at Mahlum has been on higher education facilities, specifically student housing, working on projects such as the redevelopment of Husky Village at University of Washington Bothell. Misic received the AIA Seattle Young Architect Award in 2017 and is an active member of the AIA Diversity Roundtable. She is currently involved with DRT's collaboration with Sawhorse Revolution through mentoring youth about architecture, and stewarding youth envisioned designs towards built projects. In 2021, she was appointed to serve on the AIA Seattle Board of Directors and is also directly involved with the AIA Seattle's Membership Steering Committee. She received her BA in Architecture at the University of Washington and is a registered architect in Washington.

At the Portland office, Kim Olson has been elevated to the role of principal and Bryan Hollar, Janet Foz Jacobs, Jeff Goldblatt and Tim Meyers have been elevated to associate. Joining Mahlum in 2013, Olson brings more than 19 years of experience in the field of architecture. Olson has served on various boards and committees for the American Institute of Architects. She currently is Chair of AIAO's Legislative Affairs Committee. She earned a Master of Architecture from Tulane University and is a registered architect in Oregon.

Hollar has nearly ten years of professional experience working on K-12 and Higher Ed learning environments. He has served as project architect and designer on numerous complex renovation projects, including his alma mater, Canby High School. Outside of Mahlum, Hollar is committed to professional mentoring. He volunteered for the Architects in Schools program serving elementary school students for three years, is serving as a Team Leader for the ACE Mentor Program serving high school students for the third year and has been involved with the University of Oregon Mentoring Circles program that connects architecture students to working professionals.

Foz Jacobs has over 20 years of architectural experience including healthcare, educational, and residential, with design and documentation for healthcare and educational facilities as a personal focus. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from the University of Washington and is a registered architect in Washington. Goldblatt has nine years of architectural design experience and technical expertise with a focus on educational and student housing facilities in college and university settings. He most recently completed the design and documentation of Mahlum's New Portland Studio Renovation, which is Portland's first Living Building Challenge petal certified project. He has been a leader in Mahlum's Commitment to Community initiative leadership. He has also worked pro bono with Impact NW and is active in raising funds for other local, non-profit organizations. Goldblatt earned his Bachelor of Architecture from University of Oregon and is a registered architect in the state of Oregon. He received his Living Future Accreditation in 2021.

Meyers has over ten years of architectural experience exploring the crossroads of user experience and computational design. Meyers has pioneered programs internally to provide quick online resources to Mahlum staff. His design toolkits virtually guide architects and designers on how to effectively use programs and resources. Meyers received his Master of Architecture from the Kansas State University and is a registered architect in Missouri.

The Riley Group

Kindley

Davies

Stariha

The Riley Group has hired three new staff geologists: David Stariha, Jaycob Davies and Sierra Kindley. Stariah brings over seven years of experience in the geotechnical engineering field. Stariha earned his Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies while attending Pacific Lutheran University. He is currently transitioning to RGI's environmental department where he will perform field work and project support. Stariha's work will include soil and groundwater environmental sampling, onsite drilling and remedial investigation oversight.

Davies earned his Bachelor of Science in Geology while attending Western Washington University. His previous experience includes providing onsite geotechnical construction monitoring, and reporting in detail the soil and stormwater conditions to clients. He is currently supporting RGI's environmental department by performing project research and support for phase I environmental site assessment reports, field activities and drilling oversight for phase II environmental subsurface investigations.

Kindley earned her Bachelor of Arts in Geology and Environmental Studies while attending Augustana College, and her Master of Environmental Management from the Water Resources Management Program at Duke University. At RGI, she supports the environmental department by conducting agency file reviews and research, site-specific historical assessments, and report preparation and documentation for phase I environmental site assessments and phase II subsurface investigations.

KinectAir

KinectAir, an operating system for the private aviation and Advanced Air Mobility markets, announced it has begun commercial operations via its network partner, Direct2 Air, a Part 135 operator based out of Bend, OR. Providing service across the Pacific Northwest, KinectAir now operates on-demand private flights from Truckee, California to Vancouver, Washington and from Reno, Nevada to Seattle, Portland, and other regional airfields. KinectAir is a software aviation company focused on regional air mobility. KinectAir's artificial intelligence software continuously optimizes the air transportation supply and passenger demand across its network of aircraft. KinectAir's is headquartered in Vancouver, WA.

TimeXtender

Belleve-based TimeXtender, a global software company enabling data integration and preparation from multiple data sources to support advanced analytics and artificial intelligence, announced that it has received a significant investment from Monterro, a leading Nordic B2B software investor, to further accelerate the growth of TimeXtender's low-code, data estate builder. TimeXtender's founders Heine Krog Iversen and Anne Krog Iversen will remain with company. TimeXtender has won several business awards for its advanced organizational model which is focused on output rather than hours worked and encourages employees to work and make decisions autonomously. Monterro has successfully developed and led companies such as Pointsec, Episerver and Orc Software, and supports companies in all aspects of growth.