Aug 02, 2022

Alaska Power & Telephone

Alaska Power & Telephone ‘s subsidiary APT Wireless has been selected by the US Department of Agriculture to receive a $29,344,717 grant award from USDA Rural Utility Service's ReConnect grant program. The grant will be used to expand fiber optic connectivity in communities on Prince of Wales Island. AP&T will invest $9,781,573 in matching private funds. The project, called “SEALink South,” will involve developing fiber optic networks in the remote, rural communities of Craig, Klawock, and Hollis, helping to enhance telecommunication resiliency for residents throughout the Tongass National Forest region. AP&T estimates a marine route survey, permitting, and environmental review activities will occur in 2023. Construction would occur between 2024 and 2027, depending on timing of environmental and permit approvals. A diverse group of indigenous and environmental stakeholders rallied around AP&T's application with letters of support, including the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, Sealaska, the Sustainable Southeast Partnership, Sitka Conservation Society, Klawock Cooperative, Craig Tribal Association, and Shaan-Seet. Alaska Power & Telephone Company is an employee- and investor-owned utility providing utility services in over 40 communities in rural Alaska.

DigniFi

Bellevue-based DigniFi, a fintech platform for the automotive industry, announced a new partnership with asset manager Brigade Capital Management. Among other investments across the fixed income spectrum, Brigade provides tailored capital solutions to specialty finance companies, as well as capital markets expertise and access to a broad network of institutional investors. This initial recapitalization enables DigniFi to execute its three-year growth strategy centered on operational stability, product development and commercialization, and expansion into transportation-adjacent markets and ecosystems. A representative from Brigade will join DigniFi's Board of Directors as an advisor and observer.

Schnitzer Steel

Schnitzer Steel Industries' Board of Directors appointed Richard Peach, the company's executive vice president, chief financial officer and chief strategy officer, to serve as the company's executive vice president and chief strategy officer, with expansion of scope and responsibility. Peach has served as Schnitzer's CFO since 2007. Prior to joining Schnitzer in 2007, Peach was CFO at PacifiCorp, an energy utility in the Western United States. The board also appointed Stefano Gaggini, the company's vice president, deputy chief financial officer, and chief accounting officer, to serve as the company's senior vice president and chief financial officer. Gaggini has served in his current position since September 2018, and has been the company's principal accounting officer since December 2013. Gaggini is licensed as a Certified Public Accountant in the state of Oregon and prior to joining the company in 2011 worked for KPMG, a public accounting firm, in Portland and Zurich, Switzerland. Additionally, the board appointed Mark Schuessler, the company's vice president, accounting and reporting, to serve as the company's vice president and chief accounting officer. Schuessler has served in his current position since April 2021 after holding various roles in the company's SEC Reporting and Technical Accounting department. Prior to joining the company in November 2011, Schuessler was an audit manager at Perkins & Co. He is licensed as a Certified Public Accountant in the state of Oregon. The new appointments are effective September 1, 2022. Schnitzer Steel is a manufacturer and exporter of recycled metal products, with operating facilities located in 25 states, Puerto Rico, and Western Canada. The Portland-based company began operations in 1906.

Compass Construction

Kirkland-based Compass Construction hired Randy Gross as a project manager, Oleg Chebotarev as a field engineer and Joe Bennett as an assistant superintendent. Gross has over 19 years of construction experience, including a past role as a senior project engineer at Compass. In his return to the company, he is working on a project in Northgate. He completed the construction management certificate program in 2016 at the University of Washington. Chebotarev is working on the Redmond Grand project. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from the UW. Bennett is on the Liza project in Seattle. He has over 30 years of construction experience, having completed trade school for carpentry and worked his way up the ranks from a journeyman carpenter to a superintendent.

WASWD

The Washington Association of Sewer & Water Districts presented its annual Outstanding Legislator Award to Senator Marko Liias, in recognition of the efforts he made to protect a critical state funding source for water, sewer and other local government infrastructure projects. Liias, as chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, was a leader in the negotiations of the state $17 billion transportation package that was passed this year. During these discussions, amidst pressure from the oil industry and several large business associations, he consistently objected to siphoning money from the state's Public Works Assistance Account to fund the transportation package, according to WASWD. While Liias's efforts did not overcome the momentum to use funds from the PWAA for the transportation package, they helped to temper the amount of money that was diverted, the association said.

Jul 29, 2022

TAPCO Credit Union

Gray

TAPCO appointed Sarah Gray as its new chief people & inclusion officer. Gray joined TAPCO from Child Care Resources, serving as the chief human resources officer. In this role, Gray led all sectors of the department across the organization, and was responsible for developing and executing human resource strategy in support of the overall business plan and strategic direction of the organization, specifically in the areas of succession planning, employee/labor relations, diversity and inclusion, compliance, recruitment, talent planning, learning and development, organizational development, compensation, benefits, and workforce planning. Previously, Gray worked for Bellevue College in the Human Resources Department and as an associate dean of workforce education. She has an undergraduate degree in Human Resources and Business Management and a master's in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. Founded in 1934, TAPCO Credit Union is a Pierce County-based and community-focused financial institution.

Marchex

Marchex, an AI-powered conversation intelligence company, announced that the Business Intelligence Group has named its Conversation Intelligence Platform as “Product of the Year” as part of the 2022 Sales and Marketing Technology Awards program, also known as The Sammys. The Sammys honor organizations and products helping to solve the challenges organizations have connecting and collaborating with prospects and customers. The Marchex Conversation Intelligence platform, built upon artificial intelligence technology, enables businesses to unlock relevant insights from both voice and text conversations at scale and extracts actionable signals that enable marketing, sales, and customer engagement teams to achieve their business objectives. Marchex is headquartered in Seattle.

IRG Physical & Hand Therapy

IRG Physical & Hand Therapy is hosting its fifth annual charity golf tournament on Aug. 8 at the Everett Golf & Country Club. This year's fundraising efforts will benefit Providence General Foundation, Children's Services and Everett's Imagine Children's Museum. This year will mark Everett's Wrecking Ball Demolition's fourth year of sponsorship of the tournament. Those interested in sponsoring or participating in this event can contact golf@irgpt.com for more information. IRG Physical & Hand Therapy is headquartered in Mill Creek.

ZoomInfo

Vancouver-based ZoomInfo, a software, data and intelligence firm, announced the appointment of Tomer Gershoni as its chief security officer. Gershoni will lead ZoomInfo's information security team. He'll work closely with Simon McDougall, ZoomInfo's chief compliance officer, and ZoomInfo's privacy team to ensure the limited, non-sensitive data the company collects and stores remains protected. Gershoni served as chief information security officer and head of cyber defense for the Israel National Cyber Directorate. He also previously served as the chief products security officer of Hewlett Packard Enterprise's software business unit and CISO for the company's SaaS business. Gershoni most recently served as senior director and head of security engineering & cyber defense center for Imperva.