Feb 05, 2020

InkHouse

Riley

Massachusetts-based public relations firm InkHouse opened an office in Seattle and hired Kate Riley as general manager and executive vice president. Riley is a long-time local PR agency veteran who has worked at Edelman and The OutCast Agency. InkHouse says it opened in Seattle to address demand for technology, consumer and health care PR and digital marketing services in the Pacific Northwest.

Adaptiva

In Kirkland, Adaptiva founder and chief technology officer Deepak Kumar is now CEO. The company also added Doug Kennedy as chief growth officer, David Langston as chief revenue officer and Jeff Harrell as vice president of marketing. Kennedy is a former vice president at Microsoft and Oracle. Langston was vice president at DXC and Oracle, and a director at Microsoft. Harrell was vice president of marketing at Zettaset and Redbooth. Adaptiva also promoted Davinder Singh to chief technology officer and Shailesh Kumar to vice president of engineering. Adaptiva develops IT security solutions.

MedicareCompareUSA

In Bellingham, MedicareCompareUSA announced a corporate reorganization that includes the formation of a holding company and new senior-level appointments. MCUSA Holding Co., the new company, oversees business unit operations. Senior-level appointments include Kerri Lenderman as CEO of MedicareCompareUSA and Paul Gauthier as board chair of MCUSA Holding Co. Lenderman was the company's managing partner and director of consulting services. She had been acting CEO for much of 2019. Gauthier is the company's founder. MedicareCompareUSA is an insurance company that helps hospitals attain, retain and serve Medicare patients.

Computer Habits

Las Vegas-based Pact-One acquired Computer Habits of Lake Oswego, Oregon. Both companies specialize in dental practice IT support. Computer Habits CEO James Levis will remain as executive vice president and all staff at Computer Habits will continue in their roles. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Feb 04, 2020

Department of Commerce

Stewart

Kendrick Stewart is the new deputy director of the state Department of Commerce. Stewart has been in public service for 20 years and has experience at four cabinet-level agencies. He previously was human resources and safety director and equity inclusion manager for the state Department of Enterprise Services. He starts Feb. 16 and succeeds Connie Robins, who retired in November. Martin McMurry, Commerce's CFO, has been interim deputy director.

Port of Port Townsend

Berg

The Port of Port Townsend Commission picked Eron Berg as the port's new executive director. Berg is city supervisor and city attorney for the city of Sedro-Woolley. He also is a commissioner of the Skagit Public Utility District. Berg is expected to start in April and work alongside existing executive director Jim Pivarnik until Pivarnik retires in early summer. Pivarnik has been interim executive director since late 2018, after the departure of Sam Gibboney.

IFM

In Federal Way, Michael R. Bond joined the board of the Institute for Functional Medicine. Bond has over 40 years of experience in health care administration and is president and CEO of PrimeCare. He has held senior leadership positions at the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Institutes of Health. IFM promotes functional medicine, which determines how and why illness occurs and restores health by addressing the root causes of disease for each individual.

Sortis Holdings

In Portland, alternative investment fund manager Sortis Holdings launched Sortis Growth Venture Fund. The $10 million hybrid venture capital and consumer-focused private equity fund's goal is to boost companies with rising consumer brands. Sortis says the target rate of return on invested capital is 20%. The fund is open to accredited investors and accepts up to $1 million per investment, with a $25,000 minimum investment.