Jul 01, 2025

Wesley

Rowe

Robert Rowe has been appointed as the new healthcare administrator at Wesley Des Moines. Rowe brings 27 years of experience in senior living and skilled nursing to his leadership role, with deep operational knowledge across all levels of care. As the healthcare administrator, Rowe oversees the delivery of resident care, regulatory compliance and the overall operational performance of the new 72-bed Wesley Des Moines Rehabilitation & Care Center. His responsibilities also include upholding company policies, providing strategic leadership, managing financial and quality assurance systems, supporting community relations, mitigating risk and cultivating a positive, mission-driven environment for residents and staff. Wesley Des Moines is a 42-acre senior living community, offering a range of residential choices for senior living, including independent living cottage homes and apartments, catered living supportive services, the Albert W. Carr Memory Care Center, and a rehabilitation and skilled nursing center. Founded in 1944, Wesley is a faith-based, nonprofit organization operating four Puget Sound residential communities: Wesley Des Moines, Wesley Lea Hill, Wesley Bradley Park and Wesley at Tehaleh. Its continuum of care also includes home health, home care and hospice services.

Lamb Weston

Lamb Weston Holdings announced that it has entered into a cooperation agreement with JANA Partners Management and Continental Grain Company. As part of the agreement, Lamb Weston has agreed to appoint Bradley Alford, Ruth Kimmelshue, Timothy McLevish and Scott Ostfeld to its board of directors. In addition, Lawrence Kurzius and Paul Maass, who were mutually agreed upon by Lamb Weston, JANA and Continental Grain, will also join the board. Charles (Chuck) Blixt, W.G. (Jerry) Jurgensen, Robert Niblock and Maria Renna Sharpe will be stepping down from the board. As a result of these changes, which will take place no later than on or about July 11, 2025, the board will increase from 11 to 13 directors, 12 of whom will be independent. Also, as part of the agreement, Alford will be appointed as the new chairman of the board. Pursuant to the agreement, JANA and Continental Grain have agreed to support the board's slate of directors at the company's 2025 annual meeting. JANA and Continental Grain have also agreed to certain customary cooperation provisions. The full Agreement with JANA and Continental Grain will be filed on Form 8-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Lamb Weston, headquartered in Eagle, Idaho, supplies frozen potato products to restaurants and retailers around the world.

Jun 27, 2025

Dorsey & Whitney

Simon

Philip Simon has joined Dorsey & Whitney as of counsel in the Patent group in Seattle. Simon advises clients of all sizes, from startups to international corporations, on building intellectual property portfolios that reflect their priorities, market positioning and competitive landscape. He has experience in physics, thermodynamics, engine design and operation, related mechanical systems, semiconductors, green technology, IoT systems, robotics, and medical devices. Simon joins Dorsey from Perkins Coie, where he applied his technical knowledge to understand and protect his clients' innovations. Simon received his J.D. from New York University School of Law, where he was editor in chief of the Journal of Intellectual Property & Entertainment Law. He also earned his B.S. in Physics from the University of Utah. Before becoming an attorney, Simon was a law clerk with the Colorado Public Defenders for the Colorado Supreme Court. He also worked for New York University's Tech Transfer Office, assessing the patentability of university inventions. Dorsey has locations across the United States and in Canada, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region.

Vanilla

Tran

Bellevue-based Vanilla, an estate planning platform for financial advisors, hired Emily Tran as vice president of marketing. Tran will lead all facets of Vanilla's marketing strategy. Tran brings over 10 years of financial services marketing experience to the role, most recently serving as head of marketing at Practifi, a CRM platform for advisory firms. Prior to that, she held senior marketing positions at Morningstar, where she led integrated campaigns that supported product growth and advisor education at scale. At Vanilla, Tran will be responsible for shaping and executing a marketing strategy that reflects the firm's mission: to make estate planning a core part of holistic financial advice. She will lead efforts across brand, product marketing, content, digital, events, and advisor communications.

Wyze

Kirmayer Eamer

Seattle-based Wyze appointed Melissa Kirmayer Eamer as president and chief operating officer. Kirmayer Eamer adds to the roster of former Amazon talent at Wyze, joining co-founders Yun Zhang, Dave Crosby and Dongsheng Song. She brings over 25 years of experience leading consumer brands, including as the CEO of Modern Age and as COO at Glossier. During her nearly 20 years at Amazon, Kirmayer Eamer developed an ability to build products and businesses from the ground up, lead large-scale teams, and drive growth, culminating in her role as vice president of amazon devices, where she oversaw product development and sales for Kindle and Echo.

Jun 26, 2025

NAIOPWA tours the Stadium District

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Soccer fans have been clogging the streets, bars and restaurants in the Stadium District for the ongoing FIFA Club World Cup at Lumen Field. That's been providing a welcome boost to Pioneer Square, the waterfront, SoDo and points beyond; and it's a prelude to next year's World Cup matches, which are expected to be an even bigger tourist draw. Accordingly, NAIOPWA is hosting a walk-and-talk tour of the Stadium District, dubbed “From Field to Ferry,” on July 15. The talk begins at noon at Lumen Field. Panelists will include Karen Thomas from Gensler, Beth Knox of the Seattle Sports Commission, Peter Tomozawa from Seattle World Cup 2026 and city deputy mayor Greg Wong. The walk departs at 1 p.m., with stops to include the new Colman Dock and largely completed RailSpur complex. The trek concludes at 505 First, part of King Street Crossing, which is owned by Hudson Pacific Properties. Details and information: naiopwa.org.

Kidder Mathews

Rogness

In its Tacoma office, Kidder Mathews has promoted Brandon Rogness to the role of market leader, the firm recently announced. He'll lead asset services operations in that area. He's been with Kidder for over a year, and brings prior experience in the south Puget Sound market. Kidder's Erin French said in a statement, “Brandon is a thoughtful leader with a strong understanding of operations and client needs. He's earned the respect of our teams and clients alike, and I'm confident he'll continue to elevate our presence in the Tacoma market.”

Compass Construction

Kirkland-based Compass Construction has expanded its team with six new hires: Rich Peterson, Jesse Bors-Koefoed, Logan Bryan, Jackson Finnerty, Chris Selin and Travis McKee. Peterson joins as a superintendent with over 30 years of experience in high-rise, hospitality, and healthcare construction and is currently assigned to the Bellevue Station project. Bors-Koefoed, now assistant superintendent on the Rejuvenate project, brings more than a decade of experience, including running his own general contracting and woodworking business. He holds a B.S. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Bryan, hired as a senior project engineer, has over six years of experience across residential, commercial, and public sectors and earned his B.S. in Civil Engineering from Washington State University. Finnerty joins as a project engineer with six years of experience in healthcare and mixed-use developments, having started as a project engineer intern in 2020 and becoming full-time in 2023. He holds a B.S. in Construction Management from Central Washington University. Selin, returning to Compass as an assistant superintendent on the Cultivate project in Redmond, brings more than 25 years of experience and previously served in the same role at the company. He completed the Construction Management Program at Edmonds Community College. McKee joins the Bryant Manor affordable housing project in Seattle as an assistant superintendent, bringing over 10 years of field supervision and site safety experience. He holds a B.A. in General Studies from Western Washington University.

PathGuide Technologies

Bothell-based PathGuide Technologies appointed Keith La Londe, Greg Laycock and Pelageya Kostenko to its board of directors. Joining PathGuide in 1997, La Londe currently serves as vice president of systems. He works directly with the company's sales team to better understand customer requirements and advance the development of PathGuide products. In his nearly three decades, La Londe has led major areas of the business including implementations, software support, and customer training. With a tenure spanning more than 30 years, Laycock is PathGuide's vice president of software engineering. He is responsible for the architecture, design, development, and success of PathGuide's technology platform, which includes Latitude WMS, Latitude Manifest and Shipping System, and Advanced Vendor Managed Inventory software. Laycock also oversees research and development as well as software engineering. Kostenko, PathGuide's vice president of finance, brings over two decades of leadership in corporate finance. Since joining the company in 2007, she has helped shape PathGuide's financial strategy, overseeing long-term planning, risk management, and financial reporting. Her responsibilities include ensuring regulatory compliance, managing cash flow and internal controls, and improving operational efficiency. Kostenko also leads efforts to enhance budgeting discipline and provide greater financial insight to support strategic decision-making and sustainable growth. PathGuide Technologies, a privately held company founded in 1989, provides warehouse management and shipping solutions for wholesale, industrial, and retail distributors across the United States, Canada and abroad.