While Covid-related disruptions still abound, the Austin metro has almost fully bounced back from the pileup of job losses in the pandemic's early days. And the tech ecosystem has continued to grow relentlessly, even though many of the new roles popping up are, for now, remote.
The past month has been filled with executive hiring announcements, and Austin Inno has rounded up some of the most interesting new moves.
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Now, let's see who was on the move in August 2021 ...
Austin AI company SparkCognition announced on Aug. 3 that it has appointed Stephen Gold as CMO. He was previously a Group CMO at IBM Watson. The company also said it has promoted Chief Business Officer Vijay Doradla to president and added the title of chief operating officer to Jeffrey Lass's existing title of CFO.
Austin insurtech startup The Zebra announced on Aug. 3 that it has added Maria Requesto Pantaleoni as VP of research and Marty Sansone as VP of insurance. Pantaleoni is co-founder and CEO of nail polish startup 7TRUE, and she was most recently experience strategy and insight practice lead for projekt202, according to her LinkedIn page. Sansone was previously assistant VP of distribution and service at USAA. The moves follow a $150M funding round in April that boosted the company's valuation above $1B.
Tech commercialization company Astrotech Corp. said Aug. 3 that it added Joe Levinthal as chief science officer of its subsidiary AgLAB Inc. Levinthal was previously a consultant to AgLAB, which optimizes distillation of cannabis concentrates. Astrotech launched AgLAB back in 2019 following the passage of a federal farm bill that opened up markets for hemp production. Both Astrotech and AgLAB are headquartered in Austin.
Vista Equity Partners, one of the country's premier technology investment firms, on Aug. 3 announced the appointment of David Breach as president. It's a promotion for Breach, who will retain his chief operating officer title. He will also continue to serve on Vista’s executive committee and private equity management committee, as well as the investment committees of Vista’s private equity funds, according to the announcement. He replaced Brian Sheth, who reportedly had a falling out with founder and CEO Robert Smith before departing last year. Breach joined Austin-based Vista Equity in 2014, with the firm on the brink of explosive growth.
Here's a big name to add to the list of Austin newcomers: Geoff Lewis, founder and managing partner of Bedrock Capital, which has about $1B in assets under management. He's also a former partner at Founders Fund and is on the board of Lyft, as well as several other companies. In an Aug. 11 Medium post, he announced he has moved from New York and the Bay Area to Austin. Lewis already has a history here in Austin. He was a seed round investor in Austin startup Workrise, which at that time was called RigUp.
Austin-based Hyliion Holdings Corp., which makes electric powertrains for semis, said Aug. 16 that it hired Dennis Gallagher as COO. He was previously president of commercial truck supplier Jacobs Vehicle Systems. He has also worked with Danaher and Fortive. The announcement comes a couple months after Hyliion announced it would add up to 500 jobs as it expands its headquarters in Cedar Park, where the company, led by CEO Thomas Healy, has been based since 2018.
Austin-based cybersecurity company Forcepoint said Aug. 16 it has added Rees Johnson as chief product officer. Johnson was previously senior VP of product management at the enterprise division of Symantec. Before that, he was senior VP and GM of content and SaaS security at McAfee Labs. The move is the latest in a string of new hires and acquisitions for the company since it was acquired by Francisco Partners in January.
Austin-based telehealth startup Wheel is adding to its C-suite as it continues a hiring surge. The company on Aug. 19 said it had hired Tim Kollas as its first chief commercial officer. Kollas previously worked for Amazon.com Inc.'s health care service, Amazon Care, as well as virtual health care company 98point6 Inc. The expectation is that Kollas will help shape the company's expansion into the labs and diagnostics space after raising a $50M series B round in May. The company has raised a total of $66M.
Austin UV-C disinfection company Invzbl announced Aug. 19 that it added Bob Berry as its CRO. He was previously VP of business development at Phoenix-based Troxell Communications. Invzbl, founded by CEO Chuck Morrison, uses specialized UV radiation in laptop and phone cabinets, as well as air purification panels, to kill Covid-19, among other pathogens. It was founded in 2019 and relocated to Austin from Charlotte earlier this year.
Slingshot Aerospace, which is co-headquartered in Austin and California, said Aug. 23 it has added several big industry names to its advisory board. That includes Skybox founder and former CEO Dan Berkenstock; Purdue University aeronautics professor Hsu Lo; Kevin O'Connell, former director of the Office of Space Commerce and former VOX Space President Mandy Vaughn. The startup, which has a platform to help satellite companies monitor and communicate about space debris, also added Dr. Belinda Marchand, a UT professor and founder of Progalaxia, as its director of astrodynamics and space systems R&D. And it hired Alonso Segura, former deputy chief of the U.S. Space Force's space and missile systems division as a senior director of space systems accounts.
AffiniPay, an Austin online payments startup, announced Aug. 24 that it added Robert Alvarez, CFO of Austin-based BigCommerce, to its board. Alvarez, who helped lead BigCommerce through its IPO last year, was CFO at LibreDigital prior to joining BigCommerce in 2011. He is also on the board of Austin startups Eterneva and Tiff's Treats, as well as the Austin Technology Council. Alvarez's appointment comes about a month after the company brought on former Grace Hill CEO Dru Armstrong as its chief executive. AffiniPay also announced a new CTO: Bryan Thompson, who was previously CTO at Beyond Inc. The company is backed by private equity investors Grace Hill and TA Associates, according to Crunchbase.
Austin business management startup ZenBusiness said on Aug. 25 it added Craig Holt as chief product officer. Holt was previously CEO of Remagine Digital, and, before that, was CEO of Pulse Global Services, a subsidiary of LegalZoom. ZenBusiness, led by co-founder and CEO Ross Buhrdorf, last year landed a $55M series B funding round, bringing its total funding to about $75M.
Austin yard services marketplace LawnStarter announced Aug. 25 it has hired Avinash Sharma as VP of product. He was previously a senior director of product management at RealSelf, and before that was a product manager at Expedia. The announcement comes a few weeks after the startup acquired one of its primary competitors, Lawn Love. LawnStarter, founded in 2013 by Ryan Farley, Steve Corcoran and Jonas Weigert, has raised $33M.
Austin RV rental marketplace Outdoorsy on Aug. 26 named Aaron Ammar as chief insurance officer of its subsidiary insurtech business, Roamly. Ammar was a co-founder at underwriting company Y-Risk. Outdoorsy, led by co-founder and CEO Jeff Cavins, also said it is expanding its insurance products to RV owners in Canada through an agreement with Aon. The moves come on the heels of Outdoorsy's $120M funding round ($90M equity and $30M debt) in June.
After launching Founder Institute Texas, Martín Martinez is now the state's executive director — a first-of-its-kind role for the organization. Martinez helped to open all three Texas chapters of the entrepreneurial training and support organization over the past four years and will now serve as the executive director of the Lone Star State. He will also take up the mantel of entrepreneur in residence, working closely with the headquarters on things like events, expansion and recruitment. With Martinez’ role change, Austin local director Elisa Sepulveda will take over as the managing director.
Kansas City-based VC firm Firebrand Ventures, which has an office in Austin, has closed its second fund at $40 million. It also said it has added Austin-based Claire Hansen as a principal. Hansen was most recently a corporate ventures strategist at Army Applications Laboratory, and she has previously worked at Central Texas Angel Network and Capital Factory. Firebrand also added Leo Morton, president and COO of DeBruce Companies in Kansas City, as an advisor. Firebrand first established its office here in 2019, led by angel investor Ryan Merket, who is now head of product and engineering at Austin's Goodfair, according to his LinkedIn page.
Austin-baed emergency medical services software and data company ESO said Aug. 26 it has added Nelly Pitocco as its CRO. She was previously head of solution engineering and innovation at T-Mobile. ESO, founded in 2004, is led by President and CEO Chris Dillie. Earlier this year, it acquired Bellingham, Washington-based Emergency Reporting for an undisclosed amount.
Austin's E2open, a publicly traded maker of supply chain management software, said Aug. 26 it has hired Kari Janavitz as its CMO. She was previously CMO at publicly traded TE Connectivity, which has its HQ in Switzerland. E2open, founded in 2000 and led by CEO Michael Farlekas, earlier this year went public via a SPAC merger with CC Neuberger Principal Holdings. A few months later, it scooped up BluJay Solutions Ltd. in a $1.7B deal.
Austin customer engagement company Khoros on Aug. 31 announced it named Jason Perlewitz as vice president of technical operations. Perlewitz has been with Khoros since May, according to his LinkedIn page. He was previously head of engineering and technology at Thomson Reuters. The company, which has 11 offices globally, also announced it added Tony Cetera as senior director of information security. He previously oversaw identity and access management at NBC Universal. Before that, he was chief information security officer at New York University.
