The Technology Association of Oregon named ZoomInfo founder and CEO Henry Schuck this year’s Sam Blackman Award winner.
The annual award honors executives from Oregon and Southwest Washington who not only lead their companies to success but also show industry leadership and positive community impact. The award was named for Blackman, who co-founded Elemental Technologies and was CEO of that company leading its growth and community investment and eventual sale to Amazon Web Services.
Blackman died unexpectedly in 2017 at the age of 41. The award recognizes his legacy in the local industry and those who carry it forward.
“It’s an honor to be recognized by the Technology Association of Oregon, especially for an award named for such a well-respected technology leader and inspiration to me — Sam Blackman,” said Schuck in a written statement. “I’m incredibly proud of what our talented ZoomInfo team has built over the last 15 years and the world-class products we provide to our clients around the world.”
The company (Nasdaq: ZI) runs annual community donation drives and has raised $3.5 million for youth- and family-focused charities in communities where the company has employees.
ZoomInfo — which was initially founded as DiscoverOrg — started in 2007. It has grown to more than 2,700 global employees and went public in 2020. The company gathers, vets and sells business intelligence through a subscription platform to sales organizations. The information is meant to help sales professionals close more deals.
The company was one of the first unicorns, or companies valued at $1 billion by private investors, in the local tech sector.
“Under Henry's leadership, ZoomInfo has grown into one of the largest and most successful tech companies headquartered in the region,” said TAO President and CEO Skip Newberry in a written statement. “Throughout the company's growth, Henry has gone above and beyond to ensure that employees of ZoomInfo would be able to share in the company’s success. And with recent investments in a new office building and area public schools, ZoomInfo's positive impact on the community is only increasing.”
Schuck will receive the award May 3 at the 2022 Oregon Technology Awards at the Oregon Convention Center. Past Sam Blackman Award winners include Monica Enand, CEO of Zapproved; Peggy Miller, CEO of PacStar Communications; and Scott Keeney, CEO of nLight.