Recent Press Releases:
Pivotal Leaders Network Announces its 2010 Prospective Clean Technology Business Leaders in the Northwest
Pivotal Leaders, a network of the top prospective clean technology business leaders in the Northwest, received more than 600 nominations in its inaugural year. The final 32 Pivotal Leaders for 2010 were selected by their peers as those who are most likely to lead a successful clean technology company in the Northwest in the next three to five years. The Pivotal Leaders will have opportunities throughout the year to build their relationships in the community, hone their business skills and apply their fresh ideas to drive development of the Northwest’s clean technology economy.
Portland, Oregon — May 25, 2010 — Pivotal Investments, along with presenting sponsors Perkins Coie, Ernst & Young, the Portland Development Commission and the University of Oregon, today announced the Pivotal Leaders for 2010 (http://www.pivotal-leaders.com), a community-nominated and peer-selected network of the top prospective clean technology business leaders with ties to the Northwest. More than 600 nominations were received following the launch of Pivotal Leaders in February. The nominees themselves then selected the final 32 Pivotal Leaders: entrepreneurial business leaders who have the talent and business acumen to lead successful clean technology companies in the region over the next three to five years. The Pivotal Leaders Network seeks to stimulate investment and expand resources – both human and financial – to build the sustainable economy in the Northwest.
“We launched Pivotal Leaders with high expectations; the tremendous response from the community and high caliber of nominees demonstrates the rich leadership talent in our region and the community's recognition of the importance of clean technologies to our economy,” said Gregg Semler, Managing Director of Pivotal Investments. “The breadth of the response to this program underscores an important, unmet need to cultivate opportunities for these talented leaders to innovate and grow their businesses here, bringing the jobs and economic growth our region needs.”
The Pivotal Leaders will have opportunities to collaborate, partner and discuss their innovative ideas through social networking, media and a number of exclusive formal and informal events with their peers and other business leaders. The July kick-off event will take place in Seattle, and the law firm Perkins Coie will host a September event in Seattle and a November event in Portland, providing the Pivotal Leaders with opportunities to connect with other successful entrepreneurs as well as legal and business experts, potential investors, customers and other resources to help them maximize their success.
“We need to encourage innovation and the deployment of capital, both human and financial, as we all work to build the economy that we want here in the Northwest,” said Patrick Quinton, Business & Industry Division Manager for the Portland Development Commission. “We see the Pivotal Leaders Network as an opportunity to build vibrant companies by focusing on our strengths and investing in our most important resources, our people.”
“In a period of significant change and economic dislocation, there is a tremendous opportunity for new ideas, people, and strategies to shape our economy,” said Brent Bullock, partner at Perkins Coie. “We have seen this transition in the past, as we augmented our timber resource-based economy with technology, apparel, and advanced manufacturing. This network of talented leaders builds on our inherent strengths in the region to enhance our competitiveness in the key, emerging clean technologies and market sectors. Perkins Coie is making a significant commitment to clean technologies throughout our firm and this network is an important component of our strategy,” he concluded.
“The Pacific Northwest needs to stay on the leading edge of efforts to build a sustainable economy,” said Tom Osdoba, Managing Director, Center for Sustainable Business Practices at the University of Oregon. “The Pivotal Leaders network provides a platform for all of us to bring ideas to market faster and more effectively. This focal point is an essential part of our region’s strategy for the next generation. For Oregon, we need to move forward aggressively in this area, which means helping to launch the network,” Osdoba added.
The 2010 Pivotal Leaders are:
David Allen, Executive Vice President, McKinstry
Allen Alley, Chairman and Co-founder, Pixelworks
Ash Awad, Vice President Energy & Facility Solutions, McKinstry
Jules Bailey, Representative, Oregon State Legislature
Kipp Baratoff, Principal, Equilibrium Capital Group
Rob Bernard, Chief Environmental Strategist, Microsoft
Jesse Berst, Managing Director, GlobalSmartEnergy
Gino Borland, Co-Founder, Cake Ventures
Bill Campbell, Principal, Equilibrium Capital Group
Dave Curry, Co-founder, President & CEO, Demand Energy
Mark Edlen, Managing Principal and Co-founder, Gerding Edlen
Pat Egan, Vice President, Pacific Power
Mark Frohnmayer, President and Founder, Arcimoto
Aaron Goldfeder, CEO and Co-founder, EnergySavvy
Alan Hickenbottom, Founder and President, Tanner Creek Energy
Dave Kaplan, Clean Energy Entrepreneur, Founder V2Green
Tyson Keever, President and Co-founder, Sequential Pacific
Jeff Kim, President and CEO, Shorepower Technologies
Rick Luebbe, Chief Executive Officer, EnerG2
Ross MacFarlane, Senior Advisor, Climate Solutions
Tim Miller, President and CEO, Green Lite Motors
Kelly Ogilvie, President and CEO, Blue Marble Energy
Gregg Patterson, CEO and Chairman, PV Powered
Ron Pernick, Co-founder and Managing Director, CleanEdge
Roby Roberts, Vice President, Horizon Wind Energy
Skip Rung, President and Executive Director, ONAMI
Derek Smith, Project Manager, Clean Energy Works Portland
David Van’t Hof, Partner, Lane Powell
Joe Whitworth, President, The Freshwater Trust
Jean Wilson, Vice President and GM, SunPower Corporation
Darcy Winslow, Founder and CEO, Designs for a Sustainable World Collective
Kim Zentz, Executive Director, SIRTI
To learn more about the Pivotal Leaders or to become a sponsor, go to http://www.pivotal-leaders.com.
About Pivotal Leaders
Pivotal Leaders is a business network created by the venture capital firm Pivotal Investments, with presenting sponsors Perkins Coie, Ernst & Young, the Portland Development Commission and the University of Oregon and contributing sponsors AterWynne, Iberdrola Renewables, Nike, NW Natural, Portland State University, Stoel Rives, UK Trade & Investment and Weyerhaeuser. Pivotal Leaders was founded to identify and recognize the top prospective business leaders in the Northwest and to support them in furthering the region’s leadership potential in the clean technology sector. The idea for Pivotal Leaders emerged as the founders of Pivotal Investments discovered a need not only for investment capital focused on the sustainable economy, but also human capital. Both needs were clearly documented in the Carbon Free Prosperity Report authored by Climate Solutions and Clean Edge. Find out more about this exciting network at www.pivotal-leaders.com.
About Pivotal Investments
Pivotal Investments is a Portland, OR venture capital firm investing in companies, primarily in the Northwest, that are addressing the rapidly growing demand for alternative energy, clean water, green materials, sustainable agriculture and clean air. Pivotal’s investment team of investors and experienced entrepreneurs is committed to delivering superior financial returns by building innovative companies that will be leaders in the sustainable economy. For more information, please see www.pivotal-investments.com.
For more information, contact:
Jennifer Allen Newton – Bluehouse Consulting Group
Email: jennifer@bluehousecg.com
Tel: 503-805-7540
Pivotal Leaders Recognizes Prospective Clean Technology Business Leaders in the Northwest
Pivotal Leaders has opened nominations for the inaugural list of the most promising business leaders to deliver on the Northwest’s economic potential in clean technology.
Portland, Oregon — February 23, 2010 — Pivotal Investments, along with presenting sponsors Perkins Coie, Ernst & Young and the Portland Development Commission, today announced the launch of Pivotal Leaders, a community-nominated and peer-selected network of top prospective clean technology business leaders in the Northwest. By identifying and establishing a business network of entrepreneurial talent in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and British Columbia, Pivotal Leaders seeks to expand resources for innovation in clean technology, a sector that is vital to the economic success of the region. Nominations are being accepted now for the first annual list of the Pivotal Leaders at http://www.pivotal-leaders.com; the final list will be published in June.
“The Northwest is widely recognized as a leader in clean technology development and deployment,” said Patrick Quinton, business & industry division manager at the Portland Development Commission. “With our region’s strong history of customer demand and policy support for clean, green and sustainable businesses we provide a unique environment for innovation.”
The Pivotal Leaders will be selected using a two-step process of community nomination and peer selection. Once the list is compiled, Pivotal Leaders will kick-off a series of events around the Northwest during 2010 and establish social media networking opportunities that will continue to build and extend connections among the Pivotal Leaders and the Northwest clean tech business community. The Pivotal Leaders network will provide unique exposure and opportunities for members to partner and collaborate with their peers and make connections with other leaders in some of the region’s most successful businesses. By increasing awareness of some of the Northwest’s top entrepreneurial talent, Pivotal Leaders also aims to expand access to resources that will help stimulate further investment in innovation and development of clean technology jobs in the Northwest.
“We are convinced that the best way to contribute to the economic growth of our region is to build on our strengths; and we believe a key to success is recognizing current and prospective business leaders in the region -- leaders who have the vision to attract capital and human resources and develop strategies to grow the leading clean technology companies here,” said Gregg Semler, managing director at Pivotal Investments. “Pivotal Leaders was created to recognize these elite leaders and provide opportunities for them to partner, collaborate and identify new opportunities that will build the sustainable economy of the Northwest through accelerated business formation.”
The idea for Pivotal Leaders emerged as the founders of the venture capital firm Pivotal Investments discovered a need not only for investment capital focused on the sustainable economy, but also human capital. Both needs were clearly documented in the Carbon Free Prosperity Report authored by Climate Solutions and Clean Edge.
Forbes magazine recently ranked Oregon and Washington in the top three “greenest” states in the United States. Regional preferences for green power, hybrid cars, green buildings, local and organic foods, sustainable forestry, innovative transportation, land-use planning and solid waste recycling all reflect the region’s leadership in this area. The Northwest also has a globally competitive workforce actively looking for ways to make a living in the sustainable economy -- people skilled in agriculture, manufacturing, semiconductors, software and apparel.
“The Pacific Northwest is known for having a strong start-up, entrepreneur-focused and 'idea-driven' culture, and once those ideas get off the ground, putting the right leaders in place is crucial,” said Brent Bullock, Partner at Perkins Coie. “Pivotal Leaders recognized the true need to identify CEO and CTO leadership to take Northwest clean tech companies to the next level, and Perkins Coie is thrilled to be a part of the vehicle that will reach out to this community and identify and honor these very important business leaders.”
“Our vision is that the Pivotal Leaders be integral to securing the Northwest’s potential as a leader in clean technology through accelerated new business formation,” said Ashley Henry, network director for Pivotal Leaders. “We will be working hard in the next several weeks to get the word out about Pivotal Leaders and encouraging the business, education, non-profit and economic development communities to contribute their nominations.”
Nominations are being accepted now. To nominate clean-technology leaders for this year’s list, go to http://www.pivotal-leaders.com/selection.php.
About Pivotal Leaders
Pivotal Leaders is a business network created by Pivotal Investments, with presenting sponsors Perkins Coie, Ernst & Young and the Portland Development Commission and contributing sponsors AterWynne, Iberdrola Renewables, Nike, NW Natural, Stoel Rives, UK Trade & Investment and Weyerhaeuser. Pivotal Leaders was founded to identify and recognize the top prospective business leaders in the Northwest and to support them in furthering the region’s leadership potential in the clean technology sector. Find out more about this exciting network at www.pivotal-leaders.com.
About Pivotal Investments
Pivotal Investments is a Portland, OR venture capital firm investing in companies, primarily in the Northwest, that are delivering solutions in the rapidly growing markets for clean energy, clean water, green materials, sustainable agriculture and clean air. Pivotal’s investment team of investors and experienced entrepreneurs is committed to delivering superior financial returns by building great companies that will be leaders in the sustainable economy. For more information, please see www.pivotal-investments.com.
For more information, contact:
Ashley Henry, Network Director, Pivotal Leaders
Email: ashley@pivotal-leaders.com
Tel: 503-866-9191
