Forecki succeeds Dave
Cotter and begins a two-year term to lead the board of
directors as WTIA continues to evolve as a leading force for
the WA state technology ecosystem
SEATTLE, April 16,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Washington Technology Industry
Association (WTIA), a non-profit organization dedicated to
fostering a robust, equity-centered technology sector that empowers
thriving communities, today announced the appointment of
Kristen Forecki as the
organization's Board Chair. Forecki will now lead the board in
guiding and governing the WTIA collection of companies. She
previously served on the board as Vice Chair to Dave Cotter, who will remain on the board as
Chair Emeritus.
"Kristen is a leader with deep experience in strategy
development and building rapid growth startups," said
Michael Schutzler, CEO, Washington Technology Industry
Association. "She is a highly respected leader who has, in
partnership with former Chair Dave
Cotter, helped build a stronger, more focused board. Kristen
embodies our core values as an organization and I couldn't be
prouder to work with her in the coming years."
Forecki currently serves as Sr. Director of Experiences and
Devices Strategy at Microsoft. Prior to Microsoft, she held
leadership roles at Convoy, Rover, and Amazon.
"I'm proud to be part of the team," said Kristen Forecki,
WTIA Board Chair. "WTIA has become a benchmark for technology trade
associations across the US and Canada with its innovative services for our
members. We successfully launched the country's only viable
technology apprenticeship. We built a startup accelerator in
partnership with local investors and entrepreneurs—helping
Washington founders raise over
$300 million in investment capital.
We play a critical role in representing the concerns of our members
in legislation and in raising funds to give Washington students access to computer science
education. And we built an administrative services company,
Portalus, that provides payroll, benefits, and HR support to
hundreds of small tech companies; Portalus has become so successful
that it is now expanding to serve trade associations across the
country. I'm excited to see what we do next."
About WTIA
The Washington Technology Industry
Association (WTIA) is a consortium that includes a not-for-profit
member trade association, a not-for-profit tech apprenticeship
intermediary (Apprenti), and a for profit corporation providing
business services (Portalus). The organization's mission is to
foster a robust, equity-centered technology sector that empowers
thriving communities. We recruit technology companies and allies
that view diversity as a competitive advantage, value collaboration
as essential to sustainable growth, and fully embrace the
opportunity to partner with and empower the communities in which we
operate.
Press Contact:
Laurie
Brinkly, WTIA Chief of Staff
lbrinkly@washingtontechnology.org
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SOURCE Washington Technology Industry Association