Workplace
2013 Executive Excellence Awards (CEOs): Mary Ellen Stone
In 1976, the King County Sexual Assault Resource Center (KCSARC) was a radical organization in a climate of silence surrounding sexual assault in the United States. Much like breast cancer, which now receives widespread support and recognition, the issue of sexual assault was met with silence and shame. I cant overstate how radical a concept…
2013 Executive Excellence Awards (COOs/CFOs): Ezra Eckhardt
EZRA ECKHARDT was appointed president and chief operating officer of Sterling Bank in October 2009, not long after the FDIC presented the organization with a cease and desist order suggesting it had engaged in unsafe or unsound banking practices and ordering the bank to raise at least $300 million in new capital. Eckhardt, who had…
2013 Executive Excellence Awards (CEOs): Melanie Dressel
As chief executive at Tacoma-based Columbia Bank, MELANIE DRESSELs biggest challenge used to be competing with the big banks. Today, after a stunning six acquisitions in two years tripled the number of bank branches and more than doubled its assets, her biggest challenge will be convincing customers that Columbia isnt one of those big banks….
2013 Executive Excellence Awards (CEOs): Dara Khosrowshahi
Since taking over as CEO of Expedia in 2005, DARA KHOSROWSHAHI has led the charge to overhaul the companys technology to secure its place as the worlds leading online travel agent. In the past five years alone, Expedia has spent $1 billion on new technology. Nobody else [in travel] can spend that kind of money,…
2013 Executive Excellence Awards (CEOs): Steve Singh
We dont have a right to win in the marketplace, says STEVE SINGH. As CEO of travel expense reporting pioneer Concur Technologies, Singh believes market dominance comes with delivering what customers want, even before they know it themselves. And in the rapidly evolving world of technology, its not just having a vision of what Singh…
2013 Executive Excellence Awards (CEOs): Megan Karch
In her 12-year tenure as the CEO of Seattle-based FareStart, MEGAN KARCH has seen it grow from an organization serving 200 people to an agency with nearly 1,000 clients. She has also grown business revenue by 300 percent, to $7.48 million in 2011. Whats the same [in the past 12 years] is the passion of…
2013 Executive Excellence Awards (CEOs): Peter Rose
PETER ROSEs secret to success stems from a simple and transparent formula: Create a well-defined corporate culture, provide a good employee incentive package, avoid debt, invest in technology to boost productivity, and pursue long-term profits over short-term gains. His formula helped Seattle-based Expeditors International grow into a global transportation logistics giant with $6.2 billion in…
2013 Executive Excellence Awards (Lifetime Achievement): Jerry Lee
JERRY LEEs record of business success is impressive. He joined Mulvanny Architecture as a draftsman and its fourth employee in 1975, and then went on to achieve partner, buy the practice, build it by designing big-box stores for Costco, Nike and others, merge with G2 in 1999, expand to China in 2002, and create a…
Washington state’s unemployment rate falls to 7.6 percent in December from 7.7 percent the month before.
Washingtons estimated unemployment rate reached its lowest point in four years in December, at 7.6 percent, down from a revised seasonally adjusted rate of 7.7 percent in November, according to Washington’s Employment Security Department. The original estimate for November was 7.8 percent. Here’s the rest of the press release: An Employment Security Department economist cautions…
One Seattle Companys Non-Traditional Way of Holiday Giving
From toy drives to raffles, plenty of businesses give back to their communities during the holiday season. This year, West Monroe Partners decided to donate something different our business strategy know-how. As a business and technology consulting firm, our day-to-day jobs revolve around helping companies transform their operations to better serve their customers and achieve…
Titans of Tomorrow: Coinstar
Most people likely see Bellevue-based Coinstar Inc. as the parent of the popular Redbox DVD rental business, but thats not how the company sees itself. True, most of its $1.8 billion in annual revenues derive from its 42,000 Redbox kiosks that have challenged Netflix for dominance, but CEO Paul Davis sees it as only the…
Titans of Tomorrow: Itron
Liberty Lake in Eastern Washington may not be an obvious headquarters site for a company with global reach. Itrons CFO Steve Helmbrecht admits as much, that when talking to prospective customers, Sometimes I have to point out Spokane on the map. But the maker of digital smart-grid systems for electricity and water is riding a…
Titans of Tomorrow: Symetra
One might expect a company steeped in the business of growing assets for retirement, annuities and life insurance to take the long view. So when parent company Safeco sought to shed its profitable Safeco Life for some immediate cash, its subsidiary president Randall Talbot sought investors to keep the unit whole rather than see it…