Leadership Changes at Acumatica, Bellevue City, and Beyond: A Wave of Transitions in the Pacific Northwest
In the dynamic landscape of corporate leadership and public service, recent weeks have seen significant shifts across the Pacific Northwest’s technology and civic sectors. From enterprise software giants to municipal government, these changes reflect the region’s evolving professional ecosystem and highlight the fluid nature of career trajectories in today’s fast-paced environment.
Acumatica, the Bellevue-based enterprise software company acquired last year by Vista Equity Partners, has welcomed Jon Pollock as its new chief product officer. Pollock brings a wealth of experience from his previous roles at Procare Solutions, where he served as CPO and general manager of the ChildPlus division. His extensive leadership background includes positions at Worldpay, Asurion, Dell, and Polaroid, positioning him well to drive Acumatica’s product strategy forward. CEO John Case expressed confidence in Pollock’s ability to “execute our product strategy and empower the people who use our software every day.” This transition marks a significant change for the company as Pollock succeeds Ali Jani, who departs after a remarkable 16-year tenure with Acumatica, having previously co-founded both a PC manufacturing startup and a business management software company earlier in his career.
The City of Bellevue has experienced its own leadership transformation with Mo Malakoutian stepping into the role of mayor. Malakoutian’s journey to this position is noteworthy – after joining the Bellevue City Council in 2023, he was elected deputy mayor for 2024 before his colleagues selected him for the mayorship this month. His professional background spans both corporate and academic worlds, having worked at Amazon for over eight years before transitioning to his current position as executive director of the University of Washington’s Consulting and Business Development Center with the Foster School of Business. Malakoutian replaces Lynne Robinson, who served as mayor since 2020 and continues as a member of the Bellevue City Council. Completing the city’s leadership reconfiguration, councilmember Dave Hamilton has been appointed as Bellevue’s new deputy mayor, forming a fresh team at the helm of this important tech hub.
Amazon is experiencing notable departures that highlight the changing career aspirations of long-term tech leaders. David Bettis, a software engineering leader, is leaving the company after an impressive two-decade tenure. Most recently with Amazon Web Services, Bettis contributed to various innovative initiatives throughout his Amazon career, including the company’s telehealth efforts, Halo product, Amazon Go’s “Just Walk Out” technology, and Kindle. In his LinkedIn announcement, Bettis reflected that his longevity at Amazon stemmed from continual opportunities to work on emerging businesses while “staying under the same roof.” However, he noted that recently he had explored several internal paths but couldn’t find the excitement he’d experienced in previous roles, prompting his decision to seek a bigger change. Similarly, Steven Hatch has resigned from his position as head of engineering with AWS Bedrock after nearly 18 years with Amazon. Having worked across diverse areas including Audible, Amazon Prime delivery, computer vision, and AI, Hatch described his Amazon journey as “a chapter that changed how I think, lead, and build.” Another significant departure comes from T-Mobile, where Warren McNeel has left after more than 25 years with the Bellevue-based telecom giant, most recently serving as senior vice president of information technology.
The Gates Foundation, headquartered in Seattle, has made several strategic leadership appointments to guide its future direction. Sri Mulyani Indrawati, Indonesia’s first female minister of finance and former managing director and chief operating officer of the World Bank, has joined the foundation’s governing board. CEO Mark Suzman highlighted her ability to bring “fresh perspective for the board as it guides the foundation’s direction over the next 20 years.” Additionally, the foundation announced that Hari Menon, a 20-year veteran of the organization, will now serve as president of the Global Growth and Opportunity Division. Ankur Vora has been appointed president of the newly-created Africa and India Offices Division while maintaining his role as chief strategy officer. These appointments reflect the foundation’s commitment to expanding its global impact through experienced leadership.
Beyond these major transitions, several other noteworthy leadership changes are reshaping Seattle’s business landscape. Reverb, a Seattle-based HR consulting and leadership development firm, is expanding into Colorado with the hiring of Denver-based Renee Fischer. The Fred Hutch Cancer Center has welcomed Sabah Öney, president and CEO of Dispatch Bio, to its board of directors. Cascadia Capital has promoted Kerri Hagen to managing director within its Financial Sponsors Group after three years with the firm. FlintLab, a Seattle software engineering startup launched in 2024, has named Diwakar as its head of engineering, bringing experience from AMD, Ericsson, and RSA Security. Finally, Life Science Washington has announced four new board members: Arden Yang from the Allen Institute, LisaMarie Curda from Deloitte, Jie D’Elia from SystImmune, and Chris Holt from Bristol Myers Squibb. These diverse appointments across multiple sectors demonstrate the ongoing vitality and evolution of the Pacific Northwest’s professional community as organizations position themselves for future growth and innovation.
