Pivotal Leaders program announces new class

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The new class of Pivotal Leaders — a roster of executive talent in the cleantech industry — was named this week.

The Pivotal Leaders program named its 2012 class Thursday, recognizing executives in the Pacific Northwest who've been singled out for their leadership in the cleantech industry.

The new leaders, a who's-who list from Oregon and Washington, will join the program which has honored 47 executives and individuals since it was launched in 2010.

The brainchild of Portland venture capital firm Pivotal Investments, Pivotal Leaders sets out to recognize and nurture executive talent in the region with an eye on developing a robust cleantech sector of job-providing businesses.

"Our cleantech economy not only needs capital and a supportive policy framework but also a strong network of people to support ideas, innovation and growth,” said Ashley Henry, director of Pivotal Leaders, in a press release. "Pivotal Leaders is designed to honor those innovators and to connect them with one another, all so we can increase cleantech's growth in the region."

Henry took over the program from former Pivotal Investments General Manager Gregg Semler when Semler took the job as CEO of Lucid Technologies last October. Semler was promptly named a Pivotal Leader during the 2012 nomination process.

Pivotal Leaders are peer-selected through an online process of nominations and voting. They will be invited to participate in events, networking and educational opportunities with existing Pivotal Leaders.

The 2012 Pivotal Leaders are:

• Susan Anderson, director of Portland's Bureau of Planning and Sustainability.
• David Benson, a Seattle-based Partner at Stoel Rives LLP.
• Michael Butler, chairman and CEO of Seattle-based Cascadia Capital LLC.
• Clark Brockman, principal at Portland-based SERA Architects.
• Liz Dunn, consulting director at Seattle-based Preservation Green Lab.
• Ruby Gates, CEO of Encapsys Inc. and Principal of MarketShift Strategies, both of Portland.
• Billy Glover, commercial airplanes vice president of environment and aviation policy for Boeing in Everett, Wash.
• Bert Gregory, president and CEO of Seattle architecture firm Mithun.
• Margi Hoffmann, who in March was named energy policy adviser to Gov. John Kitzhaber.
• Vaness Keitges, CEO of Portland ecoroof company Columbia Green Technologies.
• Steve Klein, general manager of Snohomish County PUD in Everett, Wash.
• Justin Klure, managing partner of Portland-based Pacific Energy Ventures.
• Byron McCann, cofounding partner of Ascent Partners and regional director for the Cleantech Open.
• Mark Owen, CEO of Beaverton-based Puralytics.
• Megan Owen, Seattle-based director of strategic market development for McKinstry.
• Sam Pardue, CEO of Portland-based Indow Windows.
• Gregg Semler, CEO of Portland-based Lucid Energy.
• Cal Shirley, vice president of energy efficiency services at Bellevue, Wash.-based Puget Sound Energy.
• Rachel Shimshak, executive director of the Portland-based Renewable Northwest Project.
• Jason Twill, senior project manager for sustainability at Seattle-based Vulcan Inc. and vice-chair of the International Living Future Institute's board of directors.

Sponsors of the program along with Pivotal Investments include the Portland Development Commission, Ernst & Young, Perkins Coie, Portland General Electric and the University of Oregon.