As we speed through Q4 on our way to 2018, LA tech is abustle with funding news and personnel moves. Over the last few weeks, five startups announced big company additions — read on for the details.
In naming Ken Sims as senior vice president of business and corporate development, Sherman Oaks-based FloQast continued a hot 2017, which saw the accounting software developer raise $25 million, announce key hires and open an office in Ohio. A biz dev veteran with decades of experience with a number of SaaS and cloud computing companies, Sims most recently served as CEO of Reach 150, a referral management marketing software startup for the real estate industry. In his new role, Sims will be responsible for developing strategic partnerships and establishing new distribution channels.
When Appetize raised $20 million at the end of 2016, a year that saw the company install its point-of-sales platform in venues across North America, the company announced plans to hire aggressively in 2017. They didn’t lie. Recently, the company announced it had doubled its employee count and will soon move into a new 17,000-square-foot headquarters. In addition, it's filled four senior roles within the company. Joining the team will be Dan Machock as CFO, Mark Eastwood as CPO and Jay Dorman as VP of technology, while Wayne Scarsella was promoted to senior VP of sales.
Cinematique, the startup behind a platform that allows viewers to interact with videos to learn more about featured products, announced last week that it had added investor and entrepreneur Paul Dawalibi as its new CEO. Co-founder Kyle Heller will stay with the company as its chief strategy officer and will lead the company's production team in LA, while Dawalibi grows the sales and marketing side in New York.
Conversion Logic announced a flurry of additions recently, adding a chief client officer, chief revenue officer and vice president of marketing to its ranks within a short period of time. Juan Pablo Pereira — formerly an SVP at MarketShare/Neustar — joins the team as its chief client officer, While Matt Camassa — most recently of LA’s TeleSign — takes over as the startup’s CRO. Rounding out the new hires is Tony Yank, who will join the company as the VP of marketing.
Tukatech photo
Tukatech, an LA-based startup that has developed a suite of 2D and 3D software platforms designed to help companies in the fashion and garment industries visualize patterns and designs, announced recently it had appointed Chris Walla as vice president of sales and marketing. Walla, who holds an MBA from Loyola Marymount, has spent nearly 10 years in the fashion industry, focusing on implementing business processes, software applications and other business solutions. To date, the company has installed 17,000 systems in 41 countries.
