Remitly, a Seattle-based digital financial services firm, announced the hiring of Vikas Mehta as its new chief financial officer. Mehta previously held CFO positions at companies such as Komodo Health, Anaplan, and Nike Direct. He has also worked in finance leadership roles at Walmart and Microsoft, as well as serving as a board member at Seattle logistics startup Flexe. Mehta will be replacing Hemanth Munipalli, who has held the CFO role since July 2022 but is leaving for family reasons. He is set to start in his new position on August 19.
In the second quarter, Remitly reported revenue growth of 31% to $306.4 million, along with net losses of $12.1 million, down from $18.9 million in the same period a year ago. Following this positive financial performance, Remitly’s shares rose more than 3% in after-hours trading. In other CFO news, Seattle-based application delivery company F5 announced that its current CFO, Frank Pelzer, will retire in the fourth quarter of this year. Edward Werner, the company’s senior vice president of finance, will take over Pelzer’s role. Pelzer joined F5 in 2018 from SAP.
DoorDash recently appointed Parisa Sadrzadeh, a former logistics leader at Amazon and Flexport, as its new vice president of strategy and operations. Sadrzadeh, who spent over 11 years at Amazon in various delivery-related roles before joining Flexport, will bring valuable industry experience to DoorDash. Additionally, Boeing announced that aerospace executive Kelly Ortberg will become its next CEO and president. Ortberg, who previously served as CEO of Rockwell Collins, will reportedly be based in Seattle. In the startup world, Ben Spencer, a former Amazon leader, took on the role of CEO at Seattle-based home maintenance startup Para Home Services after a decade at Amazon.
Seattle marketing veteran Emily Carrion has joined Entrepreneurs’ Organization as its new chief marketing officer. Carrion brings her extensive experience from marketing leadership roles at Seattle startups such as PartnerTap, Esper, Textio, Rubica, and Apptentive. Dave Parker, a longtime Seattle startup advisor, has recently been appointed as the CEO of EO. Jeff Tucker, a former senior economist at Zillow, has joined Windermere Real Estate as principal economist. Tucker most recently worked as a financial economist at AirDNA. Additionally, Seattle tourism group Visit Seattle has hired Stephanie Byington as senior vice president and chief marketing officer, previously working at Slalom and Nordstrom.
In summary, the recent executive appointments in Seattle’s tech and business community indicate a trend of experienced professionals taking on leadership roles at prominent companies. These moves highlight the importance of seasoned industry leaders in driving growth and innovation in various sectors, including finance, technology, marketing, and real estate. With the influx of talent into key positions, companies are poised to navigate challenges, capitalize on opportunities, and drive continued success in a competitive business landscape. By bringing in executives with diverse backgrounds and skill sets, organizations are well-positioned to thrive and achieve their strategic goals in the evolving marketplace.
