Icertis, maker of cloud-based contract tracking and management software, has hired two new top executives. The first is Neal Singh, a longtime Microsoft executive and former CEO of healthcare venture Caradigm, who joins the company as its COO.
Singh’s departure from Caradigm comes just after the company, originally a joint venture between Microsoft and GE Healthcare, was acquired by health technology company Inspirata.
“It’s a rare opportunity to be part of a dynamic, rapidly growing company addressing a compelling, ubiquitous business challenge,” Singh said in a press release. “I couldn’t resist joining Icertis on its mission to be the contract management platform of the world and create the next multi-billion-dollar enterprise software company!”
Before joining Caradigm, Singh spent 11 years at Microsoft serving as a partner and general manager in everything from content publishing to supply chain. He most recently led the company’s healthcare solutions product group.
Icertis also announced the addition of Todd Smith as its general counsel. Smith joins the company from Apptio, where he spent seven years as the company’s general counsel and later VP and deputy general counsel.
Icertis raised a whopping $50 million round in February, after which the company was valued at just under $500 million.
— Technology automation company UiPath has hired another Microsoft vet to its executive board. Longtime strategy director Dhruv Asher has left Microsoft after 13 years to take up a role as UiPath’s new senior vice president of business development.
Asher’s addition comes just weeks after UiPath announced a new 10-person office in Bellevue, Wash., and hired former Microsoft general manager and SAP executive Param Kahlon as its chief product officer.
The company offers robotic process automation services, automating repetitive coding tasks to help developers work more effectively. Its Bellevue office will be focused on artificial intelligence, an important aspect of its technology.
Asher’s work at Microsoft includes stints on the company’s capital markets, corporate development, business development and M&A strategy teams.
— Esports betting company Unikrn added Bill Shihara, co-founder and CEO of blockchain platform Bittrex, to its board of advisors.
Shihara is a veteran security engineer who spent 11 years working on security across Microsoft products. He also spent time in security leadership at BlackBerry and Amazon before co-founding Bittrex in 2014.
“I believe in the potential of blockchain and its ability to provide groundbreaking solutions, which is why working in this industry is not just my job, but my passion,” Shihara said in a press release. “I look forward to sharing my experience and insight with the Unikrn team, as they continue to focus on bringing new innovations to their users and the gaming industry.”
Unikrn’s cryptocurrency, UnikoinGold, is based on a similar blockchain system to Bitcoin. The currency can be used to bet on esports matches on Unikrn’s platform, and can also be exchanged for other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Etherium. The company raised $31 million in an initial coin offering in October backed by investors including Marc Cuban.
— HNTB Corporation, the national civil engineering company, hired Kris Agers as its new Northwest sales manager. Agers joins the company from civil engineering company WHPacific, where she was an operations manager. She has more than 25 years of experience in architecture and engineering industries.
“Kris has demonstrated strong hands-on leadership and industry experience in operations management, sales, business development and marketing,” HNTB senior vice president Jim Thomson said in a press release. “With her client-centric mindset and commitment to delivery of high-quality work and results, she is a wonderful fit with our organization’s culture and a welcome addition to our team.”
HNTB’s projects in the Seattle area include high-profile infrastructure projects like the SR 99 tunnel, improvements to the Mercer Street corridor and several extensions of Seattle’s Link light rail network. The company employs 180 in the Seattle region.
