Ross Tennenbaum will take over as Avalara CFO in March. (LinkedIn Photo)

— Avalara announced Wednesday that CFO Bill Ingram is retiring in March and will be replaced by Ross Tennenbaum, Avalara’s current executive vice president of strategic initiatives.

Ingram joined Avalara in December 2015 and led the Seattle tax automation company through an IPO last year. He’ll join the company’s board in March.

Avalara hired Tennenbaum earlier this year. He previously held leadership roles at Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs, and helped Avalara with its IPO.

“Having been a part of the Avalara story both from the outside and on the inside, I understand what a great company Avalara is and what a strong team Bill has built,” Tennenbaum said in a statement. “I’m excited to have the opportunity to lead Avalara’s financial operations as we continue to support the company’s growth.”

Last month, Avalara hired Jay Lee as its new chief marketing officer. In February, it announced former PayPal exec Amit Mathradas as president and COO, while Sanjay Parthasarathy became chief product officer as a result of an acquisition.

Avalara’s stock has more than doubled this year. It is riding momentum off the Supreme Court’s Wayfair decision last year allowing states to collect sales tax from online sellers even if those companies don’t have a physical presence in the state. The 15-year-old company rolled out 22 new integrations with various software applications in September and has been expanding into different types of taxes while growing abroad.

Mike Gregoire. (Brighton Park Capital Photo)

— Smartsheet announced Wednesday that Mike Gregoire has joined its board of directors. Gregoire is a partner at Brighton Park Capital and a 25-year tech industry vet. He’ll also serve on the board’s Compensation Committee.

“Mike is a highly respected leader with a proven track record of helping companies achieve and extend market leadership while increasing shareholder value,” Smartsheet CEO Mark Mader said in a statement. “We’re very pleased to have him on the board and look forward to the expertise he brings in helping us serve market needs, delight customers, and build a world-class company culture.”

Gregoire previously led CA Technologies as chairman and CEO (company was acquired by Broadcom last year), and was chairman and CEO of Taleo until its sale to Oracle.

“Smartsheet is an innovative, category-leading company whose focus on driving individual and enterprise achievement is something that deeply resonates with me,” Gregoire said in a statement. “I look forward to working with Mark, the rest of the board, and the senior leadership team as we define the next phase of growth for a company whose product makes such a profound difference in people’s success and their company’s business results.”

Smartsheet on Wednesday beat Wall Street expectations for both revenue and profit during its fiscal third quarter, posting revenue of $71.5 million, up 53 percent year-over-year, and a non-GAAP net loss of $0.15.

New Banzai execs Rachel Goldstein and Matt Yokell. (Banzai Photos)

— Seattle startup Banzai, a marketing platform for B2B events, hired two new execs: Rachel Goldstein as vice president of marketing, and Matt Yokell as director of operations. 

Goldstein previously spent four years at Lighter Capital in marketing and sales leadership roles, and also worked at Underground Elephant and QuoteWizard. Yokell spent 10 years at iContact.

“Banzai is scaling rapidly and Rachel and Matt both bring a depth of experience that is allowing us to reach more customers and serve them better,” Banzai CEO Joe Davy said in a statement. “Their past professional achievements are tremendous, and we are excited to continue the contributions they have already begun to make at Banzai.”

Davy, a former Avalara employee, helped launch Banzai in 2016. The company originally started as an on-demand inside sales and marketing platform.

— Bellevue, Wash.-based TimeXtender hired Jay Leon as its global partner marketing lead. Leon was previously at Prime 8 Consulting, a Microsoft partner. He is a lifelong Seattleite, having served two roles as president of the Emerald City Rotary Club.

“I’m looking forward to working with TimeXtender partners and building new relationships,” Leon said in a statement. “TimeXtender’s strong technology platform, and deep relationship with Microsoft are great drivers of growth both in partners and customers. My experience in developing technology partnerships over the years makes for a great fit for my new role in leading global partner marketing. I’m excited to be a part of the TimeXtender team as we head into 2020.”

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