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Business execs to impart words of wisdom
February 22, 2007
The MBA Executive Leadership Series returns this spring with a line-up featuring five prominent business executives, of which four are PLU alumni.
Puget Sound Energy’s treasurer and vice president for finance, Don Gaines ’84, kicks off the series on Monday, Feb. 26 at 6 p.m. in the Morken Public Events Room. Gaines will speak about the energy industry.
Gaines joined PSE in 1981 and has held several key financial roles within the company, including supervisor of shareholder services, director of strategic planning, and treasurer. In addition, he is the president and treasurer of Puget Sound Energy Funding, a subsidiary of the company.
Prior to joining PSE, Gaines worked as a financial analyst for the Boeing Commercial Airline Company. He earned his master’s degree in business administration from PLU. Gaines is a founding member of the university’s PLUS Business Alumni Association and a member of the School of Business advisory board.
The second speaker in the series is Neil Crist ’99, the senior director of product management at the Seattle-based Jobster.com. Crist will speak about starting a new business on Thursday, March 8 at 6 p.m. in the Morken Public Events Room.
Crist is one of the founding members of Jobster.com, a recruiting technology company. Since the company began in 2004, Crist has played a variety of roles and helped grow the company to over 150 employees and $10 million in revenue.
Crist has also worked as the lead product manager at Microsoft, and held positions at Emerald Solutions and Anderson Consulting (now Accenture). While at PLU, Crist enlisted in the Army and served as an interrogator and Russian interpreter for Army intelligence.
The president and general manager of Belo Seattle, Ray Heacox ’76 (pictured), will speak on Tuesday, April 3 at 6 p.m. in the Morken Public Events Room. Belo Seattle is a collection of leading media properties, including KING 5 television, KONG TV, Northwest Cable News and Belo Interactive.
Before joining Belo Seattle, Heacox was the first director of Drexel University’s graduate program in television management, where he created the two-year, full-time dual degree curriculum. At the same time, he was the principle of Deft Management, which provided consulting services to clients in media, technology and sales. Heacox has held several prominent management positions with NBC and served as president and CEO of MediaOcean Inc., a business-to-business technology company.
A Tacoma native, Heacox graduated from PLU with a bachelor’s degree in communications. He is currently on the boards of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society/Greater Washington Chapter and the American Heart Association of King County, and he is a trustee and executive committee member of the ArtsFund Board.
The series continues with Boeing International president Laurette Koellner on Monday, April 23 at 6 p.m. in the Morken Public Events Room. In her position, she is responsible for directing the company’s international affairs and leading 20 Boeing operations around the world.
Koellner’s experience at the Boeing Company is vast and includes stints as president of Connexion by Boeing, executive vice president of internal services, a member of the Office of the Chairman and president of the shared services group.
She began her career in the aerospace industry at McDonnell Douglas, climbing her way up the corporate ladder to vice president and general auditor, a position she held when Boeing merged with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. She remained in that position after the merger, eventually being appointed to her current position.
Koellner earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of Florida and a master’s in business administration from Stetson University in Florida. She currently resides in Washington, D.C.
The series concludes with Scott Barnum ’77 on Thursday, May 10 at 6 p.m. in the Morken Public Events room. Since June 2006, Barnum has served as the president and CEO of Pyramid Breweries, Inc., a leading brewer of American craft beer.
Before joining the brewing company, Barnum was a managing partner and co-founder of Plan B, a consumer marketing “think tank” and consultancy based in San Francisco and London; served as president of Cocoa Pete’s Chocolate Adventures; was the vice president and general manager international for eBay, Inc.; president and chief operating officer of Pete’s Brewing Company; and various marketing management positions at PepsiCo, Inc.
Barnum currently sits on several advisory boards, and he is active in his home community, serving on a number of nonprofit boards, including Little League Baseball and his neighborhood homeowners association. He graduated from PLU with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, and completed his MBA at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business.
For more information about the MBA Executive Leadership Series, visit www.plu.edu/mba/leader.html.
Gaines joined PSE in 1981 and has held several key financial roles within the company, including supervisor of shareholder services, director of strategic planning, and treasurer. In addition, he is the president and treasurer of Puget Sound Energy Funding, a subsidiary of the company.
Prior to joining PSE, Gaines worked as a financial analyst for the Boeing Commercial Airline Company. He earned his master’s degree in business administration from PLU. Gaines is a founding member of the university’s PLUS Business Alumni Association and a member of the School of Business advisory board.
The second speaker in the series is Neil Crist ’99, the senior director of product management at the Seattle-based Jobster.com. Crist will speak about starting a new business on Thursday, March 8 at 6 p.m. in the Morken Public Events Room.
Crist is one of the founding members of Jobster.com, a recruiting technology company. Since the company began in 2004, Crist has played a variety of roles and helped grow the company to over 150 employees and $10 million in revenue.
Crist has also worked as the lead product manager at Microsoft, and held positions at Emerald Solutions and Anderson Consulting (now Accenture). While at PLU, Crist enlisted in the Army and served as an interrogator and Russian interpreter for Army intelligence.
The president and general manager of Belo Seattle, Ray Heacox ’76 (pictured), will speak on Tuesday, April 3 at 6 p.m. in the Morken Public Events Room. Belo Seattle is a collection of leading media properties, including KING 5 television, KONG TV, Northwest Cable News and Belo Interactive.
Before joining Belo Seattle, Heacox was the first director of Drexel University’s graduate program in television management, where he created the two-year, full-time dual degree curriculum. At the same time, he was the principle of Deft Management, which provided consulting services to clients in media, technology and sales. Heacox has held several prominent management positions with NBC and served as president and CEO of MediaOcean Inc., a business-to-business technology company.
A Tacoma native, Heacox graduated from PLU with a bachelor’s degree in communications. He is currently on the boards of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society/Greater Washington Chapter and the American Heart Association of King County, and he is a trustee and executive committee member of the ArtsFund Board.
The series continues with Boeing International president Laurette Koellner on Monday, April 23 at 6 p.m. in the Morken Public Events Room. In her position, she is responsible for directing the company’s international affairs and leading 20 Boeing operations around the world.
Koellner’s experience at the Boeing Company is vast and includes stints as president of Connexion by Boeing, executive vice president of internal services, a member of the Office of the Chairman and president of the shared services group.
She began her career in the aerospace industry at McDonnell Douglas, climbing her way up the corporate ladder to vice president and general auditor, a position she held when Boeing merged with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. She remained in that position after the merger, eventually being appointed to her current position.
Koellner earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of Florida and a master’s in business administration from Stetson University in Florida. She currently resides in Washington, D.C.
The series concludes with Scott Barnum ’77 on Thursday, May 10 at 6 p.m. in the Morken Public Events room. Since June 2006, Barnum has served as the president and CEO of Pyramid Breweries, Inc., a leading brewer of American craft beer.
Before joining the brewing company, Barnum was a managing partner and co-founder of Plan B, a consumer marketing “think tank” and consultancy based in San Francisco and London; served as president of Cocoa Pete’s Chocolate Adventures; was the vice president and general manager international for eBay, Inc.; president and chief operating officer of Pete’s Brewing Company; and various marketing management positions at PepsiCo, Inc.
Barnum currently sits on several advisory boards, and he is active in his home community, serving on a number of nonprofit boards, including Little League Baseball and his neighborhood homeowners association. He graduated from PLU with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, and completed his MBA at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business.
For more information about the MBA Executive Leadership Series, visit www.plu.edu/mba/leader.html.