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BANKING
• Zions Bancorporation, Salt Lake City, has announced that Claire A. Huang has been elected to its board of directors. Huang has worked as a global brand builder for over 30 years in multiple industries. She served as the chief marketing officer for J.P. Morgan Chase and Co. from 2012-14, following her work as head of global marketing, international communications and corporate social responsibility at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Prior to her work at Bank of America, she was head of Fidelity Investments’ marketing and customer strategy groups. Her first role in financial services was at American Express. Earlier in her career, she worked at consumer products companies, beginning at Procter & Gamble. Huang has previously served as a board member of several companies, including Mirador, Scottrade, Foster Farms and Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars. She currently serves on the boards of directors of PODS and Prosper, in addition to several non-profit boards. Zions also announced the retirement of Jerry C. Atkin, who had served on the board since 1993. He built St. George-based SkyWest from an airline with three nine-passenger aircraft and 13 employees, into the nation’s leading regional airline, with a fleet of nearly 500 airplanes and more than 14,000 employees.
• Bank of Utah, Ogden, has hired Amy Renner Hendricks as digital content writer for the corporate information technology team. Hendricks will write and edit content for the bank’s website and assist the corporate marketing team with the bank’s annual report, social media and marketing campaigns. She previously worked for more than 13 years for Weber State University, most recently as senior writer/editor for the Department of Marketing & Communications. In the position she served as editor of Wildcat, WSU’s alumni magazine, and editor of the university’s annual report. Prior to that position, she served as a writer/project manager, assisting WSU with its publications and managing projects for the Dr. Ezekiel R. Dumke College of Health Professions. Hendricks previously worked as a communications specialist for the Tennessee Health Care Association in Nashville, creating content for newsletters and a quarterly magazine.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
• Provo is ranked No. 4 among U.S. cities for welcoming “digital nomads,” according to StorageCafe, which ranked destinations on 20 metrics, including cost of living, Internet speed, healthcare and population density. The top-ranked U.S. location is Tampa, Florida. Details are at https://www.storagecafe.com/blog/best-destinations-for-digital-nomads-covid19-aftermath/.
• Utah is ranked No. 23 among the best states for retirees in 2020, compiled by Blacktower Financial Management Group. The rankings were calculated by using weighted metrics from cost of living, crime rates, life expectancy, property prices and population age. The top-ranked state is Florida. The worst-ranked is Alaska. Details are at https://www.blacktowerus.com/the-best-us-states-for-retirees/.
• West Valley City has the least-expensive average apartment rental rate in Utah, according to rankings compiled by Rent.com. The average one-bedroom rental price in West Valley City is $956. Following West Valley City are, in order, Midvale, Taylorsville, Pleasant Grove, North Salt Lake, West Jordan, Bountiful, Herriman, Layton and Centerville. The current Utah average is $1,315, up only $1 from a year ago. Details are at https://www.rent.com/blog/cheapest-cities-in-utah-for-renters/.
• Daggett County has the most purchasing power among Utah counties, according to the sixth annual study on purchasing power in counties across the U.S., compiled by SmartAsset. The study compared median income and cost of living data nationwide to find the counties where people hold the most purchasing power. In Daggett County, the average cost of living is $37,819, while the median income is $85,000. Daggett County was followed, in order, by Summit, Morgan, Davis, Uintah, Utah, Wasatch, Salt Lake, Tooele and Millard counties. Details of the study are at https://smartasset.com/mortgage/cost-of-living-calculator#Utah/purchasing-power.
EXPANSIONS
• Kiln, a Utah-based flex-office and coworking company, has expanded with a new location in Boulder, Colorado. The 22,000-square-foot space will be available to startups and entrepreneurs alike. Kiln said Boulder’s innovative business culture was a critical component in its decision to expand to the city, as well as the community’s commitment to wellness and sustainability. Kiln’s first two locations, in Salt Lake City and Lehi, serve more than 250 companies and 1,000 employees.
HEALTHCARE
• HealthEquity Inc., a Draper-based health savings account administrator, has appointed Tyson Murdock as executive vice president and deputy chief financial officer. Murdock joined HealthEquity in 2018 as senior vice president and corporate controller and brings 25 years of corporate finance experience to his new role as CFO. Prior to joining HealthEquity, he was divisional CFO for eBay and senior manager at Ernst & Young LLP. Murdock will succeed Darcy Mott as chief financial officer on April 1, 2021. Mott will continue in his current position as executive vice president and CFO through March 31, 2021, to ensure a smooth transition and completion of the fiscal year 2021 Form 10-K filing for the company and will then transition into an advisory role to the CEO. Mott will complete 14 years of service as HealthEquity’s CFO.
• Listen Technologies Corp., a Bluffdale-based provider of wireless listening solutions, has promoted Sam Nord to vice president of global sales. He works with the company’s partners to sell the company’s audio and content solutions to their customer bases and oversees the company’s outside and inside sales teams. Nord has spent his entire career in the AV industry. He joined Listen Technologies in 2013, after having been a customer for many years in previous roles as a dealer and integrator. Most recently, he was director of global sales at the company.
• Sera Prognostics Inc., a Salt Lake City-based company focused on improving maternal and neonatal health through innovative precision biomarker approaches, has appointed Dr. Thomas J. Garite as vice president of clinical sciences. Garite will work closely with Sera to advance clinical development programs that support the company’s growth from development into a commercial-stage company. Garite is an expert in obstetrics and gynecology and maternal-fetal medicine and a recently retired Edward H. Quilligan Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of California at Irvine. Garite served 18 years as the department’s chairman, and now holds the title of Professor Emeritus. He is also the past editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Obstetricians and Gynecology and remains Editor Emeritus. Until recently, Garite served as director of research and education for Obstetrix, MedNax Medical Group. He currently serves as chief clinical officer for patient safety company Perigen Inc.
INVESTMENTS
• Vivint Solar, a Lehi-based residential solar provider, has secured $300 million in new tax equity financing commitments from two repeat investors to support the growth of Vivint Solar’s residential solar business. With the new commitments, Vivint Solar has committed financing capacity for approximately 185 megawatts. The investment is expected to allow Vivint Solar to design and build low-cost, clean energy systems for approximately 24,000 new residential customers. Vivint Solar operates in 22 states.
• Foldax, a Salt Lake City-based company focused on heart valves, has closed on a $20 million Series D funding round. MemorialCare Innovation Fund led the round, with Angel Physicians Fund and Sayan Bioventures joining as new investors. All existing investors also participated in the round, including BioStar Capital, Kairos Ventures and Caltech. Brant Heise, MCIF managing director, joined the board in conjunction with the investment. Foldax will use the funds to continue to add patients to the recently completed EFS clinical trial for the company’s surgical aortic Triabiopolymer heart valve, initiate and enroll patients into the clinical trial for the surgical mitral valve, and continue development of the transcatheter aortic valve replacement device for the first-in-man clinical study.
NONPROFITS
• United Way of Salt Lake has launched the “Stay Safe, Stay Connected” Initiative to address urgent, short-term and multi-faceted needs of thousands of Utah families. The Mark & Kathie Miller Foundation has offered a $3 million lead donation to the initiative. Launched by United Way of Salt Lake’s Promise Partnership, in collaboration with the Utah State Board of Education, the initiative weaves together many school district and community-based programs in order to connect disconnected students to academic, social-emotional and technology supports over the summer; help families meet their basic needs through 211 resources; engage community members to get involved through mentor programs; and provide school supplies to support and enable students’ learning.
• The Lung Cancer Research Foundation has announced that Dr. Trudy Oliver has joined its Scientific Advisory Board. Oliver is an associate professor of oncological sciences at the University of Utah's Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI), where she has served since 2011, and is an HCI Endowed Chair in Cancer Research. The board includes renowned scientists, physicians and thought leaders spanning a broad range of disciplines in lung cancer research who leverage their collective experience and expertise to maintain the objectivity of the grant selection process and help to ensure that LCRF continues to fund research of the highest caliber. Oliver joined the University of Utah and Huntsman Cancer Institute in 2011.
• Odyssey House, Salt Lake City, has seen a 78 percent increase in the number of clients coming into the residential treatment program during COVID-19. From May 1 through June 15, 2020, nearly half of all clients (49.7 percent) listed alcohol as a reason for seeking treatment. During that same time period in 2019 only 28 percent said they had a drinking problem.
PARTNERSHIPS
• East Penn Manufacturing, a Pennsylvania-based manufacturer of batteries and accessories, has announced a partnership with Apex Industrial Battery, a newly formed company in the Salt Lake City. Apex will serve as an exclusive Deka representative offering a Deka Motive Power batteries (both lead and lithium technologies) and provide chargers and accessories to power electric lift trucks. Apex was founded by Matt Johnson, president of Johnson Battery, and Gabriel Sampson, president of Averest.
• Schramm, a Pennsylvania-based manufacturing of hydraulic rotary drilling rigs, has announced a joint venture with longtime collaborator Hardwick Machinery, a Salt Lake City-based equipment design, repair and rebuilding firm. The combination will enable Schramm to deliver a wider array of aftermarket services to customers worldwide, including same-day on-site maintenance at mines throughout the western United States.
RECOGNITIONS
• Avetta, an Orem-based company that connects organizations with suppliers, contractors and vendors, has been named a recipient of the SDCE 100 Award for 2020, presented by Supply & Demand Chain Executive, a user manual for successful supply and demand chain transformation. The SDCE 100 spotlights successful and innovative projects that deliver bottom-line value to small, medium and large enterprises across the range of supply chain functions. The award recognizes Avetta’s implementation of its supply chain risk management tools for a global building solutions client that is a supplier of cement, ready-mixed concrete and aggregates.
SERVIES
• Mike Perfili has retired from Les Olson Co. after 48 years with the company. Perfili started at the company in 1972 at age 17 through a high school work-release program. He was the company’s Northern Utah branch manager for the past 17 years, overseeing two offices serving thousands of customers.
TECHNOLOGY/LIFE SCIENCES
• InMoment, a Salt Lake City-based enterprise experience data and customer feedback company, has added Tony Weisman to its board of directors. Weisman is an expert in brand and marketing strategy. He previously was chief marketing officer for Dunkin’ Brands; CEO of DigitasLbi North America; president of Digitas’ Boston, Chicago, Detroit, and San Francisco offices; chief marketing officer of DraftFCB Chicago; and held various roles for over 19 years at Leo Burnett.
• Midigator, an American Fork-based chargeback and dispute technology company, has hired Domenic Cirone as senior vice president of acquirer solutions. Cirone has nearly 30 years of chargeback experience spanning both the issuing and acquiring perspectives. Prior to joining Midigator, Cirone was the vice president of chargeback processing for EVO Payments International.