What We Do
Right now, a unique economic opportunity faces the Northwest – a chance to deliver the kind of future we all want for the region. Forbes magazine recently ranked Oregon and Washington in the top three greenest states in the US. Regional preferences for green power, hybrid cars, eco-friendly buildings, local and organic foods, sustainable forestry, innovative transportation, land-use planning and solid waste recycling reflect our leadership in the rapidly growing sustainable economy. A globally competitive workforce – with expertise in semiconductors, software, apparel, agriculture and manufacturing, and brimming with ideas and technologies from our research universities and companies – is actively seeking ways to make a living in the sustainable economy.
As organizers and sponsors of Pivotal Leaders, we believe that our region’s greatest strength lies in our most promising business leaders. We created Pivotal Leaders as a way to raise the profile of these talented entrepreneurs in the broader business community. These are the people we in the Pacific Northwest will look to as we work to build the future economy.
Pivotal Leaders uses a proven, independent selection process in which community members themselves nominate and select a list of the top prospective clean technology venture entrepreneurs with ties to the Northwest. We believe this peer-selected list of business leaders will help the region to build on its strong ethos of innovation around resources and sustainability, in turn creating more jobs and greater economic prosperity and pushing our region to the forefront of the rapidly growing sustainable economy.
Our goals for the Pivotal Leaders include:
- To increase visibility and collaboration among the Northwest’s top prospective clean technology executives
- To raise the profile of these talented entrepreneurs in the broader business community
- To increase networking and dialogue among peers and with stakeholders who can support opportunities for lasting growth in the region
- To create a unique, self-directed network in which the members of Pivotal Leaders decide how to best use the organization’s resources.
We will compile the list of leaders online and in a directory that will be available to everyone through the Pivotal Leaders website. Members will also have the opportunity to share insights and opinions and to shape their network at several events being planned throughout the Northwest. A new list of Pivotal Leaders will be generated annually.
Pivotal Leaders will benefit entrepreneurs as well as the entire region. Members will benefit from the exposure and peer recognition the Pivotal Leaders network provides. They also benefit from increased networking and dialogue with their peers and access to a dynamic group of sponsors who are committed to building leading companies in the area. The region and our economy will benefit from the synergy created when so many talented and successful individuals come together to discuss their ideas, needs and opportunities.
In our vision, the Pivotal Leaders network is integral to developing and enhancing the Northwest’s clean technology entrepreneurial ecosystem and accelerating economic development through new clean technology business formation.
Our Process
Pivotal Leaders uses a proven two-step process to select its leaders. The process — community nomination and peer selection — is based on James Surowiecki’s book The Wisdom of Crowds: Why the Many Are Smarter Than the Few and How Collective Wisdom Shapes Business, Economies, Societies and Nations (2004). Surowiecki’s thesis is that, with certain types of decisions, a diverse collection of people will make better choices than individuals or even experts would.
Email addresses and other personal information is being used to communicate with nominees and individuals selected as Pivotal Leaders. Pivotal will not sell, rent or make any email addresses or personal information public without approval.
Community Nomination
Nomination requests, created in collaboration with several organizations in the region and a host of partners including entrepreneurs, service providers and government, are sent to more than 2,000 individuals and institutions in the region. This request is then forwarded virally to anyone who might wish to submit a name for nomination.
Anyone can nominate up to 20 individuals they believe are likely to lead a successful clean technology company in the Northwest as CEO or CTO in the next three to five years.
- Nominees do not need to currently hold CEO or CTO titles
- Nominees do not need to have current involvement in a clean technology company
- Individuals should have ties to the Northwest, but are not required to be a Northwest resident
Additional Nomination Rules
- For a nomination to be valid, it must include name and email address of the nominee
- Anyone may submit a nomination
- Individuals may nominate themselves
- Once nominated the individual is automatically in the selection process (it doesn’t matter how many times he/she is nominated)
- No more than five people who work contemporaneously in the same organization at the time of voting may be nominated; in these cases, only the first five nominees will be included
Peer Selection
Once nominations are approved, the nominees are informed via email of their status. Nominees are given a unique URL to log on to the proprietary online selection tool and vote. He or she will be directed to a list of all nominees. Each nominee may then cast up to 10 votes within the total nomination pool. Those with the highest number of votes will be notified of their selection as a member of the Pivotal Leaders network for that year. They may opt out if they do not wish to be a member.
Additional Voting Rules
- Nominees may not submit new nominations at this point in the voting process
- Although nominees may vote for themselves, they may only vote for any individual once
- Individuals who are presently and actively associated with venture capital or private equity organizations may not be selected as winners
- We reserve the right to include or exclude people from the list
