Compiled by Christina Hur
ARCHITECTURE
Newport Beach-based Bauer and Wiley Architects hired Christina Bartelson as senior interior designer, Olive Chiang as project manager of interiors and Wilfredo Lima as junior designer. Bartelson has been in the industry for more than nine years. Chiang previously was assistant manager in the international architecture department at Coach Inc. in New York. Lima interned at the firm for three years.
AUTOMOTIVE
Fountain Valley-based Hyundai Motor America Inc., the U.S. arm of South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Co., added Steve Wilhite as chief operating officer. Wilhite previously served as Nissan Motor Co.’s senior vice president for global marketing.
BANKING
James Hill has joined Hovde Financial Inc. as managing director of investment banking in Los Angeles. Washing-ton, D.C.-based Hovde owns Tustin-based Sunwest Bank. Hill formerly was a managing director with Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co. in the Southern California office. He provided merger and acquisition, financial advisory and capital raising services to West Coast financial institutions.
Collectables
Irvine’s Bowers and Merena Auctions, which sells rare coins, added Scott Reiter as executive director of consignments. Reiter has been a collector, dealer and auction consignment director for nearly 40 years.
ENGINEERING
Peter Heye joined the engineering services division in Irvine of Dudek & Associates Inc., an engineering and environmental consulting company. Heye has 32 years of experience, which includes planning, designing, permitting and constructing water and wastewater infrastructure.
Irvine-based civil engineering firm Hall & Foreman Inc. appointed Glenn Chung and Henrik Nazarian as principals and promoted both to vice president. Chung joined the company in 1997 as a staff engineer and works in the Rancho Cucamonga office. Nazarian joined in 2000 as project engineer and is based in Woodland Hills.
HEALTHCARE
Tustin-based Toshiba America Medical Sys-tems Inc., the U.S. medical device arm of Japan’s Toshiba Corp., promoted Peter Rich-ards to vice presi-
dent of business operations. Richards previously served as a zone sales manager for Toshiba.
INSURANCE
Orange-based Word & Brown Cos. named Clinton Gee chief financial officer. Prior to joining, Gee worked for 10 years with Nationwide Health Plans, holding various positions such as controller, vice president of finance, vice president of strategic planning and vice president of sales.
HOTELS
The Island Hotel Newport Beach, owned and managed by The Irvine Company, hired Raymond Jacobi as general manager. Jac-obi previously served as chief executive of Telluride Ski & Golf Resort and as chief operating officer of Rosewood Hotels & Resorts.
LAW
Sharon Klein, a partner who oversees Pepper Hamilton LLP’s Irvine office, was appointed co-chair of the American Bar Association’s Committee on Privacy, Security and Access to and Protection of Data. The committee operates under the bar association’s section of public contract law.
MARKETING
RiechesBaird, an Irvine-based brand and business consulting firm, added Brian Bishop as associate brand manager. Prior to joining, Bishop served as an account manager for Provident Funding Associates, and also worked for 21st Century Insurance Co., investigating and evaluating claims.
REAL ESTATE
Forma, an Irvine-based company specializing in real estate development consulting, promoted Robert Bucci, Joe King, Michael Savage and Michael Taylor to associate directorships; Bucci in community design, King in advanced media, Savage in landscape architecture and Taylor in urban design.
IndyMac Bank, part of Pasadena-based IndyMac Bancorp Inc., added to its wholesales lending division in Irvine: Randy Willox as regional president, and John DiGiacomo, Elizabeth Enriquez, and Matt Sipowicz as business development managers. Willox previously served as senior regional vice president for Countrywide Financial Corp.’s wholesale lending division. DiGiacomo was an account executive at Manday Mortgage. Enriquez was an account executive at Chapel Funding LLC, and Sipowicz was sales manager for Acoustic Home Loans, a savings and loan and mortgage lender.
Irvine-based Keystone Pacific Property Management Inc. promoted Lisa Brannon to business relations manager. Brannon works in Irvine and also maintains her previous responsibilities and title of senior community association manager.
RETAIL
Patricia Apel joined Bella Terra, the former Huntington Beach Mall, as general manager. Apel previously was director of real estate for El Torito Restaurants, owner of the El Torito and Acapulco restaurant chain.
TECHNOLOGY
Tustin-based software company Envision Financial Systems added Grant Brisacher as chief financial officer. Brisacher previously was a partner with McGladrey & Pullen, LLP, a national accounting and consulting firm.
VitalStream Inc., an Irvine-based subsidiary of VitalStream Hold-ings Inc. delivering audio and streaming media over the Internet, named Michel Maeso as executive vice president of global sales and marketing. Maeso previously was executive vice president of worldwide sales for Packet Design, a large Internet networking company.
Information in People is supplied by businesses. Submit items to features@ocbj.com or Orange County Business Journal, Attention: People, 2600 Michelson Drive, Ste. 170, Irvine, CA 92612. Include the name and phone number of someone to contact. Photos are encouraged but cannot be returned.
_________________________________________________________
Design Consultant Patton Named to Federal Patent Advisory Board
Industrial designer Doug Patton is running with a different circle of friends these days.
Last year, Wisconsin Republican James Sensenbrenner Jr., chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, paid Patton a visit.
Then Commerce Department Secretary Carlos Gutierrez came knocking on his door.
They came to Patton to hear his ideas about the speed at which patents are,or aren’t,getting granted. They also wanted his thoughts on the fairness issue of who gets a patent depending on whether you are a big corporation or a small, independent inventor.
Patton is chief executive of Patton Design, an Irvine consulting firm that helps companies develop products.
He knows a thing or two about creative ideas in the corporate world and about trouble getting patents.
Patton recently was appointed to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s patent public advisory committee in Washington, D.C.
Last fall, Irvine resident Patton and others held a breakfast meeting at Broadcom Corp.’s headquarters with Gutierrez to talk about ways to bolster patent protection in Asia and South America.
Patton’s company designs medical and consumer technology products, including devices for Apple Computer Inc.’s iPod.
“I’m kind of excited to work for the government,” Patton said. “It’s amazing to have someone like (Sensen-brenner and Gutierrez) come and talk to me. I’m not sure what the future has to hold.”
Patton will serve a three-year term on the patent committee. The job was created seven years ago when Congress passed the American Inventors Protection Act. The law created advisory commissions for the Commerce secretary and director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
The committee has nine voting members who are appointed by the Commerce secretary.
Patton also got media attention earlier this year when some of the finalists from TV’s “American Inventor” got there because of his design firm’s help. He helped develop a car seat for children that won the million-dollar first place award on the show.
His design studio also has done work for Microsoft Corp. General Motors Corp., Mercedes-Benz USA LLC and Bausch and Lomb Inc.
Patton, a Republican, graduated from California State University, Long Beach, in 1983 with a bachelor’s in industrial design.
,Pat Maio
