Nov 26, 2025

Maul Foster & Alongi

Hackett

Maul Foster & Alongi has promoted Audrey Hackett to principal environmental scientist in its Seattle office. Hackett has nearly 20 years of experience in environmental consulting, specializing in investigation and cleanup of contaminated properties throughout the Pacific Northwest. Her work includes managing Phase I and II environmental site assessments, developing cleanup strategies for complex upland and sediment sites under CERCLA and Washington's Model Toxics Control Act, and overseeing feasibility studies. Hackett also provides technical and strategic support for cleanup allocation and cost recovery litigation. She leads MFA's business development efforts for the ports sector and manages environmental support services for port clients, including an on-call contract with the Port of Tacoma. Originally from the Southwest, Hackett has lived in Seattle for more than 20 years.

Rolluda Architects

Queen

Rolluda Architects hired Gabrielle Queen as marketing & communications support. Recently graduated from the University of Washington's Industrial Design program, Queen joins Rolluda having earned baccalaureate honors for her academic achievements. She has a background in user-centered thinking, and blending technology and design. She has a passion for storytelling, visual communication, and sharing the narratives behind the firm's initiatives, mission, and values; showcasing the firm's projects and the people who bring them to life.

SEL

Balasu-
bramanian

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) has appointed Ashok Balasubramanian as vice president of engineering services. He will lead SEL engineering services teams in the U.S. and Canada, managing the development and implementation of new technologies while overseeing service quality for utility, industrial, commercial and government customers. Balasubramanian joined SEL in 2010 as a project engineer and has since held positions of increasing responsibility, including engineering services manager, director of Engineering Services and, most recently, senior engineering director of Technology & Development. Balasubramanian earned a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical and electronics engineering from the University of Madras, India, in 2004 and a master's degree in power systems engineering from the University of Alaska Fairbanks in 2006. SEL is headquartered in Pullman, and Balasubramanian is based in the Houston, Texas office.

Nov 19, 2025

Best Practice Architecture

Smith

Seattle-based Best Practice Architecture has announced the promotion of Sarah Smith to partner. Smith joined Best Practice in 2018 after working at firms in Los Angeles and New York, where she focused on large-scale commercial and institutional projects. She looks forward to the smaller scale and people-centered work at Best Practice.

Her design approach centers on principles reflected in Lil Shingle, a Best Practice Architecture project designed for her mother following her retirement in 2025.

“Though I enjoy heroic architecture and bold interventions, the most fulfilling work begins and ends with listening,” Smith said. “The result is often more thoughtful, more complete, and more unexpected.”

Nov 18, 2025

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) ranks 13th on List of Largest Employee-Owned Companies in America according to the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO). The NCEO, a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing employee ownership, publishes The Employee Ownership 100, an annual ranking of the 100 largest majority employee-owned companies in the United States. The list highlights companies that are at least 50% employee-owned, with most, including SEL, being 100% owned. “We are proud to be recognized among the largest employee-owned companies in the country,” said Executive Vice President Joey Nestegard. “At SEL, employee ownership isn't just a structure — it's part of our culture that empowers our people to think and act like owners, focusing on long-term decision-making in the best interest of customers, employees, supplier partners and the communities where we do business.” The SEL employee stock ownership plan was established in 1994, and the company became 100% employee-owned in 2009. Today, the company employs more than 7,400 people at over 100 locations across the U.S. and around the world, including its five U.S. manufacturing centers in Washington, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana and North Carolina. SEL invents, designs and builds digital products and systems that protect power grids around the world. SEL is headquartered in Pullman, and has manufactured products in the United States since 1984.