Power Moves: Ryan Ross is departing Halcyon for AWS; Dahna Goldstein is the incubator’s new chief investment officer

Power Moves is a column where we chart the comings and goings of talent across the region. Got a new hire, new gig or promotion? Email us at dc@technical.ly.

Ryan Ross, chief innovation officer at Georgetown incubator Halcyon, will be stepping down from his role to take on a new position at Amazon Web Services (AWS).

Ross will be joining the team at AWS, where Halcyon said he’ll be the point of contact for the partnership between the two companies. Dahna Goldstein, Halcyon’s current director of impact investing, will take over the position with the new title of chief investment officer.

“The title reflects the full breadth of investments we make in our fellows through Halcyon’s programs, from fellowships to funding,” CEO Kate Goodall wrote in an email announcing the news. “Many of you know Dahna, but those who do not will be tremendously impressed by her personal experience as a serial social entrepreneur and her passion for supporting startups and evolving the startup ecosystem.”

Goldstein came into the director role in January, overseeing Halcyon’s investment strategy.

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Dan Dooley. (Courtesy photo)

Falls Church-based Lynk, a satellite startup that sent the first text message from space, has appointed Sprint alum Dan Dooley as chief commercial officer. Dooley held two president positions at Sprint before holding roles at Telarix, TruMobility and TOMIA.

In the new gig, Dooley will be tasked with building on Lynk’s partnerships with tech companies and mobile network operators as the company develops its space cell phone network. Lynk is currently awaiting approval from the FCC.

“I am thrilled to be joining Lynk at this particular time as we are uniquely positioned to provide universal mobile phone coverage to billions of people worldwide,” Dooley said in a statement. “Having spent most of my career partnering with wireless carriers globally, I see the vast potential for partnerships with these mobile carriers as we revolutionize how we communicate and provide affordable connectivity to underserved communities and regions.”

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Starting this week, 1776 alum and angel investor Penny Lee will be the first CEO of the Financial Technology Association.

In the new role, Lee said she’ll be advocating for a socially-conscious approach to policy when it comes to fintech.

“Regulators have signaled they are ready to engage, and the modernization of legislation and oversight mechanisms will provide welcome guidance to the industry,” Lee wrote in a Medium post regarding the announcement. “A lack of forward-looking regulation runs the risk of discouraging essential innovation and growth, making FTA’s work of paramount importance.”

Lee added that she also intends to work with member companies in the association on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the overall fintech industry. The intention, she said is for it to become a case study for how diversity efforts can go “hand in hand with increased revenues and economic growth” and set a standard in tech.

Lee’s previous roles include stints at chief strategy officer at D.C.-born incubator 1776, chair of angel investment group K Street Capital and most recently as public affairs lead at D.C. government relations firm Invariant. She also served as senior adviser to former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

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Arlington’s Phone2Action has not one, but two, new members of its leadership team.

The company, which makes an engagement platform for public affairs and government relations, appointed Adrian Muniz as CFO and Mikhail Opletayev as its new CTO. Muniz comes to the position from Logi Analytics, while Opletayev was previously the VP at Higher Logic and Real Magnet.

“Phone2Action’s trajectory is impressive,” Muniz said in a statment. “The company is growing in so many ways. It’s exciting for the market, for our customers and for those of us who have the privilege to steer some of that growth. I’m very happy to be a part of it.”

The news follows January’s departure of cofounder Ximena Hartsock. Cofounder Jeb Ory continued as CEO following her departure before Steven Schneider, also of Logi Analytics, was appointed CEO in May.

“The best companies are those that do important work,” Opletayev said. “Phone2Action provides access to actionable intelligence that informs and influences decisions at every level of government. That’s vital. Our platform must continue to be a transformative force in the industry—and we absolutely will.”

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Check out who else is embracing the Great Resignation™ and making moves in the DMV:

• Fresh off its Webby win, Arlington-based tech convener Modev named Stacy England as chief operating officer, Amanda Francis as sponsorship and sales lead and Jaimey Walking Bear as general manager of events.
• McLean, Virgina-based tech services and staffing firm Digital Intelligence Systems (DISYS) appointed Philip Monto as new CFO and treasurer. Monto comes to the role following a stint at Signature Consultants, which was acquired by DISYS earlier this year.
• Reston, Virgina-based IT firm SAIC named Allison Patrick as company lead for homeland security.
• AI data-to-knowledge company, headquartered in Reston, has four new board of advisors members: Robert Ashley, David Glaser, Ellen McCarthy and Harry Wetherbee.
• Ostendio, a risk management technology firm based in Arlington, appointed Jean Foster and Ken Walters to its board of directors.
• Mark Bendza is the new executive vice president and CFO of Ashburn’s Telos Corporation, which provides cyber, cloud and enterprise security solutions.
• Tysons, Virgina-based Cardinality.ai appointed Kevin Jones as its new chief operating officer. The company offers software-as-a-service products for state and local government agencies.
• Following its acquisition this month of D.C.’s Capstone, Client Solution Architects named Ruth Bowers as incoming chief growth officer.
• Consulting giant Accenture will be adding Robert Cresanti to its team. Based out of the company’s D.C. location, Cresanti will be managing director to lead government relations in North America and serve as head of the company’s global government relations network.
• Greg Fink will be leaving his role as chief financial officer at Reston, Virginia-based media analytics company comScore, a role he’s held since 2017, to pursue other interests at the end of August.