TechPoint, the nonprofit, industry-led growth accelerator for Indiana’s tech ecosystem, has announced the Tech 25 Class of 2020.

Now in its sixth year, the Tech 25 Awards honor a prestigious selection of twenty-five individuals who are critical and exceptional performers helping to grow Indiana’s tech and tech-enabled companies, but who—not being the CEO or other top executive—don’t get celebrated publicly as often.

A panel of 18 independent judges, including past winners and tech community leaders, selected this year’s class from three main job role categories: tech product/R&D, tech sales & marketing, and tech professional services. Winners were chosen from a very competitive class of nominees based on criteria including professional contributions, energy and attitude, and community commitment.

In addition to being star performers at their companies, winners are committed team players who build others up through mentoring, volunteering and positive examples and they are committed to contributing to the broader community.

Unlike many awards, individuals cannot apply or nominate themselves. Tech 25 candidates must be nominated by executive leadership. Companies may only put forth one nominee, which results in a remarkable and competitive class of candidates.

Fifty-two Indiana tech and tech-enabled companies nominated a team member this year. The Tech 25 Class of 2020 was showcased and celebrated during a special virtual event with Indianapolis Business Journal and its CTO of the Year awards on Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2020.

The Tech 25 Class of 2020 is as follows:

Tech Product/R&D Category (14)

  • Michael Akers, Mission Assurance Engineer – Software, Raytheon Technologies (Hometown: Fort Wayne, Ind., College: Purdue University – Fort Wayne)
  • Alexander J. Correa, Manager, Product and Technology, Codelicious (Hometown: Crown Point, Ind., College: Butler University)
  • Casey Cumbow, Engineering Manager, Lessonly (Hometown: Columbus, Ohio, College: Ohio State University)
  • Christine DeWeese, Sr. Director, Product Management, Salesforce (Hometown: Batesville, Ind., College: Indiana University Bloomington)
  • Anita Donnelly, Director of Technical Services, SmarterHQ (Hometown: St. Louis, Mo., College: Northern Kentucky University)
  • Gwendolyn Faraday, Software Consultant, Faraday Academy (Hometown: Boston, Mass., College: Boston University)
  • Poppe Guthrie, Sr. Interaction Designer, SEP (Hometown: Linton, Ind., College: Purdue University – undergrad; Indiana University Bloomington – masters)
  • Charlie Haddad, Sr. Advisor, Digital Health, Eli Lilly and Company (Hometown: Oxford, Ohio, College: Miami University)
  • Mike Horrocks, Vice President, Product Management, Baker Hill (Hometown: Carmel, Ind., College: Brigham Young University – undergrad; Indiana University MBA)
  • Jonathan Hubartt, Vice President of Design & Product, High Alpha (Hometown: Fort Wayne, Ind., College: Indiana University)
  • Dan LaBar, Sr. Data Scientist, KSM Consulting (Hometown: Zionsville, Ind., College: Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology)
  • John F. Matlik, Engineering Digital Transformation Lead, Rolls-Royce Corporation (Hometown: Indianapolis, Ind., College: Purdue University)
  • Ninad Thanawala, Analyst, Roche (Hometown: Fishers, Ind., College: Cornell University)
  • Gary Todd, IT Senior Developer, Republic Airways (Hometown: Dayton, Nev., College: University of Nevada Reno)

Tech Professional Services Category (5)

  • Meghann Arnold, Director of Team Success, One Click (Hometown: Noblesville, Ind., College: WGU Indiana)
  • Jennifer Lynn Benak, IT Project Manager, Scrum Master, Agile Coach, NCAA (Hometown: Tipton, Ind., College: Purdue University and Ball State University)
  • Christopher Hicks, Practice Manager Kronos Incorporated (Hometown: Chicago, Ill., College: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
  • David Rainbolt, Sr. Director Infrastructure and Disaster Recovery, OneAmerica (Hometown: Avon, Ind., College: IUPUI and WGU Indiana)
  • Geoff Zentz, Indiana Director, gener8tor (Hometown: Goshen, Ind., College: Franklin College)

Tech Sales and Marketing Category (6)

  • Eva Jackson, Director, Demand Generation Marketing, PFL (Hometown: Batesville, Ind., College: Anderson University)
  • Andy Kennedy, Principal Brand Strategist, Innovatemap (Hometown: Muncie, Ind., College: Anderson University)
  • Lukau Matuka, Director, Global Sales Development Training & Enablement, Genesys (Hometown: Muncie, Ind., College: Ball State University – undergrad; Anderson University – MBA)
  • Matt Renie, Solution Consultant, Zylo (Hometown: Indianapolis, Ind., College: Indiana University Bloomington)
  • Brennan Walker, Director of Digital Strategy & Solutions Consulting, DemandJump (Hometown: Thousand Oaks, Calif., College: Butler University)
  • Rachel Yockey, Vice President of Experience, Realync (Hometown: Indianapolis, Ind., College: Marian University)

Biographies and photos of the Tech 25 Class of 2020 are available on TechPoint.org. For additional logos, Tech 25 badges, photo and information, contact Cheryl Reed at cheryl@techpoint.org.

ABOUT TECHPOINT:

TechPoint is the nonprofit, industry-led growth initiative for Indiana’s technology companies and overall tech ecosystem. The team is focused on attracting talent, accelerating scale-up companies, activating the community and amplifying stories of success. For more information, please visit www.techpoint.org.