CHAMPAIGN, Ill.— Cobalt Digital, promoted four team members noting that the multiple moves are due to the company’s growth.

Cobalt President Gene Zimmerman said in a company statement, “The industry, and the world, had to pivot overnight in 2020 and yet these four people not only made it work, they made it one of our most successful years ever, which has spilled into 2021.”

Chris Shaw moved into the position of chief operations officer from executive vice president of sales and marketing. He first joined Cobalt in 2006 to establish the company’s global dealer network and grow its presence through integrated sales, marketing and communication initiatives. Previously Shaw held leadership positions with Linear Acoustic and Wohler. In his new role Shaw will continue to oversee the sales team and marketing efforts, but also focus on all areas of business development including expansion of the company’s solution platforms and its growth in international markets.

Suzana Brady, formerly vice president of sales in the Americas has been named senior vice president of worldwide sales and marketing. Reporting to Shaw, Brady will work closely with the executive team to define geographical and technical areas of growth and implement sales, marketing and operational strategies. Brady’s career has spanned over two decades and includes work in data networking, wireless, broadband and broadcast technology spaces. Brady also serves as Chairman for the RIST Forum (Reliable Internet Streaming Transport).

Nick Maag has been appointed vice president of manufacturing, a promotion from his former position as director of manufacturing. Also reporting to Shaw, he will continue to manage the day-to-day operations of Cobalt’s contract manufacturers, test department and shipping/receiving activities and interface with other senior members of the engineering, sales and accounting teams to develop and evaluate new processes to streamline manufacturing activities.

 Monte Variakojis, a software engineer and architect for nearly three decades, is now vice president of software, elevated from engineering manager, Software Products. He will be responsible for developing and managing Cobalt’s software strategy that includes evaluating and selecting the most appropriate system architectures and ensuring that the company’s platforms support all the latest formats including 3G/HD/SD and IPTV solutions. Reporting to Dr. Ciro Noronha, Cobalt’s executive vice president of engineering, Variakojis will also focus on creating advanced user interfaces and protocols to enhance the user experience for the company’s customers.

SAN FRANCISCO—Chris Shaw is heading back to Wohler Technologies in the role of regional sales manager for North America. Shaw had previously worked at Wohler for seven years between 1999 and 2006 in the position of director of sales.

In his new role, Shaw will be handle a range of responsibilities including introducing Wohler’s new product lines, dealer and systems integrator training, as well as sharing customer feedback with the engineering department. Working with the sales and marketing departments, Shaw will also continue to try and expand Wohler’s customer base in North America.

Other than his previous stint with Wohler, Shaw has experience working as vice president of sales and marketing for Cobalt Digital, and most recently he served as the vice president of global sales, television at Linear Acoustic.