Career Moves

Industry veteran creates Synergy Commercial

Rich Harris has left GVA Advantis to form Synergy Commercial Advisors.

Harris will be managing director of the new company. He was an executive director at Advantis, where he worked for 12 years.

Harris, who has represented tenants such as Motricity, Square One Bank, Bright View Technologies and SciQuest, said he has long wanted to form his own firm.

Synergy will offer tenant representation, project marketing and investment sales services.

Joining Harris from Advantis are: Mac Hammer, who will focus on tenant representation; Robert Hoyt, who will specialize in investment sales; and Dave Harris, who will manage corporate services and landlord representation.

Joel Johnston, who is new to the industry, will also focus on investment-sales services.

Synergy is temporarily based at 2530 Meridian Parkway in Durham.

In other moves ...

Mark Drake was hired as a project engineer in the civil department of The Wooten Co.'s Raleigh office. Tyrus Cohan was hired as a GPS specialist, and Brian Oschwald was hired as an assistant project engineer. The Wooten Co.'s services include civil, mechanical, electrical and plumbing engineering, planning and architecture.

Linwood Bowen was named president of Generations Community Credit Union in Durham.

Joshua Stack has been named manager of The Twisted Fork Grill, Market & Bar at Triangle Town Center in Raleigh.

James Farley, president of Cardinal Consulting and Training, has joined InfoStrength as an adviser. InfoStrength provides software and services to the life-science industry to help companies meet FDA regulatory requirements.

Juana Gustin-Quick joined Raleigh advertising agency Cross + Associates as director of business development.

Michele Ostraat joined RTI International in Research Triangle Park as director of engineering research for the Center for Aerosol Technology.

Kim Calhoun was hired as marketing manager at Agri Suppy in Garner.

Rosemarie "Rosie" Allen joined Prevent Child Abuse North Carolina as president and chief executive officer.

Stuart Gold has been named chief of pediatric hemotology and oncology at UNC-Chapel Hill's School of Medicine.

Joe Sitko was hired as lead process engineer at Hipp Engineering and Consulting in Raleigh.

Gina Van Benthuysen was named branch manager of the Cary/Stonebridge office of Allen Tate Co. Jennifer Setzer was named sales manager for the Chapel Hill office.

Courtney Willey was hired as project coordinator at Kelly MarCom, a brand integration agency in Sanford.

Blair Wicker, who was meetings director, and Nathan Batts, who was associate counsel, have been promoted to assistant vice president at the N.C. Bankers Association.

Faryn Driscoll has been promoted to client services manager at Sports & Properties, a sports and entertainment marketing and development firm in Raleigh.

Greg Terjesen was hired as general service manager at R.W. Moore Equipment Co. in Raleigh.

George Copeland was promoted to sales and customer service manager at Cary Printing.

Patrick L. Covil joined Withers & Ravenel in Cary as a project engineer in water resources.

Hugh Firebaugh and Chris Mueller joined Littleton Advertising & Marketing in Raleigh as senior art directors. Andrew Roman and April Lepak have been hired as graphic designers.

Heather Rule joined BBH Design in Research Triangle Park as a project designer focusing on health care, science and higher education projects.

J. Gary Hill joined McAlpine Group as regional developer and owner of the Raleigh and Greensboro division of the real estate development and investment concern, which manages residential and commercial construction projects.

Stephanie Tyus joined FWV Distilled, an advertising, graphic design and media agency in Raleigh, as senior account supervisor. David L. White joined as assistant media planner and buyer.

David J. Piscorik was promoted to director of auditing at Stancil & Co., an accounting firm in Raleigh.

Bill Rose was named manager of media relations in North America for ABB, an international power products and energy technology company in Raleigh.

On the boards ...

Doug Evans, vice president of RTI International's public health and environment division, has been appointed to the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services' advisory committee on health promotion and disease prevention objectives for 2020. Kathleen Lohr will serve on the National Advisory Council for Healthcare Research and Quality for a three-year term.

William C. Weiss, chairman and chief executive officer of The Promar Group in Cary, has been elected chairman of the board of directors of iFocos, which helps customers worldwide understand and use expanding media and communications technologies.

Earl Tye, BB&T's senior vice president and city/area executive for Durham, has been elected chairman of the Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce's 2008 board of directors.

Andrew Osterlund, an architect with JDavis Architects, has been elected president of the High Rise Toastmasters Club of Raleigh.