StretchSense Names Mike Riley Executive Chair of the Board of Directors; Appoints Chris Komatas as Chief Operating Officer and Charles Pludthura as Chief Marketing Officer
Seasoned business executive Mike Riley joins as Executive Chair of the Board; Chris Komatas is now Chief Operating Officer and Charles Pludthura is Chief Marketing Officer.
Please replace the release dated Sept. 1, 2021, with the following corrected version due to multiple revisions.
The updated release reads:
STRETCHSENSE NAMES MIKE RILEY EXECUTIVE CHAIR OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS; APPOINTS CHRIS KOMATAS AS CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER AND CHARLES PLUDTHURA AS CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER
Global Leader in Motion Capture Gloves and Technology for Gaming and Animation Sectors Bolsters Senior Management Ranks Amidst Expansion Plans
StretchSense (Sensor Holdings Limited), a leading manufacturer of hand and finger motion capture solutions and the creator of the MoCap Pro Glove, has named important additions to its Board of Directors and its management team. Seasoned business executive Mike Riley joins as Executive Chair of the Board; Chris Komatas is now Chief Operating Officer and Charles Pludthura is Chief Marketing Officer. The news was announced by StretchSense CEO and Co-Founder Benjamin O’Brien.
The MoCap Pro Glove is an industry-leading hand and finger motion capture solution combining bespoke stretch sensors with machine-learning software for superior finger tracking and reduced time in post-production in the games and visual effects industry.
Riley comes to the StretchSense Board as the company’s dedication to innovation has positioned it as a driving force in several key market sectors including motion capture, animation, and premium gaming glove technology. The company’s MoCap Pro Gloves are now used by game studios worldwide including many of the top studios building the mega-scale stages of the future.
“At StretchSense we are building the future of premium hand tracking for the metaverse,” says CEO O’Brien. “To do this you need an incredible team and Mike, Chris, and Chuck bring the experience we need to move from the launch to growth phase of our business. I am super excited to welcome them onboard and looking forward to changing the gaming, visual effects, and virtual reality industries together.”
Mike Riley, Executive Chair of the Board of Directors at StretchSense, founded and is Managing Partner at Cress Global, which provides strategic leadership that has helped numerous NZ, offshore and global growth-based businesses to enhance their success. Prior to founding Cress, Riley spent four years as CEO of Compac Sorting Equipment, a global leader in the horticulture industry. He led the sale of Compac to TOMRA, and the acquisition of BBC Technologies on behalf of TOMRA. Previously he was CEO of Endace (LSE AIM: EDA) where he oversaw its transition from component supplier to solutions provider and helped quadruple its annual revenues over a period of five years. Riley led Endace through its acquisition by NYSE-listed Emulex Corporation. Prior to coming to New Zealand, he was CMO of Network Engines (NASDAQ: NENG) based in Boston. Riley currently holds Board positions at RedShield Security, Framecad Holdings, Pingar, and New Zealand Frost Fans. He is the Executive Chairman for Teknique Limited, the Deputy Chair for ExportNZ, and has frequently participated in the judging for the New Zealand High Tech Awards, Export Awards and Amcham awards.
“I’m so pleased to join StretchSense at this pivotal time in the evolution of its product line and market position,” says Riley. “StretchSense imagines a future where hand data will interact seamlessly with one’s virtual environment and that’s enormously exciting. We’ve got a team of veterans who are bound by their dedication to ingenuity and innovation, so there’s really no limit to the growth that StretchSense can achieve. I’m delighted to bring my experience and problem solving to this dynamic company.”
New COO Chris Komatas’ career has included executive tenures in high-growth and high-technology companies shaping strategy and leading organizational growth across NZ, the US and UK. In his roles as Vice President of Product Management and Marketing and VP Global Operations with Compac, VP Operations with Endace, Director of Service Provider Marketing with Juniper Networks USA and executive roles at Ericsson, Komatas has developed innovative strategic plans, led organizations through significant restructures, secured new market opportunities and guided merger and acquisition integrations.
“I'm excited to join the StretchSense team to meet growing demand as our customers invest in greater levels of motion capture content,” says Komatas. “With our ability to track the nuances of hand movement we are working closely with our customers to unlock new levels of creativity in character development and realistic interaction in virtual environments."
With MBA and Law degrees, new CMO Charles “Chuck” Pludthura brings more than 15 years of international marketing experience in global technology companies to StretchSense. His eight-year tenure at Sage Group, a leading global supplier of business management solutions to small and medium-sized companies, included seven years as Head of Marketing for the Australia, NZ and Pacific region. After Sage, he became General Manager of XM Developments, a global company focused exclusively on the development of electronic commerce and payment processing solutions. Most recently, he was a founder and managing partner at Prodermal NZ, an eCommerce skincare company, and also Foodcraft, a market leader in NZ’s growing premium food tourism sector.
“Since I was a kid, I've been a massive fanboy of movies and video games. So, I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to work with the team to accelerate StretchSense’s growth as we continue to define the future of hands for virtual environments,” said Pludthura. “The way you communicate in this evolving digital world should be changing all the time, so being unique and authentic with the way we tell the StretchSense story is something that I am incredibly excited to do.”
About StretchSense: StretchSense (Sensor Holdings Limited) is the creator of the MoCap Pro Glove. The industry-leading hand and finger motion capture solution combines bespoke stretch sensors with machine-learning software for superior finger tracking and reduced clean up in post-production. Our dedication to innovation has positioned us as a driving market force in several key technology sectors including gaming studios, visual effects and virtual reality technology. Founded in 2012 by Dr. Todd Gisby and Dr. Benjamin O’Brien, plus bioengineering Professor Iain Anderson, StretchSense has approximately 60 staff across offices in New Zealand and the US.
Visit www.stretchsense.com for more information.
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