Leadership
Montana Jobs Network - Board of Directors
Kate Pace, Board Chair
Director of Strategy Operations, Cognizant, Missoula
Kate Pace graduated from Appalachian State University in 2009 with a degree in Cultural Anthropology. With more than 15 years of experience in dynamic customer service, operations, and management roles, she came to Cognizant in November 2019.
In her current role as director of strategy operations, Kate augments and accelerates the initiatives that drive Cognizant’s competitive advantage in the global market. Kate leads general operations at the Missoula Center, is an Ambassador for the Government Affairs team, is a member of the MHTBA workforce committee, and is a leader for Cognizant Outreach. She is passionate about creating inclusive and equitable workforce opportunities for marginalized people in Montana and believes that technology is one of the most powerful vehicles to democratize access to the jobs of the future.
Jann Butler
VP, People, onX, Missoula
Jann Butler is a global HR leader, leadership coach, and HR business partner with extensive experience in technology and e-commerce companies. She is a proven HR Leader who has managed employee populations as large as 7,500 and staff sizes of 30, as well as had success as a senior-level individual contributor HR business partner for C-level executives. As a highly collaborative leader and change agent, Jann focuses on aligning HR strategy to business objectives.
Jann earned her Bachelor of Science in Hotel Administration from the University of Nevada - Las Vegas.
Libby Brunell Adams, Secretary
Senior Consultant, Cascadia Management Group, Missoula
Libby Brunell Adams has served in interim executive roles from HR to COO for clients and has skilled experience in the manufacturing and IT industries. While working as the HR manager for Missoula-based IT firm Alter Enterprise (acquired by Fisher’s Technology in 2023), Libby led the team in restructuring the organization's tech team and built a recruiting and hiring process that includes a hands-on intern program that serves as Montana’s only apprenticeship program for IT. She also serves on the Missoula Downtown Foundation and Downtown Missoula Partnership boards. She enjoys serving her community, both locally and statewide. With her extensive experience, Libby leads cross-functional teams with diverse skills and backgrounds across the state of Montana and the U.S.
Derek Eaton, Vice Chair
Managing Director, IIInigence, Billings
Derek Eaton is currently the managing director for IIInigence. He previously served as managing director for Triple2Digital, a full-service digital agency specializing in creating software, hardware, and managed services solutions. He spent the last 10 years in technical sales account management roles for IT companies throughout Montana after earning a Network Engineering degree from MSU-Billings. Derek spent his early professional career in insurance. A 7th-generation Eastern Montanan, Derek worked closely with Big Sky Economic Development to help form the Yellowstone Tech Alliance, a group working to grow the capabilities of technology firms in Eastern Montana and attract talent and businesses to the region. He is also a board member for STEM Yellowstone.
Kym Corwin
Head of Workforce Development, Cognizant, Missoula
Kym Corwin works in a vast number of areas within Cognizant. She is key to all aspects of the AIM training program and shares responsibility for the professional development and performance of its 100+ team members. Kym’s primary focus includes mentoring, resource planning, project oversight, and business development. Before joining Cognizant, she worked within the dairy and commodity training industry. In addition to her work at Cognizant, she also leads the Missoula Highland Dance program teaching Scottish Dance to children and adults in the Missoula community.
Kym holds a BA in Organizational Communication Studies with an emphasis in Rhetoric from the University of Montana. She has served on the MHTBA workforce committee since 2021.
Allison Johnston
CFO/COO, Marsh McLennan Agency, Missoula
Allison Johnston has served as chief financial officer of Marsh McLennan Agency (formerly PayneWest Insurance), a Missoula-based insurance broker, since 2015. Allison brings 20+ years of experience in financial services and insurance, including leadership roles at First Interstate Bank, KPMG, and Deloitte. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Carroll College and a master’s in Accounting from Montana State University – Bozeman.
Allison is a graduate of the Leadership Montana class of 2012, served on the Board of Advisors for the UM Bureau of Business and Economic Research and currently serves on the Board of MoFi, a Community Development Finance Institution for the Northern Rockies.
Jimmy Graham, Treasurer
Vice President, Allied Steel, Lewistown
Jimmy Graham started at Allied Steel in 1999 on the shop floor, quickly advancing to become a skilled craftsman. He was then moved into the take-off/estimating department before moving into procurement/transportation and project management. As the current vice president, Jimmy is still responsible for all purchasing and transportation, as well as occasionally filling in for project management when needed. He also oversees all in-house scheduling for the fabrication floor and will be a minority owner of Allied Steel soon. Jimmy graduated from MSU-Northern with a bachelor’s degree in Business Technology.
Paddy Fleming
Director, Montana Manufacturing Extension Center (MMEC), Bozeman
Paddy Fleming has been a manufacturing consultant to Montana's manufacturers since 2001 and has initiated teacher externships, manufacturing apprenticeships, and numerous other workforce development programs. Prior to his work with the Montana Manufacturing Extension Center (MMEC), Paddy spent many years managing and turning around large manufacturing facilities for major corporations throughout the United States. He also serves on the State Workforce Innovation Board.
Paddy earned his Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Montana State University and completed his MBA at Olivet Nazarene University.
Chris Omland
Vice President of Product Management, Workiva, Bozeman
Chris Omland is the vice president of product management for Workiva, a prominent SaaS company transforming the way people manage and report data. Chris is a member of the product & technology senior executive leadership and strategy team, helping define Workiva’s product vision, strategy, and objectives along with the company’s technology direction. He is passionate about seeing teams succeed, developing product leaders, and building software platforms that help customers and companies be successful.
Before Workiva, Chris worked in product management and corporate development for RightNow Technologies, which was acquired by Oracle in 2012.