Black Diamond Equipment announced the hiring of
three industry veterans to further bolster their product development team. The new additions are Dave Narajowski as the Senior Design Team Leader, Bill Belcourt as the Climbing Hardware Category Manager and Thomas Laakso as the
Ski Line Category Manager. All three will be at work by October 1, 2003, and will join the Product and R&D team consisting of Joe Skrivan, Robert Yturri, Luke Cudney, and Jordy Margid.
Narajowski, formerly a VP of Engineering at Modaliti Design, is re-joining Black Diamond where he worked seven years ago and has been contractually working for the past nine months. Narajowski will lead design innovation for
the Ski and Mountain Lines. Belcourt, formerly the Cofounder and National Sales Manager from Grivel North America, is also re-joining Black Diamond, and will put his innate sales background and first hand climbing experience to work in the Climbing Hard Goods category. Laakso, formerly the Advanced Concepts Director for The North Face, additionally has experience with New Business Development for No Limitz Snowboards and working at Innovative Composite Engineering (ICE), which worked as a vendor on the Black Diamond Cobra Ice Tool.
Black Diamond CEO, Peter Metcalf, comments, “Black Diamond remains 110%
committed to being both the industry's core company and it's innovative
leader. Under Product Director, David Mellon's leadership, BD is ready to
take this commitment to the next level, another significant step above all
others. The hiring of industry product design and management all-stars such
as Laakso, Narajowski and Belcourt, joining our existing team, is proof
positive we are transforming that commitment into working reality. In
addition, to their top-flight professional skills, all three are core, high
level participants in the sports of climbing, mountaineering and backcountry
skiing which are the heart of our business.”
