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Sama, a platform pioneering new technologies and business methods that harness the power of markets for social good, has appointed Molli Barnes as Senior Vice President (SVP) of People. Sama partnered with Frederickson Partners on the executive search.
As SVP of People, Barnes will lead the organization’s global people strategy and deliver on their unique employee value proposition of being a disruptive technology startup driving measurable social impact. She will create a talent strategy that supports Sama’s hypergrowth goals and elevates the organization’s employer brand to attract, grow and retain the people who are transforming how AI will advance humanity. Barnes will report to the company’s CEO Wendy Gonzalez and will be a critical member of the executive team, helping build and scale the global People Team in a fast-paced, start-up environment such as Sama’s.
Barnes brings exceptional human resources (HR) experience to Sama with a 13-year tenure at PATH, a global nonprofit organization dedicated to health equity. In her most recent role at PATH as Chief People Officer, Barnes helped develop PATH 2025, a strategy that replaces aid with inclusive innovation and respectful partnerships. She also led the organization’s global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) strategy, together with a team of 40+ talented HR professionals across Africa, Asia and the United States. Other roles she performed at PATH included Senior HR Director of Global Business Partners, Africa HR Director and Director of Global Talent Acquisition. Earlier in her career, Barnes served at Heller Ehrman LLP as Senior HR Manager for 10 years. Barnes holds a Bachelor’s degree from University of Washington and is based in Seattle, WA.
Sama provides high-quality training data that powers AI technology. The company’s platform is trusted by the world’s most ambitious organizations to develop accurate machine learning models. Trusted by leading technology companies such as Google, NVIDIA, GM, and Walmart, Sama specializes in image, video, language, and sensor data annotation and validation for machine learning algorithms in industries including manufacturing and robotics, bio and medtech, autonomous vehicles, entertainment, e-commerce, retail and agriculture.
Sama was named a Forbes 50 AI Company to Watch in 2021, and recently received the prestigious B Corp Certification, which measures a company’s social and environmental performance.
Frederickson Partners recruits high impact human resources leaders for innovative companies. Frederickson matches startups, tech unicorns, and the Fortune 500 with world-class full-time and project-based talent. The country’s leading People and HR executive search firm, Frederickson Partners is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices nationwide. Clients include Alphabet, Creative Artists Agency (CAA), Gartner, Gilead, Intel, Pinterest, Qualtrics, Roche, ServiceNow, StockX, The Nature Conservancy, Twitter, Uber and Workday. Follow us on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/fredericksonpartners/
Frederickson Partners, a Gallagher company is a market leader in retained executive search since 1995. As one of the top-rated HR executive search and C-suite recruiting firms, we have expertise in placing Chief People Officers, Chief Human Resources Officers, Chief Diversity Officers, Chief Financial Officers, Chief Legal Officers and many other senior leaders. We draw on a broad network of rising and established executives and leaders, and a 28-year reputation as a talent acquisition and HR Advisory provider.