As Chairman & CEO, René guides the strategic direction of the company, setting the tone of Port Blakely’s multi-national operations. A fourth generation descendent of the company founders, he helped establish a sustainable family business governance structure that has come to be a model for other multi-generational family-owned companies, becoming its first Family Council President from 2000 – 2004. Identified as a succession candidate in 2004, René joined Port Blakely in 2005 gaining experience in the company’s Forestry and Real Estate Operations before becoming COO in 2008. He stepped into the CEO role in 2010, then Chairman & CEO in 2015. René has driven development of the company’s vision framework and long-term strategy based on the company’s core purpose and values. René previously served on the Board of Naturebridge and as the Chairman of the Board of the Seattle Symphony (2018-2021). He is currently active on boards or committees for the National Alliance of Forest Owners (NAFO), the Washington Roundtable, Forterra, and the Seattle’s Chamber of Commerce’s Community Development Roundtable (CDRT). René holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Clarinet from Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music respectively. René is a 2009 graduate of the Executive MBA program at the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business.