NFC Forum

2010-11 Officers

Chairman: Koichi Tagawa, Sony

Koichi Tagawa is the General Manager of Global Standards and Industry Relations Department that is in charge of technology standards and technology industry relations of the FeliCa Business. Since 2002, he has supported the popularization of NFC and FeliCa from the standardization point of view. He actively contributed to the establishment of the NFC Forum, holding the position of Vice-Chairman from the start of the Forum in 2004 until becoming Chairman in September 2008. He enthusiastically continues to contribute to the enhancement of the NFC ecosystem throughout the contactless application industry.

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Vice Chairman: Dave Wentker, Visa Inc.

Dave Wentker is Head of Proximity Payments at Visa Inc. Dave has more than 20 years of experience in development and commercialization of innovative technology products and services. He first joined Visa in 1996 and has held a variety of leadership positions in new products, global strategy, and business development. Before joining Visa, Dave worked at MDL Information Systems in marketing and development. Dave holds a Bachelor's degree in Chemistry from Carleton College.

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Vice Chairman: Mikko Saarisalo, Nokia

Mikko Saarisalo is a Senior Technology Manager in Near Field Communication (NFC) within Nokia and is responsible for NFC Technology Management, Standardization and Industry Collaboration. He has been part of Nokia NFC development since the very beginning. Mikko has over two decades of experience in the ICT industry in a wide spectrum of technical and market-oriented positions and assignments. He studied Software Engineering and Industrial Economy at Tampere University of Technology, graduating with an MSC in SW Engineering in 1995.

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Secretary: Frank Dawidowsky, Sony

Frank Dawidowsky is Senior Engineer at the European Technology Center of Sony Corporation, located in Stuttgart, Germany. Frank has been active in the NFC Forum since its inception. He has more than 8 years of experience in standardization and has been an active contributor in a number of specification organizations and industry associations, including ETSI and the Wi-Fi Alliance.

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Treasurer: Martin Bührlen, NXP Semiconductors

Martin Bührlen is Senior Manager Marketing Programs, Market Sector Smart Cards, at NXP Semiconductors and serves as Treasurer of the NFC Forum. With more than 15 years of experience in the semiconductors industry, he has held several engineering, marketing and communications positions for identification technologies such as smart cards, RFID and NFC.

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Executive Director: Paula Berger

Paula Berger has been managing the NFC Forum since February 2005, a few months after the Forum launch. She works with the Board of Directors, members, group chairs, staff, and other association leaders to advance the mission of the NFC Forum. Before joining the Forum, Paula was Director of Corporate Communications at Virtual, Inc. She has 25+ years of experience in communication, specializing in information design and delivery for online and print media. From 1982 to 2001, she ran a technical communication and training consultancy she co-founded. Her clients ranged from Fortune 500 companies to small high-tech startups, and her staff consisted of up to 55 communication professionals working all over the world. Paula studied Planetary Physics at MIT. She is a Fellow and International Past President of the Society for Technical Communication.