Tech Titans has named former Richardson Mayor and tech leader Paul Voelker the 2026 recipient of its Lifetime Achievement Award. It is one of three individual honors the North Texas technology organization will present this month. Tech Titans also will induct Pinnacle Group founder Nina Vaca into its Hall of Fame and award BRIX Holdings CEO Sherif Mityas the Corporate CEO Award.

Tech Titans also announced finalists in 10 additional categories ahead of the 2026 Tech Titans Awards Gala, set for Aug. 28 at the Marriott Dallas/Plano at Legacy Town Center.

A veteran leader in tech and public service

Paul Voelker is Tech Titans’ 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award winner. [Photo: Tech Titans]

“Paul Voelker’s impact on North Texas extends far beyond any single role or accomplishment,” Wendi Wilburn, president and CEO of Tech Titans, said in a statement. “For more than three decades, he has helped advance the region’s technology community through industry leadership, civic service and a steadfast commitment to Richardson’s growth and success.”

Voelker’s “unique ability to bridge technology, business and public service has left a lasting legacy” in the region, Wilburn said.

Voelker has spent more than three decades in the technology industry and public service. A longtime business leader in Richardson, he serves as a senior regional manager for Export Development Canada and as chairman of the supervisory board at TrenData Inc, where he previously served as CEO.

He began his career at Hewlett-Packard, where he spent nearly 29 years and rose to a director role spanning sales, marketing, portfolio management and corporate development. He later held sales and business development roles at Ericsson, G2g3 Digital and Lone Star Analysis.

Voelker joined the Richardson City Council in 2013, serving as mayor from 2015 to 2023. During his tenure, the city experienced significant growth along its technology corridor. He also served as an ex officio board member of the Metroplex Technology Business Council, which was renamed Tech Titans in 2015 to match the longstanding name of its awards gala.

His other roles include a seat on the advisory board of Connect 5G Inc. and past service as president of the Metroplex Mayors Association, chairman of the board of the Richardson Chamber of Commerce and a member of the executive board of the North Central Texas Council of Governments.

Vaca to be inducted into the Hall of Fame

Vaca founded Dallas-based Pinnacle Group in 1996. The company has since grown into one of North America’s largest Hispanic-owned workforce solutions companies, serving more than 20% of the Fortune 100.

Tech Titans will induct Nina Vaca into its Hall of Fame. [Photo: Tech Titans]

“Nina Vaca is one of North Texas’ most successful entrepreneurs and an influential leader who has helped shape the region’s technology and business community,” Wilburn said. “Through her vision and determination, she transformed Pinnacle Group from a startup IT services firm into a global workforce solutions powerhouse.”

Wilburn said that Vaca is dedicated to “creating opportunities for others through mentorship, civic leadership, philanthropy and advocacy for entrepreneurship.” Vaca “embodies the innovation, leadership and community impact that the Tech Titans Hall of Fame was created to recognize,” Wilburn said.

Under Vaca’s leadership, Pinnacle Group was named to the Inc. 500/5000 list of fastest-growing companies 13 times. The Women Presidents Organization twice named it the fastest-growing woman-owned/led company in the country. Newsweek recently named Pinnacle Group one of America’s Greatest Workplaces in four separate categories, including overall, as well as for diversity and for women.

Vaca also has received multiple individual leadership accolades. She has been named an EY Entrepreneur of the Year, received the Goldman Sachs Most Intriguing Entrepreneur award, been inducted into the Minority Business Hall of Fame and been recognized as a Trailblazing Woman in Labor and Business.

Vaca was named one of the inaugural Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship in 2014, traveling to five continents to support aspiring entrepreneurs. She currently serves as Entrepreneur in Residence for the City of Dallas, appointed by Mayor Eric Johnson, and as a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

She also founded At the Table, an initiative focused on advancing women in business and leadership, and helped launch the Startup America Partnership to support entrepreneurs nationwide.

Mityas honored with the Corporate CEO Award

Sherif Mityas, CEO and board member of Dallas-based BRIX Holdings, will receive the 2026 Corporate CEO Award.

Sherif Mityas is Tech Titans’ 2026 Corporate CEO Award winner. [Photo: Tech Titans]

“Sherif Mityas exemplifies the transformative leadership that drives North Texas forward,” Wilburn said. “His ability to marry bold technological vision with operational excellence makes him remarkably deserving of this year’s Corporate CEO Award.”

Mityas has more than three decades of leadership experience across consumer, retail, restaurant, hospitality and business services sectors. As CEO of BRIX Holdings, he leads a multi-brand restaurant platform with more than 400 locations across 42 states and 10 countries, overseeing brands that include Friendly’s Restaurants, Red Mango, Orange Leaf, Clean Juice, Smoothie Factory + Kitchen, SouperSalad, Humble Donuts and Pizza Jukebox.

Since becoming CEO, Mityas has transformed BRIX Holdings by pursuing asset-light growth, strategic acquisitions, franchise expansion and operational improvements that generated a reported 1,300% return for the company’s private equity investors. He has also championed the use of artificial intelligence throughout the organization’s portfolio and led the launch of Pizza Jukebox, an AI- and robotics-enabled restaurant concept that reimagines the guest experience through automation while offering high-quality food.

Mityas has received numerous honors for his leadership and innovation, including recognition among Nation’s Restaurant News’ Top 10 Most Innovative Executives, Dallas Business Journal’s Most Admired CEOs, D CEO’s CXO of the Year and Dallas ORBIE CIO of the Year, among others.

2026 Tech Titans finalists

Tech Titans named finalists in 10 categories. Winners in each will be announced at the gala.

Community Hero Award

Finalists for the Community Hero Award, which recognizes community service by an employee of a North Texas technology company, are Karen Bruno of Tech Allies and Tech CxO LaunchPad, Kris Fitzgerald of Smart Data Solutions and Shoba Krishnamurthy of Toyota Financial Services.

Corporate CIO/CTO Award

In the Corporate CIO/CTO Award category, open to technology leaders at companies with 2025 operating revenues of more than $200 million, the finalists are Wei Dong of The Michaels Companies, Urvi Randhar of Solis Mammography, Janet Robertson of RS Group and Amir Tabei of Communities Foundation of Texas.

Corporate Innovation Award

Four companies are finalists for the Corporate Innovation Award: ConnexPay, DFW International Airport, Industrial Refrigeration Pros and The Michaels Companies.

Emerging Company CEO Award

The Emerging Company CEO Award finalists, drawn from North Texas technology companies with 2025 revenues between $2 million and $200 million, are Andy Asava of SpinSci Technologies, Chris Gay of Evry Health, Rhonda Levene of Ziosk and Ed Wolff of Aerwave.

Emerging Company CIO/CTO Award

Meanwhile, finalists for the Emerging Company CIO/CTO Award are Suchitra Reddy of Visual Matrix, Venkat Shashank of Steel-IQ, Sudip Shekhawat of LeaseLock and Max Zats of Craftable.

Emerging Company Innovation Award

Also in the emerging company group, Illuma Labs, QualiZeal, SpinSci and Steel-IQ are finalists for the Innovation Award.

Startup Company CEO Award

Finalists for the Startup Company CEO Award, limited to companies with 2025 revenues of no more than $2 million, are Sara Doutt of Myngly, Astha Malhotra of Phylactics, Veena Somareddy of Neuro Rehab VR and Brenda Stoner of ByteTrail.

Technology Inventor Award

The Technology Inventor Award finalists are Tanmay Bera of Phylactics, Dane Grasse of Teliatry, Theodore Price of the Center for Advanced Pain Studies at UT Dallas and Andrew Silver of Tango Networks.

Tech Titan of the Future — College/University Award

Two categories recognize educators. Finalists for the Tech Titan of the Future — College/University Award are Mark Austin of AT&T in cooperation with SMU, Tripat Baweja of Collin College and Jeff Price and Gaurav Shekhar, both of UT Dallas.

Tech Titan of the Future — High School Award

High school finalists are Chip Bloecher of Lewisville ISD, Robert Burton of the School for the Talented and Gifted in Dallas ISD, Manuel Castillo of Little Elm High School and Wesley Tyree of Plano East Senior High School.

Fast Tech Award

Fast Tech, a separate Tech Titans award, recognizes the fastest-growing technology, telecommunications or life sciences company in North Texas. Tech Titans determines finalists by percentage revenue growth from 2023 to 2025. The Fast Tech winner will be announced from the stage at the gala.

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