Jim Forester

Jim Forester has over 35 years of experience in the AECO industry. Jim began their career in 1983 as a Senior Engineer at Syska & Hennessy. In 1991, they moved to ASG - Archsoft Group as an Engineering Products Manager. In 1993, they joined Softdesk, Inc. as an Engineering Products Manager and chief developer for a suite of AutoCAD-based building engineering applications. In 1998, they co-founded AEC3 as a Director, responsible for data modeling activities and software products. In 1995, they founded Marinsoft, Inc. to provide software development, business process analysis, and technical workflow automation. Jim was also one of the original, founding members of the Model Support Group in buildingSMART from its origins as the International Alliance for Interoperability (IAI) in 1996. In 2003, they co-founded Newforma, where they held various roles such as Co-founder, VP Business Development, Co-founder, VP Customer Success, Co-founder, Senior Technical Advisor, and Co-founder, Chief Data Architect. In 2017, they became self-employed as an Advisor. In 2018, they co-founded Join, Inc. as Head of Business Development, and also served as an Advisor.

Jim Forester attended Bellarmine College Preparatory, followed by the University of California, Los Angeles where they obtained a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering with a focus in Heat Transfer. Jim also holds a Professional Engineer license from the California Department of Consumer Affairs.