Software Council Picks Chief

The Southern California Software Council, a key player in helping to develop the Orange County and Los Angeles technology scenes, is expected to announce today that it has named Mark Monaghan of Irvine its new chief executive. He replaces Bill Manassero, who stepped down in November to join the e-commerce start-up BizBuyer.com in Santa Monica. Monaghan, 49, is a former independent consultant who worked as an interim chief executive for several Internet start-ups and emerging-growth companies. He started work at the council last week. The networking group has seen its membership double to 400 in the past year. Monaghan says he plans to expand the council’s mentoring program and become more active in representing its interests among regional and state government agencies.