By Jim Giammarinaro
President & CEO of the MetroWest Chamber of Commerce
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FRAMINGHAM – The MetroWest Chamber of Commerce will be having its 126th Annual Meeting on November 17 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. It will be a virtual meeting filled with valuable and interesting content.
Our theme is Solutions to Overcoming the Challenges of Hiring in Today’s Post Pandemic World. You can register at metrowest.org or email jim@metrowest.org and I will register you. There is no charge for attendance.
Guest Speakers:
Dr. David Podell, President of MassBay Community College – Dr. Podell will be discussing the
importance of sourcing employees form Community Colleges. We will learn more about the great talent pool available from our state’s Community College system. Community College’s offer both graduates and interns. During their time in college students obtain skills that are readily transferrable to specific entry level positions.
Eduardo Crespo, CEO Hispanic Market Solution – Our chamber has enjoyed an ongoing collaboration with Eduardo Crespo who has provided valuable information for our ongoing outreach to the LatinX community. Eduardo will provide insight on Hispanic and Brazilian cultures, specifically as it relates to talent acquisition and inclusive workplaces.
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The greatest challenges our members currently face relate to finding and retaining employees to support growth as we come out of the pandemic. Simply put, there are not enough workers to fill open positions. We see it across all industries as well as with our non-profits.
Organizations who are open to diverse and new talent pools will be able to fill their job openings. It will require a new level of inclusivity in the workplace. We are just at the beginning of new and more inclusive work environments.
Award Winners:
Every year our chamber is proud to recognize leaders for their achievements in specific categories.
Below are this year’s winners:
- The Business Leader of the Year Award – Lisa McClintock (Sanofi)
- The Small Business of the Year Award – Kona Ice (Guy Tremblay)
- Non-Profit Partner of the Year Award – Autism Alliance (Pam McKillop & Allison Daigle)
- Emerging Leader Award – Tiago Prado (BRZ Insurance)
- Peter Barbieri ‘Service Above Self’ Award – Javier Cevallos (Framingham State University)
- Member Engagement Team Member of the Year Award – Charlie Pasewark (Keller Williams)
At the meeting you will learn more about the meaning behind each award, get to see the award winner accept their award, and hear brief commentary from each winner.
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Recognition of Board of Directors Members:
Our chamber has a Board of Directors consisting of over 30 members. Our existing BOD members will be recognized as well as our outgoing members. In addition, we will highlight both our new members and our 2022 Executive Committee shown below (confirmed by vote of our BOD at meeting):
New BOD Members:
- Maria Elena Beras-Vogt, Colwen Hotels
- Chuck Budd, Avidia Bank
- Jason Palitsch, The 495/MetroWest Partnership
- Greg Tutuny, SMOC
- Brian Coughlin, Fletcher Tilton
- Annemarie Walsh, Eversource
- Lydia Colon, TLC Deaf
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New Executive Committee:
1) Chair: Steve Levinsky (Natick Center Cultural District)
2) Immediate Past Chair: David Podell (MassBay Community College)
3) Treasurer: Kevin Jaundoo (Document Technologies)
4) Vice Chair for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: Lydia Colon (TLC Deaf)
5) Vice Chair for Membership – Education: Eric Gustafson (Framingham State University)
6) Vice Chair for Membership – Large Business: Robert Valair (Staples)
7) Vice Chair for Membership – Small Business: Jamie Stafslien (CTR)
8) Vice Chair for Membership – Municipal and Nonprofit: Eileen Davis (United Way)
9) Vice Chair for Public Policy: (TBD)
10) Chair Elect: Brian Casaceli (Mirick O’Connell)
11) Legal Counsel: Katherine Garrahan (Bowditch & Dewey)
12) President & CEO: Jim Giammarinaro (MetroWest Chamber of Commerce)
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Additional Speakers:
1) Lisa Thompson our current BOD Chair will be discussing our year in review, scholarship
program and work of the Executive Committee.
2) Steve Levinsky our 2022 BOD Chair will be highlighting our plans for 2022.
3) Brian Casaceli our Incoming Chair and 2023 chair will be handling our voting process.
4) John Stone will lead our Pledge of Allegiance and recognize veterans.
5) Jim Giammarinaro and Stephanie Hirshon will highlight member benefits and programs
for 2022.
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Editor’s Note: SOURCE and the MetroWest Chamber have formed a partnership. The Chamber’s column will run on Tuesdays on the digital news media outlet.
MetroWest Medical Center