Robert Lewis Jr. will never forget Boston’s desegregation busing crisis in the 1970s – an intensely volatile period during which his home was firebombed. In this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast, Lewis, now Nicholas President and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston and a longtime community leader, reveals how the unrest became the genesis for his purpose. Lewis, who was 16 when his East Boston home was targeted, vowed “to do work that's about bringing people together, about bri...

As president and CEO of Meet Boston, Martha Sheridan’s job is to position Boston “as one of the premier destinations in the world.”  On this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast, Sheridan details how she and her 501(c)(6) organization – that markets the Boston area as a destination for meetings, conventions and leisure visits – accomplishes that goal. “if we don't invite them, they're not going to come back, so our work is incredibly valuable,” Sheridan says. Meet Boston’s efforts are...

Perhaps there’s no one better to lead the academic institution ranked No. 1 in entrepreneurship by U.S. News & World Report than a serial entrepreneur who developed a small Utah business into a national franchise brand. On this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast, Stephen Spinelli, Ph.D., details “the intersection between business” and Babson College, where he is president. Spinelli’s entrepreneurial journey began right out of college when he and several partners crafted a plan to buy a...

For Sarah Iselin, president and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield Massachusetts, being raised by parents who led “lives of service” has had a huge impact on her career choices – including her current executive role with a mission-driven, not-for-profit health care plan. “Our new mission is to show up for everyone like they're the only one,” says Iselin on this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast. “And our core values are (to) be the example, do what's right, not what's easy, be kind, act with...

The arts’ contribution to the state’s GDP is significant, says Michael Bobbitt, executive director of the Massachusetts Cultural Council. The sector in Massachusetts is a $27.2 billion industry, Bobbitt says on this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast. That’s based on a 2021 U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis report.  “We know that arts are great for supporting people's health needs and their education needs, but also great for business,” says Bobbitt. “The more we can build those...

Subscribe to C-Speak so you never miss an episode. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Glynn Lloyd has a passion for advancing entrepreneurship and community. Lloyd is executive director of Mill Cities Community Investments (MCCI), a community development finance institution that helps to provide capital “where traditional capital usually doesn’t get to,” historically redlined communities of “folks of color,” he says on this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast....

If you’re in need of advice on how to emerge from corporate devastation, Rob Hale, CEO and president of Granite Telecommunications, has plenty to share. In 2002, Hale’s thriving company, Network Plus, went bankrupt during the stock market crash. “That morning (Feb. 4) when we went bankrupt, that equity, which was $1.4 billion, officially finally became zero, never to return,” he recalls. In this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast, Hale details how he – with the unwavering support of his...

Dr. Kevin Tabb’s self-described “eclectic background” includes service in the Israeli military, completing medical school and a residency, and roles in health care IT on the east and west coasts in the U.S.   Over the years, he’s witnessed an evolution in patient care that he notes, “will always be needed in hospitals, but more and more care is provided outside of the four walls of the hospitals.”  “We're rapidly moving towards a place where we will be providing more than 70% of the care that...

JD Chesloff credits a diverse range of mentors, and experience, for his ability to transition from public service to the private sector. A former state and federal employee, Chesloff began developing key insights that continue to shape his approach to work.   “Showing up, getting out of your lane and bending toward collaboration are three lessons that I have lived by,” said Chesloff, president and CEO of the Massachusetts Business Roundtable, which works with state public policy makers on...

Paul Ayoub, chair and partner of the law firm, Nutter, grew up in West Roxbury (Ward 20) in a Syrian and Lebanese American family that instilled strong values in him. In this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast, he says his family never took anything for granted and his dad taught him, “The privilege of whatever you receive is to give back.”  Ayoub’s dad is the reason he has invested more than 30 years serving on the board at St. Jude Research Hospital.  “Service to others is the greatest of...

Kendalle Burlin O’Connell relishes a challenge. That’s just what she got her first day leading the purchasing consortium in 2008 with the company now known as MassBio – when a vendor said she was “not the right person for this job” because she lacked experience in biotechnology. Burlin O’Connell, an attorney, ended up negotiating what’s now MassBio’s largest supplier agreement. “I think that because I wasn't from industry, I was more brave and more willing to take risks in making a really...

Passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010 proved to be the catalyst for Cain Hayes’ pivot from the financial services sector to health care. “What I saw is that people would oftentimes do a great job of building financial health in retirement only to get to retirement and have a poor quality of life,” said Hayes, now president and CEO of Point32Health.  Hayes details his experience in the industry, including how he stays focused and positive when encountering major obstacles, in this...

A self-described “social impact entrepreneur” with experience in multimedia arts, Jean Dolin said an early fascination with storytelling and American culture are key factors in his current role as a community advocate. Dolin, founder and creative director of “Portraits of Pride,” details his journey from being a young news junkie in Haiti to a prominent leader in Boston, in this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast. “Portraits of Pride,” his public-art photography exhibit, features LGBTQ...

Subscribe to C-Speak so you never miss an episode. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.   According to Colette Phillips, president and CEO of marketing and public relations firm Colette Phillips Communications, the best way to make a difference is to get involved and form real relationships, she said in this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast.    “Young people tend to think if they’re on social media with a thousand followers, or if you hooked up with 500...

Subscribe to C-Speak so you never miss an episode. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Nicole Obi, president and CEO of the Black Economic Council of Massachusetts (BECMA), never expected to be leading the organization a year or so after she began working with them as a consultant. “It’s the hardest thing, but the most satisfying job I’ve ever had,” she says. “It’s stretching me personally and professionally.” In this podcast episode of PNC C-Speak, Obi...

Subscribe to C-Speak so you never miss an episode. Listen on Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Aisha Francis’ childhood dream was to be a teacher – which is why she pursued the education field after graduating from Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. Now president of Franklin Cummings Tech (formerly known as Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology), Francis relishes “leading an institution that has so much connection to the future of this economy,” as she said in this episode of PNC...

Subscribe to C-Speak so you never miss an episode. Listen on Apple Podcasts and Stitcher.  Tom O’Brien’s early-career stint as a campaign worker for presidential candidate and governor Michael Dukakis didn’t pay much – he remembers not being able to make car payments – but was nevertheless a rewarding, “transformative experience,” he said in this episode of PNC C-Speak. O’Brien, co-founder, managing partner and CEO of HYM Investment Group, believes others can benefit from work in the public...

Experience as a classroom teacher in California set Jim Canales on the path toward his role as president of The Barr Foundation, Canales shares in the latest episode of PNC C-Speak. One of the foundation’s focus areas is education. In 2022, the foundation awarded nearly $140 million to grant recipients. “The foundation’s mission is to invest in potential,” says Canales, a Boston Business Journal Movement Maker, by awarding grants — in collaboration with businesses — for education and the...

Flywire CEO Mike Massaro does not take credit for building the once-struggling tech startup into a global, publicly traded company. The credit goes to the company’s “flymates,” aka employees, Massaro shares in the latest episode of PNC C-Speak.   Massaro, who once considered himself unprepared for the job and thought he’d be “the shortest-tenured CEO in the history of tech CEOs,” was the recipient of the 2019 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in financial services. During...

Salient Ventures CEO Diane Hessan has always wanted to “lead something big,” as she shares in the latest episode of PNC C-Speak. That desire was the impetus for leaving her role with a small startup and founding Communispace, now known as C Space, in Boston. These days, she leads angel investment firm Salient Ventures in its efforts to support early-stage companies that show a lot of promise. Hessan’s embrace of startups, and their inherent risks, stems from her happy, secure childhood. “I...

Massachusetts, says Locus Robotics CEO Rick Faulk in this episode of C-Speak, has “lots of robots looking for a problem as opposed to a problem looking for a robot.” That’s because numerous companies lose sight of two things: adhering to their core mission and catering to their clients’ specific needs, according to Faulk. Faulk points to targeted growth as an integral element in Locus Robotics’ evolution from a third-party logistics business to a two-time Boston Business Journal Fast 50...

Jim Heppelmann, chief executive officer of Boston-based digital transformation firm PTC, admits he can get a little bored if things start to feel routine — and he says that’s a good thing.    “I’m open to changes, very much so,” he says in this episode of PNC C-Speak. “It’s a good set of skills, I think, for a CEO to be able to imagine things working differently and be impatient enough to go after them on a regular basis.”    Listen as Heppelmann shares his career journey with PNC C-Speak...

Dr. Brent Chrite faced unusual challenges when he stepped into his role as president of Bentley University in 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic. “We are a residential, place-based university, and that operating model no longer held,” Chrite said in this episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast. “We had to recalibrate everything from knowledge transfer, to pedagogy, to what it means to be an engaged faculty, to balancing the need to maintain our commitment to education and knowledge creation...

Lauren Solotar has seen a lot of changes in her years at the May Institute, from when she first joined the team as vice president and chief psychologist in 1996 all the way to her current role as CEO. But she’s most excited about the nonprofit’s dedicated efforts to bring on the “best and the brightest from around the country” as it begins building out centers of excellence to better serve individuals with autism spectrum disorder.  This special episode of the PNC C-Speak podcast, hosted by...