Charles River Chamber and Colette Phillips partner to publish second west suburban Business Leaders of Color list
Publication will celebrate diverse leadership - and emerging talent– among region's workforce
The Charles River Regional Chamber will once again partner with Colette Phillips, and her companies Colette Phillips Communications and Get Konnected!, on an initiative designed to celebrate, document and encourage a diverse workforce in Greater Boston’s west suburban communities.
This spring the two organizations will publish a second list of the “50 Most Influential Business Leaders of Color in Greater Boston’s Western Suburbs.” The report will be an updated -- and expanded -- version of the original list first published in 2020 that became a resource for corporations and nonprofits looking to hire, looking for board members, looking for expert commentators and looking for thought leaders across the region.
“I am proud to partner with the Charles River Chamber to document, amplify and celebrate leaders of color within Boston’s west suburban business community,” said Phillips, president & CEO of Colette Phillips Communications and founder of Get Konnected!
“I also applaud the chamber for making diversity, equity and inclusion not only one of its core values but one of its key pillars for supporting its members and recognizing that in a global economy a diverse workforce is a competitive advantage,” Phillips added.
The 2023 list will recognize both the outstanding leadership and emerging talent among the region's workforce. It will include an updated list of C-level executives and other leaders of color in Greater Boston’s western suburbs, as well as a separate list of “Emerging Leaders of Color,” focused on those under 40 working the same footprint.
Charles River Chamber President Greg Reibman said the publication will serve as both update and, just as importantly, a progress report.
“Once again, we’ll showcase the individuals and employers who are making a positive contribution to the economic and social fabric of our west suburban businesses and nonprofits,” said Reibman. “But we also want to measure whether our region’s employers have, or haven’t, fulfilled commitments towards becoming more diverse, equitable and inclusive.
“The chamber could not have a better partner for this project than Colette Phillips who is widely recognized as one of Greater Boston’s top authorities on building and championing diversity, equity and inclusion through her networking, consulting and marketing efforts,” Reibman added.
The partnership’s original 2020 list was modeled after similar lists Phillip’s companies have been producing to great acclaim in the Boston market since 2016 -- only focused exclusively on the western suburbs.
Nominations will open later this month through an online form at charlesriverchamber.com.
To qualify for either the “Top Leaders” or “Emerging Leaders” lists, nominees must work and/or sit on a board for a business or nonprofit that is physically located in Newton, Needham, Watertown, Waltham, Wellesley, Natick or Framingham. A seven-member committee, appointed by Get Konnected! and the chamber, will review all nominations and select the honorees.
Both lists will be published this spring. There will be an event to celebrate the honorees and the region’s diversity, also this spring.
The chamber and Get Konnected! are seeking business partners to sponsor the 2023 edition of the 50 Influential People of Color in Greater Boston’s Western Suburbs list as well as the Emerging Leaders list. For more info click here or contact Lise Elcock.
About the Charles River Regional Chamber
The Charles River Regional Chamber is a not-for-profit 501(c)(6) organization funded by memberships, sponsorships, programming revenue and advertising. Our members represent everything from multigenerational family businesses and multinational companies to start-ups, educational institutions and other nonprofits. They’re based in villages and town centers, commercial districts, office parks and home offices throughout Newton, Needham, Watertown and Wellesley. They come from other communities too, choosing to belong to this chamber because they see opportunities here.
About Get Konnected!
Founded as a DE&I social impact venture, Get Konnected!™ is Boston’s premier cross- cultural business networking event series. It brings together professionals, business and civic leaders and entrepreneurs from all cultures across industries and sectors. The mission is to curate meaningful cross-cultural business and social connections, enrich professional development, facilitate business and career opportunities, and support an organization’s employee and consumer engagement and retention, while helping to make Boston a more welcoming and inclusive city. Named by Boston Magazine as Boston’s Best Networking Group in Best of Boston 2022 [bostonmagazine.com] and 2020 [bostonmagazine.com], Get Konnected! is also the creator of a series of specialized lists that celebrate, document and showcase the contributions people of color are making to the economic, civic and social fabric of Boston and Massachusetts. These lists include the historic GK100, Boston’s first comprehensive list of the 100 Most Influential People of Color; Boston’s Most Impactful Black Women 2021; The 50 Most Influential People of Color in Higher Ed; The GK 50, Boston’s Most Influential People of Color in Healthcare and Life Sciences; The GK25, Boston’s 25 Most Influential Millennials of Color; The GK50 Attorneys, Boston’s 50 Most Influential Attorneys of Color; GK25LGBTQ+, The 25 Most Influential LGBTQ+ People of Color and the 2020