Commerce Staff
Senior Management
James S. Bennett
President & CEO
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Jim Bennett joined the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation as President and Chief Operating Officer in April 2024.
In his new role at the Commerce Corporation, Jim will implement strategic programs and initiatives to drive economic growth and development throughout Rhode Island. He will work with small and large Rhode Island businesses, stakeholders and government leaders to identify and pursue opportunities that will cultivate a positive economic climate for all Rhode Islanders. As President & COO, Jim will oversee the daily operations of the Commerce Corporation, ensuring an effective and efficiently run quasi-state agency.
Jim has years of experience in both private industry and government. Over the course of his career, Jim created three start-up companies, he ran large corporations and organizations with over 800 employees, founded publicly traded companies, and worked in the highest levels of state government.
His most recent professional experience before joining the Commerce Corporation was with Prospect Medical Holdings where Jim was Executive Vice President. He managed all government relations for 17 hospitals across five states with over 28,000 employees. Prior to that, Jim was Director of Economic Development for the City of Providence where he managed five city departments, including economic development, planning and zoning and worked with small and large companies to promote business growth in the City of Providence. Jim has held numerous Board positions throughout his career. He was Chairman of the RI Convention Center Authority and Chairman of Justice Assistance. He served as a Board member on the Narragansett Bay Commission, Save The Bay, YMCA, Brown Hockey and Football Associations.
Jim is a graduate of Brown University where he played ice hockey. After graduating, Jim was drafted in the 8th round and played professional ice hockey for the Atlanta Flames organization for two years before beginning his professional career off the ice.
Daniela Fairchild
Chief Strategy Officer
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Daniela Fairchild serves as the Chief Strategy Officer for the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation. In this role, she ensures cohesion and efficiency between all Commerce Corporation and Executive Office of Commerce projects as well as guides the internal systems and processes that allow Commerce to best serve clients and partners.
Professional Background
Daniela comes to the Corporation with a robust resume overseeing organizational-strategy creation and deployment, government systems innovation, and leadership development. Her background is in the education, nonprofit, and government sectors. Most recently, Daniela served as the Director of the Rhode Island Office of Innovation, where she led strategic deployment of an integrated portfolio of twenty systems innovation projects–at stages ranging from proof-of-concept to sustainability. Prior to this role, she developed advocacy campaigns and organizational strategy for RI-CAN, managed internal capacity building at 50CAN, guided policy research at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, and ran program evaluation for Africare. Daniela started her career as a high school special education teacher and enjoyed serving as an urban high school rowing coach for six years.
Education
Daniela holds a BA from Tufts University in International Relations and an MSEd from the University of Pennsylvania in International Educational Development.
Neil Martin
Managing Director of Financial Programs
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Neil serves as Managing Director of Financial Programs for Rhode Island Commerce Corporation.
Professional Background
Neil has nearly forty years of experience assisting businesses to stabilize, grow and prosper. His experience is in commercial banking, manufacturing and government financing products. Most recently he was the COO/CFO for Massachusetts Grow Capital Corporation, an organization that lends and provides technical assistance to businesses.
Education
Neil earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and his MBA from Suffolk University.
Justin Medeiros
Chief Financial Officer/Senior Controller
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Justin Medeiros is the Chief Financial Officer/Senior Controller at the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation.
Justin has broad experience in accounting and financial reporting and analysis. Most recently, Justin was a Vice President/Assistant Controller at BankNewport, where he had direct oversight of all accounting functions, including but not limited to, financial and regulatory reporting, general ledger maintenance, audit, tax, cash management and accounts payable. Prior to working at BankNewport, Justin spent several years in roles of increasing responsibility in financial planning and analysis at MetLife.
Justin holds a bachelor’s degree and an MBA from Bryant University and is a CPA. He and his wife reside in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, with their three small children and he enjoys traveling, golfing and spending time with family and friends.
Jeff Miller
Executive Vice President of Investments
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Jeff serves as the Executive Vice President of Investments of the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation. In this role, he oversees the investments in which the State participates across multiple classes as part of the key economic development activities in which the Corporation leads.
Professional Background
Jeff has 28 years of experience in banking, finance, real estate development and public-private partnering. As the manager of the multifamily divisions of several of Washington, DC’s signature developers, he created and managed a platform and investment strategy for every aspect of multifamily ownership. The markets and projects upon which Jeff has focused have high barriers to entry and complex configurations that require a deep and sophisticated knowledge of land planning, building design and programming, zoning and entitlement regulation, project finance, leasing markets, and product operations.
His expertise in government comes from working for Washington, DC Mayor Vincent Gray in the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, where he served as Director of Real Estate, and then Deputy Mayor. In that role he oversaw a portfolio of development and incentives in the District that included 39 projects under construction and 44 completed with a total development cost of $9 billion.
Education
Jeff earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Lafayette College in Easton, Penn., and an MBA from Rice University in Houston, Texas. He has also been an instructor at Georgetown University’s School of Continuing Studies. Jeff’s wife Catherine grew up in Rhode Island, and his family has had a presence in Narragansett for ten years.
Rebecca Nuger
Chief Marketing Officer
Melody Weeks
Executive Vice President
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As Executive Vice President, Melody is responsible for leading strategy and implementation of all Commerce efforts to support current and potential businesses in Rhode Island. She oversees the team that provides direct Rhode Island business services, growth opportunities for businesses looking to Rhode Island for expansion, and entrepreneurial investments in state. Additionally, she manages the team that helps businesses navigate the government contracting process at the local, state, and federal levels.
Professional Background
Melody joined RI Commerce first as a Government Contracts Counselor in 2015 after working in the Maine PTAC program for four years. Her previous work experience also includes construction association management, program management, and marketing and fundraising for educational institutions. She brings decades of experience supporting small businesses and priority industries grow and succeed in Rhode Island beyond.
Education
Melody has a dual degree in communications and political science from the University of Southern Maine.
Senior Advisory Staff
Jeffrey Bacon
Venture Capital and Investment Partnerships Manager
Richard DelFino III
Municipal Liaison
Jason Dodier
Chief Business Development Officer
George Panichas
Senior Advisor, Business Strategy
Michael Walker
Senior Project Manager
Accounting and Human Resources
Karen Kelly
Associate Controller – Accounting Operations & Contracts
Natalie Mota
Accounting Operations Coordinator
Christine Reinfelds
Grants and Financial Administration Manager
Denise Roias
Human Resource Manager
Dominique Santos
Senior Accountant
Susan Saint-Hilaire
Senior Cost Accountant
Business Development
Gloria Berlanga
Associate Vice President, Business
Development - Defense Sector
William Cox
Vice President of Business Development and Investments
Eben Kiesow
Sr. Research Analyst
Ashley Medeiros
Ocean Tech Hub Director
Georgina Sarpong
Food Strategy Director
Business Engagement
Charlene Bouthillette
Business Engagement Specialist
Christopher Cannata
Vice President, Business Engagement
Gabriela Gutierrez
Business Engagement Specialist
Email Gabriela
401-278-9163
Communications
Financial Services
Maria Carvalho
Financial Services Operations
Compliance Manager
Stacy Farrell
Director of Compliance and Oversight of Financial Programs
Walter Kondon
Director of Loan Portfolio and Credit
Email Walter
401-278-9154
Investments
Thomas Fehm
Financial Analyst
Tyge Joyce
Investment Associate
Marketing
Mark Brodeur
Associate Vice President of Tourism Marketing
Anthony Cormier
Senior Creative Director
Alexander Esterly
Marketing Support Specialist
Donna Graham
Digital Content Specialist
Andrew Krensky
Managing Director of Brand Strategy
Mary Lucas
Project Specialist
Xander Monge
Multimedia Designer
Andrea Rekrut
Director of Marketing
Luke Robins
Sr. Marketing Manager
Operations
Sharon Penta
Operations Manager
Amy Curti
Executive Assistant
Emilee Carney
Administrative Assistant
Vanessa Gold
Customer Service – Administrative Assistant
Kaylee Sosa
Customer Service - Administrative Assistant
Ray Williams
Facility Assistant
Programs
Jake Bacon
Senior Business Advisor - Government Procurement.
Doris Blanchard
Director of Outreach and Engagement
Mackenzie Cahill
SupplyRI Program Coordinator
Lisa Carnevale
Vice President of Innovation Initiatives
Jacob Curran
Renewable Energy Fund Project Coordinator
Amy Erickson
Strategic Initiatives Operations Manager
Ann Garcia
Business Development Advisor – Government Contracting
John Hardman
Investor Relations | Advisor, Technology Ventures
Kayleigh Hill
SupplyRI Program Manager
Marc Klowan
Innovation Program Analyst
Chad Lewis
Rhode Island APEX Accelerator Director
Jacob Lincourt
Business Advisor - Government Procurement
Minnie Luong
Local Food Value Chain Program Manager
Alison Macbeth
Food Strategy Project Manager
Silvana Mercado
Resiliency Manager
Barry J. O’Connor Jr.
Director Wavemaker Fellowship
Katherine Ortiz
Renewable Energy Program Administrator
Debra Overly
Associate Director of Broadband Strategy
Karen Stewart
Renewable Energy Fund Program Manager
Brian Thorn
Director of Broadband Strategy
Email Brian
401-278-9186
Ethics Policy
All officers, directors, and staff of the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation are subject to the Rhode Island Code of Ethics
(R.I. Gen. Laws § 36-14-1, et seq.).