Page 14 - Florida Sentinel 9-3-21

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First Female, First African American Hired As New CEO Of Tampa Bay Partnership
Bemetra Simmons,
who revamped United Way Suncoast’s accounting oper- ations as its chief strategy and operations officer, will leave the organization next month to become the chief executive officer of the Tampa Bay Partnership. Mrs. Simmons is the first African-American and first woman to lead the Tampa Bay Partnership.
In her United Way Sun- coast role, Mrs. Simmons oversaw finance, the com- munity investment process, information technology and data reporting at an enter- prise level for the organiza- tion, a regional leader in the nonprofit. She also was re-
sponsible for core operation functions such as facilities management, insurance, contract management and administrative duties.
Mrs. Simmons facili- tated UWS’ COVID Emer- gency response process which resulted in the dis- bursement of $1.6 million in emergency relief to nonprof- its. She also implemented a paperless accounts payable process, created a collabora- tive and online time phases budgeting process, and par- ticipated in the planning of the organization’s new strategic vision. A key leader- ship team member, UWS reached its annual goal for fiscal year 2021, and recently
BEMETRA SIMMONS ...Tampa Bay Partnership New CEO
issued $6 million in grant funding to more than 70
nonprofits for fiscal year 2022.
“I’m excited to see Be- metra take her career to greater heights, particularly with a longtime partner of United Way Suncoast,” said CEO Jessica Muroff, a member of the partnership’s leadership council. “Beme- tra proved to be a dynamic leader for us, solving a range of issues and adding greater efficiency to our operation. I know I speak for everyone here when I say she will be missed. We wish her nothing but the best.”
Mrs. Simmons replaces Rick Homans, who an- nounced in March he would step down after leading the organization for six years. In assuming the lead role at the Tampa Bay Partnership, a coalition of regional business leaders committed to im- proving the personal and economic well-being of Tampa Bay residents, she joins an organization that has and will continue to work closely with United Way Suncoast.
“It is with mixed emo- tions that I announce my res- ignation,” Mrs. Simmons said. “As you know, The Tampa Bay Partnership and United Way Suncoast have a long history of working to- gether most notably with the Regional Competitiveness
Report.
“The opportunity to serve
with an incredibly commit- ted group of passionate team members during such a dy- namic time has been a high- light of my career.”
Mrs. Simmons joined United Way in February of 2020 after distinguishing herself as a Tampa Bay bank- ing executive and civic leader. She previously worked as the Florida Man- aging Director at Mutual of Omaha Bank. She continues to serve on the board of com- missioners for the Tampa Housing Authority, the exec- utive committee on the Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce and the Commu- nity Tampa Bay board.
She’s also a 2013 Leader- ship Tampa graduate, and a member of Leadership Florida Cornerstone Class XXXVIII. The Tampa Bay Business Journal named her an “Up and Comer” in 2013 and a finalist for its business- woman of the year award in 2017. Mrs. Simmons is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She’s married and lives in Tampa with her dog, Char- lie.
Mrs. Simmons’ last day will be Sept. 17. United Way Suncoast will immediately begin its search for her suc- cessor.
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