Ferlanda Fox Nixon
By Joshua Burd
The Newark Regional Business Partnership has found its next CEO and president, naming Ferlanda Fox Nixon to the post atop the networking and advocacy group.
The organization’s board of directors on Tuesday said Nixon will assume the role effective Sept. 16, joining an association with strong ties to the city’s commercial real estate sector. She’ll succeed Chip Hallock, the highly regarded CEO who is retiring after 25 years of service, and will be responsible for all administrative and management functions while executing NRBP’s mission to strengthen the greater Newark business community and increase its economic competitiveness.
Nixon comes to NRBP from senior leadership roles with the African American Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey, where she most recently was chief of policy and external affairs.
“I am excited and honored to join the Newark Regional Business Partnership team as president and CEO,” Nixon said. “Newark is a terrific regional business community with unlimited potential. I’m looking forward to working with the board, staff and members as we proactively engage with businesses of all sizes to positively impact the community and the region.”
NRBP Board Chair Jennifer Mazawey, a partner and real estate attorney with K&L Gates, added: “We are very excited that Ferlanda will be leading NRBP and helping us to forward our mission. Ferlanda brings an outstanding record of success in partnering with a wide variety of constituents and is recognized as a collaborator. We look forward to her leadership now and in the years to come.”
Nixon and Hallock will work together during her initial weeks to ensure a smooth organizational transition.
“It is a pleasure to have Ferlanda take the reins,” Hallock said. “She is the consummate professional and I am confident that she will successfully execute and expand on NRBP’s mission and vision. Her leadership will help continue to grow NRBP’s impact on and in the greater Newark business community.”
In a news release, NRBP said Nixon brings more than 30 years of leadership experience as a corporate attorney, independent business consultant, nonprofit leader and chamber of commerce executive. She has an undergraduate degree in political science from Syracuse University and a JD from Georgetown University Law Center. She also holds the professional certification of Certified Association Executive from the American Society of Association Executives and is a graduate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for Organization Management.
NRBP’s board retained Waverly Partners, a national executive search firm, to assist in the recruiting effort, the news release said. Waverly Partners contacted hundreds of executives at chambers of commerce, economic development organizations and other public- and private-sector leaders over the course of the search.
