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06/11/2026
9:45am - 11:00am
InterContinental Boston
This blog outlines five essential tips to help you get the most out of your Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce membership.
Browse our directory to find and connect with member community.
Join experiences that build relationships and spark ideas.
Curated events and experiences for young adults in Greater Boston —built around community, culture, and connection. Join the Young Bostonians Collective.
Level up your leadership and communication in this Boston Chamber workshop for professionals—gain essential skills in team alignment.
The Massachusetts Apprentice Network convenes employers, training providers, and talent sources interested in developing and implementing apprenticeship programs in occupations across industries and statewide in fields such as tech, advanced manufacturing, healthcare, financial services, and more.
Our Women’s Leadership Program enables you to take your leadership to the next level by arming you with the most in-demand leadership toolkit.
The Chamber Foundation invites the business community to engage with Boston Public Schools leaders and their students to help build the future workforce.
Our Boston’s Future Leaders (BFL) program provides emerging leaders with a socially conscious and civically engaged leadership toolkit, as well as the opportunity to apply their knowledge through experiential assignments.
Learn how we advance talent and small business growth.
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Building Massachusetts’ Future, Together
Diving into the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s work and the many ways to get involved.
As part of the Chamber’s Building Massachusetts’ Future Together series, we’re exploring the strategies, investments, and collaborations shaping a stronger, more inclusive economic future for the Commonwealth. If you missed the series introduction, you can read it here for context on why this work matters and how it connects across sectors.
This installment focuses on the most essential driver of a thriving economy: people. Massachusetts’ long-term success depends on the people who live and work here. But today, too many residents face barriers to staying, growing their careers, or building a future in the region. Employers are navigating talent shortages. Young professionals are weighing whether to stay or leave. Entrepreneurs are working to sustain and scale in a challenging environment.
At this critical moment, the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Foundation is focused on investing in people as its core priority. Because a strong, competitive economy is only possible when individuals at every stage—from students to experienced workers to small business owners—have clear pathways to opportunity.
Through its work focused on workforce development, small business support, and economic inclusion, the Chamber Foundation is helping build a more resilient, inclusive talent pipeline for Massachusetts and strengthen the communities and businesses that rely on it.
A competitive workforce doesn’t happen by accident. It is built through intentional partnerships, early exposure, and accessible pathways into growing industries.
The Chamber Foundation’s workforce and talent development initiatives are designed to meet this need by simultaneously connecting people to career opportunities and helping employers source the talent they need to compete.
Through its Partnership with Boston Public Schools, the Chamber Foundation connects employers with educators to deliver career-connected learning. These experiences—ranging from classroom engagement to financial literacy programming—help students develop skills, expand their networks, and envision future career pathways early on.
For young professionals already in the workforce, the recently revamped Young Bostonians Collective (formerly City Awake) provides a sense of connection and belonging that is critical to retention. In 2025 alone, more than 1,000 young residents engaged in programming designed to support career growth, civic engagement, and long-term commitment to Greater Boston.
At the same time, the Massachusetts Apprentice Network is building scalable pathways into high-demand, wealth-building careers. By bringing together employers and training providers, the initiative expands apprenticeship opportunities that meet real workforce needs while creating equitable access to economic mobility.
As one apprentice shared:
– Michael Meaney, WinnCompanies
These efforts reflect a larger goal: ensuring that talent is not only developed, but retained, across the Commonwealth.
Small businesses are the backbone of Massachusetts’ economy, driving job creation, innovation, and community vitality. But they also face some of the greatest barriers to access, growth, and long-term stability.
The Chamber Foundation’s small business programming focuses on meeting entrepreneurs where they are by offering hands-on support, trusted guidance, and connections to the broader ecosystem.
Through First Call by Small Business Strong, microbusiness owners can access free, one-on-one advising tailored to their needs. In 2025, 11 advisors supported 225 small businesses across the region, many of them women-owned, people-of-color-owned, and located in Gateway Cities.
For business owners, the impact is immediate and practical:
– Phil Carbo, Cinema Purradiso Cat Cafe
By helping entrepreneurs navigate challenges, identify opportunities, and connect to resources, the Chamber Foundation is strengthening individual businesses, and, in turn, the communities they serve.
Building a strong economy means ensuring opportunity is accessible to everyone, and that requires system-level change.
Through the Pacesetters Responsible Sourcing Network, the Chamber Foundation is working with corporations and anchor institutions to expand access to procurement opportunities for small businesses. By connecting buyers with contract-ready vendors, the initiative helps redirect spending in ways that support local growth and long-term stability.
For small businesses, these connections can be transformative:
– Angela Hofmann, Nüssli118°
This work demonstrates how corporate leadership and intentional collaboration can drive meaningful, measurable progress toward a more inclusive economy.
From affordability challenges to workforce shortages to economic uncertainty, the pressures facing residents and businesses across Massachusetts are real.
As Chamber Foundation President & Board Chair, Jim Rooney, shared in the Foundation’s Annual Impact Report:
“Across the Commonwealth, many residents are struggling to stay, work, and build their futures in the region… The Chamber Foundation’s work underscores its capacity to drive meaningful economic mobility for all people across Massachusetts.”
By focusing on workforce development, small business success, and economic inclusion, the Chamber Foundation is addressing the issues that matter most while creating pathways to stability, growth, and long-term prosperity.
This is not just about individual programs. It is about building a system where talent is nurtured, businesses can thrive, and opportunity is within reach for everyone.
Be a Part of What’s Next
The work of building Massachusetts’ future is collective. And there are many ways to be part of it:
Together, we can ensure Massachusetts remains a place where people and businesses don’t just stay but succeed.
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