Tampa, FL – October 31, 2024 – The Tampa Bay Partnership is pleased to announce Nikky Flores, Florida Region Manager for Middle Market Banking at JPMorgan Chase, as the 27th Chair of the organization. Flores will assume the role most recently held by Brian Auld, President and CEO of the Tampa Bay Rays and Vice Chairman of the Tampa Bay Rowdies, following the conclusion of a two-year term. Brian Butler, President and CEO of Vistra Communications, has been appointed the Tampa Bay Partnership’s Secretary/Treasurer for fiscal year 2025.
“I am honored to serve as the next Chair at the Tampa Bay Partnership,” said Flores. “As we focus on recovery from the recent storms, our community needs the Tampa Bay Partnership more than ever as a convener of key leaders and local businesses to help regain our footing and continue to make Tampa Bay a great place to live and work. I look forward to using my experience in helping businesses grow and thrive to help the Tampa Bay Partnership have an even greater impact in our shared community.”
Flores has more than 20 years of financial services experience in the Florida banking market. As the head of Middle Market Banking for JPMorgan Chase across Florida, Flores is responsible for leading the business’s efforts across the state serving midsize companies. She earned a degree in Organizational Leadership at the University of Central Florida.
Flores has been on the board of the Tampa Bay Partnership for three years. During that time, she helped highlight the importance of affordable housing in the region as a means to ensure there is a place for everyone to live in Tampa Bay. In 2023, the Tampa Bay Partnership received $250,000 from JPMorgan Chase to measure the depth and breadth of the regional housing crisis. The two-year investment will support research and reporting on housing affordability needs across Hillsborough, Pasco, and Pinellas counties over five years. Flores also served as Secretary/Treasurer and Co-Chair of the Talent Working Group Workforce Subcommittee for the Tampa Bay Partnership.
“Nikky understands our region’s unique challenges as an expert in workforce issues and strategies,” Auld said. “Her strong connections and extensive community engagement will greatly benefit her as she leads the Tampa Bay Partnership as Chair.”
Under Auld’s leadership, the Partnership successfully advocated for funding to support Brightline Trains, the Regional Infrastructure Accelerator, early-education tax incentives for business owners, and more. He was also critical in forming the Housing Affordability Task Force and shepherded the release of the Benchmarking Uptown report.
“This changing of the guard comes at an exciting time for the Tampa Bay Partnership. Nikky’s leadership and experience in workforce development will build off the strides we have made under Brian’s tenure,” says Bemetra Simmons, President and CEO of the Tampa Bay Partnership. “We look forward to continuing to make strides in transportation, education, housing affordability, talent, and other emerging issues impacting the residents and businesses across the eight counties we serve.”
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About the Tampa Bay Partnership
The Tampa Bay Partnership is a coalition of regional business and non-profit leaders that is joined by a shared commitment to improving Tampa Bay residents’ personal and economic well-being. Formally incorporated in 1994 and re-established in 2016 as a regional research and public policy organization, the Partnership works with the region’s top employers, along with a diverse group of government and non-profit partners, to identify and address the most pressing challenges facing our community, including transportation, talent, racial equity, and other emerging issues.
For more information, please contact:
Shannon Kalahar
Tampa Bay Partnership
Senior Director of Strategic Communications
(727) 741-5440
skalahar@tampabay.org