Michael Leonard Hecht

Michael Leonard Hecht (born August 31, 1970) is an American economic developer and businessman based in New Orleans, who is currently President & CEO of Greater New Orleans, Inc, the post-Hurricane Katrina economic development organization for the New Orleans region. Hecht has previously led the post-Katrina Business Recovery Program for the State of Louisiana, and the post-9/11 Small Business Assistance Program for New York City.[1]

Michael Hecht
Hecht, 2015
Born (1970-08-31) August 31, 1970
New York City, New York, US
Alma materYale University, '92, Stanford University, '98 MBA
OccupationEconomic Developer
Spouse(s)Marlene Friis

Early life and education

Hecht grew up in White Plains, New York. He went to Yale University, where he created a self-designed major in Race Relations, consisting of study in Sociology, Economics and African-American Studies, and later attended Stanford Business School, where he received his MBA in 1998.

Career

After graduating Yale, Hecht went to work for Marakon Associates, a financial and strategic management consultancy. At Marakon, Hecht worked for Fortune 100 companies in the US, Canada, Australia and Europe, including Coca-Cola, IBM and Kellogg. While in business school, Hecht and a partner started Variety Lights Development, a hospitality development and management company in San Francisco. Of three properties opened, their most successful was Foreign Cinema, which opened in August 1999.[2][3]

In 2003 Hecht joined the administration of Mayor Michael Bloomberg, to develop and manage a post 9/11 recovery program for small businesses. As an Assistant Commissioner at the NYC Department of Small Business Services,[4] Hecht opened Business Solution Centers around New York City, as well as developed NYC Business Express, an online portal for opening and running a business. In fall of 2006 Hecht was named Director of Business Recovery for the State of Louisiana, within the Department of Louisiana Economic Development, with the mandate to assist businesses impacted by Hurricane Katrina.[5] Over the next two years, Hecht developed and managed the $220M Louisiana Business Recovery Grant and Loan" program], and the $9.5M Technical Assistance to Small Firms" program.[6]

In summer of 2008, Hecht was named President & CEO with Greater New Orleans, Inc., the economic development organization charged with rebuilding the economy of Greater New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina.[7][8][9] In 2015, he spoke at TEDxNewOrleans.[10]

Recognition

Hecht has been broadly recognized for his economic development work, including: #2 Economic Development Deal in America 2017 (Silver Award);[11] Congressional testimony on the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP);[12] Norman C. Francis Leadership Institute Fellow; "1 of 10 People Who Made a Difference" in the South;[13] "1 of the 25 Most Powerful People" in the 10/12 Corridor;[14] CEO of the Year for 2018 in Biz New Orleans magazine[15]

References
  1. Picchi, Aimee. "New Orleans' economy: recovering from a heart attack". CBS News. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  2. Armstrong, David. "Ambitious Mission restaurant to mix films with food". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  3. "South to the Future". SF Weekly. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  4. "New York City Department of Small Business Services". NYC.gov. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  5. "Faces to Know: Michael Hecht". Baton Rouge Business Report. February 4, 2009. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  6. Carr, Coeli (September 25, 2005). "Afraid of Being on Your Own? That's Healthy (and Also Useful)". The New York Times. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  7. Larino, Jennifer. "How New Orleans nonprofit executive pay compares to other cities". The Times-Picayune. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  8. Eichenhofer, Jim. "24 Seconds With Michael Hecht of Greater New Orleans, Inc". New Orleans Pelicans. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  9. Meyers, Jason (July 10, 2009). "The New Orleans Saints". Entrepreneur.com. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  10. "TEDxNewOrleans". TED.com. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  11. Staff, BF (January 4, 2018). "Foxconn Mega-Project Is Business Facilities' 2017 Deal of the Year". Business Facilities – Area Economic Development, Site Selection & Workforce Solutions. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  12. Sandler, Buckley. "Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Hears Testimony About National Flood Insurance Program". Lexology. Retrieved May 28, 2017.
  13. Randle, Mike. "Ten People Who Made a Difference in the South". Southern Business and Development. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
  14. "25 Most Powerful People on the Corridor". Baton Rouge Business Report. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
  15. "Business People of the Year". Biz New Orleans. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
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