Board

Kevin McCall
President and CEO, Paradigm Properties and Paradigm Capital Advisors
Founder of Building Impact and Chair of the Board of Directors

Kevin is the President & CEO of Paradigm Properties, a full-service commercial real estate firm, and Paradigm Capital Advisors, a real estate investment management firm.  Prior to forming Paradigm in 1997, Mr. McCall was a principal of Aldrich, Eastman & Watch, L.P. where he directed the real estate investment and management for institutional clients and, during the 1980's, was a Partner and Senior Vice President of Spaulding & Slye, a multi-region development company.

In addition to his commitment to Building Impact, Mr. McCall also serves on the governing boards of The Boston Center for Community and Justice, MetroLacrosse, Hearth, and The Boston Museum Project and the advisory boards of The Irish Immigration Center and Citizen Schools - Boston.  Kevin is an active member of the Urban Land Institute and a Board Member of the National Association of Office and Industrial Properties – Massachusetts Chapter.

Mr. McCall has an A.B. from Harvard College, an MBA from Harvard University School of Business Administration and is a LeadBoston Fellow. As Building Impact's Founder and Board Chair, Kevin brings vision, leadership and a deep commitment to issues of civic engagement and social justice to Building Impact.

Thomas K. Albert
Vice President, John M. Corcoran and Company 

Thomas K. Albert is Vice President of Development for John M. Corcoran and Company, where he is responsible for developing projects in the Greater Boston area.  Prior to joining John M. Corcoran and Company in 2000, Mr. Albert was a Managing Director of AEW Capital Management, an institutional real estate advisor, primarily serving Fortune 500 pension funds. AEWCM has approximately $15 billion under management.   He was the Director of Asset Management from 1996-2000 and was employed there for 14 years.  Prior to AEWCM, he was with New England Telephone Company’s (now Verizon) Real Estate Department for six years.  He received a Masters of Business Administration from Babson College and a Bachelor of Science from The University of Massachusetts in Amherst.  He is a member of the National Multi-Housing Council, the Urban Land Institute and the Real Estate Finance Association (REFA).

Tom knows buildings and how to build great portfolios of them. He brings perspective, fiscal expertise, real estate experience and connections to our Board of Directors.

Jon Aram
Partner, Next Street Financial

Jon is a Partner at Next Street Financial, a merchant bank that provides flexible debt and equity financing to small businesses in Boston.  Prior to joining Next Street Financial, Jon worked as a management consultant for over 10 years at Marakon Associates, Galt & Company and ran his own business, Responsible World. Jon holds a B.A. in Economics from Yale University and has guided and advised Building Impact since 2001.

Mr. Aram has deep experience in building winning corporate-community partnerships and provides expert insight to the Building Impact staff about program development and evolution, measurement and organizational growth.

Jeremy M. Blanche
Vice President, Citizens Bank

Jeremy is an Assistant Vice President at Citizens Bank working as a Relationship Manager in the Regional Lending unit of the bank.  Jeremy’s current position entails establishing financing for small businesses with revenues up to thirty million dollars and establishing Commercial Mortgages, Equipment Loans and working capital lines of credit.  He manages a portfolio of over two hundred companies for the bank, including over twenty credit relationships.

Jeremy was born and raised in South Eastern Pennsylvania and graduated in 1995 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and a concentration in Marketing from Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania.

Jeremy is an active community volunteer and brings the enthusiasm, energy and networks of an emerging business and civic leader to Building Impact.

Simon Butler
Executive Director of Cushman & Wakefield, Inc. Capital Markets Group.

Mr. Butler is currently an Executive Director with Cushman & Wakefield, Inc’s Capital Markets Group. Prior to Cushman & Wakefield, Inc., Mr. Butler was with CB Richard Ellis New England, as a member of the Investment Properties Group. Since January of 1996, he has dedicated his focus to the marketing of apartment communities and was included as a member of CB Richard Ellis Multi-Housing Group. Mr. Butler was elected as a partner of CB Richard Ellis/Whittier Partners in 2002. To date during his career, Mr. Butler has sold over 25,000 apartment units for a total consideration in excess of $3.2 billion. Simon was named to the “Top 200” sales professionals nationwide for CB Richard Ellis in 1997, 2000, 2004 and 2005.

Simon is an experienced leader in the residential property world as the leading investment broker of multi-family property in the Greater Boston area. His unique understanding of local communities and depth of experience will help guide and support Building Impact’s growth in residential properties.

Kelly Gaule
Director of Development, AIDS Action Committee of MA

Kelly brings over twelve years of development experience to her current role as the Director of Development at the AIDS Action Committee of MA. Her career in the non-profit sector originated at the New Orleans Symphony Orchestra, where she rose to the position of Assistant Director of Development. She teaches fundraising to students at the Simmons School of Social Work Urban Leadership Program.

Kelly, an amazing chef, brings method and flavor to Building Impact’s fundraising, board development and organizational planning initiatives.

Gary F. Gut
Non-profit Trustee, Retired Strategic Consultant and Entrepreneur

Gary F. Gut is a former strategic Management Consultant (Bain & Company) and serial entrepreneur (Sound Synergy, Medivision, Medical Management of America, John Harvard's Brew House chain, Rural Cellular, LLP).  Currently Mr. Gut is Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees of Buckingham Browne & Nichols School in Cambridge, MA and the Conservatory Lab Charter School in Boston, MA.  He is also a member of the Board of Advisors of The Advent School in Boston, MA.

Gary provides strategic guidance, entrepreneurial mentoring and support and BIG IDEAS to Building Impact.

Reesa Fischer
Senior Vice President, NAIOP

Reesa Fischer is the senior vice president, NAIOP Massachusetts reporting to the CEO and providing leadership and oversight in key areas of the chapter's affairs. Reesa has over 20 years of experience building relationships, promoting brand awareness, and providing award-winning creative marketing services for local and national firms.

Prior to her role at NAIOP Massachusetts she served as vice president at Doerr Associates, a marketing and communications firm specializing in commercial real estate, where she oversaw new business development as well as all strategic marketing programs. She has also been an active volunteer and committee member in many industry organizations, including NAIOP, NEWIRE, and the Urban Land Institute, giving her invaluable perspective on the unique role of industry associations and the services they offer.

Prior to Doerr, she was the vice president of product and brand development for Beacon Communities, where she oversaw the firm's corporate and community marketing and public relations efforts. Earlier in her career, she was Regional Vice President for The Collaborative Companies and The Codman Company. Ms. Fischer earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Boston University's School of Management with a dual concentration in Marketing and Finance. Ms. Fischer and her family live in Newton, Massachusetts.

Richard M. Perlmutter
Professor of Law, Suffolk University Law School

Richard Perlmutter comes to Building Impact from his position as Professor of Law at Suffolk University Law School, teaching courses in subjects including Contracts and Negotiation for Lawyers. Prior to joining the Suffolk Law School Faculty, he served as law clerk to the Justices of the Massachusetts Superior Court and engaged in the private practice of law in Boston, specializing in areas including real estate and business. Richard is a member of the Massachusetts Bar and of the Boston, Massachusetts and American Bar Associations and the Sports Lawyers Association. He is a cum laude graduate of Harvard University Law School and a magna cum laude graduate of Tufts University.

As a successful lawyer, an acclaimed academic, and a longstanding member of the community, Richard offers Building Impact critical guidance on legal matters, as well as a deep understanding of relationship building within the community.

Mary Rivet
Co-Director, Social Innovation Forum, Cambridge, MA

Mary is Co-Director of the Social Innovation Forum, a Cambridge nonprofit organization that accelerates the development of enduring solutions to social problems by directing an alternative flow of local resources to innovative, results-oriented nonprofit organizations in the Great Boston area. At the Social Innovation Forum, Mary focuses on developing the consulting services that the Forum delivers to the organizations in its portfolio, measuring social impact, and planning for growth. Prior to joining the Forum she was a Principal at Mercer Management Consulting, where she specialized in strategic planning, management education and organization change for clients across a wide range of industries. She has served on nonprofit boards and committees, giving her an in-depth knowledge of the management issues confronting nonprofit leaders. She has particular expertise in governance; trustee recruitment, orientation and training; development; and long-range planning. Mary holds an M.A. in Economics from Georgetown University, where she was a Graduate Fellow concentrating in Econometrics, Public Finance, and Urban and Regional Economics. She graduated cum laude with a B.S. in International Affairs from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. 

Helene Solomon
President and CEO, Solomon McCown & Company, Inc.

Helene Solomon is the founder of Solomon McCown & Company, Inc. and is widely recognized for bringing an entrepreneurial spirit and keen sense of strategic thinking to the recognition, definition and protection of industry-leading businesses and organizations in Boston.

Helene is active in Greater Boston community affairs, serving on the board of directors of the Visiting Nurse Association of Boston, Jewish Big Brother/Big Sister Association of Greater Boston, and B’nai B’rith Housing. She also serves on the Dean’s Advisory Committee at Boston University’s College of Communications, The Commonwealth Institute’s Executive Women’s Advisory Board, and the Advisory Board of Boston Women Communicators.

Helene has a master's degree in communications/public affairs journalism from The American University and a bachelor's degree in public communication from Boston University. She brings the perspective and charisma of an experienced civic leader and female entrepreneur to our organization during this critical time of growth and scale.