2012 Presenters

Barbara Berke

Barbara Berke has served Boston's Mayor Menino as a Senior Policy Advisor since 2005, where she supported the Mayor and fellow cabinet members in coordinating policies to achieve cross-departmental goals. Appointed in 2003 by Governor Romney, Berke served the Commonwealth as the Secretary of Economic Development, overseeing six agencies including the offices of International Trade and Investment, Business Development, Travel and Tourism, Minority and Women Business Assistance, Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Industry and Technology Competitiveness. Prior to public service, Berke was a partner and Vice President of The Boston Consulting Group, a global strategy consulting firm for twenty years. Berke serves on the boards of the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City and Northeastern University's School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs. She received her MBA from Harvard Business School in 1982.