Janyce Fadden

President

As President of the Rockford Area Economic Development Council, Janyce is responsible for managing all the organization’s efforts, including business retention and expansion, new business recruitment, and improving the business climate of our region. In her role for the RAEDC, Janyce serves on the boards of the Rockford Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, Rockford Area Ventures, Rockford Chamber of Commerce, Rockford Local Development Corporation, and Stateline Angels. She also serves on the City of Rockford Sister City Advisory Commission, the executive committee of Northern Illinois Commuter Transportation Initiative, and the steering committee of the Tri-State Alliance. Janyce also serves as Executive Director of the I-39 Logistics Corridor Association.

Prior to joining the RAEDC in June, 2004, Janyce served in various capacities as President, Vice President, and General Manager for Honeywell, General Signal, Applied Power, Pacific Scientific, and Danaher. 

Janyce earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering and Management from Clarkson University in Potsdam, New York, and she earned her Master of Business Administration degree from Northern Illinois University.

Janyce currently serves on the Board of Rockford Sexual Assault Counseling. She is also on the Rockford Alumni Board for the Northern Illinois University College of Business and was honored as the 2005 Alumni of the Year. In 2008, she was privileged with receiving the Dr. Mildred Freeburg Berry Award from the League of Women Voters for outstanding civic leadership.

Email: jfadden@rockfordil.com

815.969.4264

Mark Podemski

Vice President for Development

As Vice President for Development for the Rockford Area Economic Development Council (RAEDC), Mark is responsible for assisting clients with business expansion and retention efforts. 

Prior to joining the RAEDC staff in February of 2005, Mark held several leadership positions during his 19-year career at Honeywell International in product and engineering management, factory operations, sales, and business development. In 2004, Mark established a management-consulting company focused on assisting clients with performance-improvement approaches.

Mark serves on the Boone and Winnebago Workforce Investment Board and chairs the Planning Committee. Mark is also the current President of the Chicago chapter of the Swedish American Chambers of Commerce (SACC) and he serves on the SACC USA Board and Executive Committee.

Mark holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin and a Master of Business Administration degree from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts.

Email: mpodemski@rockfordil.com

815.969.4254

Eric Voyles

Vice President of National Business Development

Eric joined the staff of Rockford Area Economic Development Council (RAEDC) in February of 2006. Eric leads the region’s business attraction outreach efforts. He serves as the liaison between the Rockford Region and national real estate community, global site selectors and private companies considering first time investment in the Rockford Region.

Eric has over 17 years of experience in economic development with expertise in foreign investment attraction (China), business park planning and development, government and ally partnership development, and airport and rail-related logistics. He is also experienced in labor market assessment, strategic planning, existing business development, and entrepreneurship and incubator development.

Eric graduated from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, specializing in Finance and Economics, and a master’s degree in Public Administration with a specialization in Economic Development. Most recently Eric was the founding President and CEO of the Galesburg Regional Economic Development Association and prior to that he was the Vice President of Economic Development for the River Bend Growth Association; the third largest Chamber Of Commerce in the greater St. Louis area. Eric serves on the Board of Director’s of the Mid-American Economic Development Council (MAEDC) and the Illinois Development Council (IDC). He is a member of the International Economic Development Council, Industrial Asset Management Council, the Chicago Traffic Club, Intermodal Association of North America, The International Air Cargo Association, among other organizations.

Email: evoyles@rockfordil.com

815.969.4256

Mary Cacioppi

Director of Investor Relations

As Director of Investor Relations for the Rockford Area Economic Development Council, Mary Cacioppi coordinates the efforts of investors, board members, and staff to increase and sustain private and public-sector investments in support of the RAEDC. Mary is responsible for a $7.5 Million capital campaign in support of the RAEDC’s five-year strategic plan for 2008-2012, called Rockforward! Mary also serves as staff liaison for the Rockforward! President’s Circle and Rockforward! Leadership Council, and she chairs the Attracting and Retaining Talent to the Rockford Area Steering Committee.

Mary is an active member of Next Rockford and serves on their Business Environment Team. She is also a member of IGNITE, and serves on the Roscoe Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, Boylan High School Alumni Board, and is the chairperson of Boylan's Business & Professional Network.

Mary has completed three years of the Community Development Institute and is now eligible for certification as a Community and Economic Development Professional through the CDI.

She holds a B.A. in business administration from Madison University and graduated with Honors Cum Laude. Mary was a recipient of the Rockford Chambers '40 Leaders Under 40' award in 2008; and was honored with the Woman Business Leader of Tomorrow award through the Rockford Chamber in 2009.

Email: mcacioppi@rockfordil.com

815.969.4259

Genevieve Borich

Director of Research and Planning

As Director of Research and Planning for the Rockford Area Economic Development Council, Genevieve Borich works on managing data and research as well as telling the story of this information for the organization.  With a background in Urban Planning, Sustainability, and Graphic Design, she is currently working on completing her Doctorate in urban planning through the University of Illinois.  She earned her Bachelor of Science in Urban Planning from Iowa State University and Masters in Urban Planning through the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. 

Email: gborich@rockfordil.com

815.969.4252

Leilani Hillis

Manager of Operations

As Manager of Operations for the Rockford Area Economic Development Council, Leilani is responsible coordinating the daily operations of the organization including the finance and HR duties. She provides support to the President and RAEDC management staff, as well as supporting events and various marketing projects. Leilani acts as staff liaison to the RAEDC Board of Directors, including Audit and Nominating Committees. 

Leilani joined the RAEDC in October of 2000, with several years of customer service experience. She represents the organization as a Certified Notary Public.

Email: lhillis@rockfordil.com

815.969.4253

Carrie Zethmayr

Manager of International Relations and Client Solutions

Joining the staff in 2008, Carrie supports business attraction initiatives, focusing on attracting investment into our region from international partners. Carrie develops and manages relationships with Chinese government and business contacts both in China and in the United States. She also manages the organization’s Global Relations newsletter, a newsletter directed to our Chinese contacts that keeps them updated on developments in the Rockford area’s business community, particularly as it relates to Chinese investment in our region.

Carrie assists in developing international marketing strategies based on the Rockford Area’s industry clusters. As clients are interested in investing in the Rockford Area, she provides support to the Vice President of National Business Development in responding to these clients’ needs. Additionally, Carrie provides support to initiatives that promote export growth from our region, serving to connect local companies to trade organizations, international consulates and government export promotion agencies.

Collaborating with local public and private partners, Carrie also organizes international trade missions from the Rockford Area to promote our region as a location for foreign direct investment and to assist local companies in connecting with foreign markets.

Carrie is a 2008 Beloit College graduate who majored in languages and Asian Studies. In 2006 and 2007 she lived in Jinan, China where she studied Chinese language and culture. Carrie speaks both Mandarin and French.

Email: czethmayr@rockfordil.com

815.969.4263

Alison Lakey

Administrative Services Coordinator

As Administrative Services Coordinator for the Rockford Area Economic Development Council (RAEDC), Alison serves as the receptionist for the organization, being the first point of contact for investors, clients, and partners. She maintains a central contact database which supports the comprehensive network that is utilized for the work of the RAEDC. She also compiles a log of media hits that reference the RAEDC, its’ investors and regional business. She coordinates the event calendar and resolution of information technology issues for the organization. 

Alison is from the Rockford community, graduated from Auburn High School and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Beloit College. She joined the staff in June of 2008 with several years of customer service and human resource experience. She is involved in several community organizations that support sustainability and social justice.

Email: alakey@rockfordil.com

815.969.4260