Regional President Speech

Park Street Forum Annual Dinner Thank you Father Quinn. It is truly an honor to have been selected for this award by the Park Street Forum. The Forum has a rich history of convening people of substance and perspective to discuss a wide variety of matters of importance to the city, the Commonwealth and the nation. Given this broad perspective, I am even more honored that you have chosen me for recognition. And I know I follow in the very large footsteps of the two previous award recipients--Governor Weld and Mayor Menino. Together, they seem to be able to get business and government to work together in Boston, following a tradition that I know has had its ups and downs, but now seems on a solid track. And that is a track that we at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston have travelled in the past - under the leadership of my predecessors Frank Morris and Dick Syron--and one that we will continue to travel in the future. Finally, Frank, Dick and I all benefitted from the dedication and competence of the staff of the Boston Fed--they have made assuming leadership positions infinitely easier. Now some may ask why the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston believes so strongly in taking a leadership role in the community, about private-public partnerships, about education and local community development. Aren't we just the local ivory tower think-tank, opining on economic issues and monetary policy? No we're not. In its wisdom over 80 years ago, Congress designed a central bank--the Federal Reserve System--specifically to include regional representation, both as a means to moderate the central control of Washington on money and credit, and to create financial intermediaries in the various regions who would work to stabilize local financial conditions and contribute to local rising standards of living. I believe it is a Reserve Bank's duty and obligation to play a role in the shared private-public leadership of its region, and here in Boston, for at least the last nearly 30 years, we have endeavored to meet that obligation. It seems to be fashionable to deride the quality of business leadership here in Boston. There is no doubt that it takes much time and effort to get things done, a fact that is complicated by the number of business groups that we have. There is also the sense that the presumed tight control previously exercised by groups like the Vault has passed. Many believe the words II business leadership 11 themselves constitute an oxymoron. But I, for one, don't. Nothing is perfect, but I believe the Boston business community has and will continue to play an important leadership role. I was particularly struck by this when Bill Boyan, Moose Mansfeld, Tom Payzant and I made a panel presentation to over 100 members of the Denver Chamber of Commerce who visited here late last month. We talked about the business partnership with the public school system which over the years has created jobs for students, has tried to focus the system on improvements ln measurable outcomes, and is now coming together as never before around a new set of standards, combined funding of programs, and increased involvement in school-to-career efforts. The Denver people were amazed. We're far ahead of them in the focused programs in the business community- we've had our bumps in the road but finally we're poised to make a difference in the quality of the product of the Boston Public Schools. However, even as we recognize that business leadership is not dead, we must consider how it can be continually revitalized and renewed. Our economic structure is changing--large banks and other financial services companies cannot restrict their civic attentions to only one city--they are global now. Utilities are being restructured and face competition for the first time, and large manufacturers have felt the impact of defense downsizing, technological change, and global competition. These traditional leaders continue to play a role, but they must be joined by the large companies who have traditionally stood on the sidelines, and by the host of small and medium-sized companies that see the greater Boston area as their home. Participation in business leadership should be broadly-based--all of you stand to benefit from Boston being a better place to live and work and you should regard it as part of your responsibility to make it so. How to do this? There's no magic answer, but I assure you there is no dearth of groups--the Chamber, many trade associations, the Park Street Forum, just to mention a few--that can both open your eyes to the issues, and show you how you can become involved. In closing, let me reiterate how truly honored I am tonight to be recognized as a leader in this community. People warned me how difficult it might be to assume a leadership role in the small club some seem to think prevails in Boston. To the contrary, my welcome here was warm and embracing and I have found that the time I allocate to spend an civic activities rewards me many times over. I can highly recommend it to all of you. Thank you.

Cathy E. Minehan (1996, October 23). Regional President Speech. Speeches, Federal Reserve. https://whenthefedspeaks.com/doc/regional_speeche_19961024_cathy_e_minehan

@misc{wtfs_regional_speeche_19961024_cathy_e_minehan,
  author = {Cathy E. Minehan},
  title = {Regional President Speech},
  year = {1996},
  month = {Oct},
  howpublished = {Speeches, Federal Reserve},
  url = {https://whenthefedspeaks.com/doc/regional_speeche_19961024_cathy_e_minehan},
  note = {Retrieved via When the Fed Speaks corpus}
}