Gregory Buscone, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Banking Officer of Eastern Bank, has been elected Chair of the Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM) Board of Directors.

Members of the statewide business association elected Buscone during a meeting on May 3. He succeeds Patricia Begrowicz, President of Onyx Specialty Papers in South Lee, who led the board for two years.

Buscone will serve with a leadership group that includes Vice Chair Tricia Canavan, CEO of The Tech Foundry in Springfield; Treasurer Marie Johnson, Vice President of Finance and Treasurer at Ken’s Foods in Marlboro; and Clerk Marianne Lancaster, Owner and CEO of Lancaster Packaging in Hudson.

Brooke Thomson, President and Chief Executive of AIM, which represents the interests of 3,400 companies throughout Massachusetts, will continue to work closely with the leadership group.

AIM members also re-elected 14 members of the Board of Directors:

• Joe Bahena, Joseph Abboud Mfg. Co.
• Phyllis Barajas, Conexion
• Anne Broholm, Ahead LLC
• David Bugbee, Citizens Bank
• Brian Burke, Microsoft Corp.
• Carol Campbell, Chicopee Industrial Contractors
• Scott Chatlin, Twin Rivers Technologies
• Jack Derby, Tufts University
• Carol Holahan, Foley Hoag
• Ted Kane, Strategic Benefit Advisors
• John Lynch, Lynch, DeSimone & Nylen
• John Stowe, LUTCO
• Meghan Sullivan, Sullivan, Hayes & Quinn; and
• Luis Yepez, Mainstream Global

Elected to a first term as directors were:

• Saskia Epstein, Vice President, Client and Community Relations, PNC Bank, Boston
• Keith Fairey, President and Chief Executive Officer, Way Finders, Springfield
• Stacy Gilmour, Vice President of Human Resources, Quabbin Wire & Cable Co., Ware
• Becca Gould, Senior Vice President, Public Affairs, American Tower, Woburn
• Michael Keneally, Owner, Accutech Packaging Inc., Foxborough
• Michael Knapik, Vice President, Government & Community Relations, Baystate Health, Springfield
• Stephanie Lee State Government Affairs and Public Policy Director, Verizon
• Kristen Lewis, Executive Vice President and Chief Public and Community Affairs Officer, Point32Health, Canton; and
• Liz Schwab, Head of External Affairs, Northeast & MidAtlantic, Google, Cambridge

“I am honored to be elected board chair of this vibrant organization that represents employers from every corner of the Commonwealth and every segment of the Massachusetts economy,” Buscone said.

“I Iook forward to working with the board of directors, President and CEO Brooke Thomson, and the AIM staff to continue our work to strengthen the Commonwealth’s economic climate, be a thought partner and go-to resource for our local employers, and ensure Massachusetts remains a great place to live and work for everyone.”

Buscone has served in multiple roles with AIM, including Vice Chair of the Board, Treasurer, Chair of the Investment Committee, and Co-Chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee.

“Greg Buscone has played a significant role in guiding AIM’s mission to expand economic opportunity to residents, workers and businesses here in Massachusetts. We’re delighted that he will help to write the next chapter in the history of this 109-year-old organization,” Thomson said.

Buscone is a 35-year corporate banking leader who at Eastern Bank oversees a $10 billion commercial portfolio that included commercial and industrial lending, commercial real estate, and community development/not-for-profit lending. He is an expert in financing strategies for corporate growth and succession planning for family-owned companies, with sector experience serving the needs of manufacturers, wholesalers and security alarm companies.

Prior to joining Eastern, Buscone spent 17 years at Citizens Bank, serving as a Senior Vice President and Market Manager for Massachusetts Middle Market and Specialized Lending. He began his commercial banking career in 1986 at Shawmut Bank, which later became Fleet Bank.

Eastern Bank has approximately $21 billion in total assets and more than 115 locations serving communities in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island.

In a separate vote on May 3, members of the AIM board re-elected the following directors to serve on the association’s Executive Committee:

• Joe Bahena, Joseph Abboud Mfg. Co.
• Brian Burke, Microsoft Corp.
• Tricia Canavan, Tech Foundry
• John Doucette, M&T Bank
• Leslie Greis, Kinefac Corporation
• Joanne Hilferty, Morgan Memorial Goodwill Industries
• Dan Kenary, Mass Bay Brewing Company
• Marianne Lancaster, Lancaster Packaging
• John Lynch, Lynch, DeSimone & Nylen
• James McCarthy, R.H. White Companies
• Jesse Stanesa, Fidelity Investments
• Lynn Tokarczyk, Business Development Strategies

Those elected to a first term on the Executive Committee include:

• Michael Caljouw – Vice President, Government & Regulatory Affairs, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts
• Carol Campbell – President & CEO, Chicopee Industrial Contractors
• Bill Grant – Executive Vice President, Cummings Properties, LLC
• Dominick Ianno – Head of State Government Relations | Law Department, MassMutual
• Anthony Samuels – President & CEO, DRB Facility Services, Inc.

The board also elected three emeritus directors:

• William Blanker
• Peter Chase
• Sam Cabot