By Brooke Thomson
President and CEO

It’s time to celebrate Massachusetts employers and the central role they play in creating economic opportunity for the people of the commonwealth.

The AIM Annual Meeting will take place May 8 in Boston, and we hope you will join us for a full-throated tribute to the companies and elected officials who together make the Massachusetts economy work. We’ll honor a prominent Massachusetts biopharmaceutical executive, the commonwealth’s two top lawmakers and a Springfield organization that blends business acumen with a sense of humanity to ensure that people in Western Massachusetts have a place to call home.

Forget what you know about annual meetings – boring shareholder resolutions, long-winded speeches and financial reports. Think instead about mixing with 500 business leaders from some of the most interesting and successful companies in Massachusetts.

Julie Kim, president of Takeda’s U.S. Business Unit, U.S. country head and incoming CEO, effective June 2026, will deliver the keynote address to the event at the Westin Boston Seaport District hotel. Ms. Kim will also accept the 2025 AIM Vision Award, which recognizes companies, organizations and individuals who have made unique contributions to the cause of economic opportunity in Massachusetts.

House Speaker Ronald Mariano and Senate President Karen Spilka will jointly accept the second annual Frances Perkins Award for their efforts to pass Massachusetts’ new wage equity and transparency law last year. The law is named for Ms. Perkins, a Mount Holyoke College graduate who served as the nation’s first female Secretary of Labor.

The 2025 AIM Lewis Latimer Award, given to a Massachusetts organization that has created economic opportunity for underserved communities, will be presented to Way Finders, which has built more than 800 affordable housing units in 24 developments across western Massachusetts.

And that’s just the beginning. Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll will return to the Annual Meeting for the third consecutive year to deliver opening remarks. And AIM continues its commitment to economic inclusion with an interactive vendor showcase highlighting diverse small businesses as part of AIM Business Connect.

Ultimately, the AIM Annual Meeting reminds us of the importance of collective action and enlightened leadership on behalf of the business community. It’s also a rare opportunity to experience the power of learning from distinguished business leaders, prominent policymakers and promising entrepreneurs all in one place.

I look forward to seeing you there.