Greater Richmond Partnership taps new CEO

Interim leader Jennifer Wakefield chosen as permanent head

Published February 22, 2021 by Kate Andrews

Jennifer Wakefield, president and CEO, Greater Richmond Partnership. Photo by Shandell Taylor

Greater Richmond Partnership’s board announced Monday that Jennifer Wakefield, the regional economic development organization’s interim leader, has been chosen as its permanent president and CEO, effective immediately.

Wakefield, who previously was chief operating officer and served twice as the partnership’s interim president, joined GRP in 2017 as its senior vice president of marketing. She replaces Lara Fritts, who resigned in October after only a little more than a year as the public-private partnership’s leader. Wakefield was vice president of marketing and communications for the Orlando Economic Development Commission for 11 years, before coming to Richmond, and last year, she was named one of the top 50 economic developers in the country by Consultant Connect.

Wakefield is a 2018 graduate of Lead Virginia and serves on several boards, including as chair of the Marketing Advisory Committee for the International Economic Development Council and a member of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond’s Industry Roundtable. She has a master’s degree in communications from the University of Central Florida and a bachelor’s degree in public relations and advertising from the University of West Florida, as well as her Accreditation in Public Relations (APR).

“Jennifer has established a new strategic framework for GRP, which includes working closer with our partners than ever before,” GRP Board of Directors Chair Leslie Haley said in a statement. “The board looks forward to future success under her leadership.”