Salli Martyniak began transitioning out of her role as president of Forward Community Investments at the end of 2019, though she’s quick to say she isn’t retiring; she has more work to do, she’s just ready to do it at her own pace.
Prior to that pseudo-retirement, Martyniak built FCI into a game-changing nonprofit institution for Wisconsin, an accomplishment that earned her a Lifetime Achievement recognition as part of IB’s 2020 Executive of the Year awards.
FCI is an investor, connector, and advisor to mission-driven organizations that reduce racial inequities and socioeconomic disparities throughout the Badger State. During Martyniak’s 16 years as president, FCI’s loan portfolio has grown tenfold, and the breadth of its impact spread even further into all corners of the state.
Martyniak brought millions of dollars of New Market Tax Credits into Wisconsin, at levels that amaze colleagues. At a recent community conference, leaders from much larger organizations were overhead commenting how “FCI has cracked the code” in getting NTMCs, given its multiyear track record of securing an allocation, which is far from commonplace. FCI succeeds because it nurtures relationships that support the success of community projects.
Martyniak also recognized the value of having staff representation outside of Madison. She was instrumental in hiring the organization’s first full-time staff person in Milwaukee, and it’s Martyniak’s vision, connections, dedication, and acumen that have helped grow FCI from a local loan fund — The Dane Fund — to a statewide community development financial institution (CDFI) that has changed the way people think about investing equity for equity. That was realized when FCI merged with the Wisconsin Community Fund to create a hybrid organization that blends the value of a CDFI with the potential of a foundation to make grants, finance loans, and inspire innovation across sectors to reduce social disparities and advance racial equity.
Martyniak was also the driving force behind a multiday Community Investing Conference years ago that brought national, regional, and local experts together to show community leaders of Wisconsin that community investing made good sense — and garnered good returns — long before the quadruple bottom line was part of business vernacular.
She’s most proud of developing a loan program targeted to address the lack of racial and sexual diversity in the real estate development sector. Specifically, the program was designed to grow the financial capacity of real estate developers of color and gender. In the last three years, FCI lent more than $5 million to emerging developers in southeastern Wisconsin. Now, notes Martyniak, these emerging developers are beginning to amass real estate portfolios that — one day — will be the source of wealth for women and people of color.
According to Martyniak, she never envisioned such a long career in community development and financing. “I thought my first job after graduation was going to be just that, a first job. Instead, it grew into a career that I loved. It’s a career I literally fell into it and have never regretted one moment of it. I was made for it and it was made for me. Community development gave me the opportunity to work with good people who wanted to do good for others, and community financing gave me endless opportunities to leverage complicated financial resources and help those good people do good.”
Martyniak has shown her keen leadership insight over a long career, but she notes that the leadership traits that top most “must-have” lists — strategic thinking, team building, and change management — are perhaps not the most important tools for becoming an authentic and effective leader.
“What I hope I’ve passed along to people I’ve mentored through the years is the idea of leading with empathy, a dash of kindness, lots of respect, and, yes, love and hugs,” she remarks. “In other words, ‘do unto others what you want done unto you’ — words that are easy to espouse but not always easy to live by.
“Now, being a woman, we should never confuse empathy with being weak; just because you are leading with empathy doesn’t mean that you can’t wield power,” Martyniak continues. “When I have taken a stand, I find that people tend to take me a little more seriously because they’ve learned to trust me and understand that my ‘stand’ comes from a place of sincerity, authenticity, and, of course, empathy.”
She must have done something right, Martyniak quips, because she’s still good friends with the first two people she hired some 30-plus years ago.
That’s not to say she hasn’t had a few stumbles along the way over the course of her career.
“Mistakes? Where do I begin,” says Martyniak. “I believe my biggest mistake was not following through on a difficult conversation/decision — and it wasn’t just one conversation/decision. We all know that one of the hardest things to do is to address performance issues and I have had my share in the last 30-plus years. For every difficult conversation/decision ignored, I paid for it and so did the organization. I wish I could say that it grew easier over the years, but I can’t. My advice to others is to find a mentor who can serve as your support and use them as your personal sounding board. Be sure it’s someone whose honesty you can accept, and be ready to follow through on their advice.”
Martyniak notes that her Lifetime Achievement recognition is humbling to the point of tears. “I really do consider myself blessed to have found a career that includes so many exceptionally bright, kind people who are dedicated to doing good in their communities. While I would love to have personal monetary wealth to give away, what I have is 30-plus years of experience and networks that I can share with others. To be nominated for the Executive of the Year award is a gift; at the same time, to have people like Melanie Schmidt in my life who would take the time and energy — and think enough of me — to nominate me for this award is an even bigger gift.”
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