IRI DEI Thought Leader Interview – Brennon Marcano, Chief Executive Officer: The National GEM Consortium

October 2022

IRI’s Lee Green interviews Brennon Marcano, CEO of the National GEM Consortium. The GEM Fellows program aims to increase the participation of underrepresented groups at the master’s and doctoral levels in engineering and science. Learn about how the GEM Consortium is increasing diversity in industry and academia and the ways that they match fellows with the right organizations to maximize success.

Brennon Marcano is the Chief Executive Officer of The National GEM Consortium. He has over 20 years of experience in the private and nonprofit sectors. His leadership experience spans multiple industries, primarily financial services, technology, and media and entertainment.  Prior to joining GEM, he was the Executive Director of the Council of Urban Professionals, a non-profit whose vision is to seek parity at the highest levels of business and civic engagement. During his two-year stint at CUP, the organization grew its corporate partnerships by 50%, had its most financially successful gala, placed a record number of diverse individuals on boards and had a promotion rate of over 40% within one year for program participants. Prior to CUP, he was the Executive Director of Workforce Opportunity Services (WOS), an innovative non-profit. Under his leadership, over a nine-year period, the organization grew to an entity with a budget of over $10 million operating in nine states (19 cities) and internationally in France (under the name SociaLift).  At Prudential, Brennon undertook progressively challenging assignments and held technology leadership roles for over a decade. He was in charge of the firm’s IT portfolio management tool used by the Corporate Chief Information Officer for critical decision-making.  He was the Editor in Chief at CLASS (Caribbean Latin American Sights and Sounds) magazine, later known as Black Diaspora magazine.  Brennon sits on the City University of New York’s School of Professional Studies Foundation Board as well the board of EyeBeam, a New York tech non-profit.  Brennon holds a Masters degree in Technology Management from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Journalism from Baruch College. He is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. He is a Stephen H. Gayle Memorial Fellow and has received scholarships from Baruch College and Reuters, as well as being featured in CIO Insight magazine as a future leader in technology (April/2007).  Brennon lives in Harlem, New York where he is very active in the community, serving as a baseball coach for the Harlem Little League and a basketball coach at the Harlem YMCA.