New Mexico Foundation's new CEO makes quite an impression
Justin Kii Huenemann
Justin Kii Huenemann, the new president and CEO of the New Mexico Foundation, says the organization faces unique challenges and opportunities as the only statewide community foundation in New Mexico.
The Santa Fe-based community foundation lists collaboration and sustainability as two key elements in its core values, and it is clear that Huenemann plans to continue emphasizing both during his tenure. Citing his upbringing on the Navajo Nation near Tsaile, Ariz., he talked about how the landscape of that area has shaped his perspective on the world as an adult. Not surprisingly, he said he tends to take the long view in his approach to managing organizations, especially those that have experienced a recent leadership void.
'The sky's not falling,' he said, describing the message he likes to convey to his new staff in those situations.
Huenemann had to hit the ground running in his new position, but he nevertheless made time to spend at least an hour conversing with each member of his staff within two weeks of his arrival. He described himself as an active listener, adding that the most important job of his foundation is to avoid creating barriers for its partners.
But the thing he said that impressed me the most was when he described community foundations as 'a privileged environment within a privileged sector,' a reminder to himself to remain cognizant of how different a given situation can look to someone on the outside.
As someone who spent the last 10 years living just off the Navajo Nation in San Juan County, a remote and often overlooked corner of New Mexico, I felt like I understood well what he was trying to say. And I have little doubt that Huenemann's term at the foundation will be a successful one.
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