Deborah J. La Franchi, President & CEO
Ms. La Franchi, as the founder and CEO of SDS, develops innovative market-driven approaches to economic development. SDS has built and capitalized more than $2 billion of Double and Triple Bottom Line private-equity funds with its affiliated partner Economic Innovation International, Inc. These funds seek: (1) market rates of return, (2) positive community/social impacts, and (3) environmental sustainability. Further, the two firms jointly manage the $75 million National New Markets Fund, LLC, an allocation of federal tax credits for real estate projects in low-income communities. Ms. La Franchi is also a co-author of the Double Bottom Line Handbook funded by the Ford Foundation. During the past four years, SDS’ Nonprofit Capacity Building Division has secured $15 million in grants for nonprofit clients serving high-poverty communities. Strategic Development Investments, an SDS subsidiary, manages two TBL public equity stock portfolios (Large Cap Domestic Fund and International Fund) that seek to outperform their respective benchmarks while meeting social and environmental criteria.
Prior to creating SDS, Ms. La Franchi served as the first President and CEO of Genesis LA. In this capacity, she was the lead in successfully securing more than $4 million in corporate sponsorship donations and assisting in the creation of more than $450 million of investor funding for five private-sector equity investment funds and a New Market Tax Credit allocation. These investment vehicles all specifically target Los Angeles' low-income communities.
From 1997–2000, Ms. La Franchi served as Assistant Deputy Mayor for Economic Development under Mayor Richard Riordan where spearheaded many of the City’s economic development policy initiatives including tax reform, business incentives, business attraction policies and development reform. Before her appointment as Assistant Deputy Mayor, Ms. La Franchi served as a Business Development Representative on Los Angeles's Business Team where she assisted with all aspects of business attraction and retention, including site selection, financing, the development process, tax incentives and general assistance.
Ms. La Franchi received an MBA from the University of California, Los Angeles. She also holds a Masters Degree in Public Policy from Georgetown University. She received her BA from the University of California, Los Angeles, in Political Science and History, and also played on the Women's Varsity Tennis Team. Ms. La Franchi is also a Series 65 Registered Investment Advisor.
Ms. La Franchi has served as a Big Sister mentor for 10 years and is a former member of the Big Brothers/Big Sisters Board of Directors. Ms. La Franchi has served as a Mayoral appointee to the City's Workforce Investment Board and as a Council Member appointee to the Business Tax Advisory Committee. She served as the Vice-President of the Venice Chamber of Commerce. Ms. La Franchi has a very strong passion for travel, having spent more than two years (total) back-packing through Europe, Central Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America.