NETA Business Center Prepares for Future
Four team members recognized for service with upcoming promotions
The NETA Business Center is planning changes to ensure long-term sustainability while expanding innovative services. On July 1, 2024, four long-serving Business Center team members will be recognized for their service and hard work with promotions. These individuals have consistently demonstrated dedication to clients’ needs and a deep understanding of NETA’s mission.
Amy Larkin will be promoted to chief financial officer. She will help design new financial reporting to meet clients' evolving needs as well as create process improvements for month-end financials. Her operations management experience and understanding of finances, along with her interest in emerging technologies, will help propel the Business Center into the future while building operational efficiencies and expanding opportunities for clients and staff. Larkin has been with NETA since 2021 and is currently managing finance director/senior controller. She holds a Master of Accountancy from the University of South Carolina.
Albernel Jones will be promoted to director of financial education and training. Her role will expand to include staff training and professional growth to ensure skills keep pace with industry innovations. She will also work on process improvements and documentation as the Business Center continues to grow, while still serving clients. Jones started at NETA in 2007 and is currently a senior controller. She earned a Master of Business Administration, with an emphasis in finance, from Webster University and a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting and information systems, with a minor in Education, from the University of South Carolina.
Tamra Swiderski will be promoted to director of finance. She will assist the transition team in onboarding new clients by managing staffing to ensure capacity and that client needs are immediately met. Swiderski joined the Business Center in 2015 after working for two decades in the non-profit sector. She spent more than 15 years as an accountant with the South Carolina Medical Association, a professional organization that, like NETA, serves numerous, geographically diverse entities with support and advocacy services. Her ability to manage accounts and staff in multiple locations is key to the Business Center’s day-to-day operations.
Neal Kittredge Boles will be promoted to business development director. She will focus on developing a team to market the Business Center to ensure growth in services and capacity and long-term sustainability. She will also work with staff on client communications and contracts. Kittredge Boles started at NETA in 2010 and is currently a senior controller. Prior to NETA, she worked at WTVI (PBS Charlotte) for 15 years in membership and finance. She has more than 28 years of experience in public media.
“Over the past 25 years of the NETA Business Center, we built an incredible team of knowledgeable professionals,” said Anita Sims, NETA executive vice president and director of business center. “I know that Amy, Albernel, Tamra, and Neal, along with the rest of the team, will successfully serve our clientele long into the future.”
“As we look forward, I am confident that the Business Center will build upon its solid foundation and continue to grow – both in services and clients – under the leadership of these dedicated professionals,” said NETA President Eric Hyyppa. “While we will deeply miss Anita, we are excited to embrace the future and the opportunities for innovation that lie ahead.”
Please join NETA in congratulating Amy, Albernel, Tamra, and Neal on their upcoming new roles and responsibilities.
As previously announced, Anita Sims will retire on July 1 after more than 33 years of service to NETA and its clients. She will continue to serve through NETA Consulting. In the coming weeks, NETA will begin a national search for its next vice president of professional services and director of the NETA Business Center.
