Maria Chiang, FGI Finance Senior Vice President of Business Development, Named New York Institute of Credit’s 2009 Executive Woman of the Year
NEW YORK, July 15, 2008 – Maria Chiang, Senior Vice President of Business Development at FGI Finance (www.fgifinance.com), has been named the New York Institute of Credit’s (NYIC) 2009 Executive Woman of the Year (www.nyic.org).
The Executive of the Year award is presented to women who have achieved noteworthy success in the industry through their entrepreneurial talents, and have assisted others in achieving their goals. By acknowledging excellence in business, leadership and a commitment to fostering the growth and success of other women in business, the NYIC Women’s Division hopes to inspire women to succeed and help other women achieve success in business and in life.
“Maria Chiang is truly a leader within the industry. Her entrepreneurial spirit and knowledge of her business has proven to set her apart,” said Harvey Gross, managing director of the New York Institute of Credit. “She continuously demonstrates her passion and commitment to further the role and support for women within the financial world. It was a unanimous decision to select Maria Chiang as our 2009 Executive Woman of the Year.”
When asked how she felt about being selected as “Executive Woman of the Year” Maria replied, “I am so honored to have been chosen by the NYIC and it’s Directors for this prestigious award. The NYIC is very well-known for being the driving force behind training and education within the industry.” She continues, “Harvey Gross, the current President of the NYIC, consistently goes above and beyond his call of duty to help industry players forge profitable business relationships. I am very proud to accept this prestigious award from such a fine organization.”
As SVP of Business Development at FGI Finance, Maria focuses on strengthening relationships with other lenders and intermediaries, and exploring business opportunities between FGI Finance and other potential clients and partners nationwide. Her success has been built on her industry expertise and her ability to develop personalized business solutions. This, combined with her ability to foster and maintain strong personal relationships, has been the key to her success. Maria has been coined a “networking queen” by her colleagues and has made “working the room” an art.
Prior to FGI, Ms. Chiang was Director of Marketing at Access Capital in New York City for eight years. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in International Languages and Business at the University of Scranton in Scranton, PA.
Maria Chiang is very active in a number of industry trade associations including the Commercial Finance Association (CFA), International Factoring Association (IFA), the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG), and the Turnaround Management Association (TMA). She has served as a Board Member in the New Jersey Chapter of the TMA for the last 8 years and is currently Co-Chair of the Events Committee. She is also a member of local associations such as the Commercial Finance Association, the Garden State Credit Associates, and the New York Institute of Credit. In addition, she has run a Golf 101 event for the last four years that teaches men and women in the industry how to play golf and how to leverage the activity to conduct business.
The New York Institute of Credit (www.NYIC.org) was founded in 1918 as the New York Chapter of the National Institute of Credit (NIC). In 1957 NYIC was granted an absolute charter as an educational corporation by the Board of Regents of the State of NY. As a non-profit organization, NYIC has always attempted to bridge the gap between business theory and business practice. As a result, the faculty of NYIC consists of educators who are primarily credit executives or prestigious and articulate accountants or lawyers who are appreciative of the value of a close alliance of the professions.
FGI Finance is a global commercial finance firm that helps middle market companies around the world by providing them with loans and financial services to grow their business. FGI works with international service providers, and manufacturers, in addition to parent companies and their subsidiaries based in the US as well as in 30 countries around the world.