Honoring distinguished service of BDB board chair Susan Rabinowitz
The BDBMC has benefited greatly from the dedicated back-to-back terms of board chair service by Susan Rabinowitz. An executive with Bank of America, Susan served the organization admirably, providing the leadership that led to the hiring of William Corbin as executive director.
Dan Romence, president of the Indiantown Marine Center, board member with the Marine Industries Association of the Treasure Coast and incoming BDB chairman, honored Susan with an award for her dedicated championing of the local business community.
She reflected on her service at the 2025 Martin County Business Awards. Her comments are shared below:
In my role as Regional Market Solutions Advisor Executive for the Southeast/MidAtlantic for Bank of America, I’m grateful for the opportunity I have to get involved in the community and find ways to give back.
It’s funny, but whenever you get a chance in life to give, you never quite know how much more you’ll receive in return.
Since joining the board of the Business Development Board of Martin County in 2022, I got much more than I expected—in the best way possible.
Early in my tenure on the board—very early—I was nominated to serve as chair.
With hesitation, I accepted—and I’m glad I did. What followed was an exciting and educational experience complete with interesting challenges, noteworthy accomplishments and wonderful professional camaraderie.
I got to collaborate with some very talented individuals, including those who also volunteer on the board, serve on the staff, support our Investors Council and partner with us on our key initiatives.
They’re all highly dedicated to the BDB’s primary objective of making Martin County’s economy stronger and more resilient.
There are four core ways we achieve this objective.
First, we listen—closely and carefully. Through our Pulse program, we meet with business owners and leaders. We tour their facilities, gather insights into their challenges and successes, and we use our resources and relationships to help address their concerns.
Next, we prioritize the needs of our existing businesses, particularly key industries such as aviation, marine and advanced manufacturing.
We were excited to play a part in some remarkable additions for key businesses and our partners. Examples include the expansion by Hinckley Yachts at its Stuart facility as well as the many exciting things happening in the Village of Indiantown. You’ll hear more about both a little later in the program.
We also work with expanding businesses. Some notable examples include IM Group, an Italian textiles company that established its North American headquarters in Jensen Beach, and Power Systems Manufacturing, which creates turbines for the aerospace industry.
Originally founded in Martin County in the 1990s, Power Systems Manufacturing is returning to our community, establishing two-hundred-thousand square feet of manufacturing space and creating more than one hundred high-wage jobs.
Finally, we also focus on business climate—conducting outreach, growing relationships and hosting educational opportunities that equip the local business community to expand their knowledge, increase their network, and sharpen their competitiveness.
All of these responsibilities require the right executive leader—someone with significant levels of experience, expertise, and a proven track record of working effectively with C-Suite executives and public officials. And my tenure provided me the opportunity to work with my colleagues on finding just that right executive director in William Corbin.
Although I’ll remain active as past president, I have great confidence in our executive leadership and in my successor, who I would like to introduce.
Learn more about how the Business Development Board of Martin County supports local businesses at www.BDBMC.org
