.jpg)
President & Chief Executive Officer
Email: rkitchens@swmfirst.com
Ron serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Southwest Michigan First as well as the Managing Partner of Southwest Michigan First Life Science Venture Fund and a Director of the Southwest Michigan Innovation Center.
He is among the 3 percent of economic development officials internationally who have earned the Certified Economic Developer designation. In addition to his nearly 25 years of experience in Economic Development, Ron has a broad-based experience as a businessman, city administrator, elected official and U.S. Senate staff member giving him a unique perspective on growing a region's business base.
Throughout his career in Michigan, Texas and Missouri, Ron has worked with more than two hundred Fortune 500, international or regional corporations that have created tens of thousands of new jobs.
Ron is an author, nationally sought after speaker and host of Business First, which is televised weekly at 9:05 a.m. during CBS Sunday Morning on NEWSCHANNEL3.
