The Wisconsin Economic Development Association announced the appointment of Melissa Hunt as the organization’s new president and chief executive officer.
Interim WEDA President and CEO Kathryn Berger, who has led the organization since August 2024, worked closely with the WEDA board to bring Hunt on board.
Hunt currently serves as a planning and economic development professional at Ayres Associates, where she assists communities with crafting and implementing effective economic development strategies.
Prior to her work at Ayres, she served as municipal services manager at Vierbicher, a community planning and engineering firm. Earlier in her career, Hunt worked at the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation as a regional economic development director, as well as numerous economic development organizations in Northeast Wisconsin.
Hunt is a past WEDA board chair and has been a WEDA member since 2006. In 2022, she was honored with WEDA’s Andy Lisak Young Professional Award. She holds both certified economic developer and economic development finance professional credentials.
