Family Business Magazine’s NextGens to Watch Class of 2024 consists of 22 standout rising-generation members who are making a difference in their family enterprises.
HANNAH BRODERICK GERARD, 31
Sixth generation
Gilbane, Providence, R.I.
Hannah Broderick Gerard graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 2016 with a degree in economics and anthropology. After graduation, she joined Accenture in the firm’s NYC office. In her role at Accenture, she has spent the last eight years working with Fortune 500 and federal government clients to deliver digital transformation strategies. She is currently a technology consulting manager at the firm.
After interning at the family business in college, Hannah began volunteering with the Gilbane Family Council in 2019. Gilbane, founded in 1870, is a leading global builder and real estate developer.
During her time on the council, Hannah has served as the chair of the technology committee, which has enabled her to leverage her technology consulting background to assist with shareholder governance and communication.
Over the past few years, a major focus for Hannah has been the development and rollout of a new online platform for the family, the “iBeam.” The platform has provided family members with a centralized location to communicate, collaborate and align on company updates in real time. It has also provided a space to continue to document and organize the Gilbane family history for future generations.
Hannah hopes to continue to leverage technology to improve the way that the family can efficiently share information and engage with shareholders.
“Hannah brings her experience as a technology consulting manager with Accenture to lead the family council Technology and Legacy Committees,” says Jane Gilbane Enterline, chair of the Gilbane Family Council and Hannah’s second cousin, once removed. “In these roles, she has been responsible for overseeing the contract, install, design and implementation of Trusted Family software for our 200+-person family. Through this process, Hannah coordinated the family council team, the Trusted Family support, and Gilbane employees in the legal, finance and information technology departments. In addition to the Trusted Family platform, Hannah coordinates the family’s use of Digital Legacy software, a platform that provides photo and video storage for the Gilbane family.
“Hannah plays a critical role in keeping our large family connected to each other, to our legacy and to the operating company.”
“I’ve always taken pride in being a sixth-generation member of a family business and the special legacy that I have inherited,” Hannah says. “I have great memories of visiting my father at the Gilbane office and watching how hard he worked to continue grow the business on the foundations of previous generations. I am inspired by everything that the generations before me have been able to accomplish and the core values that they established which still serve to guide both the business as well as the family.
“As the family continues to grow, I am grateful that I get to play a small part in ensuring that the legacy they built lives on, and future generations can benefit from it as I have.”