Steering Committee

Thomas Beauford Jr. was born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y. A business executive with over 20 years of strategic leadership experience in private industry and community board service. He is currently president and CEO of the Buffalo Urban League. Beauford was appointed to lead the historical civil rights, social justice, and community empowerment organization in August 2020.

Beauford most recently served as vice president at M&T Bank in the Risk Management and Regulatory Affairs division. Prior to this, Thomas joined HSBC Bank USA, N.A. in 2000, as part of its acquisition of Republic National Bank of New York, managing their Eastern Region Operations Center in New York City. In 2001, he was selected for one of HSBC’s International Management Programmes, headquartered in London, UK. In 2006, Thomas relocated to Buffalo, NY with HSBC as Director of Strategic Planning, overseeing Project Management and Business Banking Contact Center, then later, operations centers locally and in Guangzhou, China. During his international assignment, he served as the Deputy Centre Manager of HSBC’s Global Service Centre, in Bengaluru, India, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Beauford is a graduate of the State University of New York at Buffalo, holding both an Executive M.B.A. and an M.S. in Operations and Supply Chain Management. He received a B.S. in Business Management from Saint Peter’s University and an A.A.S. in Accounting from Kingsborough Community College. Thomas was also awarded a scholarship to study at Harvard Business School’s Executive Education–Governing for Nonprofit Excellence program.