The Northern New Jersey Community Foundation (NNJCF) has announced the appointment of technology and financial services executive Jim Lempenau to its Board of Trustees.
A Bergen County resident, Lempenau currently works in Corporate Architecture at Mizuho Financial Group. He brings two decades of corporate strategy, enterprise technology leadership, and nonprofit board governance experience to the Hackensack-based 501(c)(3) organization.
“We are delighted to announce Jim Lempenau has joined the NNJCF Board of Trustees,” Michael Shannon, president and co-founder of the Foundation, said. “In addition to his employment at Mizuho Financial Group, he brings experience serving on nonprofit boards of trustees. He has already provided us with excellent advice and informed financial insights.”
Lempenau has spearheaded global technology operations, large-scale system architectures, and enterprise cloud migrations across major financial institutions. Prior to his role at Mizuho, he served as Deputy Head of Technology at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Vice President of Wealth Trading Technology at Broadridge, and Managing Director and Head of Trading Platforms & Middle Office at Hilltop Securities.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science and Biochemistry from Hamilton College and an Executive MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business.
In addition to his corporate career, Lempenau has been deeply involved in Bergen County civic and youth organizations. He served as President of the Board of Trustees for the River Edge Swim Club, co-founded the non-profit River Dell Girls Tennis Booster Club, and rewrote organizational bylaws for the River Dell Parent Teacher Association. For the past 11 years, he has been an active leader with Scouting America, serving as a Scoutmaster for an all-boys troop and helping launch one of the region’s first all-girl Scouting troops.
Founded in 1998, the Northern New Jersey Community Foundation works to improve the quality of life across eight northern counties: Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Morris, Passaic, Sussex, Union, and Warren.
By bringing together municipalities, public school districts, businesses, and grassroots citizen groups, the foundation advances regional development across four core focus areas: Belonging and Opportunity, Community Philanthropy, Creative Communities, and Green and Healthy Places.
Key NNJCF programs and initiatives include:
- ArtsBergen: Supporting local creative economies and public art placemaking.
- Green Infrastructure for Environmental Justice: Developing sustainable urban water management solutions.
- Hackensack River Nation: Fostering environmental stewardship and riverfront access.
- Specialized Donor-Advised Funds: Partnering with individual philanthropists to direct targeted community grants.
