Born and raised in and around Chicago, Matt Blakely has more than 16 years of experience working for private and corporate foundations. In October 2005, Matt was hired as Manager of the Motorola Foundation and when the company became Motorola Solutions, Matt was promoted to director of the Motorola Solutions Foundation.  He develops CSR strategies and directs local and international grants, corporate contributions and volunteer programs focused on science, education and public safety training totaling more than $15 million annually in over 30 countries and engaging employees to volunteer over 50,000 hours. 

Before joining the Motorola Foundation, Matt was Senior Program Officer in the Communities Program at the McCormick Tribune Foundation where he helped guide the philanthropic giving of 11 different companies across the United States.  He also has worked at the Sara Lee Foundation and interned at the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.  He currently serves on the board of Project Exploration and recently joined the board of the Chicago History Museum.  Matt also serves on the CEO Roundtable committee of the Donors Forum of Chicago, and is a member of the STEM Funders Network.