Man Le Brings National Association of Asian American Professionals to Tampa

About a year ago, our Contracts & Procurement Manager, Man Le, was researching professional networking groups for Asian Americans and discovered that there was not a group in Tampa Bay that met on a regular basis. To see if there was interest in the area, he started the Tampa Chapter of the National Association of Asian American Professionals (NAAAP TPA). The National Association of Asian American Professionals Tampa Bay Chapter (NAAAP TPA) is an all-volunteer, Pan-Asian American professional organization that promotes the career advancement and leadership development of Asian American professionals in all fields through networking, promoting Asian multiculturalism, and supporting diversity and community service.

Their first meeting was April 2018 and had almost thirty people in attendance who were excited about the professional development possibilities and the social connections that a group like this could provide.

Since then, the NAAAP TPA has continued to grow and includes people from all different arenas of employment and of various Asian American cultural heritage. In the non-profit organization, there are over 15 countries represented in the group members.

Their mission is to cultivate and empower leaders for professional excellence, connect accomplished professionals for mutual success, engage and participate with the community-at-large and inspire leaders to make a meaningful difference in government, education, business, and society.

The regular meetings have been an opportunity for people relocating to Tampa Bay to meet other Asian Americans and make the transfer to a new community less difficult. Man said one new member is moving from Cincinnati for a job opportunity in Tampa and is looking forward to having a networking space that can connect him to people living in his new town.

With a vision of developing and inspiring future leaders, Man sees the NAAAP TPA as a way to give a voice to Asian Americans. One such member is a Software Developer at Nielsen Communications, Barbara Poon, who has stepped into a leadership role at the organization by using her IT skills to manage their Meetup space. These leadership roles transfer to building effective leaders outside of the organization and benefit the community at large.

Man says, THEA has been supportive in giving the organization a “home base” and providing space for regular meetings. NAAAP TPA is also broadening their reach and connecting with other association and chambers to provide a united front for collaboration, education, and support that is inclusive of culture and diversity.

Thank you, Man, for taking the initiative to bring such a valuable organization to Tampa Bay! See the NAAAP TPA event calendar at https://tampa.naaap.org/events

Man Le starts NAAAP TPA

NAAAP’s event in April ~ The St. Pete Night Market ~