Aliesha J. Porcena is the Director of Small Business for the City of Boston. She oversees direct services and programming that support over 40,000+ small businesses. In partnership with Boston's small business community, Aliesha helps build an inclusive, equitable, and accessible economy that works for all residents.

Throughout her professional career, she has worked globally, nationally, and locally- addressing inequalities to ensure communities have the necessary resources to achieve prosperous futures. She began her career in public service working in constituent services for then-City Councilor Ayanna Pressley (now Congresswomen-MA 07), and working at a poverty hotline doing intake for low-income communities. Since then, Aliesha has led donor relations for Partners in Health in Haiti where she developed and coordinated fundraising strategies to support over three million patients including women and children, all while supporting program development.

Most recently, Aliesha served as Director of Growth, Equity, and Impact at Interise, a Boston-based economic development nonprofit, focused on closing the racial wealth gap through small business growth. She directed the organization's growth strategy with the U.S. Small Business Administration and programming for its 52 cities across the country. Aliesha has built innovative programs and developed partnerships that leverage community capacity. Yet, at the core of her work, it has always centered people. A true public servant, Aliesha is an innovator, convener, and community builder focused on empowering local communities, and those that are underserved and unresourced communities.

Aliesha holds a Masters of Arts in Public Policy from Tufts University, and was a Neighborhood Fellow. She graduated cum laude from Northeastern University with a Bachelors of Arts in Political Science and International Affairs. The proud daughter of Haitian immigrants, Aliesha is a Boston native, and currently resides in Dorchester.