To Forward Community Investments President & CEO, Ryan Zerwer, leadership isn’t just about guiding an organization. It’s about having a strong sense of vision, driving impact, and an unwavering commitment to his team and the people the organization serves. In today’s evolving nonprofit landscape, the traditional divide between mission-driven work and business strategy is rapidly blurring. Forward-thinking leaders are embracing innovative, for-profit strategies to enhance efficiency, sustainability, and impact in the nonprofit sector. Ryan exemplifies this shift, bringing a results-oriented, entrepreneurial mindset from his for-profit background to nonprofit leadership. His approach, for which he was recently granted the 2025 Best of Madison Leadership award, challenges conventional wisdom, proving that financial acumen and social good can go hand in hand.
Leading With Impact
This is where Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) like FCI play a crucial role. FCI is dedicated to ensuring that historically marginalized communities have access to the financial resources they need to grow and thrive. With a unique blend of business acumen and deep-rooted passion for community development, Ryan has brought his own flavor to nonprofit leadership at FCI. By infusing for-profit strategies into FCI’s mission-driven work, he aims to further strengthen the organization’s ability to create lasting, meaningful change. Under Ryan’s leadership, FCI has prioritized fine-tuning its loan products that support businesses, affordable real estate development, and nonprofits that drive equity, create generational wealth, and work to uplift entire neighborhoods. By providing flexible financing and strategic support, CDFIs like FCI help bridge the gap for business owners who might otherwise struggle to access traditional funding sources.
Mission Driven Leadership
Ryan’s leadership style is driven by the fundamental belief that independent, strong communities are built from the ground up. He understands that when local businesses flourish, nonprofits have access to resources that help expand their reach, and affordable housing initiatives receive the support they need, and entire neighborhoods can thrive. It’s for this reason that he feels passionately that FCI has a core responsibility to help to debunk the risk bias many traditional banks have when it comes to lending to nonprofits or in low-to-moderate income neighborhoods.
A Longtime Madison Resident
Ryan is not just a leader in the boardroom, he is an active, engaged member of the Madison community. Alongside his wife, Rachel, he co-owns one of Madison’s most cherished eateries, Dotty Dumpling’s Dowry. For decades, Dotty’s has been more than just a restaurant; it has been a gathering place where locals come together over good food and shared experiences. Ryan is also a successful real estate developer and serves on the Board of Directors for Goodwill Industries of South-Central Wisconsin and Porchlight Foundation.
His approach is both strategic and compassionate, balancing data-driven decision-making with a genuine dedication to developing people to create an FCI that is more efficient, sustainable, and impactful. Whether working with investors to secure incremental funding to increase FCI’s lending capacity, finding creative ways for FCI to support even more mission aligned projects, or expanding FCI’s partnership base to expand their geographic reach across the state, Ryan ensures that every initiative pushes forward FCI’s vision of advancing equity and social justice, and helping shape a more inclusive, prosperous future for Wisconsin.
For a deeper look into Ryan’s leadership and the impact of FCI, check out his recent feature in Madison Magazine.
