Nearly a year after the Atlanta Executive Network began its search to locate its first-ever executive director, the gay business group announced Glen Paul Freedman will take over the position later this month.

Freedman, a member of the professional and business networking organization for 10 years, called his appointment a “dream come true.”

“I really believe in AEN’s mission statement and in everything they do,” Freedman says. “It’s a perfect fit for me — the professional networking is exactly what I like to do.”

In addition to extensive work with local and national nonprofit organizations including the Atlanta Pride Committee, Georgia Equality and the Human Rights Campaign, Freedman has held administrative positions for both Worldspan Technologies and Delta Airlines.

He says his work on “both sides of the aisle” will afford him unique insight in his new position.

“I’ve been board chair of some large organizations, gay and straight, and I’ve certainly been a volunteer in a lot of groups,” Freedman says. “Now, as a staff member, I’ll be able to see both sides and set some direction by helping people be more focused on what exactly our mission is.”

AEN President Bonnie Barton says Freedman is “someone who will help us grow.”

“Being an all-volunteer board — which many people I think sometimes forget — we’re just limited in the amount of work we can do,” Barton says. “Glen Paul is going to become the eyes and ears for the organization as ED and give us more hands for meeting our mission statement and for meeting our goals.”

Freedman says he intends to take AEN to the “next-highest level.”

“When you have a fulltime ED whose job is solely to focus on strengthening the organization, you can move to a higher plane,” he says.