Effective March 2, 2026, Karla De Leon serves as Chief Lending Officer (CLO) for both Working Solutions CDFI and Main Street Launch. By aligning executive leadership, both CDFIs aim to deepen their strategic partnership, enhance operational capacity, extend their collective reach in California, and offer a model for amplified impact in the CDFI industry. Read more about this shared executive leadership agreement.

At Working Solutions, Karla manages the lending team, supporting their work through client service and partnerships. She is passionate about small business and economic development. While her professional background is a mix of business and public policy, her career has been primarily focused on small business finance. Prior to joining Working Solutions and Main Street Launch, Karla worked with small businesses and startups to get the capital they need to grow and succeed. She is constantly searching for innovative ways to help small businesses prosper.

Karla holds a bachelor’s degree from UC Berkeley and a Master’s degree in City and Regional Planning from Cornell University. In her spare time, Karla enjoys cooking, photography and traveling. She is a native Spanish-speaker.