Subscription-Based Dues, Modern Programs, Embracing Technology Help Drive Success

What is your chamber doing to be innovative and embrace change?

Angie Osguthorpe
President/CEO
Davis (UT) Chamber

One of the things that we are doing just on a basic, admin level is diving more into our CRM, ChamberMaster. It has so much more capability than we were using. Now we can spend less time doing basic tasks, like collecting dues, getting companies signed up for sponsorships, and members registered for events, and more time reaching out to our members on a higher value level.

Derrick Seaver
President/CEO
San Jose (CA) Chamber

The chamber world isn’t changing; it has changed. The San Jose Chamber is embracing this future by moving our membership dues structure to monthly subscription-based and away from annual dues, by providing direct financial benefits for membership, and setting aside Board seats for small and medium-sized companies to have a majority voice in an organization in which they have always been a majority membership.

In order to go from relevant to thriving, we have to be able to answer, in a crystal-clear manner, when a business leader asks: “What is in it for me?”

Sherry Menor-McNamara
President/CEO
Chamber of Commerce Hawaii (HI)

Through the pandemic, we recognized the importance of being flexible and adaptable, which presented us with opportunities to pursue partnerships and collaborative efforts to help our local businesses, schools and students, and communities. These initiatives have stepped up our efforts to address Hawaii’s workforce shortage, help dislocated workers find jobs and encourage our business community to invest in our future workforce by participating in work-based learning opportunities with our public schools.

These innovative efforts include a Work-Based Learning Student Advisory Board, Young Professionals Mentorship Program, an online jobs site and a Manufacturing Certificate program to prepare and inspire local high school students as our next generation of skilled workers.

John McDonagh
President/CEO
Greater Vancouver (WA) Chamber

The pandemic came on the heels of a Board retreat that challenged us to reimagine the “Chamber” and it was never more timely.

Since then, we’ve changed our value propositions, hired staff who embraced technology and researched the composition of businesses supporting programming. Then we took the bold move of dropping programming previously held sacred by chambers.

Now companies are coming to us for membership. We are more “relevant” to our community than ever before, received so much positive feedback, developed and strengthened partnerships, allowing us to develop modern programming to meet the businesses’ needs and engage our community.

Innovation pays!