TALKING WITH TODD Outgoing Chair is committed to education, collaboration, and staying involved with the Chamber Todd Rowley, market executive for the Capital Region at Old Dominion National Bank, will wrap up his year as Chair of the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce in June. The Business Voice talked with Todd about his experience as Chair. THE BUSINESS VOICE: WHEN YOU STARTED YOUR TERM AS CHAIRMAN, YOU SAID THAT AS AN ORGANIZATION, THE CHAMBER’S GOALS WOULD BE TO “GROW OUR MEMBERSHIP AND REACH, ENHANCE OUR REGIONAL FOCUS, AND INJECT MORE DIVERSITY IN THE PEOPLE AND BUSINESSES THAT INFLUENCE OUR CHAMBER.” WHAT PROGRESS HAS THE CHAMBER MADE IN EACH OF THOSE AREAS? TR: I have seen the Chamber make great progress in each of these areas over the past year. New members are coming to the Chamber from all regions of Northern Virginia and beyond, and I think that the scale and diversity of the industry sectors they represent speak to how the Chamber has met this goal. In addition, our 2019 speaker lineup grew intentionally by gender and race: Speakers of color increased more than 10%, and 64% of our speakers were women. The leadership of the Chamber also reflects this effort. As I look at the members of the Chamber Board, Executive Committee, and the committee and council leadership, I have seen the advancement in this diversity effort and I know that it will continue under the direction of future officers. I can also see this reflected in our interactions with our elected 6
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leaders. The Chamber is respected for its regional voice in support of business interests, and that continues to serve us well during the General Assembly session and afterwards. TBV: YOU’VE MENTIONED A DESIRE TO SEE “A SEAMLESS, BORDERLESS ENVIRONMENT OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY AND THE REGION AS A WHOLE” DEVELOP OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS. WHAT KIND OF PROGRESS HAVE YOU SEEN MADE IN THIS DIRECTION IN THE PAST YEAR? TR: This region is coming together in a way that I have not previously seen, and the Chamber is a part of the central matrix of this change. We are working with members of the newly established Northern Virginia Economic Development Alliance and supporting their efforts to be more coordinated and collaborative in representing this region to companies seeking to establish a presence here. Also, the Chamber lends its support to regional-based organizations like Northern Virginia Community College, GO Virginia, and LEAD Virginia to expand the conversation regionally, as well as across the Commonwealth. It is also important to note that the leaders of the various regional Chambers have begun to meet periodically, and this elevates a new
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collective focus on being less concerned regarding borders and more aligned on our overall regional success. TBV: WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE OR OPPORTUNITY FACING THE CHAMBER GOING FORWARD? TR: COVID-19 has presented our country and region with extraordinary challenges. The Chamber has stepped forward to ensure that our region has the resources and means to get our regional workforce back to work. We have advocated for resources for business through federal and local funding; we
