Bringing Home the Business
Chamber of Commerce leads local economic development efforts

Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County President/CEO Brian Hilson (left) and Chairman Dave Hargrove

The Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County is without doubt an advocate for local businesses.

It sponsors some 40 events each year for its members – including the State of the City, Business After Hours, Breakfast and Biz, and the Small Business Awards.

But if asked, Chamber President and CEO Brian Hilson will tell you the organization’s main focus is expanding and attracting employers.

“It’s what we do,” Hilson says. “We’re the single point of contact for prospective and existing businesses in their efforts to establish a new business or to expand existing operations.”

Hilson says as the lead economic development organization for Huntsville and Madison County, the chamber provides comprehensive assistance for business expansion and recruitment. With its economic development efforts, the chamber aims to create high quality, high paying jobs in Huntsville/Madison County, position Huntsville as the leading technology center in the Southeast, and maintain and expand all necessary infrastructure to accommodate current and future growth opportunities.

The chamber has recently redefined its role in local economic development with the establishment of the Huntsville Regional Economic Growth Initiative, an eight-point, multi-year business plan that includes the chamber’s traditional roles and several enhanced responsibilities, including recruitment of targeted businesses, support and expansion of existing companies, growth of the defense and space sectors, image development and promotion, development of capacity for economic growth, workforce development, utilization of university-based capabilities, and accountability.

“The idea behind this is giving companies the opportunity to grow here as opposed to elsewhere,” Hilson says. “The chamber’s role is marketing the community, trying to identify companies and helping them locate here. This is done very much in a team fashion, with others heavily involved, but the chamber is definitely the quarterback of the team.”

The chamber is also busy focusing on the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure and the move of more than 4,700 jobs to Huntsville over the next few years.

“It confirms what we know, that Huntsville is a wonderful place to live and do business,” says Dave Hargrove, chairman of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County board of directors.

And keeping both members and those looking to relocate in mind, the chamber continues to offer comprehensive news about Huntsville on its Web site, www.HuntsvilleAlabamaUSA.com. The Web site, revamped a year ago, has received recent awards from two national chamber of commerce organizations.

Story by Nancy Humphrey
Photo by Wes Aldridge