By Jill Nagy
Tricia Rogers, the President and CEO of the Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce (ARCC), grew up in the Glens Falls area and, except for her college years, never left.
“I love this area,” she said, and enjoys working with people she has known “forever.”
Rogers came to work at the ARCC as membership manager almost eight years ago. When her predecessor as President and CEO announced plans to retire, she applied for the position and was hired. She came on as head of a thriving organization with a new strategic plan in place.
Among other projects, the strategic plan aims to encourage member businesses to look outside traditional ways of hiring employees. A recent alternative workforce hiring panel, moderated by Rogers, focused on ways to reach groups such as the formerly incarcerated, veterans, disabled people, refugees, and other sometimes marginalized populations. There are plans to expand on this conversation in the future.
Meanwhile, 2023 was a busy year for the ARCC: 42 ribbon-cuttings in 2023, 143 new members bringing total chamber membership to 824, and 60 events attended by some 2,900 people. She attributes much of that growth to “increased engagement and support in the community.”
Rogers operates with a small full-time staff: Vice President of Marketing & Communications Amanda Blanton, Director of Events & Community Engagement Carol Ann Conover, Membership Manager Ava Kanninen, and part-time Finance Manager Karen Mattison. The staff is augmented by a corps of 24 Ambassadors, who volunteer, work at events, attend ribbon-cuttings, and otherwise bring the chamber to the community. She also points to a “great board of directors” who are fully engaged, attending meetings and events. Various councils and committees facilitate connections and collaboration among women, veterans, non-profit organizations, and those passionate about good workplace health and wellness practices.
Rogers began as an Ambassador before coming on as membership manager.
Chamber events include a luncheon with legislators, a day at the track, a golf outing, annual business awards, and the annual ARCC dinner at the Sagamore Resort. Overall, the chamber works to create opportunity for businesses to connect through a business expo and other networking events, Rogers said.
While she loves her work and is enthusiastic about the work of the chamber, Rogers said that “the center of it all” is her family, especially nine-year-old daughter Brooklyn. Why Brooklyn? “It was the only thing my husband and I could agree on,” she noted.
For further information on the Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce, visit their website, adirondackchamber.org. The telephone number is 518-798-1761.