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More than just a rah-rah concept,
                                                  learn how your chamber can become
                                                  a regional training and education
                                                  powerhouse!




by Shawn Doyle and David Newman



C
              hambers face a variety of challenges in today’s
              business landscape: membership growth
              and retention, developing sources of non-
              dues revenue, and offering new kinds of
member value. Businesses increasingly need to
see tangible reasons to join your chamber—and
stay on board—year after year.
    In the general business world, when busi-
ness executives are asked what their top chal-
lenges are for 2005 and beyond, the answers
include:
    ■ Leadership – improving the leadership
      skills and abilities of their top execu-
      tives, as well as developing the next gen-
      eration of leaders.
    ■ Productivity – everything from effective
      recruitment of top talent (“talenteering”)
      to the ongoing performance improvement
      of all staff in all functions.
    ■ Sales – increasing sales, volume, margin, and profit
      to fuel growth.
    ■ Innovation – developing the necessary skills to succeed in an
      environment of discontinuous change, and to develop new products,
      services, and processes under rapidly-evolving market conditions.
    The chamber’s challenge is clear; provide the greatest value possible to the
members. So, how can chambers provide resources to members to address
all four of these requirements? In a word, education. Like the aspiring college
student looking to further their personal capital, businesses will look to the
chamber if the chamber can offer a university of learning opportunities.

16       Chamber Executive July/August 2005
The chamber university model                                             survey online (http://www. Figure 1
   There are many things a chamber university is—and isn’t. A            surveymonkey.com            and
successful chamber university is analogous to a corporate univer-        http://www.zoomerang.com TRAINING DEPARTMENT
sity inside a Fortune 500 corporation. If you are not familiar with      are two of them).                   Patchwork of courses
that set-up, check Figure 1 for a brief outline that distinguishes          Generally speaking, these available as needed
a training department from a corporate university. The chamber           surveys should be short and Ad hoc scheduling
can become a regional learning and development powerhouse if             to the point: 10 questions
it adopts the corporate university model, transplants that model         or fewer. You can expect a Revolving door of
                                                                                                             consultants/trainers
to the heart of the chamber’s offerings, and opens up this kind of       response rate somewhere in
value to all member businesses.                                          the five to 15 percent range. Reactive to perceived needs
   In our research, we found that at most chambers, about 30             Naturally, you have to ask the Focus on one-time events
percent of member businesses have their own in-house train-              right questions in order to
ing department. For these organizations, a chamber university            get the answers you are look- CORPORATE UNIVERSITY
will act as a supplement and an on-demand resource when tim-             ing for. You not only want Structured program designed
ing, cost, or distance prevents them from using their internal           to ask questions about what in tiers
resources. The other 70 percent of chamber members have no               programming they want—but Programs scheduled well in
training department. That’s right: seven out of every ten of your        also ask demographic ques- advance
members have no training capability whatsoever. The chamber              tions about the size of their
                                                                                                             Proven in-house faculty of
university will virtually become their company training depart-          organization, number of experts
ment. For these organizations, chamber membership moves                  employees and if they have a
from being a “nice to have” to being a “must have” to meet those         training department or not. Proactive to develop
                                                                                                             competencies
business goals mentioned earlier.                                        Lastly, ask how many people
   If you offer a robust chamber university program at your              they would send to each pro- Focus on long-term
chamber, you will also distance yourself from competing mem-             posed seminar. This gives you development process
bership organizations. Potential members are always asking               lots of great data to review and
themselves “Why should I join here?” The standard answers                use later for one-on-one follow-up and personalized invitations.
aren’t good enough anymore. There has to be some way to make                If your surveys come back like most of ours at Chamber Learn-
your chamber distinctive and different.                                  ing do, this is the order in which members will list their most-
   We have learned that you must have the following in order to          wanted topics: leadership, sales, and innovation. Every offering
have a successful educational effort:                                    must somehow relate to your top-ranked subject areas. If you offer
      ■ It must be what the members want                                 a topic which was not mentioned on the survey, people will not
         ■ It must be marketed heavily                                   attend. Why should they? They asked for one thing and got anoth-
            ■ It must be high-quality                                    er. Be sure to use snappy titles instead of pedestrian ones for your
              ■ It must be priced just right                             seminars. For example, if you have someone eminently qualified to
                 ■ It can’t be a sales pitch dressed up as a seminar     teach Listening Skills for salespeople and executives, don’t call the
                   Remember those critical business topics from          program “Listening Skills.” Call it “The Power of Listening: How
                   earlier: leadership, productivity, sales, and inno-   to Sell More and Lead Smarter.” Remember the survey—members
                     vation. If your chamber can help organiza-          said they wanted Leadership and Sales topics—not Listening top-
                        tions bridge some of these mission-criti-        ics—so you’ve tied a great seminar into their wants and needs.
                           cal business gaps, you will provide value        The format of a chamber university-style seminar should be
                             beyond political activism, networking,      full-day. A six-hour timeframe of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. is attractive to
                                and group insurance.                     many busy businesspeople. Not a one-hour veiled sales pitch, and
                                                                         not even a two-hour mini-seminar. Why? These kinds of “quickie”
                                  Topics, content, and faculty           seminars can have a low perceived value.
                                      How will you know what                Another format chambers should be wary of is the nationally
                                      topics to offer at your cham-      franchised coaching or training company wanting to present “2-
                                        ber university? The first        step marketing.” This is giving away the sizzle to sell the expen-
                                           thing you should do           sive steak of a 10-week development program or other high-
                                              is a member survey.        priced coaching, consulting, or training services. Companies
                                                 There are several       like this use chambers as direct business development platforms,
                                                   electronic tools      and this is in 180-degree opposition to our model of what a good
                                                     on the market       chamber university is all about—content, content, content. Your
                                                        which allow      chamber university seminars need to stand on their own as valu-
                                                          you     to     able content that’s immediately applicable to real-world business
                                                             do the      improvement.

                                                                                            Chamber Executive July/August 2005            17
SNAPSHOT: OMAHA, TAKING CARE         OF   BUSINESS

     Businesses are eager to support programs that provide              and excellent overall (67%). The vast majority (99%) of
     support in return. Recognizing this, in 2004, the Greater          participants specified plans to attend again.
     Omaha (NE) Chamber of Commerce created “Chamber
                                                                        Though the program’s presenters are not paid, they still
     Academy—taking care of business,” a comprehensive train-
                                                                        jump at the chance to be selected, as the opportunity
     ing component that provides undeniable member value.
                                                                        brings promotion of their companies. Their seminars are
     The program’s weekly seminars cover topics catering                not sales presentations, but many speakers have noted
     to employees at every level within the chamber’s 3,400             that they have received follow-up inquiries and business
     member businesses. Participating companies benefit in              as a result of their Academy participation. These pre-
     one of two ways: marketing their products and services             senters and their companies are also recognized on the
     by sharing their expertise as presenters, or connecting            chamber’s website and in a number of promotional publi-
     their employees to new contacts while providing them               cations. Demand for this opportunity has been so strong
     with the necessary tools to increase job performance.              that the chamber maintains a waiting list of potential
     In providing exceptional value to members, the chamber             presenters.
     has also created a source of non-dues revenue with the
                                                                        The Chamber Academy served as an essential tool to
     Chamber Academy. This furthers the organization’s day-to-
                                                                        chamber members, particularly for small businesses,
     day operations, and therefore its mission to increase busi-
                                                                        whose structures often do not support a training program
     ness, investment, and employment in Greater Omaha.
                                                                        or department. By providing a high-quality product at a
     In its first year, the program saw phenomenal success. In          low cost, the Chamber Academy is a model of success—
     2004, 1,800 individuals participated in one of 49 semi-            bringing in an average attendance of 37 participants each
     nars offered. The majority of participants who responded           week, far exceeding the stated goal of 30 participants.
     to the satisfaction survey each week found the specific
     Academy program they attended to be very helpful (70%)             Source: Greater Omaha (NE) Chamber of Commerce


   Faculty selection is another challenge. Far too many chambers        rises—and the bottom-line truth is that professional seminar
open the floodgates to anyone they can find to deliver a program,       companies offer programs on similar topics for between $199 and
including people who have never delivered a full-day seminar or         $399. So, members can easily compare apples to apples and see
people who are surprisingly unqualified. All it takes is one poorly     that their chamber membership is giving them yet another cost-
delivered program, one consultant who is too pushy or “sales-y,”        saving advantage.
or one presenter who is just not inspiring on the platform, and            Position the chamber university as a win-win value-add to
your chamber university initiative could be finished. Being a           membership. In fact, one way to increase non-dues revenue is to
member of your chamber should not automatically qualify some-           add a new membership level—Platinum or Executive Member-
one as a presenter.                                                     ship—which includes an entire year of your chamber university
   When an unqualified person presents, not only will you hear          seminars at a significant discount. Perhaps add $600 to your basic
about it from dissatisfied members who were in the session, you’ll      membership price, and throw in 10 seminar seats per year, which
hear about it from board members and other chamber members              represents a savings of 50 percent or more.
who’ve heard about the debacle through the grapevine. News of              When promoting the chamber university, you must not be
this kind travels incredibly fast and can destroy your chamber          shy. Unleash both barrels of your marketing shotgun—and do it
university initiative that you’ve worked so hard to promote and         frequently. Use your member newsletter, website, calendar, flyer
build. For all intents and purposes, you cannot afford one poor         packs, email blasts, fax notices, and postcards. Make sure your
program or one poor presenter.                                          membership and marketing staff are promoting the seminars
   Make sure your faculty is proven. Check references. Ask for          heavily in person at networking events, large meetings, and in
videotapes or audiotapes of their programs. Read their books or, if     casual conversation. In the marketing of each seminar, heavily
they haven’t written books, identify what gives them the expertise      promote the topic and make sure to highlight the qualifications
to present to your members. Talk to other chamber executives or         of the facilitator. Some people will attend for the topic and some
corporate members who may have seen them speak or train.                may be fans of the facilitator.
                                                                           Many chambers underutilize their university as a member
Pricing, positioning, and promotion                                     recruiting and retention tool. For recruiting, you have to fill the
    When it comes to pricing your chamber university seminars,          seats with people who have expressed an interest in the chamber
it’s critical to price them right. We’ve seen a large suburban cham-    but have not joined yet. For retention, you have to seed your
ber struggle to fill 10 seats for a 90-minute session at $25 a person   early seminars with Board members and high-profile member
in their “small business seminar” series. Meanwhile, another            companies, so they become the evangelists and advocates for the
chamber with a membership of 1,600 sells out over 20 seats to           value of the seminars. Above all, of course, the seminars have to
each full-day program at $119 per person.                               be outstanding in both content and delivery.
    Pricing is about perceived value. If you sell learning for $25,        We have also found that this kind of initiative can get some
it’s worth $25. For some businesspeople, that’s not worth leaving       solid local press coverage—so make sure to contact your local
the office for. If you charge $119 or $149 for a full-day, the value    media outlets (print, radio, TV, etc.) to share the news of your

18        Chamber Executive July/August 2005
new chamber university, highlight your upcoming programs,                               SNAPSHOT: WHAT’S      IN A   NAME?
feature participating businesses, participating presenters, and
                                                                             Resistance from within will take many forms—some
member organizations who have sent people and can give you
                                                                             based on reality, some based on ego, and some
on-air or in-print testimonials of how wonderful and valuable
                                                                             based purely on misunderstanding. In one case, a
the chamber university programs are. Remember also to
                                                                             local university asked the chamber to stop using the
promote each seminar in local business listings, calendars,                  program label “chamber university” because they
websites, and so on. Never stop looking for new ways to pro-                 felt it was misleading, and that university credit was
mote your chamber university as a whole, and each individual                 implied in that title. That chamber’s director of mar-
program you present.                                                         keting calmed the irate university official down and
                                                                             pointed out, with extreme diplomacy and tact, that
Overcoming resistance from within                                            as far as she knew, there was no copyright or trade-
   One of the biggest obstacles you will face, the moment you                mark on the word “university.”
announce your intention to roll out a chamber university, will
                                                                             Source: ChamberLearning
be from within. Specifically, some trainers, consultants, coach-
es, and others will feel threatened by this initiative and see it
as direct competition that will take food off their table. In their      ever before. Trainers, coaches, consultants, and experts who can
view, the chamber has just swooped down and taken a chunk of             lead seminars will become your new best friends.
their potential business and set up shop as a competing training            Using these strategies, your chamber can start to differentiate
and development resource.                                                itself by offering bottom-line business-building value through
   Of course, the way to defuse this source of resistance is to point    your own chamber university initiative. If done right, your cham-
out that what the chamber has actually done is to elevate the            ber will stand head and shoulders above the crowd as you trans-
value of their work, given them a podium from which to reach             form into a regional training and education powerhouse.
out to members and member businesses, and, essentially, taken
the very public step of endorsing the value of training and devel-       Shawn Doyle and David Newman are Managing Partners
opment as a critical business function. You could also point out         of ChamberLearning (http://www.chamberlearning.com), a
to these folks that you have not hired any trainers and plan to use      Philadelphia area consulting firm that designs, develops,
members and member Ad 6/3/05 panelists, speakers, trainers,
  Chamber Executive
                        companies as 4:41 PM Page 1                      implements, and markets Chamber University initiatives for
and seminar leaders. You need these members now more than                chambers of commerce nationwide.




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                                                                                            Chamber Executive July/August 2005          19

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  • 1. More than just a rah-rah concept, learn how your chamber can become a regional training and education powerhouse! by Shawn Doyle and David Newman C hambers face a variety of challenges in today’s business landscape: membership growth and retention, developing sources of non- dues revenue, and offering new kinds of member value. Businesses increasingly need to see tangible reasons to join your chamber—and stay on board—year after year. In the general business world, when busi- ness executives are asked what their top chal- lenges are for 2005 and beyond, the answers include: ■ Leadership – improving the leadership skills and abilities of their top execu- tives, as well as developing the next gen- eration of leaders. ■ Productivity – everything from effective recruitment of top talent (“talenteering”) to the ongoing performance improvement of all staff in all functions. ■ Sales – increasing sales, volume, margin, and profit to fuel growth. ■ Innovation – developing the necessary skills to succeed in an environment of discontinuous change, and to develop new products, services, and processes under rapidly-evolving market conditions. The chamber’s challenge is clear; provide the greatest value possible to the members. So, how can chambers provide resources to members to address all four of these requirements? In a word, education. Like the aspiring college student looking to further their personal capital, businesses will look to the chamber if the chamber can offer a university of learning opportunities. 16 Chamber Executive July/August 2005
  • 2. The chamber university model survey online (http://www. Figure 1 There are many things a chamber university is—and isn’t. A surveymonkey.com and successful chamber university is analogous to a corporate univer- http://www.zoomerang.com TRAINING DEPARTMENT sity inside a Fortune 500 corporation. If you are not familiar with are two of them). Patchwork of courses that set-up, check Figure 1 for a brief outline that distinguishes Generally speaking, these available as needed a training department from a corporate university. The chamber surveys should be short and Ad hoc scheduling can become a regional learning and development powerhouse if to the point: 10 questions it adopts the corporate university model, transplants that model or fewer. You can expect a Revolving door of consultants/trainers to the heart of the chamber’s offerings, and opens up this kind of response rate somewhere in value to all member businesses. the five to 15 percent range. Reactive to perceived needs In our research, we found that at most chambers, about 30 Naturally, you have to ask the Focus on one-time events percent of member businesses have their own in-house train- right questions in order to ing department. For these organizations, a chamber university get the answers you are look- CORPORATE UNIVERSITY will act as a supplement and an on-demand resource when tim- ing for. You not only want Structured program designed ing, cost, or distance prevents them from using their internal to ask questions about what in tiers resources. The other 70 percent of chamber members have no programming they want—but Programs scheduled well in training department. That’s right: seven out of every ten of your also ask demographic ques- advance members have no training capability whatsoever. The chamber tions about the size of their Proven in-house faculty of university will virtually become their company training depart- organization, number of experts ment. For these organizations, chamber membership moves employees and if they have a from being a “nice to have” to being a “must have” to meet those training department or not. Proactive to develop competencies business goals mentioned earlier. Lastly, ask how many people If you offer a robust chamber university program at your they would send to each pro- Focus on long-term chamber, you will also distance yourself from competing mem- posed seminar. This gives you development process bership organizations. Potential members are always asking lots of great data to review and themselves “Why should I join here?” The standard answers use later for one-on-one follow-up and personalized invitations. aren’t good enough anymore. There has to be some way to make If your surveys come back like most of ours at Chamber Learn- your chamber distinctive and different. ing do, this is the order in which members will list their most- We have learned that you must have the following in order to wanted topics: leadership, sales, and innovation. Every offering have a successful educational effort: must somehow relate to your top-ranked subject areas. If you offer ■ It must be what the members want a topic which was not mentioned on the survey, people will not ■ It must be marketed heavily attend. Why should they? They asked for one thing and got anoth- ■ It must be high-quality er. Be sure to use snappy titles instead of pedestrian ones for your ■ It must be priced just right seminars. For example, if you have someone eminently qualified to ■ It can’t be a sales pitch dressed up as a seminar teach Listening Skills for salespeople and executives, don’t call the Remember those critical business topics from program “Listening Skills.” Call it “The Power of Listening: How earlier: leadership, productivity, sales, and inno- to Sell More and Lead Smarter.” Remember the survey—members vation. If your chamber can help organiza- said they wanted Leadership and Sales topics—not Listening top- tions bridge some of these mission-criti- ics—so you’ve tied a great seminar into their wants and needs. cal business gaps, you will provide value The format of a chamber university-style seminar should be beyond political activism, networking, full-day. A six-hour timeframe of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. is attractive to and group insurance. many busy businesspeople. Not a one-hour veiled sales pitch, and not even a two-hour mini-seminar. Why? These kinds of “quickie” Topics, content, and faculty seminars can have a low perceived value. How will you know what Another format chambers should be wary of is the nationally topics to offer at your cham- franchised coaching or training company wanting to present “2- ber university? The first step marketing.” This is giving away the sizzle to sell the expen- thing you should do sive steak of a 10-week development program or other high- is a member survey. priced coaching, consulting, or training services. Companies There are several like this use chambers as direct business development platforms, electronic tools and this is in 180-degree opposition to our model of what a good on the market chamber university is all about—content, content, content. Your which allow chamber university seminars need to stand on their own as valu- you to able content that’s immediately applicable to real-world business do the improvement. Chamber Executive July/August 2005 17
  • 3. SNAPSHOT: OMAHA, TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS Businesses are eager to support programs that provide and excellent overall (67%). The vast majority (99%) of support in return. Recognizing this, in 2004, the Greater participants specified plans to attend again. Omaha (NE) Chamber of Commerce created “Chamber Though the program’s presenters are not paid, they still Academy—taking care of business,” a comprehensive train- jump at the chance to be selected, as the opportunity ing component that provides undeniable member value. brings promotion of their companies. Their seminars are The program’s weekly seminars cover topics catering not sales presentations, but many speakers have noted to employees at every level within the chamber’s 3,400 that they have received follow-up inquiries and business member businesses. Participating companies benefit in as a result of their Academy participation. These pre- one of two ways: marketing their products and services senters and their companies are also recognized on the by sharing their expertise as presenters, or connecting chamber’s website and in a number of promotional publi- their employees to new contacts while providing them cations. Demand for this opportunity has been so strong with the necessary tools to increase job performance. that the chamber maintains a waiting list of potential In providing exceptional value to members, the chamber presenters. has also created a source of non-dues revenue with the The Chamber Academy served as an essential tool to Chamber Academy. This furthers the organization’s day-to- chamber members, particularly for small businesses, day operations, and therefore its mission to increase busi- whose structures often do not support a training program ness, investment, and employment in Greater Omaha. or department. By providing a high-quality product at a In its first year, the program saw phenomenal success. In low cost, the Chamber Academy is a model of success— 2004, 1,800 individuals participated in one of 49 semi- bringing in an average attendance of 37 participants each nars offered. The majority of participants who responded week, far exceeding the stated goal of 30 participants. to the satisfaction survey each week found the specific Academy program they attended to be very helpful (70%) Source: Greater Omaha (NE) Chamber of Commerce Faculty selection is another challenge. Far too many chambers rises—and the bottom-line truth is that professional seminar open the floodgates to anyone they can find to deliver a program, companies offer programs on similar topics for between $199 and including people who have never delivered a full-day seminar or $399. So, members can easily compare apples to apples and see people who are surprisingly unqualified. All it takes is one poorly that their chamber membership is giving them yet another cost- delivered program, one consultant who is too pushy or “sales-y,” saving advantage. or one presenter who is just not inspiring on the platform, and Position the chamber university as a win-win value-add to your chamber university initiative could be finished. Being a membership. In fact, one way to increase non-dues revenue is to member of your chamber should not automatically qualify some- add a new membership level—Platinum or Executive Member- one as a presenter. ship—which includes an entire year of your chamber university When an unqualified person presents, not only will you hear seminars at a significant discount. Perhaps add $600 to your basic about it from dissatisfied members who were in the session, you’ll membership price, and throw in 10 seminar seats per year, which hear about it from board members and other chamber members represents a savings of 50 percent or more. who’ve heard about the debacle through the grapevine. News of When promoting the chamber university, you must not be this kind travels incredibly fast and can destroy your chamber shy. Unleash both barrels of your marketing shotgun—and do it university initiative that you’ve worked so hard to promote and frequently. Use your member newsletter, website, calendar, flyer build. For all intents and purposes, you cannot afford one poor packs, email blasts, fax notices, and postcards. Make sure your program or one poor presenter. membership and marketing staff are promoting the seminars Make sure your faculty is proven. Check references. Ask for heavily in person at networking events, large meetings, and in videotapes or audiotapes of their programs. Read their books or, if casual conversation. In the marketing of each seminar, heavily they haven’t written books, identify what gives them the expertise promote the topic and make sure to highlight the qualifications to present to your members. Talk to other chamber executives or of the facilitator. Some people will attend for the topic and some corporate members who may have seen them speak or train. may be fans of the facilitator. Many chambers underutilize their university as a member Pricing, positioning, and promotion recruiting and retention tool. For recruiting, you have to fill the When it comes to pricing your chamber university seminars, seats with people who have expressed an interest in the chamber it’s critical to price them right. We’ve seen a large suburban cham- but have not joined yet. For retention, you have to seed your ber struggle to fill 10 seats for a 90-minute session at $25 a person early seminars with Board members and high-profile member in their “small business seminar” series. Meanwhile, another companies, so they become the evangelists and advocates for the chamber with a membership of 1,600 sells out over 20 seats to value of the seminars. Above all, of course, the seminars have to each full-day program at $119 per person. be outstanding in both content and delivery. Pricing is about perceived value. If you sell learning for $25, We have also found that this kind of initiative can get some it’s worth $25. For some businesspeople, that’s not worth leaving solid local press coverage—so make sure to contact your local the office for. If you charge $119 or $149 for a full-day, the value media outlets (print, radio, TV, etc.) to share the news of your 18 Chamber Executive July/August 2005
  • 4. new chamber university, highlight your upcoming programs, SNAPSHOT: WHAT’S IN A NAME? feature participating businesses, participating presenters, and Resistance from within will take many forms—some member organizations who have sent people and can give you based on reality, some based on ego, and some on-air or in-print testimonials of how wonderful and valuable based purely on misunderstanding. In one case, a the chamber university programs are. Remember also to local university asked the chamber to stop using the promote each seminar in local business listings, calendars, program label “chamber university” because they websites, and so on. Never stop looking for new ways to pro- felt it was misleading, and that university credit was mote your chamber university as a whole, and each individual implied in that title. That chamber’s director of mar- program you present. keting calmed the irate university official down and pointed out, with extreme diplomacy and tact, that Overcoming resistance from within as far as she knew, there was no copyright or trade- One of the biggest obstacles you will face, the moment you mark on the word “university.” announce your intention to roll out a chamber university, will Source: ChamberLearning be from within. Specifically, some trainers, consultants, coach- es, and others will feel threatened by this initiative and see it as direct competition that will take food off their table. In their ever before. Trainers, coaches, consultants, and experts who can view, the chamber has just swooped down and taken a chunk of lead seminars will become your new best friends. their potential business and set up shop as a competing training Using these strategies, your chamber can start to differentiate and development resource. itself by offering bottom-line business-building value through Of course, the way to defuse this source of resistance is to point your own chamber university initiative. If done right, your cham- out that what the chamber has actually done is to elevate the ber will stand head and shoulders above the crowd as you trans- value of their work, given them a podium from which to reach form into a regional training and education powerhouse. out to members and member businesses, and, essentially, taken the very public step of endorsing the value of training and devel- Shawn Doyle and David Newman are Managing Partners opment as a critical business function. You could also point out of ChamberLearning (http://www.chamberlearning.com), a to these folks that you have not hired any trainers and plan to use Philadelphia area consulting firm that designs, develops, members and member Ad 6/3/05 panelists, speakers, trainers, Chamber Executive companies as 4:41 PM Page 1 implements, and markets Chamber University initiatives for and seminar leaders. You need these members now more than chambers of commerce nationwide. Do You Need A New Publisher? Passport was established in 1989, to help organizations and businesses promote and establish brand awareness through custom publishing and relationship marketing. With a passion for people and publishing, we accept the challenge of representing clients at their best, and strive to redefine quality custom publishing. With over 200 custom publications to our credit and over a quarter of a million dollars of non-dues revenue paid annually, what can we deliver for you? Robert S.C. Kirschner, Publisher (800) 909-3463, Ext. 19 Robert@PassportPublications.com A Passion for People & Publishing 1555 Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard, Suite 1550, West Palm Beach, FL 33401 • www.PassportPublications.com Chamber Executive July/August 2005 19