FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 6, 2019

Brian Anderson named new president and CEO of ChamberRVA

Columbus chamber executive also brings experience from public office, industry, and military

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA – ChamberRVA leadership is excited to announce that Brian D. Anderson has been named the new president and CEO of ChamberRVA. Anderson comes to Richmond from the Greater Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce, where he has served as president and CEO since 2015. Prior to this, he led the Greater Dalton Chamber of Commerce, chaired the Whitfield County Board of Commissioners, spent 18 years in the beverage industry with Coca-Cola and Anheuser-Busch, and served as a military intelligence officer. Anderson will replace Kim Scheeler, who has served as president and CEO of ChamberRVA since 2008.

Under Anderson, the five-star Columbus Chamber saw impressive growth and significantly strengthened their financial standing. Anderson led a campaign to recruit a four-year medical school to Mercer University, including a $14 million capital campaign to acquire and renovate a facility and a $9.2 million state appropriation to hire faculty and staff. He also led the community’s strategic plan, Columbus 2025, from a comparative assessment phase into plan development and execution. During Anderson’s tenure, the Columbus region saw over 3,000 new jobs announced and over $700 million in new capital investment. While at the Dalton Chamber, Anderson led two four-year capital investment campaigns that raised $7 million in new capital for economic development – adding $731 million in new capital investment in five years and the creation of over 5,300 direct and indirect new jobs.

“Richmond is a world-class city offering businesses, residents and tourists all that a community should,” said Anderson. “Although no community or region is perfect, it is obvious through the intentionality of the region’s leaders that Greater Richmond is a fantastic place to live, work and play. I am honored and humbled to join the ChamberRVA team and to have the opportunity to continue the positive momentum of a growing and prospering community.”

Anderson was selected through a national search process spearheaded by Mark Hourigan, founder and CEO of Hourigan Group and vice-chair of the ChamberRVA Board of Directors. Hourigan oversaw a rigorous five-month search and led a search committee composed of a diverse sampling of chamber leaders. The committee enlisted the help of Jorgenson Consulting, a well-known national search firm that specializes in executive searches for chambers and economic development organizations.

“We are thrilled to bring Brian aboard to continue moving our region forward,” said Hourigan. “He’s done outstanding work in Georgia, and he has demonstrated through his many successes that he believes in community development, leadership development and economic development – right in line with the values of ChamberRVA. I’m proud of the work by the search committee these past months. We spoke with a diverse group of exceedingly talented and qualified candidates from across the region and country, and we are fully confident we’ve made the best choice for our regional community’s continued growth and success.”

“Greater Richmond is in a pivotal and exciting place right now, and we’re honored to have Brian continue the mission laid out by Kim over the past decade-plus,” said Pat Gottschalk, partner at Williams Mullen and chair of the ChamberRVA Board of Directors. “As we take stock of where we’ve been and where we want to go, we look forward to working with Brian to continue to support the success of our members, provide a strong business voice and develop tomorrow’s leaders.”

Anderson will take the place of Scheeler, who has led ChamberRVA for 11 years. During his tenure, Scheeler grew the chamber beyond a networking organization into a true regional changemaker with the mission of building a thriving regional community. He began numerous programs, such as the chamber’s FutureRVA initiative focusing on workforce development and regional growth, while expanding others, such as the annual InterCity Visit, in which regional leaders travel to peer cities to bring back new ideas and best practices.

“It is with gratitude and pride that I pass the baton to Brian, knowing that he believes in and understands the work we’ve been doing. I’m confident he will take the Chamber to the next level,” said Scheeler. “Our members and the chamber team have accomplished incredible things over the past decade, and it’s been an honor to work alongside this community toward a better, more successful and more equitable future for RVA. I look forward to watching the region and the chamber thrive at an even faster pace under Brian’s leadership.”

Anderson will start at the chamber on September 30. Scheeler will remain in Richmond in an advisory role during a transition period before retiring with his wife in Florida. A native South Carolinian, Anderson has lived in Georgia since 1998. He will relocate to the Richmond region with his wife, Heather.

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About ChamberRVA: ChamberRVA is the chamber of commerce representing the entire greater Richmond region – one city, seven counties and one town – since 1867. The chamber’s mission is to build a thriving regional community by supporting the success of members, providing a strong business voice and developing RVA’s future leaders. Learn more about ChamberRVA at chamberrva.com.

Press contact: Leigh Rossi, leigh.rossi@chamberrva.com, 804-783-9312.