Chambers of Commerce have long history of helping local businesses

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For my first column of 2025, I want to bring attention to the great work that chambers of commerce across our region, state and country do on behalf of our local communities. Since 2015, I have been immersed in the chamber world and have experienced firsthand what a fantastic network it is to be a part of. I can honestly say: few entities have the impact on economic, social, and community impacts that chambers of commerce can.

Chambers have a long and storied history in our country. The first chamber of commerce was founded 256 years ago in the year 1768 right here in New York state. Over a century later, our community’s chamber of commerce was established in 1887. The primary purpose for starting our chamber and all chambers was to unite businesses to help them succeed and to be an entity for good. To this day, the same mission guides the work of our organization and chambers nationwide.

Some groups can be quick to blame businesses for societal issues and find divisions between labor and businesses. Some people will try to restrict their ability to operate and push businesses out. However, throughout my career, I’ve seen that despite these disagreements, collaboration is what creates the greatest opportunities for everyone involved. Today more than ever, we need to find ways to bring these groups together — and this is the primary role of a chamber of commerce.

Our Greater Rochester Chamber has over 1,300 members. And while being the largest of any chamber in our region, we work closely with all the other chambers throughout Monroe, Genesee, Livingston, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming, and Yates counties. Each year we convene leaders of these chambers to align our policy priorities through an advocacy coalition known as ACRAC. We also partner with chambers throughout New York state — including the Buffalo Niagara Partnership and CenterState CEO — to drive home the values important to us in western and central New York. Chambers should never compete and continuing to foster collaboration is a key priority as we look to 2025.

As such, Greater Rochester Chamber is a member of both the US Chamber of Commerce and the Association for Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE), and these relationships are invaluable. This fall, ACCE released a study outlining the value that chambers of commerce deliver and the trust they foster within a community. Its findings reinforce the missions of all chambers: 81% of U.S. adults agree local chambers are a trusted resource and partner for businesses and 90% feel that their chamber is impactful in growing the local economy. And chambers of course don’t only support individual businesses, but the broader region as a whole: 74% of U.S. adults believe that local chambers create jobs and promote community development, and 72% believe that local chambers play a key role in addressing community challenges.

Despite what some critics might believe, the chamber world also supports diversity and voices of all backgrounds. This same ACCE poll found that higher proportions of Hispanic and Black adults cite that being active in a local chamber of commerce is an effective way to implement good business practices. Greater Rochester Chamber is proud to be a leader in this space. In fact, over the past two years, we have offered over 200 minority- and women-owned business enterprises free memberships in partnership with Monroe County’s MWBE certification program to help ensure these entrepreneurs get the support they deserve.

These results are a great lesson to remind chamber professionals that our hard work is both important and valuable to our community. Without self-aggrandizing, it is vital for our industry to clearly articulate this value.

Greater Rochester Chamber’s track record on effective advocacy began at its inception in the 19th century. At our organization’s first event, H.H. Warner, the Chamber’s first president, explained to the member businesses: “It is our bounden duty to do all we can to promote good government, it is not our duty to favor one party or another.” Still today, we support good policies that help support businesses and give them the opportunities to stay in, grow in, and invest in our region. Even as the largest regional chamber, our collective voice is strongest when we collaborate with our partner chambers and amplify the voice of thousands of businesses, representing hundreds of thousands of employees, to deliver effective advocacy in our region.

New York state can be seen as a difficult place to conduct business, often due to policies pushed and supported by loud and vocal coalitions of relatively small advocacy groups. Elected officials often cave in to the pressures of these groups, when in reality, these loud voices represent a small fraction of their constituents. These policies can have unintended consequences that hurt the whole economy. Again, the ACCE survey displayed that, while our businesses and our workforce feel this pain, our chambers of commerce’s legislative diligence help to combat bad policies. Individuals in New York and other Mid-Atlantic states reported in the survey that their local chambers of commerce have a great deal of impact on influencing policies and growing businesses, disproportionately compared to other areas in the country.

Being a member of a chamber of commerce is being apart of an organization driving for change, and it is public service. As the businesses part of our chamber will tell you: you get more than the relationships, networking, and support that come along with membership. By being a member, you are investing in economic development and community initiatives. Chambers of commerce can serve as your one call for any issue as a business. If you have a question, your local chamber can put you in touch with the right contacts or help internally. Our region is blessed with an abundance of economic and community development organizations that all work closely together, and we are all connected in a central network.

I would like to thank every chamber staff member and board member around the region, state, and country for all they have done to elevate the Chamber of Commerce brand and to serve their respective communities. The collective impact of these organizations is immeasurable. To the readers, if you aren’t already familiar with your local chamber of commerce, I would urge you to learn more and become active.  You can’t go wrong with picking any chamber.

The 256-year history of chambers of commerce is expansive and we are very proud of the role Greater Rochester Chamber has played in it. The work supporting our community never ends, which is why we are excited to continue to support our chambers, our businesses, and our entire region throughout the present and the future.

Robert J. Duffy is president and CEO of Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce. Contact him at [email protected].