CONWAY, Ark. (January 19, 2016) – Effective this month, the Conway Area Chamber of Commerce has expanded its C-suite and hired a new executive on its leadership team.

Conway-native Ed Linck has been named chief operating officer for the Conway Area Chamber of Commerce. Former chief operating officer Lindsay Henderson has accepted the newly created position of chief revenue officer for the Chamber.

“As the Chamber grows, the need arises for new areas of expertise,” said Brad Lacy, president and CEO of the Conway Area Chamber of Commerce. “Lindsay was my first choice for a chief revenue officer because our members respect her ideas, work ethic and overall knowledge of the community. There is no better person to lead this effort.”

Henderson joined the Chamber in September 2010 as director of membership services. She was promoted to vice president of member services in January 2012 before becoming chief operating officer in 2013. Prior to working at the Chamber, Henderson served as director of new student programs at the University of Central Arkansas, where she earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees.​​

In her new role as chief revenue officer, Henderson manages revenue-generating functions, such as event sponsorships and advertising, and oversees the sales team. 

“I look forward to working more closely with our Chamber members to help them identify investment opportunities that will help them reach their business goals,” Henderson said. “We continue to look for ways to offer a suite of programs and services that will be mutually beneficial to our individual members and the business community at large.” 

With Henderson’s shift to chief revenue officer, the Chamber had a role to fill. Ed Linck’s experience working for chambers of commerce and his familiarity with Conway made him a good fit for the position, according to Lacy.

“We are fortunate Ed and his wife decided to move back to Conway,” Lacy said. “Ed’s’ experience at the Greater Little Rock and Irvine (California) Chambers of Commerce gave us a unique opportunity to bring on a leader with industry experience. I am thrilled to have Lindsay leading our sales organization and Ed managing the day-to-day operations of the Chamber.”

As COO, Linck manages the planning and execution of events as well as membership recruitment and retention. His previous work experience includes serving as director of membership for the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce and working in business development at Irvine Chamber of Commerce in California. Most recently, Linck worked in commercial real estate for a firm in Irvine.

Linck earned his bachelor’s degree from Connor State College in Oklahoma and a master’s degree from Northwestern State University in Louisiana. After living in California for nearly seven years, he is enthusiastic about his return to Conway with his wife, Mariana Loya. An active Rotarian, Linck plans to be involved with the Conway Rotary Club.

“Having an opportunity to live in my hometown and work for an organization whose sole purpose is to improve this community is a blessing,” Linck said. “My wife and I are excited about living in such a progressive, forward-thinking Arkansas city that boasts thriving businesses, elite education options and diverse entertainment. It’s good to be home!” 

ABOUT THE CONWAY AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

​For 125 years, the Conway Area Chamber of Commerce has served as the voice of the Conway, Arkansas, business community. It represents the interests of more than 1,200 members by promoting economic development in Conway and Faulkner County, advocating a pro-business climate at all levels of government, supporting the county’s educational institutions, and establishing and executing a vision for the community. 

Avoid the back-and-forth “Where do you want to eat?” question tomorrow night and come to Taste of Conway. With 26 restaurants to choose from all under one roof, everyone will be happy.

TASTE OF CONWAY
Thursday, October 15, 2015 | 5-7 p.m.
Conway Expo Center & Fairgrounds
$15 Tickets are available at the door, or you can purchase online.

Here are the restaurants that will be at Taste of Conway:

Women in Business continues to evolve beyond our annual awards luncheon in December. 

In March, the Chamber hosted 17 college women from the University of Central Arkansas and Central Baptist College for a Women in Business roundtable. In September, more than 125 women professionals attended an invitation-only program focusing on “Advancing Women to the Top.” 

Natalie Safertal Masri, senior director of special projects for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Center for Women in Business, was the featured guest. She shared best practices of Fortune 500 companies that excel at promoting and developing women on corporate boards and in top management positions.

Following Ms. Masri’s insightful talk, a panel made up of five, local women leaders shared their career experiences. The panelists included the following professionals:

• Jayme Mayo, Nabholz Construction
  
• Cinda Montgomery, Yours Truly Consignment Shop
  
• Trinina Pouncy, Conway Public Schools
  
• Nancy Sims, Regions Bank
  
• Patti Stobaugh, PattiCakes Bakery/Stoby’s Restaurant
  
• Moderator: LaTresha Woodruff, Conway Police Department

The “Advancing Women to the Top” program was presented by Crafton Tull and Kimberly-Clark. Thanks to Southwestern Energy for hosting the inaugural event.

The fourth annual Women in Business awards luncheon is Tuesday, December 1, at Centennial Valley Events Center. The Chamber is accepting nominations through Wednesday, September 30. Submit a nomination.

Reserve your place at the 2015 Women in Business awards luncheon.

San Francisco-based NerdWallet, a personal finance website, listed Conway among the Top 100 best small cities for working parents. Conway ranked 51st out of nearly 1,000 cities across the country with populations between 25,000 and 100,000 people.

What did the top-ranked cities have in common? They offered the best variety of income potential, affordability and top-notch schools. Along with Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, and South Dakota, Arkansas offers the lowest cost for child care. Overall, southern suburbs had the best rankings compared to other regions.

In addition to Conway, six other Arkansas cities were listed among the Top 100: Bentonville, Benton, Rogers, Springdale, Russellville and Fayetteville.

View the 2015 "Best Small Cities for Working Parents" at NerdWallet.com. 

The sad state of politics and governance at the federal level makes you feel foolish for even getting frustrated when things go wrong. But here we are, feeling frustrated – and foolish.

Congress has not passed a long-term (traditionally six years) highway bill since 2005. They’ve passed a series of one-year extensions since 2011. The most recent “extension” was for a whopping two months. It is set to expire at the end of the month. 

The key issue, of course, is how to pay for it. Historically, the federal gas tax has supported the highway trust fund. Improved fuel efficiency has made that revenue inadequate. 

This is not a recent crisis. The highway trust fund has been subsidized with more than $60 billion in general revenue since 2008. It’s either been a decade of denial and procrastination or a decade of gridlock and debate. Either way, the end result is a lack of results.

Congressional antics aside, how does this affect Conway? When it became clear that funds would likely not be available after July 31, the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD) had no choice but to cancel the scheduled paving bid for our new southern interchange. 

That’s right – the one at mile marker 132 that is more than halfway complete. The one the city has already put $2.8 million of local street funds into. 

The City of Conway held up its end of the bargain. It set aside funds to build an interchange in partnership with AHTD (who is reimbursed by the feds). It allocated those funds and did everything it was supposed to do. It did this with city-sized resources and resolve. 

Congress has federal-sized resources but is short on resolve. The end result is that we will likely miss our peak construction season and may see a delay of a year or longer.

Those local funds could have been put to work in countless ways within our local street system. Instead, that money is tied up in our own bridge to nowhere.

It’s hard to tell who cares about the nuts and bolts of governance anymore. But it is getting easier to tell who doesn’t.

Join the kickoff event: A look at the American companies moving downtown in Core Values

Over the past five years, hundreds of companies across the United States have moved to and invested in walkable downtowns. Why did companies choose these places? And what features did they look for when picking a new location? On June 18, national non-profit Smart Growth America will release new research that seeks to answer both these questions.

Core Values: Why American Companies are Moving Downtown surveys nearly 500 companies that have moved to or invested in walkable downtowns over the past five years, and includes interviews with more than 40 senior-level staff at those companies.

As part of the launch of this new research, Smart Growth America will hold a kickoff panel discussion in Washington, DC. Our very own president and CEO Brad Lacy will be part of the panel.

The event will be livestreamed on the Web, and you can watch it as it happens on Thursday, June 18, starting at 8 a.m. CDT. 

Register to join the live webcast. 

Joining Brad on the panel will be Geoff Anderson, President and CEO of Smart Growth America; Paula Munger, Director of Business Line Research and Brian Dawson, Senior Managing Director and Market Leader for the Washington, DC region for Cushman & Wakefield; Michael Deemer, Executive Vice President, Business Development at the Downtown Cleveland Alliance; Mark Fisher, Vice President of Government Relations and Policy Development for the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce; Jim Reilly, Vice President, Corporate Communications at Panasonic; and Amy Ronneberg, Chief Financial Officer at Be the Match.

The conversation in the report as well as on the panel will provide an overview of why companies chose to move downtown, and what they look for when considering a new location. The event will also provide ideas for cities about how they can create the kinds of places these companies seek.

Have questions for the panelists ahead of time? Tweet them to @SmartGrowthUSA or use the hashtag #CoreValues. 

We hope you’ll join us for the live event on June 18.

Female college students from the University of Central Arkansas and Central Baptist College attended a Women in Business roundtable on Wednesday, March 11, at Conway Area Chamber of Commerce. 

Women in Business award recipients from 2012 to 2014 met with the 17 juniors and seniors in small groups. They facilitated discussion about mentorship and what it means to be a successful woman in business and offered advice to empower the soon-to-be college graduates. 

Following the 45-minute roundtable, the eight professionals formed an open panel and took questions from the students. 

We appreciate these Outstanding Women in Business for participating in the inaugural roundtable and panel discussion:

• Melissa Britton (2014)
• Tess Fletcher (2014)
• Jackie Fliss (2013)
• Toby Hart (2012)
• Crystal Kemp (2013)
• Linda Linn (2012)
• Candace Meeks (2013)
• Michelle Parsley (2013)