Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce/Associated Industries of Arkansas
1200 W. Capitol Ave.
Little Rock, Ark. 72201
(501) 372-2222
(501) 372-2722 (fax)
rzook@arkansasstatechamber.com
Number of Employees: 10
Top Executive: Randy Zook, President and CEO
Product or Service: Advocating For State’s Business Community
Year Founded: 1928
The Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce/Associated Industries of Arkansas is a leading voice for business at the State Capitol particularly on issues affecting Arkansas employers. The organizations’ mission is to promote a pro-business, free-enterprise agenda and prevent anti-business legislation, regulations and rules.
“We are focused on the nuts and bolts of the politics of business – not the business of politics,” President and CEO Randy Zook said. “We advocate on behalf of our members, and all the businesses of Arkansas, and we work to help them understand the ways state and national issues might affect their prospects and chances for success.”
Benefiting Business
The State Chamber has helped enact workers’ compensation reform, tort reform and battled for a fair system with low taxes so Arkansas employers can compete in today’s global economy.
“Most of what we do benefits all the businesses of Arkansas,” Executive Vice President Kenny Hall said. “We lobby for a better economic environment in Arkansas, and our members help us identify issues that are important to them.”
A key win the State Chamber helped deliver Arkansas manufacturers is the sales tax they pay on energy costs, which has been reduced from 6 percent to 4 percent to today’s 3.25 percent – major steps in making the state’s manufacturers more competitive.
Benefits for the more than 1,250 State Chamber members also include the opportunity to serve on issue-based committees that help identify and develop key issues that are critical to the state’s business future in areas including education, governmental affairs, health care, taxes, unemployment insurance, human resources and workers’ compensation.
The State Chamber also recently has revitalized its Small Business Council, which focuses on issues of particular importance to the small business community and injects those businesses’ viewpoints into the consideration of a broad range of issues.
Education and Leadership
Besides hosting committee meetings and giving members forums for networking, the State Chamber takes its show on the road – literally. More than 700 people attended 18 “Door-to-Door” lunch meetings held across the state in 2009, presenting an opportunity for the State Chamber to help area business leaders understand the services it has to offer while also providing feedback on the issues of specific importance to those employers.
That same focus on education led to the creation of Leadership Arkansas, which provides its annual 50-plus class members a statewide view of the economic and political challenges the state faces. Seven day-and-a-half sessions are held in local communities around the state, bringing together leaders who represent a wide geographic base with diverse professional and personal backgrounds.
“Leadership Arkansas has been a very successful program, and we continue to beef up the content,” Zook said. “It’s about education and networking.”
Associated Industries of Arkansas
The State Chamber has a sister organization, the Associated Industries of Arkansas (AIA), which focuses on the issues specific to the state’s manufacturers.
“AIA gives manufacturers an important voice, as their interests are more well-defined than the Arkansas business community as a whole,” Zook said.
Another important affiliated organization is the Governor’s Quality Award, a program that focuses on helping businesses develop an integrated management framework.
“It’s designed to help educational, manufacturing, health care and other companies create a structure around which to implement continuous improvement,” Zook said. “Companies are looking to improve, and this program teaches them how to assess themselves and implement processes that drive down cost and drive up efficiency.”
Now more than ever, business matters to our nation’s future, according to Zook. Business must have a friendly environment to ensure our future economic prospects both in Arkansas and in the global economy.
The State Chamber/AIA is making that happen.