huntington

Five to Thrive Strategic Plan

Huntington Regional Chamber of Commerce

Economic Strategy

HRCC cultivates a strong business community that drives regional prosperity throughout Cabell and Wayne counties. As one of the largest chambers in the state of West Virginia, HRCC has a legacy of leadership, advocacy, and collaboration dating back to 1912, when it served as one of the founding chambers to establish the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

In 2022, HRCC reached a pivotal moment, facing both a need and opportunity to build a future as strong as its historic past, re-establishing its focus on supporting its members and energizing the business community as a whole. With the COVID-19 pandemic easing and a new president and CEO, HRCC engaged Fourth Economy to manage a strategic planning process that would capitalize on this important moment. The team lead HRCC stakeholders in developing a new vision, mission and focused path forward for the years 2023 - 2027.

Our Approach

The five-year strategic plan was largely informed by a SOAR analysis (Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations, and Results) that was developed through broad engagement of stakeholders and assessment of promising practices from peer organizations to inform and validate strategy development. The process was supported by project leaders, including the Chamber’s Board of Directors, a newly formed project steering committee, and community partners from the broader economic development ecosystem. Our approach was unique in its engagement of economic development partners to ensure the plan addresses the needs and opportunities of the broader community, while still focusing on serving Chamber members.

The Results

This work was captured in HRCC’s strategic plan, called Five to Thrive - Connecting the Greater Huntington Region, which doubles as a branding campaign to generate support, investment, and excitement throughout implementation. The plan includes HRCC’s new vision, mission, and focused path forward to connect community, cultivate growth, and catalyze development. Strategies are organized by: (1) priorities to serve the business community and enhance internal chamber operations and (2) long-term economic development goals. Each strategy identifies clear roles and responsibilities, additional capacity needs, timing goals, and metrics to measure success. By the end of the second year of implementation, HRCC has successfully completed 8 of the plan’s 19 strategies, with an additional 7 strategies in progress and 4 scheduled for future years.