New Greater Lenawee Chamber of Commerce CEO Sean Dennis promises unity, collaboration

TECUMSEH — New Greater Lenawee Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Sean Dennis promises a vision of unity, partnership, problem-solving and opportunity for the business community of Lenawee County.

“Sean was a standout candidate for several reasons, however, the most notable was his immense passion for making a difference in the community. Sean is passionate about serving the business owners in Lenawee County by building connections that lead to growth and opportunity for all who reside in our community,” chamber board chair Misty Shulters said in an email. “His vision for the chamber was unique among the candidates and when you couple that with his passion for making a difference, he certainly stood out!”

“I believe the chamber can be a premier hub for business growth in Lenawee. One of my primary goals is to partner with other organizations in the community to promote the economic and socioeconomic development of the community. We want to see businesses unite and thrive! There is a ton of opportunity for that. We also want to help businesses give back by creating strategic partnerships and opportunities for them to do so. We will all get out of the community what we put into it,” Dennis said in an email.

The chamber began its search for a new leader in fall of last year just after its former leader, Matt Swartzlander, accepted the village manager position in Brooklyn.

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The chamber hired human resources consulting firm Insight HRM of Adrian to assist with the job posting, screening of candidates, interview coordination and streamlining the process for the selection committee. The full selection process consisted of a phone interview and a virtual panel interview, then finalists were invited to conduct a 10-minute presentation to the chamber board.

Insight HRM completed the first round of screening, conducting phone interviews with nearly a dozen applicants that met the posting qualifications. From there, the selection committee interviewed six candidates via video conferencing. Candidate backgrounds included private sector operations and nonprofit partner relationship management as well as local economic development and municipality oversight. Three candidates were invited to present to the chamber board.

“Mr. Dennis is a dynamic personality with some great ideas on services the Chamber could provide to its members. Tecumseh looks forward to working with him on projects and sharing his ideas with our local businesses,” Tecumseh City Manager Dan Swallow said in an email. “We welcome Mr. Dennis to the Lenawee community, and we are excited to help him integrate with our Tecumseh business community.”

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in music from Full Sail University of Winter Park, Florida, in 2016, Dennis took a management job with Logistical Data Services of Coatesville, Pennsylvania, a logistics company in the transportation/rail industry. Dennis spent six years with the organization, receiving three promotions during his tenure. Most recently, he was the company’s general manager, overseeing its U.S. and Canadian operations.

“The GLCC Board of Directors unanimously voted to hire Sean as our CEO and we fully anticipate that he will be successful, beyond a doubt. Sean has extensive business operations knowledge that will lead to a strong understanding of the challenges that Lenawee businesses face — such an important aspect when working to develop solutions and when advocacy opportunities present,” Shulters said. “In Sean’s first year in the CEO role, the GLCC Board of Directors will be looking for him to focus on membership retention and growth, expanding program offerings and building successful partnerships throughout Lenawee County.”

Dennis also is tasked with healing the wounds of the city of Adrian, which its city administrator said suffered after the Adrian and Tecumseh chambers merged, the Adrian chamber office closed, and operations were consolidated in Tecumseh.

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“We look forward to getting to know Sean and hope that he can help reestablish the Chamber’s focus on the City of Adrian’s business community, which seemed to suffer after the merger,” Adrian City Administrator Greg Elliott said in an email. “While the City is a member of the Chamber, our interests are different than the average business. We are interested in City events and businesses receiving the same attention as those in other communities that the Chamber serves. The Chamber closed its office in Adrian after the merger. For a time, it seemed to pay more attention to businesses and events in other communities. We have had discussions with members of their Board and do believe that the Chamber, as an organization, is committed to evening out its focus.”

Dennis said he is confident that those wounds can be healed.

“I believe in reconciliation. I believe in the power of integrity and communication. I believe that if we all own up to our mistakes, reconcile, and move forward, we can do great things. While I do not know all of the details of what may have caused any wounds, I’m confident that those wounds can be healed. I greatly look forward to having conversations with the city of Adrian and building quality relationships with city officials,” Dennis said.

While the chamber’s current focus is to continue to establish a firm foundation in the Adrian and Tecumseh communities where its primary membership base is, the plan is to build relationships with the business community in the greater Lenawee County area to promote organic and sustainable growth, Dennis said.

“As we plan to expand into other Lenawee communities, we must do so in a way that is not self-serving but focused on the success of the businesses of those communities to the benefit of the residents of those communities. The best way to do this is to build relationships,” Dennis said. “As I continue to familiarize myself with my new role, I plan to venture out and meet with business and government leaders in all of the communities of Lenawee County. I want to be known as a friend of Lenawee and one who champions the success of the county’s residents and businesses.”

Dennis started his new full-time role with the chamber Feb. 13 and has a long list of people he wants to meet and get to know, including chamber members, government leaders and other community leaders, he said.

He will have a chance to meet a number of those people at the chamber’s March 14 meet and greet for him from 4 to 6 p.m. at Farver's at the Croswell at 129 E. Maumee St. in Adrian. The event is open to any member of the public who would like to network with chamber members and build relationships over cocktails.

Dennis attended the chamber’s Leadership Lenawee session recently, during which a panel spoke on economic development. One of the speakers was Chris Miller, a former Adrian economic development coordinator who is now an innovation fellow at the Michigan State University Economic Development Administration Center for Regional Economic Innovation. He said something that stuck with Dennis.

“He said that when you look at the greater Lenawee community, you see a group of people who are more focused on collaboration than competition,” Dennis said. “That is exactly the kind of community I’ve found Lenawee County to be, and I am thrilled for the opportunity to continue to foster that collaboration … I’ve found Lenawee County to be full of people who want to see the community thrive.”

Dennis lives in Dundee with his wife, Ryleigh, and their three children. Dundee is an approximate 15-minute drive to the chamber office in Tecumseh and a 30-minute drive to downtown Adrian.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: New Greater Lenawee chamber president and CEO seeks collaboration