Sep. 10—Austin Area Chamber of Commerce President Joe Bower was busy Monday afternoon, watching over and running people here and there as part of the Chamber's annual AMIGO Day at Meadow Greens Golf Course.
It was just one facet of his new position, a position he took over from Elaine Hansen in June of this year after eight years with Wells Fargo. The goal of combining facets is all geared toward one goal — business advocacy.
"I don't think any two chambers are the same because your business mix is different, your size is different," he said late last week, describing Austin's Chamber as being able to wear multiple hats. "We get to run some really fun events and I think that's what a lot of people recognize us for, but at the same time the work we do here I feel is much more important. I think advocacy is the most important thing we can bring."
Bower was both a branch manager and worked in a facilitation position for corporate training for Wells Fargo, but he also was a part of the chamber by serving on the board for six years as well as the executive committee.
He also chaired a couple other committees and participated in still others.
"I've been passionate about the Chamber since then ...," Bower said. "I'm still learning and have a lot to learn, but being able to be a part of that at a deeper depth and learning more about it was really enticing."
"I think Austin has a great business environment," he continued. "The important part is having good advocacy and that's what the chamber really needs to do, and what I'm here to carry on is really what Elaine started doing."
It's that advocacy portion that Bower is really honing on. They are there for the concerns of the business community and to be a part of helping anything that might need to be adjusted.
But he also promotes a close working connection with local government, because he knows that they are two areas that often walk hand in hand.
"Representing our businesses at places like the City Council meetings and having a conversation," he said. "Having a seat at the table, so to speak, with the people that make the decisions that affect our businesses."
"To me that's important," he added. "I don't want to be a politician. I'm not here to get into politics, but I do definitely enjoy having a seat at the table with politicians so I can talk to them about what's important to our business community."
That, perhaps, has carried over more weight than what usually would be experienced over the last few years. Bower said that to a certain extent businesses are still recovering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.