When the top job at the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce became vacant A. Richard “Rich” Heffron would take on the post of interim president.
Each time, he would decline the opportunity to put his hat in the ring.
But after a turbulent period for the state’s largest business organization, Heffron decided it was time to close out his career at the helm of the group.
A week, ago, the board of the State Chamber unanimously voted for Heffron to take on the challenging position.
Heffon agreed to take serve in the post for two years prior to his retirement.
Heffron, a long-time chamber executive and its leading lobbyist, had been serving as interim president, a role he has taken on other occasions. Heffron will serve two years in the post prior to retirement.
Chamber Chairman Mark Stellini said he had been talking with Heffron about taking on the post at the State Chamber, after the abrupt departure of Joan Verplanck after less than a year at the post. This time around, Heffron decided the time was right, Stellini added.
Stellini said the two-year window will allow Heffron and the State Chamber to find a successor for Heffron’s previous job as government affairs director and chief lobbyist.
Stellini noted that his two-year term as State Chamber chairman would roughly coincide with Heffron’s time as president.
“I am honored that the board would select me to be the next president,” Heffron said. “Having served with the Chamber for 22 years, I have a certain familiarity and affinity for this organization, and I believe firmly in what the Chamber stands for. I look forward to working with the board and the staff as we move forward.
“These are challenging times for all businesses and non-profits in Delaware,” Heffron said. “Trying economic conditions over the last few years have forced the Chamber, as well as many other organizations, to make necessary changes in the way we function,” he stated.
Heffron listed stabilization within the chamber and the pursuit of new revenue streams as early goals of his presidency. He said he intends to re-engage the business community in tackling issues, while working with Delaware policy-makers to make improvements to the state’s business climate.
He takes over after a rocky period that came with the appointment and departure of Verplanck, the former head of the News Jersey State Chamber.
Explanations for the departure ranged from her non-nonsense management style to not consulting with the board on major decisions. Verplanck also made it clear she was not impressed with how business is done in the state.
Verplanck had talked about a State Chamber that would deal heavily with public policy issues and not focus as much on recruiting small business members, adding that the needs of small business members could be better served by local chambers of commerce.
The Delaware State Chamber differs from some state chambers, since it does seek out memberships from employers of all sizes.
That often puts the State Chamber in competition with the New Castle County Chamber of Commerce in terms of programs and services. About a decade ago, that led to calls for a merger of the two organizations.
Heffron is well known in Legislative Hall and in the business community and observers said his selection would seem to suggest that the chamber will take a middle of the road course in its lobbying efforts on behalf of the business community.
That has produced grumbling among some State Chamber members, who felt the group should take a harder line on issues like health care reform, environmental issues, such as cap and trade, and taxes.
Verplanck, by contrast, seemed to be more prepared to take on a General Assembly and an executive branch that is dominated by Democrats.
The General Assembly last year focused on social legislation, such as same sex marriage. Critics claimed that it did little in efforts to improve a Delaware economy that has not bounced back from the recession as rapidly as in the past.
Signs of ongoing troubles surfaced this week with an update on estimated state revenues that showed a $40 million shortfall.
Heffron joined the Chamber staff in 1992 as senior vice president for government affairs, after serving on Mayor Daniel Frawley’s administration in the city of Wilmington.
Heffron is a 1970 graduate of Temple University, and in 1979 he graduated from Widener Law School He has three grown children, and lives with his wife Colleen in Hockessin.
