Chamber of Commerce President Hardy announces resignation

ALBANY — Albany Area Chamber of Commerce President/CEO Chris Hardy announced his immediate resignation from the organization Monday.

Hardy, who had been with the local chamber for three years as its top official, told The Albany Herald he was making the move to “pursue other opportunities.”

“I felt like this was the best for both parties,” Hardy said. “I’m looking at persuing other opportunities out of the state, so I thought it was best to make the decision (to resign) now rather than waiting until a time that it would cause more difficulties.

“There are always issues when something like this occurs, but there were no issues that led to my resignation. Everyone knows we’ve struggled to recruit new (member) businesses and retain the ones who were members. That’s the same kind of issue every chamber is going through now. I’m pleased, though, that we were able to accomplish a lot of the things I set out to do when I came here. There were things that we really only hoped to do that we managed to accomplish.”

Chamber Chairman Tommy Clark said he wished Hardy well as the organization’s staff worked through the transition period of finding a new president.

“Chris has been a valuable member of the Albany Area Chamber of Commerce team, and we are sad to see him go,” Clark said in a prepared statement. “He has let us know that he is pursuing outside opportunities that will allow him to grow professionally, and we wish him nothing but the very best.

“The Chamber is fortunate to have a staff that has a history and experience with the organization and can work with the board through this transition process.”

During Hardy’s tenure as CEO, the chamber launched the “Think Local” campaign, developed the chamber’s Institute for Leadership Development and identified and implemented efficiency and cost-saving strategies.

“We reached our goals as far as membership growth and retention,” Hardy said. “We were also able to implement some programs that are having a positive impact on our community. From that perspective, I’d have to say my almost exactly three years with the chamber have been very productive.

“I can say that my time in Albany has been a positive for me.”

Clark, who admits that he was “truly caught off-guard” by Hardy’s resignation, told The Herald a chamber Leadership Committee has already begun work on a “twofold plan” to address the unexpected loss at the top of the organization.

“We’ve pulled together an executive group to discuss what we can do,” Clark said. “On an interim basis, we know that our staff is experienced and professional enough to handle things in the short-term. But we don’t want to leave them hanging too long. That’s why we’ll handle things from an interim phase in the short-term and start looking for what we’ll do long-term after that decision is made.

“It’s not something our folks can’t handle. The big question is what do we do right now. This has been a whirlwind of a morning. I was truly caught off-guard when Chris gave me his letter of resignation this morning. I think we’ve done some great things at the chamber during his tenure, but right now we have to concentrate on keeping our ship afloat.”