Sarah Finnegan
April Stone - South Shelby Chamber of Commerce
April Stone, executive director of the South Shelby Chamber of Commerce, is set to take on a new role next month.
In a press release sent out on Friday, the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce announced it has hired Stone as the chamber’s new executive director.
Stone will begin her new role on Feb. 19, according to the release, following the retirement of Bill Powell. Powell, who has been the chamber’s executive director for more than 22 years, announced his plans to retire in late 2017. While he was set to retire at the end of the year, he agreed to continue helping until a new director started.
Stone has served as the executive director of the South Shelby Chamber of Commerce since February 2013. Prior to that position, she was the director of member relations for the Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce for nearly 11 years.
“I want to thank the Chamber’s board of directors for their vote of confidence and enthusiasm as I transition to the Executive Director role at the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce,” Stone said in the release. “I am very excited to work with this Chamber as we determine our future while still focused on a comprehensive and vibrant membership program.”
Powell's work to grow the Hoover chamber, Stone said, was one thing that made applying for the position attractive.
“My first impression was the tremendous job that Bill Powell has done in growing this chamber," Stone said. "Hoover is happening, and so what he’s built and what continues to come to Hoover made it very attractive. I like how they’re working together to grow each others businesses, and really that’s the definition of a chamber, is how can we work together, build those relationships and help each other grow.”
Stone said she looks forward to getting to know more of Hoover's businesses, and to working with the chamber, its board and its members.
Nearly 60 people applied for the executive director job, and a search firm narrowed the field to 10 candidates. Then, a search committee made up of chamber members chose five of those to interview without knowing their names and addresses, Chamber President Jerome Morgan Jr. said.
Stone stood out from the other applicants because of her extensive background and work with nonprofit groups, particularly chambers of commerce, Morgan said.
“She understands the dynamics of leveraging benefits with the membership — how to identify companies who will be a good fit for nonprofits and for chambers,” he said. “We feel like her talent will be exceptional.”
It also helps that she is familiar with the Birmingham area, Morgan said. “Familiarity plays a key part in any organization,” he said.
Morgan said someone coming in from outside the Birmingham area could overcome that, “but it’s just one less hurdle."
As Stone steps away from the South Shelby Chamber of Commerce, she said she has had one message for its board: Thank you.
“Thank you for a tremendous 5 years. ... This was my first executive director position, and thank you for being open minded for all of my ideas. Some worked, some didn’t, but thank you for to the members for working with me and allowing me to work with your business, and building those relationships," Stone said. "Those are the things that I carry with me to Hoover — the relationships that I built.”
The South Shelby Chamber's board of directors said it is working on a transition plan for the chamber and will announce information as it becomes available.
"The Board of Directors wishes April all the best in her new role with our friends at the Hoover Chamber," Board Chair Jacqueline Gardner said in a release. "We have valued April’s accomplishments over her past five years of service and appreciate her dedication to our business community. Under April’s leadership, the South Shelby Chamber has grown to serve more than 300 businesses across the South Shelby communities by providing networking opportunities and business growth and development."
The South Shelby Chamber of Commerce's next luncheon is Feb. 1 at Columbiana First Baptist Church. The next Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon is Feb. 15.
