Connections is the newsletter of the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce. The CCC reserves the right to edit submitted materials and is solely responsible for editorial content. Please address press releases and letters to Lisa S. Cohen.
Publisher:
Kelly Thompson Clark
Managing Editor & Ad Contact:
Lisa S. Cohen
Published by the
Cambridge Chamber of Commerce
859 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139
(617) 876-4100
www.cambridgechamber.org

Chamber Staff
Kelly Thompson Clark
President & CEO
Lisa S. Cohen
Director of Communications
Caryn Saitz
Director of Community Relations
Terrence F. Smith
Director of Government Affairs
Tom Vance
Manager of Business Development
Daisy Bowler
Office Manager

Officers of the Board of Directors
Chair
Michael O’Connell
Mount Auburn Hospital
Vice Chair
William Sage, Sage Hotel Corporation
Treasurer
Arthur Spears
East Cambridge Savings Bank
Clerk
Sarah Gallop, MIT

Rick Appleton,
Millennium:The Takeda Oncology Company
Joseph Barrell, Acorn Realty
Carl F. Barron, CARU Associates
Robyn Bell, Cambridge Office for Tourism
Kathryn Bloom, Biogen Idec
Brian Burke, Microsoft
Dennis Carlone, Carlone & Associates
Sheldon Cohen, Community Mapping
John DiGiovanni, Trinity Property Management
Andrea Gabrielle, Neptune Web, Inc.
Penny Garver, Sovereign Bank
Kathleen Granchelli, Draper Laboratory
Mary Ann Jarvis, Harvard University
Sandra Lagrega, WT Phelan Insurance
Jeffrey Lockwood, Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research
Joyce Mathon Trotman, Hildebrand Family Self-Help Center
Norman McIver, Cambridge Trust Co.
Neal Mizner
Metropolitan Moving & Storage Corp.
Rachael Solem
Harding House at Harvard
Ann Stanesa, Genzyme Corporation
Robert M. Wilson
Cambridge Savings Bank
William Zamparelli, NSTAR
James C. Hawkins, Director Emeritus

President's Viewpoint
Chambers of Commerce perform a balancing act to ensure that their members’ needs are being met. The more varied the membership—including size of the company and number of employees—the more challenging this can be.
Businesses often join their local chamber for business development and networking or, “to help make their phones ring and doors swing.” While these services are important, they are not the only reasons. The size of a business has a lot to do with reasons for membership.

Since approximately 60% of all registered businesses in the US have five or fewer employees, it is no surprise that most chambers are heavily comprised of smaller companies. It is also no shock that smaller organizations join their local chamber for reasons significantly different from their larger counterparts, because their needs are so different. Smaller organizations are looking for help building their business. They seek services such as training programs, business discounts and insurance.

Large businesses look for less direct service and more communityoriented initiatives. Larger companies are more interested in how their local chamber can help lobby local government and, ultimately, affect their local lawmaker’s political agenda. They already have insurance, they want advocacy and help working with the government and community.

The first challenge of any chamber is recruitment. Given the different needs of large and small businesses, a chamber has to effectively market itself to both. The bigger the business, the more it wants to be associated with other influential players in the community. A chamber has to be out front on the issues and involved enough to attract their attention. This requires time, effort and superior skills on the part of the Board, membership and professional staff. They need to make sure that the chamber is perceived in the best light and, most importantly, as the focal point of the needs of the business community. Fortunately, this is a role in which the CCC has excelled.

Last but certainly not least, retaining members is a major concern for any chamber. Both segments provide unique retention challenges that are addressed differently. The national retention average for 2008 was 71%; the CCC’s retention has not fallen below 81% over the last five years. This is due to an involved membership, community and excellent programming. The CCC is like a machine; all the right parts must be there in order build it. We’ll keep the machine serviced; we hope you’ll help keep the machine running!
Best in business,

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