The Independence Business Alliance recently elected its leaders, which included new officers and new members, who hope to expand the outreach and continued success of the LGBT chamber of commerce.
On June 26, IBA elected Rich Horrow as president, Tom Streeper as secretary, Mark Bradford as treasurer, Heidi Gonzalez and Jeremy Gussick as executive committee members and Deaglan Daugherty and Rebecca Levin as new board members as well as seven other new board members including Michael Cohen, Esp. of Duane Morris, LLP, Jade Gasper of Mark IT Alternatives, David Jefferys of Altus Agency, Robert Pompey of TD Bank and Brian Roman of AdMark 360.
The governance and nominations committees began the application process for board members in March.
“We look at resumes that are submitted to get a feel for what people’s interests are, then interviews are conducted and we personally interview every single candidate,” Gussick said. “I was very impressed with the quality and excitement and passion this year. This year it was challenging because we had so many good people apply.”
Gussick, a financial advisor, said the nominations committee reviews all applicants and then the current board votes in new members. IBA’s board typically ranges between 11-21 members and currently the board is at 17 after the election.
The board will now be helmed by Horrow, an original member of the steering committee that launched IBA in 2007.
“I just knew that we were doing something special in creating an organization that could foster and grow the LGBT business committee,” he said.
Horrow, an attorney and informal legal advisor for Mazzoni Center, said he was motivated to run for president because of his experience with the organization and his passion to see it move forward.
“I have watched the organization grow and each year we fostered new initiatives, elected new board members, and it is an exciting time to watch IBA grow,” he said.
IBA executive administrator Tom Cavanaugh said Horrow’s knowledge of the organization and its members, as well as his leadership skills, will be beneficial to his tenure.
“He is a collaborative personality,” Cavanaugh said. “He will work together with the rest of the board and committee chairs to bring about economic and policy change. He is a strong leader and the type of person that will work with others and be open to new ideas and new energy.”
Horrow hopes to garner new interest from potential members and supporters outside the Center City area.
“We are a regional organization and I want to make us more regional with greater outreach in the suburbs,” he said. “There are a ton of LGBT professionals and businesses out there, and we want to become a central hub for the LGBT business community.”
For treasurer Bradford, an accounting manager, the decision to get involved with IBA leadership came after attending IBA events for a number of years.
“I have been going to events since 2008. I do a lot of networking and marketing in Center City and I was getting to know the group fairly well and always talked about joining,” he said.
Newly elected secretary Streeper served on the board for the past year and has been a member of IBA for two years.
“It’s been a great organization and has grown so much since it started. Becoming secretary immediately puts me on the executive committee, which helps me form strategic plans for the organization for coming years, and I thought it would be exciting for me to take it to the next level in its organizational history,” he said.
Streeper, a client-engagement manager at a management firm, said he is particularly interested in developing new connections with the legal community.
“I want to introduce many of the law firms in the Delaware Valley to IBA to help them expand their diversity initiatives and utilize LGBT companies for some of their needs,” he said.
Gussick added that he would like to see IBA target student populations and more diverse communities as well.
Cavanaugh noted that Gonzales, a nonprofit assistant director, “is passionate about diversity within the IBA membership and the board itself and about working with and involving community partners.”
The new board members are also eager to promote IBA’s work and mission.
Daugherty, the inclusion supervisor for Philadelphia FIGHT’s Critical Path program, joined IBA earlier this year.
“A former board member and colleague of mine introduced me to the great work and community of the IBA,” he said. “Engagement is important for everyone to be able to participate in our economy and pursue a better quality of life. The IBA is an important body for inclusion of LGBT individuals and allies,” he said.
Daugherty will co-chair the newly formed Diversity & Community Outreach Committee and plans to focus on reaching all facets of the LGBT community.
“I am working with a team to attract more women, people of color, people with disabilities, transgender individuals as well as better representation from other counties in the Greater Philadelphia region to our membership and our board,” he said.
Levin, an attorney, said she hopes to create a more welcoming environment for women to get involved with the IBA.
“I want to expand programming for women and also programming in other areas. I met members in South Jersey and hope to expand programming there,” she said. “I think IBA already has good support. I have been impressed with different industries that people come from.”
For more information, visit www.independencebusinessalliance.com.