Newly appointed President and CEO of the Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce Jorge Arrizurieta brings with him a history of leadership positions in business, civic and community affairs. He was chosen following a national search that included about 40 candidates.
“It is an honor for me to succeed such an accomplished and beloved leader as Mark Trowbridge, who passed away earlier this year,” he said. “He was an incredibly charismatic, smart, witty and fun guy to be around. I knew him well, and he did great work in making this chamber what it is today. It clearly challenges me to succeed him because of the expectations that he left behind based on the work he did, but I love it because it’s a great source of inspiration and challenge for me to make sure I do a great job, and that I honor his legacy, protect it and support it.”
Mr. Arrizurieta’s accomplishments include serving as president and CEO of the Florida Free Trade Association of America, alternate executive director of the Inter-American Development Bank, vice president of public affairs for Huizenga Holdings, and chair of the international policy group for Akerman Senterfitt. He most recently was senior executive vice president of external and public affairs at Americano Media. He also held several positions with former Governors Jeb Bush and Charlie Crist and Senator Connie Mack.
His civic appointments include serving on the Florida Board of Governors overseeing the state university system, and the Board of Trustees of Florida International University. Community involvements include serving on the boards of the Orange Bowl Committee, the Beacon Council, the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce, and Florida Tax Watch.
With just over a month as chamber president, Mr. Arrizurieta is on a listening tour to hear the perspectives of board members, shareholders and potential chamber members. He also plans to finish out the previous president’s strategic plan, get more consulates and foreign civic groups to make Coral Gables their headquarters, and take the chamber to the next level.
“All great organizations can be greater, bigger, and improved, and that’s what I intend to do here,” he said. “I’m not here to be a caretaker. I said that to the search committee when they interviewed me several times, and I said it very boldly. I really intend to diligently get a sense for what the chamber community believes in and then mix all that in with my views and thoughts, take it to my board, and then go execute on the next five to 10 years.
“Among the easiest tasks in this role has got to be trying to sell Coral Gables. It’s got a great history, great demographic, great legacy. I’m prepared to be that change agent on one hand to help maintain the legacy, and on the other hand, push our leadership to become bigger, greater and better, and help the chamber grow.”
Mr. Arrizurieta spoke with Miami Today reporter Abraham Galvan.
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