The Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce's new approach to its annual business showcase offered more opportunities for business leaders to network and share expertise.
The Business Leadership Summit on Wednesday at the Capitol Plaza Hotel featured networking sessions with displays from 30 businesses and industry leaders; presentations from business leaders in human resources, finance, technology and sales; an awards ceremony; a keynote presentation from Missouri Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer; and a VIP networking reception with remarks from Gov. Mike Parson.
More than 300 people attended the awards ceremony, and about 200 people attended other parts of the event, said Susan Neill Dawdy, the membership and special events director for the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce.
The leadership summit was a replacement to the chamber's traditional business expos it has done in the past, which had a public trade show format with business displays. After canceling the event last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the chamber changed the approach this year to focus on the networking aspect, add new aspects and better serve businesses through an accelerated format. The idea was for attendees to be able to come and go - something that was important to chamber members since many businesses are experiencing staffing shortages.
Neil Dawdy said she believes the speakers were a great addition to the event.
"To be able to have speakers joining us at the caliber of Congressman Luetkemeyer and then the governor's remarks at the end of the day was just really informative and inspiring for businesses and for our community," she said.
Another change from previous years was the winners of the annual Pitch it to Win it contest presented their business pitches live at the awards ceremony.
Each year, the contest gives individuals and newly established businesses a chance to win a $5,000 prize based on their business pitch.
This year, there were two winners: Mid Mo Sno, a recently established shaved ice business; and Take Mo Selfies, a selfie booth business set to open in January.
The chamber also presented the Small Business of the Year and Exceptional Employee awards. Studio 573 Fitness was named Small Business of the Year; and Adam Strobel, lead groundskeeper at Jefferson Bank, was named Exceptional Employee.
"That was really a nice addition to the luncheon to not only recognize businesses for their continued success and employees for their efforts, but to be able to recognize and showcase two entrepreneurs with new, emerging businesses," Neill Dawdy said. "It was really neat to be able to do that."
Neill Dawdy said she also believes the informational panels and presentations on finance, HR, technology/security and cryptocurrency were informative and beneficial to businesses.
"We had questions from the audience, and it was a very lively discussion," she said.
Luke Ready, owner of Ready Popped, which was nominated for the Small Business of the Year award, said he enjoyed the new format more than the old one because it was more informative and offered more than just displays. He said he enjoyed the speeches, presentations and discussions, especially the panel on cryptocurrency.
"I really enjoyed that they had speakers involved, and you could also go mingle around," he said.
The only change Ready hopes to see next year is an earlier start and end time, he said, as he wasn't able to make it to the VIP networking reception at 5 p.m.
"We had to leave at 4:30 to get our kids, so we didn't get a chance to enjoy the happy hour or the mingling time, but other than that, I thought it went really well," he said.
The Chamber of Commerce sent a survey to event participants Thursday to gather feedback, and it will send a followup survey this week to all of its members. A committee of chamber members and business leaders will review the survey results to find out what benefited businesses the most and how to improve the event next year.
The chamber has not yet reviewed survey results, but the direct feedback it has received has been positive, Neill Dawdy said.
"The feedback I got was very positive to the new format versus the traditional trade show," she said. "It allowed for great interaction and networking."