(Updated 5:30 p.m., Jan. 26)
Orléans Chamber will take deliberate approach in finding new ED
By Fred Sherwin
Orléans Online

The Orléans Chamber of Commerce plans to undertake its due dilligence in finding a new executive director, starting with developing a revised job description, says board chairman Jason Bellefleur.

"We want to take our time to make sure that whoever we end up hiring is the right fit and will meet the needs of the Chamber," says Bellefleur.

The Chamber recently parted ways with Dina Epale who was dismissed less than a year after he was hired to replace Jamie Kwong.

While the Chamber's board of directors have respectfully declined to say why they let Epale go, it is assumed that he wasn't the right fit. One of the criticisms against Epale was his reluctance to take on a personal role in trying to solicit new members, something that Kwong relished and was immensely successful at during her three-year tenure as ED.

While the Chamber lays the ground work to find a new executive director, they plan to hire an office manager to work with office assistant Troy Curtis on a temporary basis.

In the meantime, the Chamber has its hands full with a number of upcoming events including the Business Excellence Awards Gala set for this Thursday, and the Orléans Economic Summit on March 31, which will bring together local politicians from all three levels of government with representatives from Invest Ottawa and the Ottawa Entrepreneurship Centre.

(This story was made possible thanks to the generous support of our local business partners.)

Visit www.orleansonline.ca's main page