New Ankeny Chamber President Hopes to Continue the Good Work of Those Before Him

For the newest leader of the , his primary goal is simple — continue the great things started by those before him.

But aside from that, Tom Friedman, an Ankeny resident and the new president of the Chamber board of directors, still has new ideas he wants to add to that strong foundation. He also wants to make sure as many Ankeny residents and organizations as possible are involved in the planning and implementation of these new ideas.

Ankeny Patch recently sat down with Friedman at his day job of market manager for First National Bank in Ankeny to talk about what he hopes to accomplish during the next year as Chamber president.

Ankeny Patch: For those Ankeny residents who don’t know you, fill us in – who is Tom Friedman?

Tom Friedman: My family and I moved to Ankeny in 1994 to start what was then Brenton Bank. We started in a little trailer on First Street and built the building, which is now . I stayed with them for a short while after Wells Fargo bought it, and then spent a couple years starting a bank in Polk City before I came here to almost six years ago.

I have five children, ages 28 to 14. I have three girls and two boys in that order. I’ve been married to the same woman for 31 plus years and she still puts up with me, which is a good thing. I’ve been a banker since 1981 and I’ve enjoyed it the entire time.

Ankeny Patch: What are some other ways you’ve gotten involved in the community since moving here?

Friedman: The first thing I did when I moved here in 1994 was join the Chamber. It was one of the smartest business moves I ever made because it helped get me involved with a whole slew of things and a bunch of different projects. Now, when I do new member receptions, I can say ‘I’ve been in your shoes, not once but three times.’ It’s nice being able to relate to others like that and know what they’re going through.

I’m currently involved as a member of the Ankeny Economic Development Corporation. I’ve been on the board of directors and served as president of . Also, I currently serve on the finance council of . I’ve been a youth basketball coach and I’ve coached youth volleyball and soccer. In the past, I’ve been involved with the as well as the Neveln Center and the DMACC Foundation. Right now, I’m also actively involved with the . If it’s a non-profit, I’ve probably been involved with it somehow.

Ankeny Patch: How did you get into this role as Chamber president? Was it something you were asked to do?

Friedman: It was something I was asked to do. The Chamber board is a progression. You are asked early on and you then progress through the different titles until you get to be president. It was probably five or six years ago when I was asked to be executive committee, knowing in 2012 I would become president. It can be a long process, but you are only asked by getting involved. That’s really the key to being successful in anything – getting involved and becoming active.

Ankeny Patch: Looking at the chamber now, what would you say are some of your main goals you would like to focus on in 2012? 

Friedman: What we’ve done is taken the Chamber’s mission statement, which basically says we exist to promote economic development, strengthen our business climate and enhance the quality of life in Ankeny. What I did when it was time to have our board retreat was ask what we needed to focus on. We said let’s go back to our mission statement. We then asked ourselves what are the most important things we need to accomplish in those three categories? We then ranked them and they became our goals for 2012 and beyond.

Under business climate, we have five goals: promote positive business stories, enhance the member to member program, create and promote a type of Chamber Groupon, capture chamber events on video to post to the web and award large companies for encouraging employees to be involved in the Chamber.

Under economic development, we want to survey members to find out what’s going on with them and where we should put our priorities. We also want to find out what they go out of Ankeny to buy and how we can keep them here.

We also plan to look into a tourism board. The city recently sent a letter to the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau with their intent to withdraw from the organization. If they’re going to do that, we need to promote tourism in Ankeny and the Chamber is a great place to do that. We’re also looking at creating an entertainment district like Court Avenue in Des Moines.

We don’t know if it’s possible but we need to do something to keep young professionals here. Finally, we’d like to create an entrepreneurial mentorship program for those trying to start a new business.

Last, under quality of life, we’re creating a bike ride in conjunction to the High Trestle Trail. That’s going to happen on June 2. Also, 2012 is the 60th anniversary of the Ankeny Chamber. We’re going to celebrate that this fall. We’re also looking at a kid’s winter festival and we want to partner with the Ankeny Uptown Association on the new trailhead coming in south of First Street.

Ankeny Patch: From what you’ve seen, what do you think are some of the strongest attributes the Chamber has going for it right now?

Friedman: First and foremost, we probably have the best staff of any Chamber I’ve been involved with – this one is by far the best. They’re the most active, the most friendly and they get things done. They understand why the Chamber exists – it’s to promote member businesses and they get that.

We have right around 850 members. That’s a lot of members and with that many members, we get a lot done. We do things to help each other grow and prosper. That is what makes our Chamber tick. If you think of all we do here to promote member businesses, it really is incredible.

Ankeny Patch: To let people know in Ankeny what they can expect from you as a Chamber president, how would you describe your leadership style and what you will bring to the table during your term?

Friedman: What they can expect from me is a continuation of all the good things that have already happened. Our goal now is to make those good things better and we’re going to re-evaluate those that don’t work, but frankly, you can expect more of the same. Hopefully, I can help people become more engaged and more involved because this is where we live, this is where we work, this is where we play. If we all work together with that one vision to make Ankeny better, we can make sure that happens. That is my goal – it’s not about me, it’s about us.