New chamber CEO seeks to learn Costa Mesa while building up businesses
When she heard the Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce was looking for a new chief executive, Eileen Benjamin jumped at the opportunity.
“I really chased this down a little bit,” she said with a laugh during a phone interview Thursday.
The chase proved fruitful. The chamber announced last week that Benjamin had been chosen to take over as CEO.
The job, Benjamin said, “will mix my mission-driven passion with my desire to task my business-development skill set, and I really find that appealing.”
The new job also is a homecoming of sorts. Benjamin grew up in Huntington Beach and graduated from Cal State Long Beach.
She acknowledges, though, that she’ll have to work to familiarize herself with the ins and outs of Costa Mesa’s business and political climates.
“I’m going to have to learn every nuance of this community,” she said.
Benjamin previously was executive director of the Foundation for the Children of the Californias, which focuses on improving the health and nutrition of children in the San Diego and Baja California region.
“I see this as an opportunity to improve and elevate the business community,” Benjamin said of her new position. “I really enjoy seeing communities grow and develop.”
The Costa Mesa chamber has about 400 members, according to board Chairwoman Jennifer Farrell.
“We are excited for all the new opportunities that the new leadership will bring to the Chamber of Commerce,” Farrell said.
Benjamin said one of her main points of focus will be on building what she calls the chamber’s “infrastructure” – for instance, its presence on social media and other online outlets.
Benjamin takes over as chief executive from Kyle Woosley, who left the organization in May after nearly a year and a half on the job.
The reasons for Woosley’s departure have not been publicly disclosed, but the chamber’s board is looking to build on relationships with some of the bigger businesses in Costa Mesa, as well as with the City Council and city staff.
Benjamin said she doesn’t know “the nuances of what happened with Kyle” but that she’s concentrating her energy on how to “enhance and improve the chamber.”
She said she hopes to find ways to tailor the chamber’s services and resources so they benefit both the “mom and pop” businesses that dot Costa Mesa and larger outfits in venues like South Coast Plaza.
“Everyone is important,” Benjamin said. “Everyone is going to get my attention and my team’s attention as we go forward.
“We need to make sure we’re enriching the business community and always being their advocate,” she added. “I think there’s a lot to build on.”
Last week, Tom Johnson, a former publisher of the Daily Pilot, was named the chamber’s new president.
Benjamin said she’s excited to work with Johnson and praised him for his energy and knowledge.
“I’m feeling very grateful that he’s going to be a resource,” she said. “He’s really well-known in the region in a positive way, and he understands the dynamics of the area.”
Benjamin and Johnson will officially start Aug. 1. They will be formally introduced at the chamber’s golf tournament Monday at the Mesa Verde Country Club.
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Luke Money, lucas.money@latimes.com
Twitter: @LukeMMoney
