Lacey Chamber seeks new executive director

The Lacey Chamber of Commerce is looking for a new executive director after current director Tony Salas decided to change careers, wanting to become an entrepreneur, a chamber board member said Wednesday.

Board member Tom Carroll, who also is chair of the hiring committee, said applications are due Friday.

He has received nine applications so far, including from Alaska, California and the east coast, he said.

The selection committee plans to look over the list of candidates this weekend, then meet Tuesday morning. Carroll said he’d like to begin interviewing candidates the same week.

The chamber has a small staff -- an event planner and the executive director -- so they’re looking for someone who has experience in management, sales and marketing and in managing a board of directors, he said. They also are looking for someone to represent the chamber in the community, both with elected and appointed officials, Carroll said.

The job, depending on experience, pays a maximum of $50,000 a year, plus benefits, he said.

Salas could not be reached Wednesday. His last day is March 1, Carroll said.

Carroll said Salas, a former chamber board member, was executive director for about two years.

He was hired to replace an interim director who had stepped in after former director Jenny Thorsell had left the chamber.

In September 2011, Thorsell pleaded guilty to stealing more than $17,000 from the chamber over a three-year period.

With that as his backdrop, Salas did a good job of growing the membership, Carroll said. It had fallen more because of the recession than it did because of Thorsell’s actions, he added.

During his tenure, Salas encouraged chamber members to purchase services from other chamber members.

“He built value into the chamber membership,” he said.

Salas also was involved in creating the South Sound Barbecue Festival and was in the middle of bringing a fireworks display back to South Sound Shopping Center in Lacey.

“He had done really good work for us,” Carroll said.

To apply for the job, send a resume to Tom Carroll at tomc.nci@gmail.com.