Brooks Williams was named president of the Spring Klein Chamber of Commerce in September, replacing Myeshi Briley, who announced her departure in June after four years in the role. Williams has previously served as a human resources and organizational development executive with a regional financial institution and senior vice president with a performance improvement consulting group. A native of the Spring and Klein area, he is a Klein Oak High School graduate and attended Baylor University. He and his wife, Virginia, have five children. How will your experience help you in your role as chamber president? I have a wide breadth of experience. I started in banking and worked with consumers and small-business customers, and small business was where I spent a good portion of my [time]. I understand what small businesses need and understand their business as a whole. From there I moved into a consulting role and did business consulting for small and medium businesses for five years. Recently I worked with a school district and got to be heavily involved with a chamber and just really enjoyed the collaboration and partnerships that had built. I would consider this a high-functioning chamber of commerce. I [can see] how effective a chamber can be if it gets outside of itself. When it quits thinking its only role is to function as a chamber and looks at how it serves its partners and its community, it can chart a different course. What interested you in leading this chamber, and were you previously involved in it? I grew up in Spring. I went to Klein ISD schools Haude [elementary], Hildebrandt [intermediate] and Klein Oak High School. I know the potential the area has. It’s home, and this seemed like an opportunity to give back to a community that gave so much to me. [The chamber is] looking for some growth but to be strategic in how they do that, and I think they are truly being forward looking and seeing the next generation. What do you feel is the chamber’s role in the community? I think our goal is to help promote the businesses within our community, and we want businesses to be able to thrive. Chambers thrive when businesses thrive. The reality is that within Spring and Klein most of the people know each other, it’s a growing community but a tight-knit community.  How do we provide value to partners—that’s what we’re going to call them, partners not members—that they otherwise could not get? How is this chamber different from others in the region? I believe we can provide some value they might not otherwise be able to. I think we’re going to become the “unchamber.” Our goal is not to compete with membership or partnerships that [other chambers] have. This should not be a competition of memberships. We are going to look to leverage our size to our advantage. We are more agile, we change quicker. We’re going to grow based on what our members or partners need. What are your goals for the Spring Klein chamber? I am really excited to have this opportunity, and I appreciate the board and their willingness to give me this opportunity. You’re going to see some dramatic changes—some positive, dramatic changes that will bring value to our partners.