Palm Springs Chamber of Commerce CEO Nona Watson has never been one to rest on her laurels. As she undertakes her 10th year in this beloved position, she reflects on the Chamber’s ever-growing success. “My philosophy is that you don’t do a lot of things,” she says. “You pick and choose very carefully. And what you do choose to do, you do really well.” With membership hovering at 1,100 and retention at an all-time high, Watson is pleased to report expansion in every one of the Chamber’s signature events. “Take our Tuesday night networking, for example. A couple of years ago, we had seven to 12 people. Now we get 60 men and women weekly! Plus, thousands of people come out for our annual Business Expo. We’ve kept it affordable, and we’ve kept the number of participating restaurants constant at about three dozen, but every year each restaurant offers more, so there’s great value in that.” Then there are the Athena Leadership Awards, which have similarly increased in both significance and attendance. “People really understand that we need to celebrate women and their accomplishments. We all
Photo: John Paschal
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Our leader builds on the past as she plans for the future
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