Jefferson City, Missouri – Kara Corches, the first woman to run the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry in its 101-year existence, has been named as its new President and CEO. Completing a thorough three-month national search, the Missouri Chamber Board of Directors Executive Committee announced this news on October 29.
Serving as the Interim President and CEO as well as the Senior Vice President of Governmental Affairs, Kara Corches has been important in driving the Chamber’s advocacy activities to unprecedented levels. Under her direction, the Chamber effectively supported important projects targeted at increasing Missouri’s workforce capacity including the Fast Track and the Credential Training Program.
Brad Thomas, chairman of the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s board of directors and president of the Silver Dollar City Company, expressed his confidence in Corches’s leadership.
“The Missouri Chamber’s focus is to be a strong voice for our state’s businesses. When businesses thrive, so does our state’s economy,” said Brad Thomas. “A thriving economy impacts employment opportunity, wage growth and ultimately the health of communities and counties across our state. Kara has proven she can be a formidable voice that will fight for Missouri’s business community.”
Corches managed political relations at the California Farm Bureau Federation and was a notable chief lobbyist for the California Optometric Association in Sacramento prior to her appointment at the Missouri Chamber. Her career also includes notable government periods in Washington, D.C., where she worked with the American Medical Association and a member of Congress, therefore arming her with a broad and useful skill set in political strategy and advocacy.
Corches’s appointment comes at a time when the Chamber is looking to intensify its advocacy for pro-business policies and strengthen its influence in political circles.
“I am honored to have been selected to serve as President and CEO of an organization that has a track record of producing impactful results for the business community,” Corches noted. “I look forward to leaning into our work to boldly advocate for pro-business policies, maximize our impact in the political arena, and ultimately help position Missouri as an economic powerhouse. I am grateful to get this opportunity to work hand-in-hand with our outstanding board and members, as well as our best-in-the-business staff members.”
Her academic background consists in a bachelor’s degree in speech communication from Baylor University and a master’s degree in public policy and administration from California State University, Sacramento. Along with her husband, Gwen, and their child, Corches lives in Jefferson City, where she is scheduled to be continuing her significant work.
Under Corches’s direction, the century-old Missouri Chamber marks the beginning of a new chapter. Deeply committed to advocacy and aware of both state and national political environments, Corches is ready to take on the goal of the organization —a vibrant economic environment for Missouri. Her selection not only highlights the Chamber’s dedication to progressive and dynamic governance but also reflects the changing scene of leadership inside major organizations.
