A woman trying to get her catering business certified for city contracts calls one chamber of commerce, gets referred to another, leaves a voicemail, and waits. Two weeks later she still had no answer. She is not lost. She is navigating a system never designed to work as one.
Tallahassee is home to three chambers of commerce, each earnestly working to move the capital city’s business community forward. But as a workforce development professional and community strategist who moves across all three, it is clear to me that too many business owners figure out chamber support by trial and error.
That makes no sense for a metro area growing as fast as ours. In 2024, the Tallahassee metropolitan area reached $21.3 billion in real gross domestic product, up 4.3% and ahead of both state and national growth for the first time since 2007, according to the Office of Economic Vitality. But to this observer, the support system has not kept pace.
A chamber of commerce can be one of the most valuable resources a small business owner finds early on, connecting them to contracts, training, certification, and mentorship. Understanding which chamber fits is the first step. In Tallahassee, that step is harder than it should be.
Tallahassee has three established chambers of commerce.
The Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce focuses on advocacy, workforce development, and regional competitiveness. The Capital City Chamber of Commerce centers on procurement access, certification readiness, and partnership for underserved entrepreneurs. The Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce focuses on business development for women-owned and minority-owned firms across five counties.
These chambers serve different audiences with different approaches. That is why coordination matters. It is not about choosing one. It is about getting to the right one faster.
I serve as a volunteer ambassador for the Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce and I am active across all three. Through my work in workforce development, I have watched small business owners like the caterer bounce between workshops, networking events, and procurement programs that could have helped her on day one.
A new business owner should not have to navigate three websites, three inboxes, and three calendars to begin. Instead, the person should be able to go to one place, describe what assistance is needed, and get pointed to the right program.
From my perspective, four steps would help:
First, build one shared intake portal where a caterer, a contractor, or a consultant can describe what they need and get routed to the right chamber or program.
Second, create one public start-here hub showing what each chamber does, who it serves, and what is coming next.
Third, adopt a shared response standard so any business owner who reaches out hears back within two business days.
Fourth, jointly publish a quarterly scorecard online showing response times, completed referrals, and businesses served. Accountability matters.
This is not a massive project. In Topeka, Kansas, four organizations formed the Greater Topeka Partnership in 2018, sharing marketing, event planning, and administration while each kept its own board. The model was a finalist for the 2025 national Chamber of the Year award.
The Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce says it works closely with the Capital City Chamber, the Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce, and the Network of Entrepreneurs and Business Advocates. The Office of Economic Vitality is the natural convener to turn that cooperation into something business owners can use.
Tallahassee does not need another partnership announcement that promises collaboration without first publishing a shared metric, a shared calendar, or a joint contact page.
Tallahassee needs one clearer path in. The business owners building this city should not have to wait for it.
Lacy “LJ” McMullen Jr. is a Certified Workforce Development Professional and the founder of Capital Career Pathways, a workforce development program based in Tallahassee. He serves as a volunteer ambassador for the Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce and is active across all three of Tallahassee’s chambers.
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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee’s three chambers need better collaboration | Opinion
Reporting by Lacy ‘LJ’ McMullen Jr., Your Turn / Tallahassee Democrat
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