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William E. Purcell
President
Greater Valley Chamber of Commerce

A Marketplace of Ideas

A busy decade since his arrival, Bill Purcell has turned the Valley chamber into a Little Engine That Could

Bill Purcell is none too comfortable being singled out as Business New Haven’s 2010 Citizen of the Year.

Sure, it’s an honor that attests to his achievements as president of the Greater Valley Chamber of Commerce (GVCC), and anyone ought to be gratified by that. But Purcell is a team player. Being placed in the spotlight for what he insists should be, if anything, a collective honor rather than an individual one makes him uncomfortable.

“I accept this reluctantly,” says Purcell as he grits his teeth in preparation for the unsavory (to him at least) prospect of talking about himself. He manages to do so only by couching the task in a team-perpetuating context, “to the extent that it draws attention to this magnificent Valley.”

Purcell is best described as a strong leader who sees his role as empowering others, a tireless worker who assists employers with their company goals, a matchmaker who helps broker business marriages — often by offering his own corporate home as a proposal site.

“My job is to create citizen-leaders, to cultivate and develop new leaders in the Valley and support them,” he says.

He’s done that through services and initiatives that thrive in what he likes to call a “compassionate chamber” atmosphere.

“For him, business is people,” explains Nancie Gray, the chamber’s vice president for marketing and special events. “It’s about the people, about the quality of life. His drive to help the businesses also helps the people in this area.”

“He’s a businessman with heart,” adds Jack Walsh, president of the Valley United Way.

This is Purcell’s tenth anniversary at the helm of the GVCC. Sensing a good fit from the beginning, he was attracted to the area because of its “sense of community and vitality,” he says.

“It’s the spirit, the sense of a caring community, that drew me here from the outset,” Purcell recalls. “Most of all, I’m proud to be associated with such an extraordinary community of business and community leaders that together are making this Valley such a dynamic and wonderful place to live, work and grow business.”

A native of Worcester, Mass., William E. Purcell came to the GVCC after serving as executive vice president of the Worcester Area Chamber of Commerce. He was graduated from Worcester State College with a BS in urban studies and public administration. He later earned an MBA from Babson College in Wellesley, Mass. Purcell currently lives in Woodbridge with wife Mary Jane and their son Brendan.

Established in 1964, the Greater Valley Chamber serves six municipalities: Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Derby, Oxford, Seymour and Shelton, where chamber offices are based. It currently has about 600 members, consisting of a “good mix” of large corporations, medium- and small-sized businesses, as well as sole proprietorships, notes Gray. Purcell deployed chamber resources in such a way that each of these companies felt supported regarding their individual needs while fostering a cooperative and collaborative atmosphere.

One of the ways he did this initially was by extending himself and negotiating a steep learning curve about his new home.

“I remember the first time I heard him speak,” recalls Walsh, “it was at a chamber dinner. It was obvious he had done his homework — he knew all about the Valley and its background.” Walsh adds that Purcell remains inquisitive about the state, often traveling in and outside the region to view state landmarks and historical attractions.



Purcell also has helped facilitate opportunities and partnerships. For example, the GVCC sponsors networking groups such as a Women in Networking Group and the Breakfast Club Program, offers grants, and presents business expos and health fairs. The Leadership Greater Valley Program, an initiative conducted in partnership with the Valley United Way and the Valley Council, has helped prepare more than 200 residents interested in assuming community-leadership positions.

In addition, Purcell has offered space in the chamber’s Bridgeport Avenue office suite to partners such as the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE), Junior Achievement and the Women’s Business Development Center so they can have a central location to serve clients and associates.

“One of the things I’m proud of is the partnerships we have,” Purcell says.

Griffin Hospital Vice President William Powanda  says Purcell’s connections with individuals and organizations enhance the chamber’s effectiveness.

“Bill has brought his personal style and professional attributes to the chamber,” says Powanda, who chaired the chamber’s board during the 1980s. “I think he’s developed relationships with all the [municipal] chief elected officials as well as community and business leaders, helping to position the chamber as one of the best in the state.”

Powanda notes that even in a distressed economy, chambers of commerce like other nonprofits must maintain revenue streams through membership dues and other funding sources.

“By reaching out to small corporations and new companies in the community, Bill has not only maintained revenue, but he’s grown revenue streams,” says Powanda.

Over the past ten years “there’s been steady, measured progress, throughout our Valley,” says Purcell, who came to the region at a time when it earned All-America City status. “The Valley has continued to emerge as a major economic force in the state. There continue to be pockets of growth here. There’s an improved self-image, as well as an outside image of the Valley as a place to live and do business in.”

He notes that Valley residential development has become as important as commercial growth, and cites developers such as Robert Scinto, Haynes Construction and Fletcher Thompson as instrumental to the region’s expansion.

“What’s so extraordinary about this job is the people you meet and the people you get to interact with — business leaders, community leaders, politicians,” says Purcell. He is just as comfortable at a local informal outing as he is traveling to Hartford to lobby the governor regarding business-related policy, or making last-minute accommodations for a visiting dignitary.

One of Purcell’s fondest memories is of a 2006 visit by then-U.S. Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez to Shelton. Purcell recalls preparations for the visit had to be carried out with just one week’s notice. At one point he found himself out in the rain, personally putting up directional signs for the secretary’s convoy.

“An hour later, I’m on the stage with the U.S. Secretary of Commerce. You do whatever it takes to get the job done.”



To be sure, there have been setbacks. Among the most notable challenges to the Valley business community during Purcell’s tenure was a devastating 2001 Latex Foam Products fire in downtown Ansonia. The catastrophe displaced 190 workers, created an environmental hazard, ravaged ten acres of Ansonia’s cityscape and eradicated a major corporate taxpayer.

“That was a pivotal moment for me, how we as a community rallied around that,” says Purcell, describing relief efforts for former Latex Foam employees and money raised by community and church groups. “I just think that whole experience was a defining moment for the Valley.”

There was hope the company would rebuild in Ansonia; instead, it  relocated to Shelton. Characteristically, Purcell accentuates the positive.

“We were able to keep the company here,” he says. “It stayed with our Valley.”

The current recession, however, has forced other Valley companies to shut their doors. Derby’s Dworkin Chevrolet is gone. So is the century-old Housatonic Lumber Co., which shut its doors last June, a victim of the housing downturn.

“I think the biggest challenge has been the past two to three years,” observes Powanda, “and I think Bill’s reputation and credibility with the chamber are reasons for his ability to keep membership at a time when many chambers were losing members.”

In such “challenging times,” says Purcell, “we have a responsibility to accentuate and accelerate the positive.” He notes, for example, that the Valley remains “blessed with a rich and diverse mix of industry, from global leaders to homespun businesses.”

From the beginning, Purcell and the chamber have supported studies, enrichment activities, community-development endeavors and organizational events that bolster the Valley. He further serves the community as a member of several boards and advisory bodies for area associations.

The GVCC has had a growing impact outside the Valley region as well. It participates in the Connecticut Regional Alliance, which meets monthly in New Haven to share information and developments. The GVCC has assumed a greater leadership and outreach role with the annual May Business Expo presented at Sacred Heart University in conjunction with the Milford and other Fairfield County-based chambers.

In 2000, the American Chamber of Commerce Executives named Purcell a certified chamber executive (CCE), the chamber profession’s highest industry honor. The American Society of Association Executives followed suit in 2002, designating Purcell a certified association executive (CAE). He was recertified four years later.

A past director of the New England Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives, Purcell recently was named to the executive committee of the Connecticut Association of Chamber Executives.

Purcell says his success as a chamber president can be gauged only through that of the people and organizations he serves.

“You bring people together so that connections are made,” he says. “Supporting one another — that’s where we derive our satisfaction, connecting Company A to Company B.”

Taking a page from English philosopher John Milton, Purcell asserts: “I’d like this place to be a marketplace of ideas, where people meet and share and collaborate in so many different ways.

“Companies want to weigh in. It’s our job to give them the creative forum to do that.”