BOUNTIFUL -- A two-term Bountiful City Council member is turning in one very public role for another. John Pitt, who has been a council member since 1999, has been named as the new CEO of the Davis Chamber of Commerce. He will assume those duties Monday, Jan. 29.
Pitt told the Clipper that he will resign his position on the city council to concentrate on his new duties, leading the state's third largest chamber of commerce.
He is one of 80 who applied for the position, many of them from Davis County.
"We had applicants from Alaska, Virginia, Texas," said Vaughn Jacobsen, the chamber's new president, a position filled from within the membership.
"When it came down to it, the search committee felt best about applicants from our own county," he said.
"We're really encouraged with John, feel he'll be the right person for this time. He has a lot of skills, a lot of talents, that we can look forward to him leveraging on behalf of the citizens and the county," Jacobsen continued.
"(Pitt) knowing the position of a small business owner, having grown up in a family-owned business in Bountiful," was among those qualifications that pushed the newly named CEO to the top, he said.
Pitt's late father, Jerry, and mother, Carolyn (Stuart), owned and operated the Mother Goose Shop in downtown Bountiful for many years. There were branch stores in Layton and Sandy. Jerry Pitt also was president of the downtown business merchants' association in Bountiful.
John Pitt has worked most recently as senior training manager for MarketStar Corporation in Ogden as well as a senior manager for international training and communications with Convergys Corporation, Salt Lake County.
He also has extensive experience in TV production, having worked as a producer and director for the U.S. Senate in Washington, D.C.
Pitt is a graduate of the University of Utah and is currently pursuing an MBA in global management from the University of Phoenix.
"It seemed to be a natural extension of the work I was doing with Bountiful, as well as of my interests throughout life," Pitt said. "I've been involved with business, broadcasting, etc. It was a perfect combination of all of those things, and gives me a chance to broaden my business advocacy."
Among his tentative goals are: increase recruitment, re-tention and participation of Davis County business membership; aggressively promote economic development and strengthen business environment in the county; and improve relations between the business community and public/government/media/church/civic communities.
Jacobsen declined to indicate what Pitt's new salary will be, but said it is "performance based, with incentives for chamber growth. We believe it's important for chamber members to get a return for their investment. That re-quires he be out among community members. The chamber only grows if it is of benefit to the community."
He said that, in line with Pitt's pending arrival, an organizational reorganization will take place. For example, a replacement for former membership director Shirley Bouwhuis has not been named.
Diane Townsend has been serving as acting chamber CEO with the departure of Chris Dallin several months ago. She previously was manager of Davis Cable Channel 17, which is operated by the chamber.
"We had many people who said it was the nicest chamber event that they had experienced in a long time," said Townsend of the awards and installation banquet Friday, Jan. 19, at the Oakridge Country Club in Farmington. That is where Pitt's selection was formally announced.
About 170 attended.
tbusselberg@davisclipper.com
Post a Comment
