Huey J. Battle
Chairman-elect, Alexandria Chamber
of Commerce
Professional Life: Area Manager, Virginia Public Affairs,
Washington Gas
Community Work: Serves on the Boards of 9 area non-profit
organizations
Career Notes: 21 years at Washington Gas
Education:
Virginia Tech, B.A. in Architecture
Lives in: Springfield, VA
Family:
Wife and 2 children, 8 and 10 years old
Last Book Read: How
I Play Golf, Tiger Woods
Favorite Restaurant: Trattoria Alberto,
Capitol Hill
Hobbies: Golf, high school basketball official, scuba
diving, travel
Recent vacation spot: Outer Banks of North Carolina
|  |
Huey Battle was recently named Chairman-elect of the Alexandria Chamber
of Commerce. His tenure begins in January. He will be the first African American
to serve as Chairman of the Alexandria Chamber. We spoke with him at the Chamber
offices about his community involvement and building a successful professional,
civic and personal life. How did you first get involved in the Chamber?
Washington Gas is very dedicated to the growth and improvement of the community
in which we serve and as a public affairs manager, that's a large part of what
I do. I look for opportunities to be involved in the communities we serve, to
help develop those communities. Better economic development means better health
for Washington Gas as well as the business community as a whole. The determining
factors of my personal involvement are interest, opportunity, time and commitment.
I have always felt the Chamber of Commerce offers a wonderful opportunity to do
things that have tangible benefit to our community. And how did you first
come to be on the Board of the Directors of the Chamber?
As a member
of the Chamber initially, I was able to get to know Kathy Snyder, past Chamber
President, relatively well. I had the opportunity to work with her and Mantil
Williams, past Chamber Government Affairs Director, on a number of different initiatives.
Both were very involved in trying to upgrade the Chamber's profile in the community,
as well as its profile statewide and at the General Assembly level. Because I
do a number of state-level lobbying activities for my company, I was asked to
help the Chamber out as well. We had a good working relationship from that point,
and I showed interest in becoming a Board member. Kathy thought I would bring
a slightly different perspective to the Board. I lay much of the blame on Kathy's
shoulders for being where I am today! Ken Moore, current President/CEO, and Lynn
Hampton, current Chairman, have to share some of that blame as well.
What unique quality about yourself or your role at Washington Gas will you
bring to your new position of Chairman?
I bring a regional perspective
to the job. I've been involved in a number of Chambers of Commerce and non-profits
throughout the region. I see the issues that are being dealt with in Arlington,
Fairfax, Loudoun, and here in Alexandria. The hope is we can collaborate where
necessary to get at the issues that have significant regional importance.
Additionally,
much of my work activities deal with Government Affairs and I believe that that
background can bring the Chamber a more active perspective on advocacy. What
qualities make the best leaders?
Leaders have to be action oriented.
It is important for a leader to be a good listener as well. They have to be able
to take in a number of different viewpoints and come up with an action plan. They
also have to have a certain level of charisma-that helps get things done. One
thing I'd tell someone who is trying to be a business leader or getting into the
business arena is you have to learn to work and play well with others. What
qualities make the best philanthropists? Being a business leader and
a philanthropist have some things in common. One, being action oriented. Philanthropists
have to look for gaps in service and assess needs in the community. They then
see how they fit in the best and what they can bring to the table, and then act
on it. The most effective Boards of Directors are ones that are very active in
searching out opportunities proactively. The best philanthropists are of that
vein as well.
What is some business advice you can offer our readers?
A
basic business credo is "sell your product for one penny more than it costs
you to make it." A lot of firms in the new economy seem to have found this
out the hard way. If you're a young person looking to develop yourself
as a business leader, develop your resources. Learn to work with people. Find
the people who are doing the things you are interested in learning more about.
Those relationships you build will help you as you move up the ladder in the business
world. Collaboration is a big key. The dollars and cents are great to things to
have, but you must have good, solid relationships with people. You can't start
early enough to build these types of relationships. Who have been some
of your mentors? There are people I look up to every day, not necessarily
based on their status in the business world, but people who are just putting one
foot in front of the other. Those people are doing everything they can possibly
do to help our community. My parents of course are my key mentors. Whenever
I need assistance mentally, I always think about what my father would have done.
My father was a great leader and helped develop the Black Chamber of Commerce
in Petersburg, Virginia back in the 60s, when it was very difficult to establish
business organization for African Americans. He was a professor. His leadership
style was very low-key and thoughtful. My mom is a very action-oriented, focused
individual. Even now, though she is retired, she works hard every single day and
participates as a strong and passionate community and church leader.
What lessons have you learned through your volunteer efforts, both about the
community and yourself?
If you are a true believer in community, the
place that you live and work, and the quality of life in that community, it is
very hard to say no to philanthropic and community activities. Unfortunately sometimes,
you do have to learn to say no. That's something that has really come hard for
me in the last few years. There are so many worthy causes, but you have to learn
to focus on the things you can do the best, where your strengths are, and where
you can add value. What do you most hope to accomplish during your term
as Chairman of the Chamber? I want to make the Chamber more regional
and more proactive on the advocacy side. I think we need to be a more public player
on advocating issues that our membership needs to be more effective as business
people in the area. The key to the Sept 11 piece has been a drop in tourism, and
the effect that has had on the business community in Alexandria. As we start to
move forward, I'll be looking for opportunities for collaboration between the
City, the Alexandria Convention and Visitors Bureau, and other organization dedicated
to bringing tourist industry back in the city. I have some things I'd like
to do in the affordable housing area. I think that's important as a business initiative.
It brings people in and keeps our community whole. And obviously, traffic and
education are still big local and regional issues. We'll continue to play a part
in those as we move forward as well. I'm also already putting together a
blue ribbon committee to look at the Chamber's activities and relationship with
the non-profit community. The question is what role should the chamber play with
respect to non-profits. Are we doing all we can do? We'll be taking a look at
that along with several other topics that I won't disclose just yet. On
a more personal note, how do you manage to balance a busy career, a personal life,
and your many volunteer efforts? It helps to have a great wife and family,
and an employer who sees the value of what you do. My time is really not my own,
and I find I have to become a good time manager. I have to manage my time on a
daily basis to be do the things I do. I'm on the Board of Directors of 9 non-profits
in the area, which keep me very busy. My wife is great, and we're raising 2 little
girls. It's a constant juggling act, but you have make time to spend with your
family, after all, that's themost important thing. In offering advice
to young African Americans about how to get involved in serving their communities,
where would you suggest they begin? The local Chamber of Commerce, the
Urban League and other such organizations offer opportunities to link up with
people who are doing things in the community. That's extremely important for young
African Americans. You must find the resources to inject yourselves into the business
community. Is there anything else you'd like to say to our readers? Get
involved at any level that you possibly can. Your homeowners or civic associations
are great places to start. If you have a leaning toward politics, go out and work
a campaign, make a few phone calls for a Get Out The Vote initiative. Go out and
involve yourself. That's how things change. That's how things get done. The golden
rule is that those who don't participate have no right to complain. Additionally
as a side benefit, you meet a lot of people in any endeavor you try to do. Those
can be very valuable to you in the future. But the key is that you make the first
step. Go out and be active.
Discuss
this article on our discussion forum.
| 
