The Greater Valley Area Chamber of Commerce posted an opening for the position of executive director on its website Tuesday.

Bill Gladden, vice president of the Board of Directors, said that the GVACC is accepting any and all applications and hopes to fill the position as soon as possible.

“What we are looking for is someone who is excited to be here,” Gladden said. “To run the chamber, there is a certain amount of administrative know-how, but the important thing is that they are out in the community, promoting the community and helping the businesses.”

The job posting describes the position as one that “has overall strategic and operational responsibility for the chamber’s staff, programs, expansion, and execution of its mission, as well as development and recruiting new members.”

Qualifications include at least three years of experience as a leader, business acumen, and the ability to work without direct supervision. Gladden said the most important characteristics are an outgoing demeanor and a personable personality.

“It’s kind of hard to quantify,” he said when asked what would put one candidate over another.  “I’ve come up in technology, and I’ve always said its easier for me to teach somebody how to run a computer than it is to teach them how to be a nice person. The technical parts of the job, we can teach you that, but we need someone who will go out, rally the troops and is a leader who people will follow.”

According to Gladden, a subcommittee of board members is handling the initial screening process. Once they have chosen two or three candidates, they will present them to the board as a whole before a final decision is made. The board is hoping to hire someone as soon as possible but is taking the due diligence to ensure it picks the best candidate.

“We want to give all the candidates an opportunity to throw their hat in the ring, so we aren’t going to hastily make a decision, but we need to get somebody in this seat to do the job with time for the community to get used to them,” Gladden said.

Gladden said that being from the Greater Valley Area is not a requirement for the position, but that those who are familiar with those the chamber serves will have a leg up.

The job posting instructs would-be applicants to send a cover letter and resume to the Greater Valley Area Chamber of Commerce at P.O. Box 205, Lanett, Al 36863. Anyone with questions can contact croyster@greatervalleyarea.com.