The last of the big three chambers of commerce in San Antonio has chosen a permanent leader.
The San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce announced Friday that it has tapped Luis A. Rodriguez to serve as its president and CEO, beginning April 1.
Rodriguez, co-founder and CEO of Modern Managed IT, is a well-known quantity at the Hispanic Chamber. He is currently the board’s treasurer and has previously served as the organization’s chief operations officer, vice president of economic development and vice president of membership.
He left in 2017 to helm the Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce as president and CEO, returning to San Antonio in 2020.
Steve Alaniz, the Hispanic Chamber’s 2024 board chairman, said the hiring committee had a plethora of strong candidates to choose from, many of whom applied from across the country.
One of five finalists, Rodriguez rose above the others based on the strength of his past work and his relationships, Alaniz said. He described Rodriguez as “a natural chamber leader” and a protégé of Ramiro Cavazos, president and CEO of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce who led the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber for many years.
Rodriguez said returning to the chamber was a “full circle” moment for him, and he’s thrilled to be back.
He made a full-throated case for the continued relevance of chambers of commerce, especially for small businesses that don’t have the time or expertise to advocate on their own behalf.
Advocacy, along with resources to help businesses grow and innovate, should be a chamber’s main goals, he said.
But businesses also have to put in the time and effort to see a return on their investment, Rodriguez said. He compared it to getting a gym membership. That alone won’t make you fit, he said. “You have to put in the work. Get on a committee, attend a ribbon-cutting or sponsor an event.”
For much of last year, all three of San Antonio’s major chambers — The Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, the North San Antonio Chamber of Commerce and the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce — were seeking new permanent leaders.
In November, Jeff Webster was named president and CEO of the Greater Chamber, two weeks after the North Chamber tapped Brent Finley. Both had been without permanent CEOs since the Greater Chamber’s Richard Perez and the North Chamber’s Cristina Aldrete stepped down in late 2022.
Marina Gonzalez left the Hispanic Chamber‘s top spot in July 2023. JR Treviño, who was serving as board chairman at the time, stepped into the role on an interim basis.
Alaniz thanked Treviño for shepherding the chamber through a successful annual gala, the launch of the inaugural cohort of its new small business leadership program, Avanzar, and the creation of an endowment for its Alex Briseño Leadership Development Program.
“He really made some great, great progress during his time as interim CEO,” Alaniz said.
The San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, founded in 1929, was the country’s first Hispanic chamber.
