Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce hires new CEO. And he’s returning ‘home’

The Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce has finished its search for a new leader.

Jansen Tidmore has been selected as the chamber’s president and CEO. He begins his tenure July 21.

Tidmore, 40, told the Ledger-Enquirer that he considers himself to be in “economic development by trade,” highlighting over a decade of experience.

Before this role, Tidmore was the president and CEO of the Jefferson County Economic Development Corporation, Jeffco EDC, in Denver, Colorado. He also has worked in leadership positions with the Spartanburg Downtown Development Partnership and the Dothan Downtown Redevelopment Authority.

During his career, Tidmore is credited with helping to generate more than $12 billion in capital investment and more than 15,000 new jobs in the communities he has served, according to the chamber’s news release.

Crystal Shahid, chairwoman of the Columbus chamber, said Tidmore’s experience made him stand out among the three finalists for this position.

“He has broad experience across the Southeast in working with chambers and the development authorities,” Shahid told the Ledger-Enquirer. “His collaborative approach to his work really made him stand out among our candidates we interviewed.”

Tidmore graduated from Auburn University with a master’s degree in public administration with concentrations in city management and economic development.

“As Columbus continues to grow and evolve, this new leadership will help us to seize new opportunities and build on momentum we’ve created across the region,” Columbus Mayor Skip Henderson said in the news release.

Tidmore underwent an extensive recruitment lasting 3-4 months. He is replacing former chamber CEO Jerald Mitchell, who stepped down in October 2024 to work on economic development projects.

As a Dothan, Alabama, native, Tidmore said his interest in this job came from his affection for his hometown and the region.

“When the opportunity came up, it excited me to have a chance to come back home, come back into an area that I know and love so much, and to a place that is really special,” Tidmore said. “I think we’re looking for a place where we can not only call home, that place where our kids go to school, but a place that you can roll up your sleeves and be a part of the community.”

Main priority for new Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce CEO

His main priority for his first 90 days is to listen, he said. With the amount of economic development initiatives in Columbus, Tidmore said it’s important to hear feedback from community leaders and organization stakeholders to understand how he can better serve the Columbus business community.

“Anytime you have this opportunity to come into one of these roles, you start by listening,” Tidmore said. “There’s still quite a bit that I want to put together and piece together about what’s happened in Columbus. There’s a lot of initiatives out there. There’s a lot of different groups. There’s a lot of focus all over the place. What I want to do is find those common threads, find those commonalities and make sure that I understand and insert the chamber’s role into those in a way that’s appropriate.”

Another focus Tidmore mentioned is the attraction and retention of new businesses to Columbus. He stressed the importance of Columbus residents having access to quality job opportunities.

“When I talk about outcomes, it’s that cornerstone belief that access to quality jobs is what drives a healthy community,” Tidmore said. “We want to make sure that all of our Columbus residents, all of our neighbors, have that access to these quality jobs, and we do that through that attraction, retention and expansion of employers.”

Success of these initiatives will be measured in many different ways, Tidmore said. Some metrics he will use are business attraction, retention and expansion, created jobs and new capital.

“If we can improve that business environment and close those gaps so that more people that call Columbus home have access to more quality jobs, that means our businesses are thriving, and that means we’ve done our job, and so that means that we’ve had success,” Tidmore said.

This story was originally published May 20, 2025 at 12:02 PM.