The Cincinnati Chamber Board elected Brendon Cull as the new Chamber President, effective July 1. Currently, Cull is the Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer. Cull joined the Chamber in 2016 as the Chief Operating Officer and has more than twenty years of experience leading economic and regional initiatives in the public, private, and non-profit sectors. With the growth of the Chamber and the foundation built through the difficult past two years, the promotion of Cull into this key role better positions the Chamber for long-term sustainable growth and accelerates its current ability to deliver more for its members.
Cull has a deep knowledge of the people, businesses, and issues that drive the region’s economy. Prior to joining the Chamber, Cull led government affairs for Kroger, served in a leadership role for the Mayor of Cincinnati, and has served in volunteer leadership roles for many local organizations.
Brendon Cull
At the Chamber, Cull has led the implementation of the organization’s two most recent strategic plans, led the RESTART Task Force, and was a key leader in the community-wide effort to deliver meaningful transportation and infrastructure investment through Issue 7. Cull has had deep strategic and management involvement in BLINK, the Leadership Center, the Center for Research & Data, and the Chamber’s government affairs, talent and inclusion initiatives. He works closely with the Board of Directors on key organization priorities. Currently, Cull is the President of the Mercantile Library board of directors, and serves on the boards of ArtsWave, the Convention Facilities Authority, the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority, and Visit Cincy.
Cull will continue to report to Jill P. Meyer, who remains as the CEO of the organization she has led since 2015. Meyer’s visionary leadership and inclusive approach in all corners of the community have positioned the Chamber as a key partner in nearly all aspects of the region’s growing economy. Under Meyer’s leadership, the Chamber is midway through a strategic plan focused on building a Future City where business growth delivers the economic platform that accelerates opportunities for everyone who calls this region home. She has led the organization and business community through COVID’s economic challenges, keeping the Chamber well-positioned as the key organization that was able to assist thousands of businesses throughout the economic downturn.
Shelly Speiser, COO and CFO
“Brendon is a partner, leader, and friend, and I’m excited for our continued work together to lead and deliver on the region’s key business priorities,” said Meyer. “This is a natural progression for Brendon as he has become a key player in board rooms and beyond and is driving key aspects of our long-term strategy through thoughtful and inclusive partnerships.”
Shelly Speiser, currently the Chamber’s Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer, adds the Chief Operating Officer title, effective July 1, in recognition of her leadership of the internal operations of the Chamber. Speiser joined the Chamber on June 1, 2020 and quickly steadied the finances and operations during a tumultuous economic period when no one knew the bounds of COVID’s havoc. Over the past two years, Speiser has been leading a complete overhaul of the Chamber’s financial and accounting systems, operations platform, IT infrastructure, CRM and related platforms. These updated and more sophisticated systems coupled with her “finance is a team sport” philosophy will allow the Chamber team to better, more efficiently, and more modernly drive the business to deliver more for its members and all who engage with the Chamber.
Speiser has a diverse and impressive private sector career in financial leadership, systems management, and innovation. With more than 15 years at GE in both the Healthcare and Aviation sectors,and leadership roles at Mercy Health, Dayton Children’s Hospital, Formica, and EY, Speiser knows from experience how to lead change within organizations with complex financial processes, systems, and constituencies. Speiser earned her MBA from Xavier and graduated with degrees in Accounting and Finance from the University of Cincinnati.
