Thick skin. Open hands. Those are two of the features members of the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce will be looking for when they begin sizing up candidates to replace president Bill Sepic.

In interviews last week with several chamber board members, a consensus emerged that whoever replaces Sepic will need to have tough skin to withstand the criticism sure to come with the job, and open hands ready to greet people who haven’t been allies of the chamber.

“We all know how critical this community can be on all types of issues,” said Jean Milstead, who will begin later this month as the chamber’s interim president. “The next person needs to be someone who doesn’t take criticism personally.

“And it also needs to be someone who respects the public’s opinion, even though they may not agree with it.”

The chamber is searching for a new president and chief executive officer after Sepic, who has been in Lawrence less than three years, announced he was leaving at the end of November to take a similar position in Lansing, Mich.

Tough job

Chamber chairman Kelvin Heck said he expected to announce this week the names of about 25 community members who will serve on a committee to identify the qualities the next chamber president should possess.

That committee, which will include representatives from the business community and local government, will be narrowed to about 10 people who will conduct a formal search, Heck said.

Chamber board members said the task of finding the right person wouldn’t be easy.

“This is not an easy job,” said Mark Buhler, a partner at Stephens Real Estate and a chamber board member. “It will take a pretty talented person.”

Jean Milstead will take over as interim president of the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce later this month. Milstead, a retired senior vice president of Douglas County Bank, said she was not seeking the full-time position that has been left open after Bill Sepic's resignation.

Buhler said he thought it was critical the chamber be upfront with candidates about the challenges they would face in Lawrence, particularly in the economic development environment.

“Whoever comes here will have to understand that Lawrence is involved in an opinion process right now about the type of jobs that come here and the wages that people pay here. Our populous, right or wrong, is very selective. We need to be clear about that to whoever we hire.”

Building bridges

Shirley Martin-Smith, a former Lawrence mayor and owner of an area employment agency, said a single quality was at the top of a lot of people’s wish list for the next leader’s qualifications.

“I’ve already heard on several occasions that we have to have someone who has the ability to build consensus,” Martin-Smith said.

Martin-Smith, a chamber board member, said Sepic did a good job of building consensus by starting initiatives such as ECO2, which brought together business and environmental leaders to discuss land-use issues.

“The strongest thing about Bill was he opened up a lot of doors that were not open as widely as they are now,” Heck said. “Like the discussions with the environmental groups. He created a situation where that is not just allowable but desirable. That needs to continue.”

Other things need to change, though, some board members said.

Buhler said the next president might need to have a bit more of a hands-on leadership style.

“Bill was a delegator,” Buhler said. “He delegated a lot of responsibility, and I’m not sure Lawrence was ready for that. Some people didn’t feel like they had the connection with that position they had in the past. Part of that was a different personality, and part of it was that it was just different than what we were used to.

“But Bill didn’t kid us. He was exactly what he told us he was. But I think it was a difficult fit here for Bill. I think the world of him, but we are a tough bunch to please . I think this might have been our fault, not his. He’s had success where he came from, and he’ll have success where he’s headed.”

Focus on jobs

Sepic came from Rochester, Minn., where he was president of that community’s chamber. But unlike Lawrence, the Rochester chamber of commerce didn’t include the city’s economic development department. In Lawrence, that department is funded in part by the city and Douglas County.

Heck said the next chamber president should come to the job with some significant economic development experience.

“I think part of the appeal for Bill to come here was it gave him the chance to run an economic development department,” Heck said. “I think it is important for the new executive to have a pretty strong economic development background because that’s a pretty important part of what we do.”

Heck said it was unfortunate Sepic had to deal with controversy so soon after he started his job. Sepic took the Lawrence job about one month before American Eagle Outfitters announced plans to build a distribution center east of Lawrence.

The company faced a long, controversial approval process that focused on the quality of the jobs the company sought to provide. The amount of tax breaks the firm was seeking also raised contention. After winning approval to build in Lawrence, American Eagle eventually decided to locate in Ottawa.

Sepic’s view

“I tell people all the time that he came here and landed right in the middle of American Eagle, and that was so controversial,” Heck said. “It made it tough because he never had the honeymoon.”

Given all that, Buhler said he was not surprised Sepic decided to move on after less than three years on the job.

“We are so diverse and tug on people from all sides,” Buhler said. “We want $30,000-a-year jobs and clean air and no traffic issues and no land-use issues. It is tough to find companies that fit all those criteria.

“I think Bill had to be frustrated with us here and our expectations. I think the chamber board has to take some responsibility in not getting Bill acquainted enough with the community.”

Sepic said that despite what some people think, he didn’t become frustrated with Lawrence. He said he viewed the American Eagle Outfitters project, and all the debate that came with it, as a “gift” because it gave him a great introduction to all the “players and processes” in Lawrence.

“Lawrence is not a different place than what I thought it would be,” Sepic said. “One of the unique parts of Lawrence is that there is a full level of participation on all issues and from all directions.

“That can sometimes result in a slower process than some people are willing to participate in, but that full level of participation is what makes us what we are today. Lawrence was everything I wanted it to be.”

‘Poised for success’

He said he decided to leave simply to continue following a career path he has had for years. He said his love of government always led him to consider leading a chamber in a state capital town. He limited himself to only looking for opportunities in five capital cities in the upper Midwest. Lansing was one of those capitals.

“I felt like when one of those jobs became available, I’d better jump on it,” Sepic said.

But he leaves Lawrence feeling good about the job he’s done. He’s particularly proud of his work with ECO2 because he was hired to “build bridges and mend fences.” He also said Lawrence was much less likely to experience another controversy like the one brought on by American Eagle Outfitters.

“Today we have so many more people talking with each other and looking for solutions together than we did three years ago, without a doubt,” Sepic said.

“I really believe this organization is poised for success,” Sepic said. “That’s why I’m comfortable saying I’m pursuing a different opportunity. I never promised anyone I’d be here a year or 10 years, but I always promised people I would leave the organization better off than when I took over.”