This summer, Toya Moore joined the ranks of the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce as the new director of leadership development.
Putting it simply, she says, her new role is about "helping people who are in charge get better at being in charge." It's her goal to assist business owners in becoming better connected to other people and resources in their communites, and show them new ways of giving back.
Her main responsibilities are overseeing two of the Chamber's most well-known programs — Leadership Chattanooga and Protégé.
Leadership Chattanooga is the Chamber's premiere program for leadership development. It's a 10-month course designed to provide participants with real world applications that they may put to use in their work and community lives.
Protégé is a 9-month program that offers young professionals one-on-one mentorship twice a month. Each month, students are paired with a new business leader with experiencing ranging from mid-level to CEO.
Thinking back to her first job, working as a teenager for the Mars Wrigley Confectionery in Cleveland, Tennessee, she's amazed at the path of her career. After that, she spent time in educational and volunteer programming positions for the United Way. That work lead to managing leadership development programs for the Brentwood office of LBMC, one of Tennessee's largest professional service solutions providers.
Her new role with the Chamber combines all of that, she says. The position uses those aspects of her talents that provide the most fulfillment — teaching and community service.
"In all my years of training and development, the most amazing part has been watching the growth journey," she says. "How one person may enter with so many questions, and watching them become a confident person in the business community. That's a rewarding process."
When she's not at work, Moore likes to spend time reading and journaling, working in her garden, and spending time with her husband, Charles and their two dogs, Nino and Rocko.
So what's her favorite part about landing in Chattanooga?
"The food!" she laughs. "There are so many great places to eat. I love going to brunch — and this is a very brunch-going kind of town."