New Board Members Added From Around State

(INDIANAPOLIS) — A top Hoosier auto executive is the new chair of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. Scott Brand, president and COO of Subaru of Indiana Automotive (SIA) in Lafayette, was welcomed during the organization’s recent fall board meeting.

Brand, who is the first non-Japanese executive to lead SIA, oversees its 6,500-strong workforce. He’s been involved with the Indiana Chamber in various board capacities since 2018.

Brand calls the Indiana Chamber a “highly effective organization” with “a very influential position in the state.”

“I see my role as chair to support (Indiana Chamber President and CEO Vanessa Green Sinders) and the trajectory that she has put the Chamber on, and also to provide counsel and leverage opportunities for the Chamber to strengthen its position as the voice of business in Indiana,” he relays.

“It’s a huge responsibility but also a huge privilege to have the opportunity to be the chair of the Indiana Chamber.”

Sinders is eager to benefit from Brand’s leadership and organizational expertise.

“Scott’s contributions on the board have already been significant,” she says. “We’re excited for him to lead the board in another pivotal year for Hoosier businesses. And we know his executive experience at Subaru will undoubtedly benefit operations for our organization as well as our members as we work to shape policy and provide resources to Indiana’s employers.”

Apart from the Indiana Chamber, Brand is currently chairman of the board for Conexus Indiana. His other board engagements include Vincennes University, Wabash Heartland Innovation Network, Purdue University, Central Indiana Corporate Partnership and the National Association of Manufacturers.

The Indiana Chamber also added eight new directors to its board. They were officially installed last month and include:

  • Kari Britto, vice president, operations at Indiana American Water (Greenwood);
  • Matt Eckert, president and CEO at Holiday World (Santa Claus);
  • Clarice Nist, vice president, information technology at Zimmer Biomet (Warsaw);
  • Martin Pollio, president at Ivy Tech Community College (Indianapolis);
  • Amish Shah, president at Kem Krest (Elkhart);
  • Ryan Weaver, COO at Fair Oaks Farms (Fair Oaks);
  • Chad Pulley, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary at Republic Airways (Indianapolis); and
  • Fred Merritt, CEO at Riverside Manufacturing (Fort Wayne).

“These new leaders come from varied sectors of the Hoosier economy and will help us keep our momentum as one of America’s best state chambers,” Sinders says. “We call on them – and all our board members – to apply their specific knowledge and talents, and we look forward to their engagement and the role they can play around achieving our Indiana Prosperity 2035 economic vision plan for the state.”

More than 200 individuals from member companies from a diverse array of industries make up the entire Indiana Chamber board. They are presidents, CEOs and high-level executives from organizations throughout the state.

All new board members will serve three-year terms through fall 2028.

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The Indiana Chamber partners with 25,000 members and investors – representing over four million Hoosiers – to achieve the mission of “cultivating a world-class environment which provides economic opportunity and prosperity.”