Tolland County Chamber of Commerce
Ninety seconds
You can't hire your way out of this. That's the whole finding.
Everything below is from the Chamber's own 2024 filing. Nothing here is an estimate.
Executive Director compensation, 2024$58,176
Total revenue, 2024$124,607
Share of every dollar going to one salary46.7%
How the year closed$8,035 short
Nearly half of every dollar the Chamber takes in goes to one salary, on a budget that finished in deficit. There's no room in it for a second person — so the capacity has to come from somewhere other than another hire.
Source: Form 990, FY2024, filed by the Chamber. Peer chambers aren't compared here — they report staff cost differently, so the lines aren't like for like.
Where the money actually comes from
Dues are $92,410 — 74.2% of revenue. That's the number under everything else. When dues slip, there's no second engine to cover it, and chasing them is work that lands on the one person who's already at capacity.
If you do one thing this week, turn on the dues reminders. Twenty minutes, no cost, nothing to buy, and you don't need me for it. If it moves the number, you'll know the diagnosis is right before you've spent a dollar.
What I'd build, free
I'd rather show you than describe it. A few days in the office watching how it actually runs, then I build the piece that takes the most off your desk. Likely candidates, in the order I'd guess:
- The member lookup — so any question about any member is answered in one place
- Renewal chasing that runs itself and sounds like you
- New-member onboarding — the same emails, sent without you sending them
- The public directory, which is also the Chamber's front door
Free to build. If it helps, we talk about what comes next. If it doesn't, you've lost nothing but the time it took to say hello.
And whatever we build — if you ever leave, the website is yours. It goes with the Chamber, not with me.
Ryan Kirchberger
Principal, BlackRain Automations · Vernon, CT