McMillan named president, CEO of Las Vegas Chamber

When Kristin McMillan says it's been an interesting year, she's putting it mildly.

McMillan announced Wednesday that she will leave her post as vice president of external relations for CenturyLink's Western region, and take over on May 2 as president and chief executive officer of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce.

McMillan succeeds Matt Crosson, who died unexpectedly in December after eight months on the job. McMillan parachutes into the job amid a state legislative session featuring talk of new corporate taxes and a prolonged local economic downturn that has business and government leaders scrambling for policies and initiatives to boost job growth.

"Job creation and employment are what it's all about right now. That's what's on the mind of all businesses," McMillan said. "The chamber needs to be a big part of those efforts."

It's not McMillan's first leadership role with the 6,000-member chamber, which ranks as one of the biggest metropolitan-area chambers of commerce in the nation. She chaired the group's board of trustees in 2010.

"Kristin McMillan brings a unique combination of business acumen, strategic planning, and government and community relations, as well as a keen understanding about the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce," said Michael Bonner, current chairman of the chamber's board, in a statement. "She skillfully led the chamber through the transition in leadership last year, and through that experience gained tremendous insight regarding the needs of our membership and the important role the chamber continues to play in moving our economy forward. Kristin will be a thoughtful advocate for the business community and will bring energy and innovation to the chamber."

McMillan said she's set to begin working immediately with the chamber's government affairs staff to understand how staffers are representing members' interests before the Legislature in Carson City. She's also already spoken with Gov. Brian Sandoval about how the chamber can work with state leaders to advance economic diversification and grapple with other economic hot topics.

"One of our roles is to create opportunities for companies to be able to expand and hire employees," McMillan said. "What's the best environment for businesses to expand, and what resources do we, as a chamber, need to provide?"

To that end, McMillan aims to survey the chamber's membership for input on how they feel about the local business environment, and how the chamber can help them operate more effectively. McMillan wants to involve smaller companies in particular. Small businesses make up about 75 percent of the chamber's membership, but owners of smaller concerns often wear multiple hats and can't always find the time to attend chamber luncheons and networking events. The answer? Taking the chamber to them through technology.

"I really want to emphasize the importance of combining high touch with high tech. We're going to be using technology to a greater extent to connect with membership," she said.

McMillan said she's also planning a "CEO-member forum" to "set a pattern of ongoing communication and conversation with our members."

The chamber presidency presents an unexpected career turn for McMillan, who's spent her career in law and was on the search committee that hired Crosson.

But volunteering for the chamber and living in Las Vegas for 20 years combined to interest McMillan in the job.

"Being in business and being active in the community have given me a sense of our evolution, from the years during which we were such an economically successful business community to the years during which we've seen some of the worst conditions that businesses in our community are likely to experience," she said. "We have to remain vigilant as a chamber to make sure we remain relevant to our members, and that we continue to find new ways to provide value-added services and opportunities in this climate."

In her CenturyLink post, McMillan manages a 10-state region in a variety of regulatory, legislative and local government affairs, public policy initiatives and advocacy. She also oversees public affairs, community relations and sponsorships, and develops strategic relationships with government, regulatory and business leaders. McMillan played a significant role in the state regulatory-approval process for the merger between CenturyLink and Qwest, a deal that created the nation's third-largest telecommunications company.

Prior to joining CenturyLink, McMillan was co-managing shareholder of the Las Vegas office of multinational law firm Greenberg Traurig, and a shareholder in Nevada-based law firms including Lionel Sawyer & Collins and Hale Lane.

She earned her bachelor's degree from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities and her law degree from the Santa Clara University School of Law.