The Chamber’s Protégé and Leadership programs get leaders thinking about the city’s future—and how they can be part of its growth.
Attracting and retaining top talent requires more than offering competitive salaries, benefits, and fun perks. It means creating opportunities for professionals to grow, connect, and find purpose in the place they call home. Programs that invest in young professionals are critical not just for individual career growth, but for strengthening the broader economy and community.
Through the Chattanooga Chamber, professionals have access to two standout programs designed to do just that: Protégé and Leadership. Each offers a different stage of growth for individuals looking to expand their professional horizons, deepen their civic engagement, and build lasting relationships with peers and leaders in the region.
Protégé is designed for emerging professionals (typically ages 21 to 40) who show promise for career advancement and a clear interest in contributing to their community. Participants engage with one another and with business and civic leaders through facilitated discussions, networking events, and mentorship. These interactions often lead to meaningful conversations about career paths, leadership challenges, and life lessons, many of which leave a lasting impression on participants.
For professionals further along in their careers, Leadership builds on those early insights and goes deeper. This program challenges individuals to think beyond their day-to-day work and take a more active role in shaping Chattanooga’s future. It’s a community-driven experience that broadens perspectives and equips participants to lead beyond their workplaces and across the city.
Since their inceptions, both programs have become significant stepping stones for hundreds of Chattanooga professionals—many of whom have completed both. These four local leaders share how Protégé and Leadership have shaped their careers and strengthened their connections with the Chattanooga community.
Tiffanie Robinson, CEO of the real estate holdings company Aslan, was part of the first Protégé class in 2014. At the time, she was early in her real estate career and preparing to launch Lamp Post Group. Her Protégé experience helped lay the groundwork for the kind of leader she would become.
Protégé was born out of the Young Professionals of Chattanooga’s vision to shape the next generation of C-suite leaders—something Robinson was already aspiring toward. “Hearing how other leaders got their start was really powerful,” she says. “It gave me perspective from people who have done it and done it well.”
Those conversations helped her clarify her own vision of success and how to get there. Just as important were the relationships built along the way. “People are looking for bonds and connections outside of their day-to-day lives,” she says. “The bonds you build with your cohort are absolutely crucial.”
For Robinson, getting to interact with seasoned business leaders gave her a glimpse into how to model herself as a CEO. “It was a great foundation for how to be a solid leader,” she says. And as someone now in that leadership seat, she sees the programs as an integral part of what makes Chattanooga competitive. “Programs like Protégé and Leadership make Chattanooga a more desirable place to live, and a more attractive place for good talent. We want people who want to be engaged in their community.”
She emphasizes that access to mentors, resources, and awareness of what’s happening across the city are what make Chattanooga dynamic. When people are more knowledgeable about the community, it strengthens the city as a whole.
Robinson’s advice for anyone considering the programs? Don’t wait; it’s not too late to go through either program. “Take full advantage of the opportunity, be as present as possible, and take it all in. You’re there for a reason.”
For someone who works at the cutting edge of innovation, David Goodloe felt that developing his leadership and community engagement skills was just as essential as technical expertise. He found that opportunity through Protégé and Leadership.
Protégé, he says, offered a solid foundation for intentional career development. “It felt more inwardly focused on self-development, and gave me a great framework for being thoughtful about my growth and how I want to show up professionally,” Goodloe says. Leadership shifted that focus outward. “In Protégé, it felt like we were being poured into. In Leadership, it shifted to us learning how to pour ourselves into the community.”
Now, as Program Development Manager at Branch Technology, Goodloe leads the Advanced Concepts Team at the intersection of science, technology, government, and business. He utilizes the skills and tools he learned in Protégé, Leadership, and his MBA with him daily, and is grateful for the impact those programs have had in his career and life.
He also sees programs like these as key to economic development and talent retention, especially in mid-sized cities like Chattanooga. When young professionals feel supported and have access to resources to help them grow, they’re more likely to stay and invest in the community, rather than take their talents to bigger cities like Atlanta or Nashville.
Goodloe sees Protégé and Leadership as long-term investments in Chattanooga’s future. “These programs get the right people thinking about the right issues, and how to potentially solve them,” he says. “They help future city leaders anticipate challenges they could directly impact.”
His advice for others considering the programs: absolutely apply. “It’s essential to connect with people from different backgrounds and experiences,” he says. “It broadens your perspective—and we need that kind of engagement for the betterment of our community.”
When Ashley Valencia moved to Chattanooga and began her role at La Paz, a nonprofit dedicated to empowering the city’s Latino community, she was early in her career and unsure of her place in the broader professional landscape. “I was trying to figure out my career, and the role I play not just at La Paz, but in Chattanooga as a whole,” she says.
That changed during her time in Protégé. At first, Valencia took a backseat, observing more than participating. Halfway through the program, something clicked. “I realized I could be more intentional about the opportunities in front of me,” she reflects. She began speaking up, sharing her experiences, and engaging in conversations she hadn’t previously entered.
The program also offered practical value. Valencia learned the nuances of Chattanooga’s professional culture: how to network effectively, build relationships, and navigate unfamiliar spaces with confidence. That foundation made Leadership a natural next step.
“Leadership really put fire behind us to realize the positions we’re in to affect change,” she says. The program emphasized cross-sector collaboration, bringing together professionals from different industries to spark new ideas and partnerships. “Being in the nonprofit world can sometimes keep you siloed. Protégé allowed me to meet people from other sectors and industries, and learn about their worlds and perspectives. It reminds us that we all need to work together.”
Since completing Leadership in 2024, Valencia has made a habit of stepping outside her comfort zone. She attends networking and community events, even those that don’t directly relate to La Paz. “It doesn’t have to make sense on paper,” she says. “At the end of the day, it’s about aligning our hearts and values. You can’t always accomplish that through an email.”
She credits the programs with helping her grow more confident and better equipped to lead, both as an advocate for her clients and as a voice within the community. “They helped me build the confidence to have hard conversations and handle them with grace and honesty, without fear of judgment,” she says.
Among her most meaningful memories: a Protégé day of service at the Chattanooga Area Food Bank where participants worked side-by-side, and the long, exhausting days of Leadership—filled with meetings, tours, and panels—followed by nights spent debriefing with peers over drinks. “There were a lot of emotional moments,” she recalls. “I didn’t expect to share that level of vulnerability with my peers in a professional setting. Leadership makes that space for us to have those moments.”
Now, Valencia feels more secure in her role and inspired by the people around her—especially the powerful women she met in the programs. “I hope people feel comfortable being their true selves and sharing their honest opinions, because Chattanooga is a safe place. And the only way we’ll continue strengthening that safety is by continuing to be honest and having hard conversations.”
As Vice President of Evans Contracting Group, a concrete contracting company he co-founded with his brother, J.P. Evans understands the importance of building strong foundations. That principle extends into his professional growth and civic engagement, much of which he credits to his time in Protégé and Leadership.
Through Protégé, Evans found a diverse group of peers who shared his drive for growth and community engagement. “It was refreshing to connect with like-minded individuals from all kinds of backgrounds—people I may not have otherwise met,” he says. The program also offered direct access to local leaders. One moment stood out in particular: meeting former Senator Bob Corker. “He was someone I looked up to,” Evans reflects. “Hearing directly from him about how he approached solving problems was really impactful.”
That idea—learning from people who are already where you want to be—carried into Leadership, where Evans said the conversations became more strategic and forward-looking. “It was eye-opening to talk about the problems we see, where we want the city to be in 10 or 20 years, and how we can bring those solutions to life,” he said. For him, programs like Leadership are essential to a growing city. “It would be tough for a community like us to not have programs like Protégé and Leadership. They get everyone rowing the boat in the same direction.”
One of Evans’s most memorable experiences came during the Leadership retreat, where participants were grouped by personality types to solve a problem together. “It reminded me that not everyone thinks the same way I do,” he says. He still employs that mindset with his team at Evans Contracting Group today.
Evans concludes with a call to action: step up, connect with others, and help where you can. “Building relationships is the most important thing we can do,” he says. “We aren’t a perfect city, but everyone can get involved and make a difference.”
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