Chamber president, CEO Roy Williams recognized by economic development group for lifetime of achievements

The International Economic Development Council (IEDC) has awarded Greater Oklahoma City Chamber President & CEO Roy Williams with its Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Economic Development.

The honor was presented at a recognition dinner during the 2022 IEDC Annual Conference recently held in Oklahoma City .

”We are extremely honored to recognize Roy Williams as the 2022 recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Economic Development. Roy’s body of work demonstrates exemplary leadership within our profession and strong commitment to their community,” shared IEDC President and CEO Nathan Ohle. “Individuals like Roy set an outstanding example that we can all aspire to emulate. It was especially fitting that we present Roy with this award during the conference that he worked so diligently to put together. The over 1,200 attendees were able to witness firsthand the impact that Roy has had on his community and his profession. Congratulations, Roy!”

Every year IEDC looks specifically for an individual who has demonstrated consistent, exemplary performance in the economic development profession, leading the execution of projects that have a significant impact on revitalizing communities, and playing a major role in shaping and improving the practice of economic development.

Williams has dedicated 50 years of his remarkable career to the field of economic with more than 17 years of service at the Chamber. He has been a leader in the transformation of Oklahoma City and leaves behind a legacy for job creation and retention and entrepreneurship.

Williams began his career in Texas as an intern at the Austin Chamber of Commerce and quickly gained experience, working in chambers and in various other capacities, including The Economic Development Group, Inc., an international economic development consulting firm with offices in Ohio and Arizona. As partner, co-founder and president, he built economic development strategies and tools for a wide range of clients and performed site selection consultant work and executive searches for economic development organizations.

Williams took the helm of the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber in 2004, and within two years, General Motors announced the closure of their Oklahoma City manufacturing plant. He quickly met with the U.S. Air Force and explained how they could modernize manufacturing facilities and provide it to the Air Force, and working with state and local officials, the facility was realized and now Tinker Air Force Base is the most modern manufacturing space the Department of Defense utilizes. Moreover, there is continued growth at Tinker Air Force Base and through this continued work and expansion realized more than thousands of jobs in the area.

One of the biggest economic development projects Williams led was the expansion of the Boeing facility in Oklahoma City. Under Mr. Williams’ guidance, the Chamber created an innovative proposal that ultimately was adopted by Boeing when evaluating economic development projects. The approach was multi-faceted and included a transparent website with information containing any concerns by employees about central Oklahoma, presentations from senior public and private leadership to Boeing employees, and accessible descriptions of incentives. This methodology secured the deal and laid the groundwork for additional projects to contribute to Boeing’s growth, which went from 700 employees in the 1990s to more than 4,000 today.

Williams has also paved the way for criminal justice reform in the community.  He led an effort to bring all the necessary players, including community leadership, to identify key issues and create a pathway to reform. Presently, the daily jail population has been reduced to approximately 1,500, and the county is in the process of replacing its detention center, an example of Williams' skill in consensus building.

Williams has been recognized for his contributions as a recipient of a prestigious Chairman’s Award from the chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce Executives board of directors in 2008, and is a Fellow member and past board member of IEDC.

With more than 4,800 members, IEDC is a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization serving economic developers.