Lin Moormann: The Chamber’s New Executive Director

November 2018

Writer // Janelle Morrison      Photography // Theresa Skutt

Last month, the Zionsville Chamber of Commerce announced Lin Moormann as its next Executive Director. Moormann comes to the Zionsville Chamber with over 10 years of experience in the Chamber, tourism and marketing fields. Most recently, she was the Membership Development Manager at the Indiana Chamber of Commerce and has also worked for Visit Indy and Tour Indiana.

“Lin Moormann’s excitement for the Zionsville Chamber and community was clear from the moment she met with the interview team,” said Andrew Manna, Zionsville Chamber board president. “Her recent experience with the Indiana Chamber combined with her background as a former Chamber director made her the ideal candidate. Lin has embraced the position and is training diligently alongside our staff to be prepared for the upcoming event schedule.”

Moormann was chosen out of a competitive field of applicants for her expertise in different facets of business development, marketing, strategic planning, client relationship management and event planning.

“One of the main reasons why I decided to apply for this position is that I have always been a fan of Zionsville,” Moormann said. “I think it is a wonderful community right down to the cobblestone street, the small businesses and everything else that is going on around town. It’s always been a community that I’ve liked. I’ve lived in Geist, Greenwood, Fishers and all over, but Zionsville was kind of my fun place to go and hang out and come to all the different events.”

Moormann shared that the executive director position is familiar to her based on what she did with the Ponte Vedra Beach Division of the St. Johns County Chamber of Commerce in Florida.

“St. Johns County is very long if you look at the state of Florida,” Moormann said. “St. Augustine is on the south side of the county where the main Chamber office is but is a good 40 minutes from where the Ponte Vedra Beach Division office is on the north side of the county. It is a very unusual situation. Ponte Vedra used to be its own separate Chamber, but then it came under St. Johns County Chamber, though Ponte Vedra has its own board of directors and bylaws and also serves as a visitors center. The demographics in Ponte Vedra are similar to Zionsville. We also put on events, such as the Ponte Vedra Auto Show. It is a huge auto show.”

Moormann is originally from New Jersey and has lived in Indianapolis, collectively, almost 18 years.

“I’m half Hoosier and half New Jersey,” Moormann quipped. “I’ve spent about equal time now in either state. And I lived in Florida for a year and a half. I was doing some consulting, so I didn’t have to be in one place, and my mom lives in Florida.

Moormann currently lives in Noblesville with her husband and two children who are middle and high school age. Her husband has been active in the military for 20 years and is a reservist for the Air Force.

As far as her immediate goals, Moormann said that she will spend the next several weeks meeting with people and businesses, getting to know the town on a deeper level.

“My first plan is to absorb and learn as much as I can,” she said. “I will be talking with as many people as I can. I want to be a sponge at this point. I’m not looking to change anything in the first 30 days or anything like that. My goal is to get to know the people in the community and get to know the town and gather opinions. It’s so wonderful that I have Tracy [Phillips] as a resource to help guide me through it, and that will get me up and running a lot quicker.”

We asked how her previous roles with Chambers and tourism will help her blend the myriad of voices that belong to the Chamber as well as non-Chamber members that are all necessary sources of input when it comes to decisions that affect the local business community.

“Aside from my Chamber experience, I have to refer now back to my experience in tourism where one of my positions with Tour Indiana, we dealt with convention and visitors bureaus from all over the state – small, medium and large. How do you meld all of that to make everyone happy or as happy as one can be? That is not that hard of a question to answer because the Chamber’s main mission is to help businesses succeed. One formula will not fit everybody.”

Moormann emphasized that she, along with the Chamber staff, are available to help all of the businesses succeed and can offer a plethora of resources.

“We just have to educate them on what is available to them,” Moormann said. “A lot of people and small companies don’t realize that we have some great training grants in the state. It’s about getting that information to them. For me, it’s about being a good resource for all companies – small, medium and large – and helping guide them down the path to success.”

Moormann is excited to work with not only the businesses and members of the Chamber but with town officials as well.

“When collectively a number of different organizations come together, that is how you can get things done and make a difference,” she emphasized. “At the end of the day, I believe that we all have a similar goal, even though we may have different paths to get there. The nice thing about working with other organizations is that you’re working with different backgrounds, and everyone can bring a little bit to the table. I’ve got a long list of people that I am having lunch with, and I am really looking forward to it.”

Q&A

What is your all-time favorite restaurant in Zionsville? And what is your favorite dish?

I will be honest, it is The Friendly Tavern. It’s the catfish. I lived in Missouri for three to four years, and I’d never had catfish until I lived there. I love the catfish at The Friendly.

What are some of your other favorite “hangouts” in Zionsville?

My husband and I, aside from loving antique cars, are really big chicken wing and craft beer fans! We love Noble Order. It’s a very good place. And Hopwood’s wine merlot shakes are phenomenal. I’ve never tasted anything like that before. It was fantastic.

Are you a sports fan? Who is one of your favorite teams?

My family loves sports! We are huge sports fans. I’ve always been a Colts fan and love football. My husband and stepson are huge Purdue and Notre Dame fans.

What are some of your favorite pastimes?  

I love antique cars and going to auto shows. The Ponte Vedra Beach Auto Show was a cool show. But there is so much to do here [in Indy]. I’m always looking for things to do. I love festivals, being outside and enjoy walking trails. I’ve attended the different events here in Zionsville many times over the years and love the Brick Street Market.