Rob O’Brian, CEcD

Rob O’Brian is founder and principal of O’Brian and Associates, LLC, a consultancy in
economic, workforce and community development. Rob is dedicated to assisting
organizations that help their communities thrive including chambers of commerce,
economic development entities, local government, education, and not-for-profits. He
conducts workforce assessments, business park feasibility studies, economic and
community development planning and strategy development and facilitates
community and board training sessions. Rob has also been a disaster recovery contractor for the U.S. Economic Development Administration and the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Prior to founding the company in early 2018, O’Brian led Chambers of Commerce in economic development for more than thirty years. As President of the Joplin (MO) Area Chamber of Commerce for more than 20 years, Rob led development of a small business incubator and developed of one of the premier business parks in southwest Missouri. He also developed a seven county, three state regional economic development program to market the broader Joplin Region for new investment as well as programs to build a stronger regional workforce. As part of the marketing efforts, he and his team also participated in international trade events and corporate call programs.

In addition to the above, Rob worked with the City of Joplin and the community college to develop an advanced manufacturing skills training center. He was recognized as Workforce Partner of the Year by the Missouri Community College Association for that effort. He is also a founder and board member of the Joplin Regional Medical School Alliance, an organization that successfully brought a 600-student medical school to the community in 2017. The success of the project led to the development of a new dental school which opened in 2023.

Rob was president of the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce when the community was hit by an EF-5 tornado in 2011; the most devastating and deadly tornado in U.S. in more than fifty years. The Chamber’s efforts to bring back more than 85% of the small businesses destroyed or damaged were recognized nationally by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Rob has spoken on disaster recovery and preparation to a number of groups from the local to the national level.

Rob is a Certified Economic Developer as designated by the International Economic Development Council. He is a graduate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Organizational Management (IOM). He is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Ball State University, Muncie, IN, with a BS in Telecommunications and minor in journalism. Rob is also a Strategic Doing Certified Workshop Leader.