Membership Forum Luncheon- April 2022

Guest Speaker: Angela Wilhelms, JD, MBA
President and CEO of Oregon Business and Industry

Topic: “Business is Not Just Good, it’s Necessary”


About
Angela Wilhelms, JD, MBA
 
Angela Wilhelms is a native Oregonian with a long career in public service. She currently serves as president and CEO of Oregon Business and Industry (OBI), the state’s largest general business organization. OBI advocates on behalf of business and industry to strengthen Oregon’s economy to achieve a healthy, prosperous, and competitive Oregon for the benefit of present and future generations. In her role as president & CEO, Wilhelms leads a team of policy, membership, communications, and operations staff as they work to advance OBI’s mission in service to its 1,600 members, which employ more than 250,000 Oregonians across the state and in a variety of industries.
 
Prior to her role at OBI, Wilhelms was the university secretary and advisor to the president at the University of Oregon, the state’s flagship university. Her leadership role at the UO was varied and ranged from institutional governance and policy work to special projects and strategic initiatives. She was the first person to hold this role, working with the inaugural institutional governing board at the UO. Before her time at the UO, Wilhelms practiced law at Dunn Carney LLP in Portland and worked for several years in the Oregon House of Representatives as chief of staff of the House Minority Office and co-chief of staff in the House Co-Speakers’ Office. She also has experience in communications, campaign management, and corporate finance.
 
Wilhelms received her undergraduate degree in Finance from Santa Clara University and her Juris Doctorate and MBA from Willamette University’s joint degree program. Wilhelms is vice chair of the SMART Reading board of directors, a member of the Oregon State Capitol Foundation’s board of directors, and a member of the executive leadership team for the American Heart Association’s 2022 Go Red for Women campaign in Oregon. In her spare time, Wilhelms is a certified official with USA Track and Field and loves to fulfill her wanderlust, traveling both near and far.