Eric Walli, American Honda Motor Co., Inc.
The Torrance Area Chamber of Commerce will be featuring a board member for all our chamber members to get to know. This week we will be featuring Eric Walli, an assistant vice president and the division manager of Regional Planning for American Honda Motor Co., Inc., (AHM) with responsibility for long-term strategy development and sustainability for Honda’s North American operations. Walli serves on the Board of Directors of the Ohio Fuel Cell Coalition, as well as the sustainability advisory committee of the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission. He also is the vice-chair of Economic Development on the Torrance Chamber of Commerce Executive Board. Walli earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering at The Ohio State University, as well as a master’s in business administration from the Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University.
The Torrance Chamber provides access to valuable resources and creates a strong economy for our members. When asked why the Torrance Area Chamber of Commerce is important, Walli responded “Many companies with Japanese and Asian origins have chosen Torrance for their headquarters, and there are good reasons for that. The majority of import goods and parts from Asia arrive at the Port of LA and the Port of Long Beach. And LAX is the US’s main gateway to Asia. Importantly, the area also provides a highly skilled workforce with diverse, multi-cultural backgrounds. This is a key for a company like Honda which requires its Japanese colleagues to understand the American marketplace.“
Walli goes on to say “For these reasons, Torrance is a strategically and tactically ideal location for Honda. To further strengthen and deepen our integration, the Torrance Area Chamber of Commerce (TACC) gives us opportunities to connect with local governmental bodies, community representatives, and other companies in the area. In this way, we are better able to impact the community in which we work and live, and strive toward the good corporate citizenship that fosters the achievement or our corporate goal of being a company society wants to exist. We are grateful to the TACC for all it does.”
Being a chamber board member is a great honor and responsibility. The Torrance Area Chamber of Commerce’s board responsibilities give you the opportunity to see the Torrance Community in a new light and meet many new people. For Walli, he states “To be a member of the Executive Board is a great honor and joy for me. The Business Development role is personally gratifying as it looks to the future of our collective competitiveness. We would like to see all ships rise with what we hope to advance in the region, and are excited by the holistic approach we are building.