Lou Monville

(September 25, 2009) While in college, Lou Monville had every intention of becoming a sports agent.

“If you had asked me when I was in school what I was going to be when I grew up, I would have said I was going to be Jerry McGuire before Jerry McGuire existed,” he said.

After graduating from California State University (CSU), San Bernardino with a degree in communication studies, however, he went in another direction.

Monville mulled about going to law school and did some public relations work with a collegiate athletics department and minor league baseball team. He then landed a job as director of the Inland Empire office of former Governor Pete Wilson after working for two members of the California Assembly.

At that point, controlling contracts for athletes came in second to building a strong community business climate and delivering public education and outreach services.

By 1999, a year after Monville began work at a public relations firm with colleague Patrick O’Reilly, the Inland Empire Business Journal recognized Monville as one of the region’s top 40 business leaders under the age of 40.

Monville, a recipient of the California Chamber of Commerce 2009 Small Business Advocate of the Year Award, now serves as vice president of O’Reilly Public Relations, a 20-employee, Riverside-based firm founded by O’Reilly in 2001. Monville focuses on public education and community outreach work, water and energy projects, land use and development projects.

Cynthia Roth, president and chief executive officer of the Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce, recognizes Monville’s role in enhancing the chamber’s political involvement.

“Individuals such as Lou Monville do not simply serve on committees or task forces when an issue arises, nor is his commitment to serving businesses and community simply an admirable demonstration of volunteerism. It is truly passion,” Roth said.

Chamber Involvement

Monville’s first experience with the Greater Riverside Chambers was in the mid 1990s while representing Assemblyman Ted Weggeland at chamber meetings. It was at these meetings that Monville began to grasp the importance of the chamber.

“It has always been the leading force for business growth, business attraction and retention, and just general economic development,” Monville said. “I think I was just kind of naturally attracted to it because it was so important to the economic well-being of a region.”

When Monville joined the private sector, the firm he worked for was already a member of the Greater Riverside Chambers and he began to get involved. He served on the chamber’s governmental affairs committee first, then on the economic development committee, of which he remains a member today.

In 2002, Monville helped establish the Greater Riverside Chambers Political Action Committee (PAC). The PAC has since helped create a culture of political activity at the chamber, said Monville, a current member and 2005 chair of the PAC Board.

“As a team, I think we have become far more proactive. We no longer just go and send a letter for or against a bill; we have created an advocacy system where we reach out to our members online and get them to also send a letter,” he said.

Backing Pro-Jobs Candidates

As part of creating that advocacy system, the PAC Board interviews candidates within a month of their filing to be on the local ticket. The candidate fills out a four-page questionnaire from the chamber and then is subject to a 30-minute interview by the PAC Board.

The goal is to support “pro-jobs” candidates, defined by Monville as “someone who understands the value of what the local business community brings to the city, not just in terms of revenue, but also the jobs and the quality of life.”

In 2008, the PAC supported “both with our name and with our dollars” all four successful candidates for city council, including two open seats, Monville said.

Promoting Community

Besides helping “modernize” the political process at the Greater Riverside Chambers, Monville has maintained a voice in the state’s education community, serving as a CSU trustee for the last three years and on the California Community College Board of Governors before that.

He also serves on the boards of several business and community associations, including the President’s Advancement Council at CSU San Bernardino and the California Inland Empire Council Boy Scouts of America.

Motivating Monville’s activities has been his recognition of the need for a thriving community. 

“The healthier the economy is, generally the better quality of life in that community is and everybody benefits,” he said. “I live in Riverside; I benefit from the efforts the chamber makes. My family and friends and local businesses also benefit.”

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