Leadership Florida Board Chair Ron Christaldi Presents Bob Buckhorn with 2025 Chair's Award

Leadership Florida Board Chair Ron Christaldi Presents Bob Buckhorn with 2025 Chair's Award

With a long history of service in the City of Tampa, Bob is an Executive Vice President & Principal U.S. Cities Practice for Shumaker Advisors Florida, where he provides communications strategy, public affairs consulting, and business development services across Florida. In his role, he remains focused on economic development opportunities and urban development strategies while working with clients to improve the overall quality of life in the community.

Bob served as the mayor of Tampa from 2011 to 2019, where he led more than 4,300 dedicated and forward-thinking civil servants. As mayor, Bob led Tampa out of the deepest recession since the Great Depression. Facing a $30 million deficit upon taking office, he balanced Tampa's billion-dollar budget for each of his eight years in office and made strategic investments in infrastructure, positioning Tampa to compete with top-tier cities with its culture of inclusiveness, responsiveness, and determination. His considerable public service accomplishments include the following:

• In one of his first acts as mayor, created a diverse panel of local business and community leaders to reshape how City Hall does business
• Spearheaded the development of the Invision Plan—a blueprint for the urban core—and successfully worked with the Obama Administration to secure grant funding to complete the Tampa Riverwalk, which has become a centerpiece of city life and economic development
• Pioneered the establishment of one of Florida's first Domestic Partnership Registries, earning Tampa recognition from the Human Rights Campaign with a perfect score on its Municipal Equality Index

As a lifetime member and Cornerstone Class 7 graduate, we could not be prouder to have Bob Buckhorn as this year’s recipient of the Chair’s Award.