LEAD San Diego in downtown San Diego operates from West Broadway as the nonpartisan leadership-development arm of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, founded as an independent nonprofit in 1981. The flagship Impact San Diego program runs nine full-day sessions covering military and defense, life sciences, binational trade, and regional infrastructure, pairing participants with nonprofit consulting projects that channel resources through organizations like the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corp. LEAD's alumni network includes Congressman Scott Peters, Sempra Energy SVP Caroline Winn, and hundreds of C-suite executives who completed the program's immersive tours of Naval Base Coronado, biotech corridors, and border-crossing logistics facilities. The Advance program targets women in mid-career leadership with mentorship pairings and executive workshops, while FOCUS Communities takes graduates through multi-day deep dives into North County, South County, and East County sub-regions—including business-district visits coordinated with merchant groups like the Little Italy Association of San Diego. LEAD's most intensive engagement is its LEADership Action Team Initiative, embedding multi-month consulting teams inside local nonprofits to deliver strategic plans, fundraising frameworks, and operational restructuring valued collectively in the millions.