David Golden’s first job in the banking industry was distributing belt buckles to new account holders at First Security Bank. It’s been more than 30 years since then, but he says he’s never been bored with his job a day in his life. Golden currently serves as executive vice president and manager of Wells Fargo’s commercial banking division, dealing with banking activities in seven states.
Not one to shrink from a challenge, Golden recently started a year-long appointment as the chair of the Salt Lake Chamber board of governors. His experience as a business strategist and facilitator will serve him well as he brings business leaders together to improve the community.
“I love sitting down and looking at businesses to determine where it is we want to go and working with others to strategize ways to get there,” Golden says. “It’s about bringing people together. It takes everyone [working] around your vision.”
Golden says local business leaders see the need to strengthen the business community by fostering job creation, helping education and generating a stable work environment, even with increasing federal regulations and political unrest in Washington.
The goal of the chamber’s job initiative is to create 150,000 jobs across the state and keep Utah’s unemployment rate lower than the national average. As for education, he says, “There’s a really strong sense among business leaders that we need to be focused on education and provide a more educated workforce. We’d like to see two-thirds of all Utahns have a high school degree, or equivalent, by 2020.”
When he needs to step back and take a break, Golden can be found playing one of his more than two dozen guitars—an obsession that began when he first heard The Beatles perform on “The Ed Sullivan Show” in 1964. He enjoys music of all types, ranging from classical music to rock ‘n’ roll, and everything in between.
Golden and his wife, Deanna, have been married for more than 30 years and have three children and six grandchildren.
“Your life is as rich as the number of people you’ve met,” he says.
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