Matthew Shay Is President and Chief Executive Officer of the International Franchise

Matthew Shay is President and Chief Executive Officer of the International Franchise Association, the nation’s largest association representing the $2.5 trillion franchise industry, which consists of more than 900,000 franchised businesses.

As President and CEO, Shay provides strategic leadership for the association and is responsible for implementation of the IFA’s strategic plan and annual operating objectives. Working with the IFA board of directors and other volunteer leaders, he works to ensure that IFA staff delivers programs and services that meet the needs of its diverse membership.

Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the association includes over 1,300 franchise systems and 10,000-plus franchisees operating in 75 different industries such as foodservice, hospitality, lodging, real estate and automotive, as well as more than 500 companies that supply goods and services to the industry.

Under his leadership, the IFA has launched a number of new initiatives. These include a branding and public awareness campaign for franchising and IFA, an Executive Leadership Conference for franchise leaders, an aggressive research agenda including the launch of the group’s Economic Impact of Franchised Businesses studies and a soon to be released Economic Forecast of Franchised Businesses.

In addition, Shay has encouraged a transformation of IFA’s board from a focus on operational matters to a focus on strategic issues, and reorganized the association’s staff to permit greater emphasis on strategic priorities, including government relations, communications and international activities. During his tenure, the IFA has experienced significant financial growth, adding new members and expanding its annual convention and other programs.

These initiatives were developed to keep pace with the significant growth of franchising in the past decade. The franchising sector of the economy expanded by over 18 percent from 2001 to 2005, adding more than 140,000 new businesses and 1.2 million new jobs to the nation’s economy.

Since joining IFA in 1993, he has held several staff positions including Executive Vice President & COO, Senior Vice President Chief Counsel and Vice President of Government Relations. Prior to joining IFA, Shay served as Assistant General Counsel at the Ohio Council of Retail Merchants in Columbus, Ohio. He is a graduate of the Ohio State University College of Law in Columbus, Ohio, where he was a member of the Ohio State Law Review. He received his undergraduate degree at Wittenberg University.

Shay is a graduate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for Organization Management and holds the designation of Certified Association Executive (CAE), which is conferred by the American Society of Association Executives. Shay also represents IFA as a member of the US Chamber of Commerce Association Committee of 100, a group of CEO’s representing the nation’s leading trade and industry groups.

Shay and his wife Allison live in Arlington, Va. with their two children.

For more information, please contact the IFA Communications and Marketing Department at (202) 628-8000 or visit IFA’s Web site at To review the Economic Impact of Franchised Businesses study, visit