Dan FosterDan Foster heads the incentives practice of Newmark Grubb Knight Frank Global Corporate Services as a Managing Director. Dan has over 20 years of experience managing corporate site selection engagements, business incentives projects and economic development consulting assignments.  Dan’s experience and expertise includes domestic and international site selection and location analysis, economic incentives research and acquisition, target industry analysis, program development and demonstrating the economic and fiscal impacts of a wide variety of projects to both corporations and governments.

Prior to joining Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, Dan was a director in Duff and Phelp’s Business Incentives Group, based in Detroit. Dan has also previously served as a senior manager and regional practice leader with the credit and incentives practice at Deloitte & Touche and as a senior manager for business incentives services at Ernst & Young LLP.  In addition to Dan’s core expertise, he has significant experience in advising clients in other areas, including manufacturing rationalization and consolidation, relocation feasibility, strategic cost reduction, large capital investment program management, commercial and industrial site evaluation and due diligence methods, detailed labor market/workforce analysis and public sector economic development strategies.

Dan has spoken on a variety of economic development topics at the Tax Executive Institute; New Mexico Governor’s Summit on Economic Development; Expansion Management’s Roundtable in the Rockies; and at various local economic development organizations and Chambers of Commerce.  Dan has also provided expert testimony to the Michigan Senate and House Joint Select Committee on Economic Growth.

Dan received a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Hope College and a Master’s degree in urban and regional planning from the A. Alfred Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Gray SwoopeA recognized leader in economic development, Gray Swoope leads the VisionFirst Advisors, LLC team, serving as President and Chief Executive Officer.  After a successful 30 year career managing state, regional, and local economic development organizations, Gray helped launch the VisionFirst economic development consulting practice in March 2015.  The firm, a wholly owned subsidiary of Butler Snow LLP, works with a diverse base of private and public sector clients focusing on ways to gain a competitive edge. Current client work includes location advisory services, designing high performance organizations, business development planning and result driven marketing and communications strategies.

Gray is known for building highly effective teams noted for their ability to devise and implement strategic plans with positive results.  He most recently served in Governor Rick Scott’s administration (2011-2015) as Florida’s Secretary of Commerce and President & CEO of its principal economic development organization, Enterprise Florida, Inc.  Under his leadership, Enterprise Florida completed a record fiscal year in 2013-14 and increased competitive projects by 40%, resulting in 73% more new jobs and 95% more capital investment than in 2011.  During Gray’s tenure, Florida announced competitive project wins involving dozens of leading companies including Amazon, Bristol‑Myers Squibb, Deutsche Bank, Embraer, GE, Hertz, Navy Federal Credit Union, Northrop Grumman, USAA, United Technology Corporation and Verizon.

Prior to his tenure in Florida, Gray served as the Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority under then Governor and current VisionFirst Advisors board of director’s chairman, Haley Barbour.  During his tenure at the Mississippi Development Authority, Gray played a vital role in recruiting companies such as Toyota, PACCAR, GE Aviation and SeverCorr (now Steel Dynamics) to the state, resulting in a refocus of the state’s efforts to aggressively support business recruitment, retention and expansion.  He also launched the Priority One Program targeting existing businesses, resulting in a measurable increase in jobs saved and/or created.

In addition, Gray worked with the legislature and the state’s private sector partner, Momentum Mississippi, to enhance economic development performance, thus laying the groundwork for significant new investment and expansion opportunities.  Throughout his service at the MDA, Gray created a team that was recognized as one of the most responsive state economic development organizations in the nation.

Gray earned both undergraduate and graduate degrees from Mississippi State University.

Seth MartindaleSeth Martindale is a Managing Director with the Economic Incentives Group (EIG) within CBRE Consulting. He has extensive experience in location analysis analyses and economic incentive negotiations engagements. Seth currently helps clients like Microsoft, Kawasaki, Bank of America, Visa, Pepsi Bottling Group and Walt Disney Corporation by acquiring the most advantageous incentives offer through the creation of negotiating leverage utilizing a variety of proven techniques.

Seth has extensive experience working on multiple different location analysis and incentive negotiation engagements which have varied widely in size, function, and scope. His combination of skills and experience, blended with an MBA concentrated in strategy and leadership provides a unique and very beneficial skill set to clients.

Seth currently works as an engagement manager on multiple location analysis and incentive negotiation projects. Additionally, he provides financial support in the analysis and evaluation of incentive offers from state and local jurisdictions led by other engagement managers.

He received his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Claremont McKenna College, and a Master of Business Administration from Claremont Graduate University with a concentration in Strategy and Leadership. Seth is also a licensed Real Estate Salesperson in the state of California.

PaulHamptonAs managing director, Paul Hampton specializes in conducting analysis and developing strategy for target industry identification, economic cluster analysis, feasibility studies, market studies and economic impact analysis at Newmark Grubb Knight Frank. Paul is skilled in integrating advanced analysis techniques into the decision-making process to help develop and validate recommendations. He has worked with numerous governmental entities, private developers and economic development organizations of various sizes to help them identify key assets and develop strategy to promote economic growth.

Prior to joining Newmark Grubb Knight Frank Global Corporate Services, Paul was an economic development consultant at Vierbicher Associates for three years, where he helped the firm grow its practice in industrial/business park development and market studies for the retail and office sectors. Other past experience includes a research position with the University of Wisconsin-Extension Center for Community and Economic Development.

Paul has led projects throughout Wisconsin, including the development of an industry recruitment strategy for Douglas County and the City of Superior, office development strategy for a gateway development in the City of Madison, feasibility and operations planning for an advanced manufacturing focused business incubator in Dane County and a business recruitment plan for a business park in Reedsburg, Wisconsin, equipped with a municipal fiber optic network.

Paul has a Master of Science in Urban and Regional Planning/Economic Development from the University of Wisconsin and a Bachelor of Arts in Strategic Communication from the University of Wisconsin School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Thomas PearsonTom Pearson is an executive vice president in the industrial division and a member of the Supply Chain Real Estate Advisors Team, SIOR in the Dallas-Fort Worth office of Colliers International. Tom’s industrial specialization includes land, building, leasing and investment sales. Tom’s extensive experience in almost every area of industrial real estate has enabled him to bring significant value to numerous Fortune 500 companies, as well as developers and institutional owners. Tom has played a key role in handling the national relocation of the distribution center for a Fortune 100 company in addition to selling major properties for some of the largest corporations in the United States.

Prior to joining Colliers in 2006, Tom worked at Cushman & Wakefield as a senior director. While there, Tom was a member of the capital markets and industrial group, where his experience of industrial real estate secured the sale of over 7,600 acres of land. During Tom’s 35-year real estate career, he was also the executive vice president at The Fults Companies and vice president at Joe Foster Company.

Tom has served as director and chairman of the board of governors for the North Texas Commercial Association of Realtors, is a former president of SIOR’s North Texas Chapter, a member of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and a member of the Texas Association of Realtors (TAR).

Tom received his Bachelor of Science in business from Louisiana Tech University and his Master of Business Administration from Louisiana State University.

Tim FeemsterTim Feemster has over 35 years of experience with a variety of hands-on problem solving situations in site selection, logistics, supply chain, real estate, transportation, distribution, lean six-sigma process improvement and marketing. Tim is quoted frequently in the industry press and makes over 20 presentations a year to professional organizations. Tim has been with Foremost Quality Logistics for over 20 years, and is recognized as a thought leader in logistics and real estate.

Before forming Foremost Quality Logistics, Tim was a senior manager in three manufacturing companies, a general manager, a consultant, an executive in two third party logistics providers, most recently over 13 years with Menlo Worldwide Logistics and a Practice Group Leader for two real estate companies. Tim has been responsible for building construction management, transportation & warehouse operations, real estate site selection, strategic planning, lease management, marketing, inventory planning and deployment, lean systems & quality management, economic development strategy consulting and private fleet management.

Tim is passionate about Hire our Heros, Upgrade Soldiers and speaks a little French. Tim is an active member in the Warehouse Education and Research Council (WERC.org), where he is a past president; Council Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP.org), Industrial Asset Management Council (IAMC) and International Economic Development Council.

Tim holds a Master of Business Administration in marketing from the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana.

Margaret GrissomMargaret Grissom is a principal of Peake Consulting, and brings over 27 years of experience in corporate location knowledge, incentive analysis, negotiation/compliance and economic development expertise to the table.  Margaret’s first-hand knowledge of industry trends, as well as public and public-private sector economic development provides her with creative, credible market intelligence to assist companies, communities and states in developing strategic solutions. Margaret’s hands-on experience in site location translates into an effective product and program development improvement. Margaret is an advisor who has the ability to quickly establish trust and rapport, knows how to achieve win-win situations and determines quickly what is most important to her clients and their business.

Margaret is experienced in real estate markets and previously developed industrial parks in her community. She has assisted clients in automotive, consumer markets, and industrial products including Alkermes Pharmaceutical, Avon Products, Inc., YUM! Brands Inc., Stride Rite, Dana Corporation, Daimler Chrysler, Porsche, Magna Corporation and Kobe Steel Company

Previously, Margaret served as President & CEO of the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Authority and Vice President of the Greater Louisville Economic Development Partnership.  In both positions, Margaret established new organizational performance standards and evaluations with clear, concise, measurable goals to enhance the skills and expertise of staff. In her role as President & CEO, Margaret established successful new and existing industry programs resulting in millions of dollars in investment and thousands of jobs. Margaret was also formerly with the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development and even owned a resort.

Margaret is a nationally-recognized contributor for publications, such as the Site Selection Magazine and Journal of Multistate Taxation and Incentives.  She is a popular speaker at Roundtable in the Rockies and to the Association of Biomedical Financial Officers.  Margaret is a Fellow Member of IAMC, currently serving as Program Development Committee Co-chair; and formerly on the Associate Advisory Council.

Margaret received her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Louisville and graduated from University of Oklahoma’s Economic Development Institute. Margaret was also Assistant Dean, Research Project Advisor and instructor.

Jason HickeyJason M. Hickey is President of Hickey and Associates, LLC, a global site selection and public incentive support firm representing a diverse set of industries from consumer products and health care to defense to renewable energy. Clients include UnitedHealth Group, Lockheed Martin, General Mills and many others. Jason specializes in location selection strategies, federal incentives, loan guarantees, grants and other public/private partnerships. Jason has been with Hickey & Associates for 15 years.

Professional service includes the Industrial Asset Management Council’s Site Selection and IAMC 2020 Committee, member of the State of Minnesota Economic Development Cabinet, as well as, a founding partner of the Site Selectors Guild. While working for the firm, Jason has also assisted elected officials at both the Federal and State level develop public policy recommendations, including The White House Domestic Policy Council.

He speaks at various events throughout the year to audiences on how best to create partnerships between public and private entities at local and regional Economic Development Forums. Jason has also been a guest lecturer at the University of Arizona.

Jason is a graduate of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois and serves as an Officer of the Northwestern University Alumni Association.

Carter Wood HeadshotCarter Wood is a senior manager for Location Investment Services Group at Ernst & Young. Carter works directly with southeastern clients on expansions and relocations to identify sites and secure discretionary incentive programs to off-set initial startup costs. Carter acts as the relationship manager with key client accounts and serves as the firm’s designated subject matter expert and market leader for site selection and incentives negotiations in Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and Florida. Carter negotiates incentive packages for relocation and expansion projects and is responsible for managing engagement and compliance teams throughout a project’s life cycle.

Prior to joining Ernst & Young, Carter worked with Georgia Department of Economic Development as a statewide project manager. While there, Carter was responsible for recruiting businesses to the State of Georgia with a focus on advanced manufacturing, aerospace and defense companies. Carter has recommended statutory incentive programs and discretionary grants to companies on behalf of the State of Georgia as well as provided industrial sites selection services to prospective companies considering Georgia as a place for expansion and relocation.

Carter represents the firm at professional events including giving presentations, speeches and serving on panels discussing market trends and Ernst & Young’s service capabilities. Carter is also a Climate and Sustainability Leader for the southeast area for the firm and maintains a large network of state, local and private contacts to develop projects leads and obtain market insight.

Carter received a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from the University of Georgia.

 

Brad GriggsBrad Griggs is a managing director with Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s Global Corporate Services group. Brad specializes in negotiating with state agencies and local municipalities to secure economic development incentive packages for his clients. Brad has more than eight years of experience managing business incentives projects, corporate site selection engagements and economic development consulting assignments.

Brad is an expert in the delivery of professional services, with an emphasis on responsiveness to clients, rigorous analysis, and negotiation strategy and implementation. Brad has successfully completed projects with a variety of Fortune 1000 companies as well as projects in the advanced polymer manufacturing, automotive, aerospace, computer software development, consumer products, defense, energy, environmental technology solutions, financial services, food and beverage production and distribution, healthcare, insurance brokerage, medical device manufacturing, paper products manufacturing, packaging and pharmaceuticals industries.

Prior to joining Newmark Grubb Knight Frank’s Global Corporate Services, Brad worked as a team leader at Ryan LLC, in the firm’s New York office. Other past experience includes site selection and incentives negotiation and compliance services at Duff & Phelps LLC, and corporate tax accounting services at BDO Seidman LLP.

Brad earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accounting from Loyola University Maryland.