Posts

From The Ground Up: Feat. Kenny McDonald of Columbus 2020

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Kenny McDonaldKenny McDonald serves as the primary leader of all economic development and business attraction efforts for the 11-county Columbus Region in his position as chief economic officer of Columbus 2020. Kenny has an extensive background in site selection, regional economic development, community marketing, business recruitment and international business development.

Kenny holds the professional designation of Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) and serves as an elected member of the Board of Directors for the International Economic Development Council. In addition, he serves locally on the boards of Columbus Crew, MidAmerican Global Ventures, NAIOP, SciTech and Transportation Research Center.

Previously, Kenny served as the executive vice president of the Charlotte Regional Partnership, a public-private economic development organization covering a 16-county region in North and South Carolina. Kenny’s 16 years of economic development experience also include leadership positions at the Albuquerque Economic Development Corporation, Fluor Daniels Global Locations Strategies and the Savannah Economic Development Authority.

Kenny received a Bachelor of Science in business administration from Dickinson State University and a Master of Public Administration from Georgia Southern University.

Kenny writes weekly about economic development and Columbus 2020’s activities on the Columbus Region blog, Economic Development Matters.

/by

From The Ground Up: Feat. Michael Hecht of Greater New Orleans, Inc.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Michael HechtMichael Hecht is President & CEO of Greater New Orleans, Inc., the economic development organization for southeast Louisiana.  GNO, Inc.’s mission falls broadly into two categories:  business development – attracting and growing businesses – and product development – creating better business conditions.  Under Michael’s leadership, GNO, Inc. was recently named the #2 economic development organization in the United States by Business Facilities magazine.

Before coming to GNO, Inc. Michael led the quarter-billion dollar Katrina Small Business Recovery Program for the state.  Previous to coming home to Louisiana, Michael worked for Mayor Michael Bloomberg in New York City as an Assistant Commissioner, running the post-9/11 small business program.

Michael’s entrepreneurial experience includes co-founding a conglomerate of restaurant ventures, including “Foreign Cinema,” named Restaurant of the Year 2000 in San Francisco.  He began his career as a strategic management consultant.

Michael holds an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business, and an undergraduate degree from Yale.

Recently Michael has been recognized as “One of the 25 Most Powerful People in the 10/12 Corridor,” and “One of the Top 50 Economic Developers in North America.”

With family roots in Louisiana back to the 1830s, Michael now lives in New Orleans with his wife, Marlene, an ESL professor at Delgado, and his two sons, Dexter and Kaj (“Kī”).

/by

From The Ground Up: Feat. David Ginn of the Charleston Regional Development Alliance

David Ginn

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

David Ginn In his leadership role as president and CEO with the Charleston Regional Development Alliance (CRDA), David Ginn works closely with the region’s top business, academic and political leaders to shape and execute a comprehensive regional economic development strategy. He also leads the organization’s day-to-day efforts, and is directly involved with global business development and global marketing initiatives.

David has been with the CRDA since its inception, serving as the organization’s executive vice president and project director before being named president and CEO in 2000. A Certified Economic Development professional, he maintains keen awareness of current issues in economic development, thanks to affiliations with the International Economic Development Council and as past president of the S.C. Economic Developers Association. He has also held professional economic development and industrial marketing positions in Atlanta and Savannah.

David grew up in the Atlanta area, and holds a degree in economics and international business from the University of Southern Mississippi. He also studied abroad at the London School of Economics. He and his wife, Jean, live in Mount Pleasant with their two children.

 

/by

From The Ground Up: feat: Cindy Symons-Milroy of the City of Oshawa

Cindy Symons-Milroy

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Cindy Symons-Milroy Cindy Symons-Milroy has over 27 years of experience in economic development and holds two professional designations; an Ec.D. from the Economic Developers Association of Canada and a CEcD from the International Economic Development Council.  Cindy’s work experience covers a broad range of business support including investment attraction, business retention and expansion, labor force development, real estate, airport operations, entrepreneurial development, finance and organization management.

Cindy has spent the last 15 years of her career as the Director of Economic Development for the City of Oshawa, a mid-size city on the outskirts of Toronto, Ontario.  Well known for its automotive excellence, since she has been in this role, the City’s economy has diversified beyond automotive manufacturing and today includes significant investment in new post-secondary institutions that have resulted in the development of high tech growth sectors that are driving the new economy.

Cindy grew up in an entrepreneurial environment and knows first-hand the challenges that businesses face.  This is part of what contributes to the success of her efforts in attracting and maintaining investment in the City.  Her drive to succeed comes from the desire to make a difference in her community.

Cindy’s favorite quote is “Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to dance in the rain.”

/by

From The Ground Up: Feat. Brian Hilson of Birmingham Business Alliance

Brian Hilson

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Brian HilsonBrian Hilson is President and CEO of the Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) and is responsible for all areas of the BBA, including economic development, public policy, communications and other programs designed to grow and diversify the Birmingham regional economy and enhance the quality of life for all citizens.

He has been involved in economic development in Alabama since 1980. Prior to his joining the BBA in 2011, Brian was President and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County. Previously, he was a Vice President of the Birmingham Metropolitan Development Board and has held economic development positions with the Birmingham and Mobile Chambers of Commerce. Over the years he has worked with a wide variety of national and international companies’ economic development projects, such as Lockheed Martin, Toyota, LG Electronics, Sterilite Corp., UPS, Delta Air Lines, Verizon and the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology.

A native of Huntsville, Brian is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of Oklahoma’s Economic Development Institute. He is a graduate of Leadership Alabama, Leadership Birmingham and Leadership Huntsville/Madison County, and is active in state and national economic development organizations. He is past president of the Economic Development Association of Alabama and the Japan-America Society of Alabama, and is the 2015 chairman of the Chamber of Commerce Association of Alabama.  He is a recipient of the Rainer Bauer Award from the Alabama Germany Partnership and the Samuel Ullman Award from the Japan-America Society of Alabama.

He currently serves on boards of directors or advisory boards of several additional state and local organizations, including the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and the Business Council of Alabama. Having spent his entire career in the economic development profession, Brian is a strong believer that employment opportunities are the best way to make communities better.

Brian and his wife, Windy, have two married children. Carlton is an attorney with Burr & Forman in Birmingham and Abby is a teacher in Arlington, Tenn.

/by

From The Ground Up: feat. Scott Connell of the Sherman Economic Development Corporation

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Scott ConnellScott Connell serves as the President of the Sherman Economic Development Corporation in Sherman, Texas and has more than 25 years of experience in economic development. He recently served as Vice President of Economic Development and Senior Vice President of the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce since May 2005. In that role, he managed over 4,000 jobs in the Waco area.

Prior to Waco, Scott was the Vice President of Winston-Salem Business Inc. for 7 years in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He was involved in attracting 3,900 jobs and $750 million of investment during that time. Scott has also led programs in Kannapolis, NC, Belton and Yoakum, Texas (all start-up organizations) and worked with Victoria, Texas Economic Development Corporation.

Scott and his wife Victoria have a 9-year old son, Paten. They are active in the Waco community where Scott serves as a member of the Vestry at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Scott is also an active member of the Waco Rotary Club and serves as chairman of the City of Waco Recycling Advisory Committee.

Scott is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and received his Certified Economic Developer certification in 1999.

/by

From The Ground Up: feat. Gray Swoope formerly of Enterprise Florida

Gray Swoope

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Gray SwoopeA recognized leader in economic development, Gray Swoope has served both the public and private sectors for more than three decades most recently as Florida’s Secretary of Commerce.  He has held leadership roles for a variety of organizations, as well as managed successful economic development entities.  His management style is described as focused and steadfast when it comes to solving problems and winning competitive projects. Gray is also known for building highly effective teams noted for their ability to devise and implement strategic plans, and to get results.  His expertise is international in scope, with a proven track record of successfully conducting business abroad.

Gray 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 in the state 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.  Since 2011 and in only 3 years, more than 728,000 private-sector jobs were added in Florida, surpassing Governor Scott’s goal of creating 700,000 private-sector jobs over 7 years.

Prior to his tenure in Florida, Gray served as the Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority under then Governor and current VisionFirst Advisors chairman, Haley Barbour.

During his tenure at the Mississippi Development Authority, Gray persuaded companies such as Toyota, PACCAR, GE Aviation and Severstal to build facilities in the state, resulting in a refocus of the state’s efforts to aggressively support industry 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 retool economic development incentives, thus laying the groundwork for significant new investment and expansion opportunities.  Throughout his service at the MDA, Gray created a team that is recognized by site selection consultants and businesses alike as one of the most responsive state economic development teams in the nation.

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

*Please note, when we interviewed Gray, he was in his final days at Enterprise Florida. Today, Gray serves as President & Chief Executive Officer of VisionFirst Advisors.

/by

From The Ground Up: feat. Michael Harvey of Northwest Arkansas Council

Mike Harvey

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Mike HarveyMike Harvey joined the Northwest Arkansas Council in August 2011 as its Chief Operating Officer. Mike has 19 years of economic development experience at the local and regional level.

Throughout his career, Mike has successfully built one-stop operations that deliver site selection assistance, existing business services, entrepreneurial support and workforce development solutions to job seekers and employers alike. He has accomplished this with both individual and multiple organizations.

He is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi, earning a Bachelor’s degree in marketing in 1991, and a Master’s degree in economic development in 1995.

Mike worked at the local level in Alabama as President of the Marshall County Economic Development Council from 1995 to 2001. From there, he moved on to work for and then head up a regional economic development effort in Knoxville, TN from 2001 to 2007. He most recently served as President of the Thomas Jefferson Partnership for Economic Development in Charlottesville, VA from 2007 to August 2001, when he left to join the Council.

His interests include history, economics and meteorology. He also enjoys the ever-growing Northwest Arkansas outdoor, art and local food scene – where he spends most of his free time with the most important ‘person’ in his life – a scruffy 8-year-old terrier mix named Duffy.

/by

From The Ground Up: feat. Marty Vanags of the Indy Partnership

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Marty VanagsMarty Vanags assumed the position of Vice President for Regional Economic Development and Executive Director of the Indy Partnership, a business unit of the Indy Chamber, in February 2013. Marty leads a group of professional economic development staff whose mission is to market and promote the nine-county Indianapolis region as a place to invest and grow business. While in Indy, Marty has led a region that has consistently produced well over 10,000 jobs each year in the past two years with over $2 billion in capital investment.

Marty is a graduate of Illinois State University and Northern Illinois University (MPA) and has over 25 years of experience in community and economic development, private commercial real estate development and business management. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the International Economic Development Council (IEDC). He has served as Chairman of the Illinois Development Council, Chair of International Economic Development Council Public Policy Advisory Committee and member of the same organization’s Economic Development Research Partners (EDRP). Marty has served two terms on the Illinois State University Alumni Board, and the Board of Advisors for the Means Center for Entrepreneurship at ISU’s College of Business. He also is a co-founder and creator of the Center for Emerging Entrepreneurs, a business incubation and development program at Illinois State University.

Marty co-founded the @Midwest Social Media Conference, and speaks and provides seminars on social media and its impact on economic development and non-profits. He has spoken at various venues and conferences on topics ranging from communication, leadership, change management, and data-use in economic development and community development. Under Marty’s leadership, the Bloomington Normal EDC and the Indy Partnership have received numerous accolades and awards for marketing, communication and economic development best practices.

/by

From The Ground Up: feat. Rusty Brockman of The Greater New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce

Rusty Brockman

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Rusty Brockman Rusty Brockman is the Director of Economic Development at The Greater New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce, where he has served for 14 years. Rusty retired from public education in 2001 after 28 years; 15 of those were with the Comal ISD as campus assistant principal, principal and central office administrator.  He spent the first 13 years of his career teaching life sciences, health, and physical education and coaching.

Rusty’s civic organization work includes Board member and Past President of the Wurstfest Association, New Braunfels Breakfast Lion’s Club President, Drive Chairman and Past President of United Way of Comal County, Advisory Board member of the Comal ISD Public School Foundation and Past President of the Canyon High School Athletic Booster’s.  Rusty was also named Citizen of the Year in 1993 by the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung, 1992 Chair of the Board and 2011 Honors Hall Award recipient of the Greater New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce and received the Seven Seals Award from the Army National Guard in 2010.

In professional organizations, Rusty serves as Immediate Past President of the Executive Board of the Texas Economic Development Council, was appointed in 2011 by Governor Perry to the Guadalupe Blanco River Authority for a 6 year term, Chairman of the Austin/San Antonio Corridor Council Economic Development Committee, member of the Guadalupe Basin Coalition, Board member of the Central Texas Technology Center, Board member for the Alamo Area Academies Institute at Alamo Colleges and Board Secretary of The Center for Entrepreneurship in New Braunfels, Texas. Rusty is actively involved in continuing the development of higher education, workforce training and business development opportunities in New Braunfels and Comal County, Texas.

Rusty graduated from the University of Houston in 1974 with a BS in education, and in 1979 received his Masters in Education and Administrators Certification from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas.  Rusty married M’Liss Probst in 1975 and moved to New Braunfels in 1986. They are parents to five children and have 4 grandchildren.

/by