Wade Goodsell is a Director of Business and Investment Attraction at the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, an organization that he has been with for the past 2 years. He leads the state’s site selection and corporate real estate outreach efforts in the recruitment of companies to Wisconsin, partnering extensively with local and regional economic development organizations as well as the Governor and Lt. Governor’s offices. Additionally, Wade serves as a single point of contact for site selectors and consultants alike, while also overseeing Wisconsin’s Certified Sites Program, which in its 5 years has drawn over $240M of capital investment into 8 of the state’s 15 certified development-ready sites.

Prior to Wade’s current position, he was Manager of Membership and Government Relations with the State Chamber of Commerce.

Wade is a member of the Wisconsin Economic Development Association, the International Economic Development Council, CoreNet’s Chicago Chapter, NAIOP, CARW and the Industrial Asset Management Council, where he serves as a volunteer on the Member Relations Committee.

Wade received his Bachelor of Arts degree in business marketing and leadership studies from Bethel University.

Rob O'BrianRob O’Brian is the President of the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, where he has focused on economic and community development for 21 years. Rob is well respected statewide as a visionary and a leader with enormous economic development success. Rob is known to bring big results to small and medium-sized markets that are mixed with rural and urban geographies.

Prior to joining the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, Rob was the president of the Warsaw Area Chamber of Commerce, the vice president at Muncie Chamber of Commerce and a news director with WBST. He was also positioned as past-President of the Chamber of Commerce Executives of Missouri. Additionally, Rob O’Brian was a member of Governor Blunt’s State Government Reform Commission and was instrumental in writing the Enterprise Zone and Quality Jobs Act legislation.

His civic and business activities include President of the Joplin Business and Industrial Development Corporation and Vice-President of the Joplin Industrial Development Authority. He also serves on the regional Medical School Alliance and Connect2Culture boards. State-wide, Rob O’Brian is a current Board Member of the Hawthorne Foundation, the private-sector foundation supporting economic development. He is also a Board Member and Past-President of the Missouri Economic Development Council and a Board Member and Past-President of the Missouri Economic Development Financing Association.

Rob received his Bachelor of Science degree in telecommunications and journalism from Ball State University. Rob is a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) through the International Economic Development Council (IEDC).

Jerry Mallot is executive vice president of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce and president of JAXUSA Partnership, formerly Cornerstone. Jerry directs a staff of 12 in the areas of business development, international, workforce and research. Jerry led the formation of a seven-county economic development program to expand high wage jobs in northeast Florida. During his tenure, Jacksonville has seen its greatest number of new and expanded companies, as well as new jobs created, in the city’s history.

Prior to coming to Jacksonville in January of 1994, Jerry was senior vice president of the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce and executive director of the Tampa Bay Partnership, a six-county regional economic development program. Jerry served as Mayor Alvin Brown’s economic development advisor in 2011 and 2012.

Jerry is a member of the Executive Advisory Board of Jacksonville University School of Business, THE PLAYERS Council, Community Connections and the Gator Bowl Association. He is a past president of Leadership Jacksonville and the Florida Economic Development Council, as well as the World Trade Center Association of Florida. Jerry has served on the Board of Enterprise Florida, the Florida Association of Colleges and Universities, Visit Jacksonville and the World Affairs Council.  He has been named the Economic Development Professional of the Year in both Florida and Kansas. He has won awards such as the Northeast Florida Business Hall of Fame, Ultimate CEO by Jacksonville Business Journal and Florence Davis Community Achievement Award from Community Connections.

Jerry received a Bachelor’s degree in business and a Master’s degree in economics from Wichita State University. Jerry has also earned the Certified Economic Developer and Certified Chamber Executive designations.

Brett DoneyBrett Doney has 29 years of experience in community economic development and public/private partnerships. As President and CEO of the Great Falls Development Authority in Montana, Brett is responsible for implementing the organization’s strategic plan, marketing the Great Falls region, managing the staff team and strengthening relationships with investors and partners.

Prior to joining Great Falls Development Authority, Brett was president of Enterprise Maine. Brett is the past director of the International Economic Development Council, the treasurer at NeighborWorks Great Falls, the director of Montana Economic Development Association and the past president of the Great Falls Rotary Club. Brett has earned his Certified Economic Developer credentials and a CoreNet Global Senior Leader Corporate Real Estate (SLCR).

Brett received his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of California, Santa Barbara, his Masters of Public Policy in business government relationships from Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government and his Economic Development Institute degree from the University of Oklahoma.

 

Rod MillerRodrick Miller is a results-oriented leader with over 10 years of experience in economic development, strategic planning, trade and foreign investment, and project finance. He is respected globally for his ability to maneuver in extraordinarily complex political and business environments, and craft strategies and structure deals to provide long-term value to communities and investors.

Currently, Rod is serving as President & CEO of the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation (DEGC). As CEO of DEGC, Rod is firmly committed to enhancing strategies and programs that are aggressive and effective, thoughtful and focused, and that play to the inherent strengths of the local market. Previously, Rod served as the founding president and CEO of the New Orleans Business Alliance (NOLABA), the official economic development organization responsible for ensuring the long-term economic vitality and driving job growth for the City of New Orleans. In that role, his team was responsible for nearly $900M in new private sector investment and over 7,500 new jobs. Prior to that position, Rod served as the Executive Vice President of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber where he managed day-to-day operations, developed strategic initiatives, and helped deliver on the firm’s $20M capital campaign. He has held other roles in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.

Rodrick holds a Master of Public Policy from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and a Bachelor of Science degree in international business from St. Augustine’s College. He also earned a Graduate Diploma in Finance from the Monterrey Institute of Technology (ITESM) as a Fulbright Fellow.

A scholar practitioner, he is a sought after lecturer and contributes to various publications. He is a term member of US Council on Foreign Relations, is a board member of the International Economic Development Council, and sits on the Federal Reserve Board’s Community Advisory Council. Rod has received numerous accolades including Ebony Magazine’s 30 under 30, Phoenix Business Journal’s Top 40 under Forty, Top 100 Tech Influencers in the Silicon Bayou, Young Economic Developer of the Year by the International Economic Development Council, and numerous others. He enjoys playing the piano, reading, and spending time with his son. Rod is fluent in Spanish and proficient in Portuguese.

 

Jonathan SangsterJonathan Sangster serves as general manager of economic development for Georgia Power. Jonathan is responsible for business recruitment and support services for the strategic location decision process. Jonathan’s team of statewide project managers assist in the location, expansion or start-up of businesses wishing to invest in Georgia, helping companies identify potential communities, buildings and sites throughout the state. Support services include engineering evaluation and analysis of sites, as well as preliminary site design and industrial park development. Custom mapping capabilities, industry-specific research and demographic data provide additional project support. Jonathan is also responsible for the Georgia Resource Center, a world renowned multimedia facility for assistance with strategic location decisions.

Before joining the Economic Development team in January 2013, Jonathan was the senior managing director at CBRE Consulting, a nationally recognized business location and site selection firm. In that role, Jonathan led a consulting team that helped clients find “best fit” locations for corporate headquarters relocations, customer care operations, manufacturing, distribution and research and development operations.

Jonathan is a member of the Georgia Economic Developers Association, Industrial Asset Management Council and the Utility Economic Development Association. Jonathan also serves as a Working Partner with Georgia Allies, the state’s public-private collaborative marketing initiative.

Jonathan holds a Bachelor’s in civil engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a Master’s in Business Administration from Georgia State University. He is an active volunteer at Dunwoody Baptist Church and enjoys tennis, softball, music and drama.

Gary ThompsonGary Thompson, CPA has had a career has ranging from accounting to sales to economic development. He began his career as an accountant in public service and then private industry for several years before he began to work in sales for a large architectural and engineering firm in Toledo, Ohio. Gary was recruited to an architectural firm in Farmington Hills, Michigan where he worked in business development. Returning to Ohio, he joined the Oregon Economic Development Foundation where he worked for five years.

In 2012, Gary was recruited to join the Regional Growth Partnership as executive vice president and manage the JobsOhio program for the Northwest Ohio Region as its director. He is the past marketing chair of the Northwest Ohio Regional Economic Development Association (NORED) and past chair of the Toledo Metro Area Council of Governments (TMACOG) Communications Committee. Gary currently serves on the board of the Ohio Economic Development Association.

Gary is married to Dawn, an educator, and together they are raising three young men, Alec, Owen and Evan. Gary is a graduate of the University of Toledo.

 

Doug RasmussenDoug Rasmussen previously served as a Senior Vice President, Business Development at the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership where he oversaw business retention/expansion, business development and New Market Tax Credits. He successfully implemented 97 business retention/expansion projects resulting in 59,767 jobs created and retained and $2.7B in new capital investment.

Today, Doug is a Senior Associate in the St. Louis office and part of the Specialty Tax Service line of Duff & Phelps. He has 14 years of experience in economic development and real estate development in both the private and public sectors.

Doug specializes in the structuring and negotiating of business incentives and real estate development incentives that assist businesses in lowering their operating costs. He has extensive experience with tax abatement, TIF, NMTCs, special taxing districts, and other state and local incentive programs. Doug also has extensive experience with site selection and the site selection process.

Doug also previously worked for Green Street Development Group, where he raised over $47.0M in the public sector capital in support of Green Street’s development projects and end user clients. Key subsidies obtained included, TIF, New Markets Tax Credits, Ch99 and Ch100 Tax Abatement, Community Improvement Districts, Enhanced Enterprise Zone Tax Credits, MO BUILD Tax Credits, MO Development Tax Credits, MO Workforce Grants, and municipal level forgivable loans. And while at the St. Louis Regional Chamber, as the director of business recruitment, Doug managed the recruitment and site selection of over 2.6 million square feet and $454 million in new office and industrial projects.

Doug received his B.S. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his M.A. from Saint Louis University. He is on the board of the Missouri Economic Development Council and is the Vice President of the Missouri Economic Development Finance Association.

John Greuling 2John Greuling is the president and chief executive officer for the Will County Center for Economic Development. John has held this position for almost 15 years. John is also a WIB Board of Directors member, which is the workforce services division of Will County.

During the past 30 years, prior to joining the Will County CED in 2001, John managed the economic development program for the state of Colorado, directed community economic development initiatives in Colorado, Illinois and North Carolina and headed a private consulting firm providing location assistance to corporations.

John is the chairman of the Board of Directors for the Illinois Development Council and a founding Board Member for the Will County Community Foundation. John also enjoys playing guitar and reading.

John received his Bachelor of Science degree in philosophy from Illinois State University and a Master’s of Science in Community and Regional Planning from Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville.

Chris ChungIn 2015, Christopher Chung joined the new Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC) as Chief Executive Officer. As a public-private partnership, the EDPNC performs a number of economic development functions on behalf of the State of North Carolina, including new business recruitment, existing business support, international trade and export assistance, small business start-up counseling, and tourism, sports, and film promotion. With a staff of more than 60 professionals and an annual operating budget of $19 million, the EDPNC is focused on advancing the economic interests of North Carolina’s 100 counties and 10 million residents.

From 2007 to 2014, Chris served the Missouri Partnership as the public-private, non-profit corporation’s first Chief Executive Officer. In addition to leading the organization through its initial start-up phase, Chris directed the Partnership’s efforts to market Missouri for new business investment and recruit new corporate operations. During his tenure, the Missouri Partnership helped to recruit major facility investments by IBM, CertainTeed, Yanfeng Automotive Systems, Blue Buffalo Pet Foods, KWS Saat AG, and Aviation Technical Services.

Chris also previously served as Manager of the State of Ohio’s Office of Business Development, managing an $80 million annual incentives budget and leading Ohio’s front-line sales force dedicated to attracting new business investment and job creation to the state. Prior to that, Chris held various positions in corporate site selection and special projects management, assisting companies considering Ohio for new facilities.

Chris was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. He attended The Ohio State University (OSU), graduating Phi Beta Kappa with a double-major in Japanese and economics, and has completed significant coursework towards a Master of Arts in Public Policy and Management from the OSU John Glenn School of Public Affairs.