Close

2026 Summit Series: Chattanooga

Agenda
Economic Developers
Site Consultants

Agenda

Day One

  • Thursday, April 16

1:15-5:30 P.M. | Activities

  • Various Locations

• Underground Cave and Waterfall Excursion

• Tandem Hangliding

6:30-9:30 P.M. | Dinner

  • Alleia

25 E Main St, Chattanooga, TN 37408

Day Two

  • Friday, April 17

8:00-11:00 A.M. | Summit Meeting

  • OFF SITE: Hotel Chalet, The Beverly Ballroom

92 Choo Choo Avenue Chattanooga, TN 37408

•  Breakfast

•  Roundtable Discussion

•  One-on-Ones

Economic Developers

Adam Myers

Vice President, Economic and Talent Development

  • Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce
  • amyers@chattanoogachamber.com
  • 423.763.4350
  • 201 S Washington St, Maryville, TN 37804

Alma Mater: University of West Florida

Interest(s): Hiking, Kayaking, film buff, and space enthusiast!

Region: Chattanooga, TN. And the Greater Chattanooga Region, a 16 county tri-state area that encompasses communities in Southeast TN, Northwest GA, and Northeast AL.

Notable Employers:

• Volkswagen
• McKee Foods
• Opella

Manages and coordinates all efforts related to economic development including business recruitment, existing business, and research. Serves as the Chamber’s primary business recruitment officer.

Adrian Cannady

President & CEO

  • Temple Economic Development Corp.
  • acannady@templeedc.com
  • 361.550.8621
  • 201 Santa Fe Way Temple, TX 76501

Alma Mater: West Point (Army)

Interest(s): Cooking, college football

Region: Central Texas

Notable Employers:

• McLane Company (HQ (Food Distribution))

• Meta (Data Center)

• Wilsonart (Manufacturing)

 

Adrian has led the Temple EDC over the last four years as its President & CEO. In that time, Temple has supported a number of investments that total over $2 billion and the creation of over 1,500 jobs. Adrian was appointed by Governor Greg Abbott to the Texas Economic Incentives Oversight Board where he served from 2019-2022. He currently serves as Vice Chair of the Texas Economic Development Council and is a gubernatorial appointee to the Texas Economic Development Corporation board.

Charlie Rowell

Senior Director, North American Business Development

  • JobsOhio
  • rowell@jobsohio.com
  • 224.249.0362
  • 41 S High St Unit 1500, Columbus, OH 43215

Alma Mater: Elmhurst University

Interest(s): Buying and reselling unique and vintage items

Region: State of Ohio

Notable Employers:

• Anduril (Military and Federal)

• Amgen (Healthcare)

• Kimberly-Clark (Personal Care & Hygiene)

 

Charlie currently leads a team focused on attracting new investment into Ohio. Before JobsOhio, Charlie worked as an international corporate attorney in Korea; spent 13 years working as VP for an economic development consulting firm; and has also worked in economic development with Invest Australia and the Welsh Development Agency. Charlie received his B.S. from Elmhurst University and his MBA from the University of Notre Dame. He also received his J.D. and LL.M. from the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law.

Chris Johnson

Director

  • Johnston County Economic Development
  • chris.johnson@johnstonnc.com
  • 919.915.6202
  • 919.205.1232
  • 3149 Swift Creek Rd, Smithfield NC, 27577

Alma Mater: East Carolina University

Interest(s): Avid road cyclist, amassing over 4,000 total miles in 2024

Region: Triangle Region

Notable Employers:

• Novo Nordisk

• Grifols Therapeutics

• Caterpillar

As Director of the Johnston County Economic Development, Chris Johnson coordinates with the Department of Commerce, Economic Development Partnership of NC, Site Consultants, and other public and private agencies on issues regarding economic development, community development, growth management legislation, and regional planning. During his 12-year tenure, Chris has directed over $10 Billion dollars of new and expanded industry investment and over 7,500 jobs in Johnston County. For over 10 years, Chris has served as Chair for the Research Triangle Regional Partnership (RTRP) Economic Development group. In 2015 Chris was recognized as a North Carolina Main Street Champion by the Department of Commerce. In 2021, 2022, 2024, and again in 2025 was recognized by Business North Carolina Magazine in their “Power List” of North Carolina’s Most Influential Leaders.

Gregory Hitchin

Director of Economic Development & Tourism

  • City of Waynesboro
  • HitchinGE@ci.waynesboro.va.us
  • 540.942.6779
  • 301 W. Main Street, Waynesboro, VA 22980

Alma Mater: Rochester Institute of Technology

Interest(s): Woodworking and camping (although have not either in a long time); grandkids who are now teenagers

Region: City of Waynesboro

Notable Employers:

• Lycra

• Magnera

• Northrop Grumman

Greg Hitchin is a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) with over 25 years of Economic Development experience. Prior to joining the City of Waynesboro VA as the Director of Economic Development and Tourism in April 2010, he served 11 ½ years as the Business Development Manager and the Treasurer/CFO of the IDA for the Onondaga County Office of Economic Development in Syracuse, New York. Greg currently serves as the Immediate Past President of the Virginia Economic Development Association (VEDA); Chairman of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) Committee on Business Development and Marketing; member of the Executive Committee / Board of Directors for the Shenandoah Valley Partnership (SVP); and member of the GOVA Region 8 Council. His former service includes board member for the Industrial Asset Management Council (IAMC) and International Economic Development Council (IEDC).

Michele Boggs

Senior Vice President, Economic Development

  • New Braunfels Chamber
  • michele@nbchamber.com
  • 210.748.2968
  • 390 S Seguin Ave New Braunfels TX 78130

Alma Mater: Texas State University

Interest(s): Traveling, gardening, wine

Region: San Antonio MSA – Austin MSA

Notable Employers:

• Continental (Automotive )

• Tesla (Automotive)

• Toyota (Automotive)

• USAA (Financial Services)

Michele Boggs is the Sr. Vice President of Economic Development for the New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce. Representing one of the fastest-growing regions in Texas, Michele brings over a decade of experience in business recruitment, workforce development, and strategic partnerships. She is passionate about creating opportunities for businesses to thrive and helping communities grow.

Paul Simpson

Director of Business Retention and Expansion

  • Amarillo Economic Development Corporation
  • paul@amarilloedc.com
  • 806.681.8868
  • 600 S Tyler St, Ste 1600 Amarillo, Texas 79101

Alma Mater: Texas Christian University

Region: High Ground of Texas

Notable Employers:

• Bell Helicopter (Aerospace & Aviation)

• Cacique Foods (Food Processing & Manufacturing)

• Producer Owned Beef (Food Processing & Manufacturing) 

Paul serves as a liaison between the public and private sectors- working closely with local employers, civic leaders, and regional stakeholders to identify challenges, uncover opportunities, and implement solutions that promote job creation and capital investment. Prior to joining the Amarillo EDC, he served as a Constituent Service Representative, then Deputy District Director, for the Office of Congressman Mac Thornberry for a combined total of 20 years. Paul received a bachelor’s degree from TCU, a Master’s Degree from St. Thomas University, and an MBA from West Texas A&M University.

Ray De Winkle

Principal Growth Project Manager

  • Consumers Energy
  • raymond.dewinkle@cmsenergy.com
  • 616.213.4836
  • 4000 Clay Ave SW GRA-068 Grand Rapids, MI 49548

Alma Mater: Grand Valley State University

Interest(s): Enjoying Pure Michigan: Hiking and biking its many trails. Sailing and kayaking on its many lakes and rivers.

Region: Lower Peninsula

Notable Employers:

• Pfizer (Pharmaceuticals)

• General Motors (Automotive)

• Dow Chemical (Plastics, Chemicals, and Agricultural Products)

Ray joined Consumers Energy in 2017. He directs and implements the company’s business attraction strategy. Consumers Energy is Michigan’s largest energy provider, the fourth largest combination natural gas and electric utility in the United States, and the principal subsidiary of CMS Energy (NYSE: CMS). The company provides natural gas and/or electric service to 6.7 million of the state’s 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties.

Ron Maloney, MEDP

Executive Director of Economic Development

  • Northwest Arkansas Council
  • ron@nwacouncil.org
  • 479.319.7795
  • 4100 Corporate Center Drive, Suite 205 Springdale, AR 72762

Alma Mater: Brigham Young University

Interest(s): Outdoor survival excursions, HAM Radio, fishing and hunting

Region: Northwest Arkansas

Notable Employers:

• Walmart + Sam’s Club HQs (Retail)

• Tyson Foods HQ (Poultry Food Processing & Genetics Research)

• JB Hunt HQ (Transportation)

• Simmons Foods HQ (Poultry Food Processing)

Ron’s current focus is on strategic game-changing transformational recruitment efforts, along with strategic planning, marketing and promotion, international, lead generation and project management. He has 24-years experience starting with the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance for a decade. Since then he has worked on the Gulf Coast of Florida and Mississippi before moving to Northwest Arkansas.

Sharon Hardaway

Economic Development Coordinator

  • Irving Economic Development Partnership
  • shardaway@irvingchamber.com
  • 903.240.9786
  • 5215 N O'Connor Blvd., Ste 200 Irving, TX 75039

Alma Mater: The University of Texas at Tyler

Interest(s): Workforce development, working with individuals with disabilities, church leadership, and a Cigar enthusiast

Region: DFW Metroplex-Irving

Notable Employers:

• McKesson (Healthcare)

• Verizon (Technology)

• Caterpillar (Manufacturing)

Sharon Hardaway serves as Economic Development Coordinator for the Irving Economic Development Partnership. Responsible for the Salesforce recruitment database targeting lists and network of local businesses and responds to all RFI’s. Creates the semi-annual report and local data delivery for the City of Irving. Monitors U.S. and international corporations to identify those that might consider a move to or expansion into Irving. Since joining IEDC, Hardaway has created an HR Alliance Group and hosted the inaugural Career fair for local middle school students. Before joining the Economic Development team, Hardaway was Executive Assistant to the President of LEDCO, Executive Director of the ARC of Harrison County, and served on the Board of Heartisan’s Marketplace. She is passionate about education, the experiences, and opportunities for individuals with disAbilities and workforce development.

Site Consultants

Bryan Farlow

Vice President of Site Selection

  • Strategic Location Advisors
  • bryan@strategiclocation.us
  • 615.762.0762
  • 2052 Ashford Villa Cir. Chattanooga, TN 37421

Alma Mater: Tennessee Wesleyan University

Interest(s): Golf, bird hunting, cooking, and wood turning

Focus Industries:

• General Site Selection

• Industrial

• Aerospace & Defense

• Space Technologies

• Energy

• Chemical

• Food/Beverage

• Site Selection Technology

• Strategic/Master Planning

With nearly 20 years of industry experience, Bryan leads SLA’s location advisory as VP of Site Selection across the US. Using his expertise in site analysis, engineering, planning, and design, Bryan assists corporate clients to locate, analyze, and select new locations for expanding operations in the North America. Bryan’s previous positions at the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, and JobsOhio give him a dynamic background in workforce development, regional planning, business development, business recruitment, site development, and site certification for domestic and international industries. After departing the public sector, Bryan co-founded a site selection firm focused on foreign direct investment and first-time entry into the US market. Before joining Strategic Location Advisors, his most recent role was as Director of Site Selection & Economic Development for a nationwide science and engineering consulting firm.

Dan Breen

Managing Director

  • Jones Lang LaSalle
  • dan.breen@am.jll.com
  • 973.626.2843
  • 8 Campus Drive, Suite 305 Parsippany, NJ 07054

Alma Mater: NYU School of Law (LL.M Taxation); Rutgers Law – Newark (J.D.); Univ. of Scranton (B.S. Accounting)

Interest(s): New York Jets/Yankees, New Jersey Devils, history, politics, and reading

Focus Industries:

• General Site Selection

• Incentives

Dan, a Managing Director, is one of the leaders of JLL’s Location Economics practice, with over 25 years of experience in assisting companies with location decisions and the associated tax and financial incentives. Dan has secured incentives for projects throughout the U.S. and internationally –including headquarters and back-office operations; major manufacturing and distribution facilities; R&D laboratories and data centers – across multiple industries including life sciences, financial services, IT, food, automotive, and other sectors. Previously, Dan, an attorney/CPA, served as Director and Northeast C&I Practice Leader with Grant Thornton LLP, National Economic Development Services Leader for ADP, and New York Metro Practice Leader for PwC.

Garet Tomlinson

Director

  • Mohr Partners
  • garet.tomlinson@mohrpartners.com
  • 817.269.8299
  • 14643 Dallas Pkwy, Suite 1000 Dallas, TX 75254

Alma Mater: University of Texas at Arlington

Interest(s): Avid cyclist, previous professional motorcycle road racer (still continues to test tires for one of the largest brands.)

Focus Industries:

• General Site Selection

• Logistics

• Life Sciences

• Healthcare

Garet Tomlinson is a Director at Mohr Partners, Inc., where he works alongside Managing Principal Stephen Hemphill in the Dallas, Texas office. An experienced business development leader, Garet rejoined Mohr Partners after leading strategic revenue initiatives for Hemphill’s team from 2019 to 2024. He will continue to focus on working with private equity executives and CEOs at growing healthcare, life science and industrial companies across the country to manage and achieve their strategic real estate objectives. Throughout his career, Garet has held a range of business development positions where he has leveraged his strong interpersonal skills with a broad technical background and is an effective presenter, especially when communicating complex technical subjects to large audiences.

Jeff Pappas

Senior Managing Director

  • Newmark
  • jeff.pappas@nmrk.com
  • 214.725.7802
  • 2601 Olive St. Suite 1600 Dallas, Tx. 75201

Alma Mater: Hardin-Simmons University

Interest(s): Enjoys soccer and football, while currently being in a complicated love/hate relationship with both Glasgow Celtic and the Dallas Cowboys. Touring football grounds around the world. Traveling with my wife Maribeth in our Airstream named Depeche Rode. Having an emotional staring contest with a painting, and being a food enthusiast.

Focus Industries:

• Contact Centers

• Distribution & Logistics

• Headquarters

• Life Science

Jeff represents corporate clients on a global basis, managing their international real estate strategy through location advisory with a focus on labor market and real estate analytics. He has been honored to have published articles on site selection issues and methods, labor market analysis, and economic development, including topics of labor market evaluation, labor force trends, and emerging international Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) markets. Nearshore Americas has named Jeff to its prestigious Top 50 Latin America Power Ranking list multiple years, which reflects the very best in Americas-focused outsourcing services leadership. D CEO Magazine honored Jeff as a Power Broker of the Year, and the Dallas Business Journal recognized Jeff as a Top Broker in DFW. Lastly, Jeff is fluent in sarcasm, dad jokes, useless trivia, and movie quotes.

Kathy Mussio

Managing Partner

  • Atlas Insight LLC
  • kmussio@atlasinsight.com
  • 732.610.1750
  • 236 Cafferty Road Pipersville, PA 18947

Alma Mater: Master of Science in Real Estate, New York University Bachelor of Fine Arts, New York University

Interest(s): Equestrian

Focus Industries:

• General Site Selection

• Manufacturing

Kathy Mussio is a co-founder and Managing Partner of Atlas Insight. With over 25 years’ experience as a site selection consultant, who is widely considered to be one of the leading industry experts in the site selection and incentive negotiation business. Kathy provides location strategy for both industrial and commercial clients, with a strong focus on Atlas’ manufacturing clients. Kathy has conducted successful negotiations for some of the world’s largest corporations. For client’s site selection needs, Kathy works with companies to provide data, analysis and the guidance to help the decision of where to locate, expand, or consolidate. She brings her years of incentive negotiation and management experience to ensure that incentive packages negotiated for Atlas’ clients can ultimately achieve maximum value. While many of Atlas’ clients are large corporations in the Fortune 500®, Kathy also has worked with small to mid-sized companies, and with projects of all sizes. In her early career, Kathy focused on real estate development and the associated zoning and land use entitlements that can be part of large real estate deals. Kathy is a reliable opinion source and author for trade publications, AP stories, and by the Wall Street Journal. She is frequently asked to speak on site selection topics at industry conferences and has worked with state and regional governments in the development of strategic plans to attract business investment.

Max Hemphill

Business Development Associate

  • Mohr Partners, Inc.
  • max.hemphill@mohrpartners.com
  • 720.271.8098
  • 14643 Dallas Parkway, Suite 1000 Dallas, Texas 75254

Alma Mater: University of Colorado at Boulder

Focus Industries:

• General Site Selection

Max is a Business Development Associate at Mohr Partners, a corporate services firm exclusively representing tenant or occupier users. Max assists in identifying the pain points for clients and developing strategic solutions and he works with his team to strategically develop solutions for local and national clients to reduce costs surrounding complex real estate portfolios. Max’s background emphasizes a high level of industry awareness with an education focused on negotiation and attention to detail.

Molly Giddens

Tax Manager, Property Tax

  • DuCharme, McMillen & Associates, Inc.
  • mgiddens@dmainc.com
  • 800.309.2110 x: 9943
  • 2300 Windy Ridge Pkwy SE, Suite 1105 South Atlanta GA 30339

Alma Mater: Valdosta State University (bachelor’s and masters degrees)

Focus Industries:

• General Site Selection

• Distribution

• Energy & Utilities

• Healthcare

• Manufacturing

• Retail

• Technology

• Wholesale

Molly works with a team of credits and incentives specialists, supporting DMA’s data center, utility, and renewable energy clients across the Southeast. She partners with clients on various aspects of site selection, incentive evaluation, procurement, reporting, and compliance. Throughout the site selection and expansion phases, Molly collaborates with the C&I team while coordinating with DMA’s nationwide property and sales tax teams to implement best practices and deliver maximum value to clients.

Shazan Rizvi

Director of Tax incentives

  • Aprio LLP
  • shazanrizvi@gmail.com
  • 630.765.2255

Alma Mater: DePaul University and Michigan State University

Interest(s): Playing basketball, working out, and cooking

Focus Industries:

• General Site Selection

• Incentives

Shazan is a Director of Tax incentives at Aprio LLP in New York. With more than nine years of experience across industries, he specializes in providing credit and incentives services related to capital spend and workforce for federal, state and local, ESG and global spend. Shazan advises his clients looking to maximize negotiated and statutory global, state and local credits and economic incentives to increase their cash flow, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), and bottom line. In a shifting macroeconomic climate with challenging post-pandemic realities, his decade of global credits and incentives experience within aerospace and defense, business services, engineering and construction, and technology industry sectors will benefit clients. Prior, Shazan was with the National Credits and Incentives team at Deloitte Tax, LLP where he secured more than $20 million in annual recurring incentives for clients.

Steve Paramski

Executive Managing Director, Global Partnerships

  • Vestian Global Workplace Services
  • paramski@vestian.com
  • 847.561.6248
  • 555 Fayetteville StreetFloor 3 Raleigh, NC 27601

Alma Mater: Northwestern University

Interest(s): Cycling, swimming, and music

Focus Industries:

• General Site Selection

Steve has more than 10 years experience in commercial real estate with expertise in capital markets, mergers and acquisitions, private equity, site selection, capital sourcing and deployment, build-to-suit, risk mitigation and minimizing square footage. He oversees Vestian’s national accounts, exclusively representing national and international companies from Fortune 500 to middle market with complex headquarter transactions as well as needs related to new locations, expansions, lease renewals and purchase and sales transactions. Previously, Steve was a managing director with Mohr Partners, providing clients with quantitative tools, cash flow analysis and other financial modeling. Prior, Steve was at Merrill Lynch & Company, working with the firm’s Private Banking and Investment Group.

William Floyd IV

Senior Vice President, Strategy & Communications

  • Vista Site Selection
  • whfloyd@vistasiteselection.com
  • 972.415.9197
  • 52 East Gay Street Columbus, OH 43215

Alma Mater: Texas State University

Focus Industries:

• General Site Selection

William Floyd specializes in guiding companies and communities through complex site selection decisions with a focus on data-driven insights and storytelling. At Vista Site Selection, he leads projects that blend geospatial analytics with creative communication to help clients understand markets and make confident location choices. William is also known for developing interactive mapping tools and presentations that bring economic development opportunities to life.

Sean Ferguson

Founder & CEO

  • Vista Site Selection
  • Firetiger Technologies
  • 415.874.7346
  • 66 Franklin St, Suite 300, Oakland, CA 94607
Alma Mater: California Polytechnic State University – San Luis Obispo
Interests: Motorsports, snowboarding, traveling
Bio: Sean Ferguson is the Founder & CEO of Firetiger, an advisory firm headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area that provides management consulting and economic development services. Firetiger helps clients scale organizations, relocate and expand operations, commercialize advanced technologies, and secure government contracts. Sean advises clients across industries including advanced manufacturing, AI, defense, electronics, semiconductors, and renewable technology.
Notable Employers/Focus Industries: • General Site Selection • Knowledge work • Defense, • Advanced manufacturing for emerging technologies