CMSDC to Host Upstate Economic Development Briefing Sept. 14
September 9, 2011
Regional Economic Development Executives to Address Business Community
GREENVILLE, SC – September 14, 2011 – The Foothills Regional Advisory Council of the Carolinas Minority Supplier Development Council (CMSDC) will host three Upstate economic development officials for a panel discussion on Economic Advancement in the Upstate: Today and Tomorrow, organizers announced. The event, which is free and open to the public, will be held from 1 – 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, September 14, 2011 at the BMW Zentrum in Greer.
Comprising the expert panel will be Jerry Howard, president and CEO of the Greenville Area Development Corporation; Carter Smith, executive vice president of Spartanburg County’s Economic Futures Group; and Henry Hal Johnson, president and CEO of the Upstate SC Alliance. Joe Mullen, an executive with BMW Manufacturing and chairman of the CMSDC’s Foothills Regional Advisory Council, will moderate the panel discussion.
A key to economic growth and advancement is understanding what economic opportunities exist, and the areas of focus for our region’s economic development teams, so that all business enterprises can contribute to a team effort to enhance the regional economy, said Ray Lattimore, CEO of Marketplace Staffing Services of Greenville, and one of the organizers of the Economic Development Briefing. We all benefit when business leaders from across the Upstate come together to network with each other, and to learn more about the economic development process, targeting and opportunities for our region.
Included in the discussion will be individual presentations from each panelist on the areas of focus for their economic development recruiting initiatives, recent accomplishments/successes and the learning from those efforts, key challenges faced in growing the Upstate economy and attracting new and expanding business to the region, and an open discussion on how the business community can better support, and prosper from, the economic development recruiting process.
The Carolinas MSDC is a non-profit corporation chartered to enhance business opportunities for minority-owned companies by providing support, through developing mutually beneficial networking opportunities with corporate members and promoting minority business development. The group regularly conducts executive briefings, conferences, job fairs and other events to stimulate business networking and education across the Carolinas.
Minority suppliers are among the fastest-growing segment of today’s business landscape, Lattimore noted, with America’s largest corporations spending close to $100 billion to buy goods and services from minority-owned businesses in 2011. We are hoping that the turnout for this event will include strong representation from all business segments, not just minority businesses, as we all benefit from insight and education into the economic development recruitment process, added Lattimore.
There is no cost to attend the briefing. For additional details, contact Ray Lattimore at (864) 286-3900.
