Agenda
Welcome Reception
Please join us for a pre-event gathering at the Hotel on Monday evening for an opportunity to network with other attendees and speakers in a relaxed and casual environment, before the forum kicks off on Tuesday morning.
Breakfast
One-on-One Meetings with Speakers
Data: The First Impression of Your Community
Gray Swoope, President and CEO, VisionFirst Advisors
The use of data is growing exponentially and driving business decision making. When you hear from a site selection consultant, it is actually the second, third or fourth impression your community makes. While data tells a story, it is up to the EDO to write the missing chapters. In this session Gray will share how labor data is used and how you can improve your competitive position.
Courtney Dunbar, Site Selection and Economic Development Leader Burns & McDonnell
Innovative thought-leader and driven professional with 20 years of industry experience in the site selection, economic development recruitment, finance, and planning industries. Manager of the site selection and economic development consulting practice for a Top 10 ENR design firm. Developer of solutions for both corporate and institutional clients.
Break
Double parked in the Suez, shortage of shipping containers, Governor’s closing industry, no more microchips, big-box everywhere and one natural disaster after another: How do these headlines create projects and opportunity.
Benton Blaine, Vice President, McGuireWoods Consulting
Learn how logistics headlines of the past and present effect the C-Suite decision making process in site selection, and how politics are now an influential factor in every aspect of an economic development project -- from taxation and real estate to workforce development and community relations.
Global Logistics Supply Chain Update: Tariffs, Pandemic, Risk and Resiliency
Bill Luttrell, Director Corporate Real Estate, Werner Enterprises
Disruptions equal risk, and the highest risk is the unknown. Recent Trade Tariffs coupled with the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic have created a Global disruption which has occurred at every level. Countries have locked down. New, uneven and sometimes confusing government policies have been implemented. Healthcare and safety risks have emerged. Travel has been curtailed. Consumer demand and buying habits have changed. These disruptions have affected every individual.
Vital to dealing with these disruptions is the quick response of a Global Supply Chain needed to keep goods flowing, people working, consumer demand met and economies sound. Risk must be answered quickly with resiliency, and as a result C-Suites are being forced to re-think their entire Global Supply Chain, including their Value Chain. What does this mean for Corporations, for Transportation providers, for Site Selection and for Economic Development? This update explores what has happened, how are we responding, but most importantly – what lies ahead?
Lunch
One-on-One Meetings with Speakers
Group Networking Dinner
Breakfast
One-on-One Meetings with Speakers
Trends in e-commerce fulfillment, site selection and Last Mile Delivery
Scott Belfer, Senior Vice President, CBRE
With the ever evolving world of e-commerce/Consumer Logistics phenomenon, we will discuss the latest trends of today’s users to ship products to the consumer in the quickest and efficient manner possible. In today’s distribution and fulfillment world, companies have to ensure their logistics model is sustainable to meet the consumers needs. For every $1 billion in e-commerce sales, 1.25 million square feet of distribution space is needed, how do they support this growth through their logistics network? Also discussed will be how Last Mile is impacting Industrial Real Estate.
COVID Related Business Credits and Incentives
Allea Newbold, Principal, Ryan
The economic impact of COVID-19 continues to be felt across the country. State governments continue to face challenges with assisting businesses of all sizes. Although COVID has had a significant negative impact on the economy, there are several programs available from various tax acts to assist businesses. From the Cares Act to the American Rescue Plan, Congress has passed several tax acts that will benefit companies for many years. Learn more about various cash grants, payroll retention credits, and expanded energy credits to assist businesses during these challenging times.
Break
Dean Barber, Principal, Barber Business Advisors, LLC
As the principal of Barber Business Advisors, a consultancy based in Dallas, Dean Barber works with economic development organizations nationwide to help communities become better places for business investment and job creation. BBA also provides consulting services to national and international companies regarding location advisory analysis, incentive negotiation, and startup transition.
Prior to founding BBA, Dean was the director of international development at the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama, assisting companies establish business operations in that state. He also served as the vice president, business development, at Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership.
Prior to his career in economic development and consulting, Dean had a 20-year career in the newspaper industry. He was the business editor of The Birmingham News in Birmingham, Ala. Dean is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, having received a bachelor’s degree in business and journalism. Dean is married to his wife, Tera, who is a Realtor in Dallas. Dean plays banjo and enjoys travel and craft beer.
Ever Wonder What Happens to a Project After You Submit Your RFI?
Minah Hall, Managing Director, True Partners Consulting
In this interactive session, we will walk through some examples of the ever-fluid process and the very objective (yet sometimes subjective) analysis used by companies behind closed doors when eliminating sites based on scoring analyses.
Closing Summary
Tim Feemster, Managing Principal, Foremost Quality Logistics
Lunch
One-on-One Meetings with Speakers
Closing Networking Reception
Conference Sponsors
