Program At-a-Glance
6:30 a.m. |
Golf Outing ($)
Price: $100 |
9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. |
New River Boat Tour of Downtown Office and Residential Redevelopment and Marine Industry Facilities ($)
Price: $55 |
10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. |
Ethics Workshop
Ethics training is a requirement for the Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) re-certification processes. CEcDs who seek recertification are required to have two hours of ethics training each time they recertify. Price: Free, but registration is required Speakers:
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1:00 p.m. - 1:45 p.m. |
Performing at Top Capacity : Becoming Accredited
Facilitator: Judy McKinney-Cherry, CEcD, FM, Principal, New Growth Strategies, Clayton, DE Speakers:
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2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. |
Opening Plenary Session
Welcoming Remarks:
Keynote Moderators:
Keynote Speaker: Colin Brown, Chairman of the Board, JM Family Enterprises, Deerfield Beach, FL Game Show Host: Bruce Takefman, Founder and President, Research Consultants International, Montreal, QC Keynote Panelists:
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3:45 p.m. – 5:25 p.m. |
Concurrent Sessions - Speed Sessions
1. Metric Driven Leadership Virtually everywhere the standard for performance metrics is unanimous: job creation, wage increases, and commercial investment. As a result, an increasing amount of EDOs now release monthly reports and dashboards that track these metrics with the precision of a stock ticker. Current approaches to performance metrics are holding back broader systemic change. The pressure to quantify impact means that regardless of overarching strategic goals, specific initiatives still live and die by their ability to contribute to traditional bottom line metrics. Learning Outcomes:
Moderator: Joshua Wright, Vice President of Economic and Workforce Development , Emsi, Moscow, ID Speakers:
A healthy regional economy requires a healthy workforce and a focus on both human and environmental sustainability. Forward-thinking economic developers can capitalize on the rapidly growing wellness industry to support industry, tourism, real estate, and workforce development. Evidence-based health and wellbeing initiatives can create a healthier pipeline of talent and build vibrant wellness-enhancing communities, while wellness tourism and business segments create new opportunities for cluster growth and business attraction. Learning Outcomes:
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Industry clusters can serve as a catalyst for regional growth. They are often geographically bound and linked by suppliers and service providers all working in tandem to meet strategic goals and objectives. Examples include transforming an existing agriculture cluster into a plant science, biotechnology, or even an aquaculture industry or using tech transfer from existing industry to spur a new regional cluster. Learning Outcomes:
Moderator: Steven Jast, Founder and President, ROI Research on Investment, Montreal, QC Speaker:
In 2019, the global advertising industry is projected to surpass $550 billion. Advertising revenues have driven Google's valuation to greater than $700 billion, and Facebook to greater $500 billion. The six D's of exponentials: Digitized, Deceptive, Disruptive, Dematerialized, Demonetized and Democratized. Right now, we are experiencing the dematerialization and demonetization of advertising thanks to the power of artificial intelligence and the prominence of social networks. But perhaps there is a seventh D… Dismissed. Meaning that companies are going to be dismissed by the consumer, who will delegate their AI to make all purchase decisions. Learning Outcomes:
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6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. |
Conference Reception |
The redesigned and renovated 
Fort Lauderdale's waterways have been nicknamed the "Venice of America", and participants will see why on this educational boat tour along the New River. Home not only to the famous Millionaire's Row, the New River now houses many new sites of business and residential redevelopment, including the Icon Las Olas residential tower and new office towers. This tour will also stop at several marine facilities, showcasing an industry that produces 136,000 jobs and has an $11.5 billion-dollar economic output in South Florida annually.
In the new year, many people make resolutions to improve themselves. What about a resolution to improve your organization? The Accredited Economic Development Organization (AEDO) program provides economic development organizations with an internal review of their operations and recommendations on how to strengthen their organizational processes to best respond to the changing climate in the economic development profession. Join members of the AEDO advisory committee as they discuss the AEDO program and give insights on the application review process.
7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m. |
CEcD Breakfast
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8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. |
State of the Economic Development Industry
Keynote Moderator: Danielle Casey CEcD, EDFP, Executive Vice President, Greater Sacramento Economic Council, Sacramento, CA Keynote Speakers:
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9:15 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. |
Monday Plenary Session
Master of Ceremonies: Amy Clickner, CEcD, CFRM, CEO, Lake Superior Community Partnership, Marquette, MI Keynote Introduction: Rick Lombardo, Senior Account Manager, Chmura Economics & Analytics, Richmond, VA Keynote Moderator: Marva Bryan, CEcD, Accounting Manager/Tax Incentive Analyst, Development Authority of Fulton County, Atlanta, GA Keynote Speakers:
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10:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. |
Concurrent Sessions
The Wharton School of Business study found that the use of data visualizations could shorten business meetings by 24%. EDO's with the most advanced analytics capabilities are:
(Source: Bain & Company) Learn the principles of good chart design, how to choose the right display for your data, and how to make a compelling visualization. Plus… send in your own project for a professional critique (optional). Speaker:
Most tourism and economic development brands and efforts are completely disconnected, and disjointed lacking a coherent long-term placemaking strategy. The competition for Amazon's second headquarters brought into focus the leverage one company has in quickly forcing business, government, and tourism leaders to put their placemaking reality on display. Amazon wanted the best of both worlds: low tax and regulatory environment, high quality life and public service/transportation level, logistical and talent accessibility, and a great “place” to live.The Amazon approach crystalized and highlighted cities who had already merged their economic development and tourism branding strategies to create a cohesive approach to placemaking. Learning Outcomes:
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The growing schism between EDOs and state legislatures makes for a difficult, tumultuous, and deteriorating relationship when it comes to social issues. The current tensions in the federal system are more nuanced and resistant to incremental changes and solutions than they were only a decade or so ago. And the prospects for any long-term improvement in the EDOs relations with these elected officials are downright discouraging. The bright spot is that EDOs continue to be policy activists and innovators, sometimes even in defiance of federal laws and policies that do not foster inclusive economic development. Learning Outcomes:
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Knowledge of the brain has entered the mainstream, everywhere from education to economic development to business, and even to pop culture. Keeping up with the new trends in employee engagement and leadership now requires a basic understanding of the brain and neuroscience. Recent breakthroughs in neuroscience are helping us understand more about what holds employees attention, what motivates them, and how it can drive innovation. The real and potential economic development impacts and applications are astounding! Learning Outcomes:
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12:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. |
Leadership Luncheon: Why Economic Developers Are Critical to the Success of New Businesses
Master of Ceremonies: Kenny McDonald, CEcD, President & Chief Economic Officer, Columbus 2020, Columbus, OH Remarks from Chair: Tracye McDaniel, President, TIP Strategies, Austin, TX, Austin, TX Keynote Speaker: Victor Hwang, Vice President of Entrepreneurship, Kauffman Foundation, Kansas City, MO |
2:15 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. |
Concurrent Sessions
Every year, states and local governments give economic-development incentives to companies to the tune of between $45 billion and $80 billion. How do communities balance the tremendous opportunity of attracting a world-class company against the taxpayer costs, the pressures on infrastructure and struggles of providing affordable housing? Pressure to limit incentives for big corporate relocations has drawn on economic evidence that remains skeptical about the effectiveness of incentives, arguing that incentives do not influence business decisions to nearly the extent policymakers claim nor are they properly targeted to businesses and industries that can offer the greatest economic and social benefit. Therefore, what are economic developers doing to improve economic development incentive performance. Learning Outcomes:
Moderator: Raelin Storey, Director of Communications, Marketing and Economic Development, City of Hollywood, Hollywood, FL Speaker:
No factor is more critical in determining your success as a chief executive than your partnership with your board. CEOs who have built a close, positive and productive working relationship with their board tend to thrive over the long run, achieving their leadership goals and advancing their careers. By contrast, CEOs who haven't mastered the art of building and sustaining a rock-solid partnership with their board tend to be less effective leaders and to be far less secure in their positions. This interactive workshop will cover a broad range of topics, including; practical ways to strengthen the board's accountability for its governing performance, development of board structure and processes for actively engaging board members in key governing processes such as strategic planning, performance monitoring and management of the board-CEO working relationship. Learning Outcome:
Speaker:
In communities across the globe, there is a shared dream – one where every person has the opportunity to reach their fullest productive potential regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, income, background, or geography. This is the “why” we do what we do in this beloved profession we know as economic development. Aided by our efforts, entrepreneurs are able to launch successful enterprises, employers are able to grow and improve their operations, inventors can commercialize their ideas, investors can maximize the return on their investments, and individuals can earn a living wage – each of which enables our neighbors to provide for their loved ones and contribute meaningfully to the world around them. Indeed, over the years, in communities small and large, rural, urban, and suburban, we've made great progress in advancing the human condition through the practice of economic development. Learning Outcomes:
Moderator: Todd Greene, CEcD, Executive Director, Atlanta University Center Consortium, Atlanta, GA Speakers:
Although communities agree that supporting local businesses is crucial to economic vitality, the means to that end can be hotly contested. Economic development professionals endure criticisms from elected officials, media, academia, and others who question our role in supporting economic growth and resilience. Defending the profession requires understanding and communicating the full picture – including current events and trends – as well as reviewing ways to improve economic development practices. Attend the launch of the latest toolkit and research paper from the Economic Development Research Partners (EDRP) program to learn about brand new resources designed to assist economic development stakeholders become true champions of our work. Learning Outcomes:
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2:30 p.m. - 5:30 pm |
Port Everglades and FPL Power Plant ($)
Price: $55 |
4:00 p.m. – 5:40 p.m. |
Concurrent Sessions - Speed Sessions
Managers and leaders are critical to the success of a business, and so are effective coaching skills. Consistent coaching helps with employee onboarding and retention, performance improvement, skill improvement, and knowledge transfer. On top of these benefits, coaching others is an effective method for reinforcing and transferring learning. While there are many important leadership skills and competencies, coaching is central to improving the performance of entire teams. Learning Outcomes:
Moderator: Julie Curtin, President, Economic Development, Development Counsellors International (DCI), New York, NY Speakers:
As a leader you will need to develop a plan for transition of both external and internal roles of the departing leader. A well-planned succession can provide an EDO with an opportunity to best position itself for the future. Ensuring that succession proceeds as smoothly as possible hinges on several keys to success. There is a great deal of universality to succession and transition, but each organization and individual brings a unique set of circumstances and will have a somewhat unique path through leadership change. Learning Outcomes:
Moderator:
Speakers:
States with leading innovation economies develop attractive business environments by investing in accelerators, anchor institutions and commercialization of R&D. They proactively fill the investment deficit for early stage, high potential companies, where private capital is unwilling to invest. Their models range from subsidized funds and ecosystem development to investment readiness programs. In 2016 a report was published evaluating the performance of a US Treasury program that allocated resources to states to addresses innovation problems. The report provides a starting point for evaluating the performance of state-supported models that address the risk gap. This session aims to highlight the ground breaking work of several economic development professionals working in this space. Learning Outcomes:
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It’s official! The national map of Opportunity Zones is now in place. On June 14th, the Department of the Treasury certified the final round of states’ nominations, bringing the total number of qualified census tracts to more than 8,700 across all states, territories, and the District of Columbia. Now that the map is in place, the challenge is to ensure the incentive unlocks an effective distribution of the capital across the many different types of places and use cases. That will require successful regulatory implementation, continuous work on the ground to align investor incentives with community needs, and broad-based engagement across public, private, and non-profit sectors. Local Economic Development Professionals can play key roles. Funds are forming throughout the country. The National Council of State Housing Finance Agencies lists of over 50 Qualified Opportunity Funds already formed. Louisville Forward’s Chief Mary Ellen Wiederwohl will share the work to develop one of the first investment prospectus documents on Opportunity Zones. This informational session will help leaders to better understand the program, what local governments can do with the community development toolkit to encourage investment, how investors can participate, and will also review the current regulatory framework. Learning Outcomes:
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6:00 p.m. |
Dine Around
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One of the top three cruise ports in the world, 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. |
Special Plenary Session Emcee: Tom Kucharski, President and CEO, Invest Buffalo Speakers:
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9:15 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. |
Concurrent Sessions
A full 57 million Americans, including forty seven percent of millennials, engage in some form of freelance work, according to a survey by freelance hub Upwork. Their activities contribute an estimated $1.4 trillion to the U.S. economy. At the same time, the gross receipts of these independent workers grew by nearly 21 percent. However, the gig economy is a category of work that is still largely undefined and unrecognized by U.S. policy, from the local up to the federal level. Nevertheless, the gig economy is growing and influencing the way that Americans view work, which poses a number of challenges for EDO's. Learning Outcomes:
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Although there are many definitions for “resiliency,” a common idea remains: it is the ability of individuals and communities to survive, overcome, adapt, grow, and thrive in the presence of challenges, whether those challenges are man-made and natural disasters or economic downturns and lingering recessions. And, there is no better time than the present to begin the conversation on resilience. Over the past three years, 15 percent of communities have experienced some form of a disaster. Learning Outcomes:
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In many communities, political division creates an environment of the three D's: distrust, division, and dysfunction. It is certainly evident at the federal and state level, but there are also levels of dysfunction in local politics. The net result is an increasingly challenging environment to structure and implement effective economic development policy.This session will provide an overview of political trends, general observations, and potential methods to address situations that arise in the local economic developer's environment. We will also discuss the role of the economic developer as a leader who can help bridge gaps and build consensus. Learning Outcomes:
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A trade war between the US and China has been heating up this year, with the US levying tariffs on $250 billion of imported goods from China and China retaliating with tariffs on $110 billion of US goods. Tariffs can increase the price of supplier goods, which can have serious economic effects on small businesses in your community. Several economists and business groups have warned that higher prices from tariffs can hurt American firms and consumers, but the Trump administration continues to defend its policies. In this roundtable discussion participants will gain access to tools and resources that will help them to communicate that their community is open for business even in a season of uncertainty. Lessons Learned:
Facilitator: Gilberto Salinas, Chief Operating Officer, Kerr Economic Development Corp., Kerrville, TX Speakers:
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11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. |
Tuesday Plenary Session
Master of Ceremonies: Gynii A. Gilliam, President, Coeur d'Alene Area Economic Development Corporation, Coeur D'Alene, ID Keynote Speakers:
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1:00 p.m. - 4:00 pm |
Nova Southeastern University (NSU) Guy Harvey Oceanographic Center and Florida Atlantic University Seatech Facility ($)
Price: $55 |
Join this tour for a behind-the-scenes look at two major marine research centers in Broward County. South Florida now derives $11.5 billion in economic impact and 136,000 jobs from our reefs and marine industry. At * Agenda subject to change