CEO Today - September 2022

THE CEO INTERVIEW www.ceotodaymagazine.com 28 • Coastal Partnership new resident outreach program by HCDC to promote the coast as a premier relocation destination. • SEA Force, the innovative HCDC workforce development paid internship program that connects county high school students with businesses needing their skills. • Foreign Trade Zone 92 Grantee and Administrator for all three coastal counties (Harrison, Jackson, and Hancock). Some of our notable achievements include the restoration of rail service to Bernard Bayou Industrial District, the creation of Corporate Court which is the first new BBID subdivision since the 1990s, the recruitment of Ocean Aero to Gulfport from San Diego (the first corporate relocation in decades), and engineering the first Buc-ee’s in Mississippi. When I became the Harrison County Development Commission Executive Director, I learned quickly that the organisation had a substantial “cash burn” and the old way of operating wasn’t viable. HCDC then transitioned into being proactively sales and serviceoriented. The next challenge was to build an energetic, motivated HCDC team and cultivating support from the dedicated 12 commissioners on our board. My initial goal remains the same now as back in 2017—to move the organisation forward toward economic growth and an enviable quality of life benefiting the county’s businesses and residents. Each member of the stellar HCDC Team incredible group possesses “superpowers” that help accomplish the goals and tasks. I am a strong believer in empowerment and mentoring. However, after establishing a strong Team, my next biggest achievement is the creation of SEA Force (Skills. Experience. Adventure)—a novel approach to career exploration in Harrison County. We partner with local high schools and businesses to match students with the career they think they want to pursue. Juniors and seniors participate and are recommended by the school and then interviewed by the business. Through grants from our energy partners, Coast Electric Power Association and Mississippi Power, the Harrison County Development Commission pays the students, while the employers get talented employees at no cost. For most students, this is their first job, and employers get the opportunity to interview and work with some of Harrison County’s best and brightest. An outcome of the program is students have a real job on their resume and a reference and, in turn, they tell their friends about their “cool” experience. Meanwhile, employers learn how talented some "Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution." -Albert Einstein

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