Southern Indiana Business Report
BEDFORD — Radius Indiana announced its list of speakers for its fifth annual regional economic development conference for community leaders, and registration is now open for the event.
Attendees at the two-and-a-half-day Radius Indiana Economic Development for Community Leadership Program will participate in educational sessions on relevant topics, including quality of place, population attraction, site development, and business finance and incentives. The course will take place May 17-19 at French Lick Resort and is open to local and state officials who are interested in learning more about economic development.
The format of this year’s event will offer attendees the opportunity to choose between session topics for parts of the conference to create a more personalized experience. Communities should consider sending more than one representative to attend in order to gain information from all the relevant topics that will be covered at the conference.
“We have a record number of speakers set to present at our upcoming economic development course,” Jeff Quyle, president and CEO of Radius Indiana, said. “It is an exciting opportunity to expand the relevant topics our conference addresses, and we will look forward to hosting this education opportunity in our region.”
Speakers from state agencies, site selection companies, secondary education institutions, and financial firms will share best practices and offer perspectives on local and regional economic strategies. Topics are focused on the day-to-day functions of economic development and are designed to help leaders keep the needs of economic development at the forefront of their efforts as they return to their daily responsibilities. Confirmed speakers and subjects for the course will include:
- Jim Plump – Jackson County Industrial Development Corporation, Introduction to Economic Development
- Jeffrey Banning – Banning Engineering, Site Development
- Rachel Greene – Magnitude Agency, Economic Development Marketing
- Olga Pogoda – KRNLS, Coworking Spaces and Maker Spaces
- Courtney Zaugg – Plaka and Associates, Entrepreneur-led Economic Development
- Doug Rasmussen – Steadfast City, Site Selector Deals
- Matt Eckerle – Baker-Tilly, Business Finance and Incentives
- Lisa Abbott – Regional Opportunity Initiatives, Housing
- Wendy Dant Chesser – One Southern Indiana, Strategic Planning
- Michael Wilcox – Purdue Center for Regional Development, Quality of Place
- Evan Hock – TMAP, Population Attraction
- Julie Rigrish – Purdue Center for Regional Development, Economic Gardening
- Jason Hester – Greater Columbus Indiana Economic Development, Business Retention and Expansion
- Christian Blome, Vincennes University Jasper Campus, and Michi McClain, Regional Opportunity Initiatives – Workforce Development
Radius plans to make several scholarships available from its own office as well as area utilities for community members from the region who would like to participate in the program. Representatives from local economic development organizations and others interested in attending are encouraged to contact the Radius Indiana office to learn more about scholarship opportunities in their area.
Registration for the Radius Indiana Economic Development for Community Leadership Program is now available at www.Radiusindiana.com or by calling 812-277-9778. Registration for leaders in the Radius eight-county region is $425. Cost is $475 for those who live outside the region. The registration page includes a link and promotional code to book a hotel room at the French Lick Resort for the conference days.