Executive Search: Harnett County, NC Economic Development
Sanford Holshouser Economic Development Consulting has been retained to assist Harnett County, North Carolina identify a new Director of Economic Development. The full description is below.
HARNETT COUNTY, NC
DIRECTOR, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: NOVEMBER 8, 2021
Harnett County is seeking a highly motivated and experienced professional to lead their economic development program.
Harnett County is one of the fastest growing counties in North Carolina with approximately 135,000 residents. Our "Strong Roots, New Growth," describes a county in transition, one that values its rural agricultural heritage while also embracing new growth and industry. Harnett County is optimally located between North Carolina's capital city of Raleigh and the internationally recognized Research Triangle Park to the north, and the nation's largest military installation in Fort Bragg to the south. The county is also centrally located in North Carolina and is within close proximity to the Great Smoky Mountains and Blue Ridge Parkway, and to the numerous Atlantic Ocean beaches and the Outer Banks.
Harnett County Economic Development is a government agency responsible for business recruitment, existing industry support, and entrepreneurial development. The primary mission is to help attract sustainable jobs and capital investment to support the economic well-being of existing and future citizens. This program is supported by Harnett County Property Corporation, a 501(c)(3) entity, which owns and is actively involved in developing business parks for recruitment purposes. The Board of County Commissioners are committed to taking the County’s economic development efforts to a significantly enhanced level, in order to deal with substantial new growth that is occurring, and which is projected to continue.
The Economic Development Director is responsible for managing the County’s Economic Development Department including implementation of the countywide economic development strategic plan and the accomplishment of its goals and objectives along with a staff of three. The Director will develop and present each annual budget, manage and implement day-to-day activities related to economic development opportunities. The Economic Development Director will have oversight of all aspects of new business recruitment, business retention and expansion, project management, site identification, RFI response, management of grants/incentives, proposal development, client presentations, local government presentations, and post-recruitment support to finalize all project details. The Economic Development Director reports to the County Manager.
Summary of Duties:
Plans, organizes, and manages the operations of the Economic Development Department including annual budget recommendation.
Develops department goals and objectives consistent with the goals and strategies of the Board of Commissioners and economic development strategic plan.
Supervises staff hiring and development and manages work performance, including completion of performance reviews.
Establishes, develops, and maintains effective working relationships with departmental staff, and county management to assure the economic development plan is integrated and coordinated with other county departments.
Maintains professional working relationship with elected officials, community leaders, investors, and developers.
Manages and organizes the activities of the Harnett County Properties Corporation, a 501(c)(3) local economic development partner. Utilizes this partnership to develop future sites and buildings.
Develops industrial properties by working with a variety of public and private partners.
Develops grants and funding sources to support infrastructure improvements, site acquisition and development; has oversight of researching, writing, and contracting for grant procurement and administration.
Presents program information to community groups, County management and other board and private sector entities.
Responds to economic development inquiries by preparing cost-benefit analyses and site selection information in a timely manner.
Prepares incentive and grant requests related to recruitment projects, organizes prospect tours and community visits.
Maintains cooperative working relationships and participates in business recruitment activities with the RTRP, EDPNC, the NC Department of Commerce, and other economic development professionals across the region and state
Ensures the Harnett County Economic Development website clearly promotes the comprehensive strengths of the County; available sites and buildings, targeted clusters, demographics, area employment and wages, land use, transportation, utilities, and advantages of locating and working in Harnett County
Develops marketing strategies and participates in trade shows and offsite meetings with prospective clients including site consultants.
Communicates annual progress toward economic development goals via benchmarked indicators.
Performs other duties as required or assigned.
Requisites:
Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Economics Public Administration, or related field is preferred, but not required.
Minimum five years of increasingly responsible experience in the field of economic development, is preferred.
Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) preferred
Excellent interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills
Skills in data collection, analysis and establishment of databases related to County statistics and demographics.
Extensive experience in the economic development field, including incentives, planning, development, project financing techniques, and marketing.
Ability to plan, organize and effectively develop industrial and commercial leads for the County, including building consensus among diverse groups.
Proficiency in Windows operating system, and working knowledge of Microsoft Office programs (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, etc.)
Compensation:
The annual salary range for this position is $82,388 to $135,941 commensurate with experience and qualifications. The Harnett County benefits package is competitive, and the position also includes additional benefits specific to the duties of an economic development director.
How to apply:
Resumes should be sent to Rocky Lane at rlane@shedc.com
Or hard copies may be delivered to:
Sanford Holshouser Economic Development Consulting, LLC
Attn: Harnett County Executive Search
4141 Parklake Avenue, Suite 200
Raleigh, NC 27612
Direct any questions to Rocky Lane at 252-0532-5088 or rlane@shedc.com
Harnett County, NC and Sanford Holshouser Economic Development Consulting, LLC (SHEDC) accepts, without reservation, the principles of equal opportunity in employment. SHEDC does not discriminate on the basis of gender, disability, race, age, sexual orientation, political affiliation, marital status, national origin, genetic information, or religion.