Robert brings professionalism and passionate advocacy to the communities in which he serves.

Proven leader of public dialogue, successfully engaging community stakeholders on issues including economic development, public policy, community development, and strategic planning.
Award-winning economic and community development practitioner with direct involvement in over $3.7 billion of announced projects, directly responsible for projects creating more than 10,000 jobs.
Successful grant writer, securing over $40 million in state, foundation, and federal grants/appropriations.
Recognized leader in regional economic development efforts and actively engaged in national and state-level public policy initiatives.
Multi-disciplinary career experience in the public, private, and quasi-governmental arenas, with particular emphasis on economic development, workforce development, and community engagement.
Maintains an international network of business, governmental, and non-profit contacts in diverse industry sectors and geographies.

Professional Experience

President & CEO January 2017 to Present

Fayetteville Cumberland Economic Developmet Corporation Fayetteville, North Carolina

Designated economic development representative for Cumberland County, Fayetteville and the County’s 8 incorporated municipalities, announcing more than 5,000 jobs and $1.5 billion of investment.
Successful facilitator of industrial relocations, expansions, and new facility locations for foreign and domestic firms, which has led to historically low industrial vacancy rates, the development of three new industrial parks, and more than 2 million square feet of new construction.
Led organizational expansion, board restructuring, and staff realignment growing the operational budget to $1.5 million and 7 team members.
Launched “The Core” innovation center, and technology corridor initiative - www.corefayetteville.com
Leader of the successful Community Rebranding Taskforce, a collaborative partnership of 10 organizations that recently launched a unified brand platform for our community. www.CanDoCarolina.com
Secured more than $10 million in State and Federal Grants to address community priorities including broadband expansion, economic justice, and veteran employment services.

Executive Director January 2008 to December 2016

RowanWorks, Economic Development Salisbury, North Carolina

Designated economic development representative for Rowan County, the City of Salisbury and the County’s 10 incorporated municipalities.
Responsible for the creation and implementation of all nonresidential recruitment and retention efforts, which resulted in the creation of 3,500 jobs and over $1.6 billion of announced new investment.
Stabilized and expanded funding sources, which increased organizational income by 200%.
Successfully launched America’s “First 10 Gig City,” in Salisbury NC, garnering more than 150 million print, digital and social media impressions.

Executive Director / Manager of Development Services April 2004 to January 2008

Stanly County & Stanly County EDC Albemarle, North Carolina

Served as Executive Director of the Stanly County EDC and managed the Departments of Building Inspection and Planning & Zoning at the direction of the County Manager.
Provided strategic leadership for $1.5 million of operational budgets and 15 employees.
Primary coordinator for local, state and federal program administration related to existing industry competitiveness and new industrial development, whose efforts led to the announcement of more than $250 million of investment and the creation and retention of over 1,100 jobs.
Responsible for the development of industrial real estate product including 4 NC Certified Sites and the one of a kind “Prime Power Park®” (www.primepowerpark.org).
Guided and organized local lobbying and grant writing efforts at the state and federal level which resulted in over $3 million in grants and federal appropriations for public and private entities.

Economic Development Director November 2002 to March 2004

Waterbury Economic Resource Center City of Waterbury, Connecticut

Served as the Director of Economic Development for historic urban center of 110,000 residents, located in south western Connecticut.
Initiated the Waterbury Economic Resource Center, a unique public/private partnership between the City of Waterbury, the State of Connecticut, the Greater Waterbury Chamber of Commerce, and the Waterbury Partnership for Growth (a public/private economic development think-tank).
Created a “One-Stop-Shop” for regulatory information, business retention, marketing, and development assistance, which supported the Mayor’s office in securing more than $1 million in grant funding, the creation of 150 jobs, and more than $110 million in new industrial and retail development.
Developed and secured EDA funding to create proactive Brownfield Redevelopment program, which included site identification, remediation estimates, and feasible reuse scenarios.

Director of Economic Development January 2002 to November 2002

Town of Ledyard Ledyard, Connecticut

Director of Economic Development for unique community of 15,000, host community to the Foxwood’s Casino and the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation.
Charged with planning, coordinating and implementing the economic development efforts of the Town of Ledyard. Duties included: the development of marketing materials, grant writing, recruitment of private sector investment, and efforts to retain and support local businesses.

Community Planner May 2000 to January 2002

Benchmark, Inc. Kannapolis, North Carolina

Responsible for the preparation of various long and short-range planning projects including: corridor studies, comprehensive plans, land-use surveys, and neighborhood plans.
Provided review of subdivision, commercial site plans, and zoning permits for compliance with applicable ordinances for various municipalities.

Assistant Town Planner December 1999 to May 2000

Town of Southington Southington, Connecticut

Responsible for the administration and enforcement of wetland protection regulations including review of all subdivisions and commercial development plans for compliance for a rapidly growing community of 40,000.

Planning Director August 1997 to December 1999

Town of Spencer Spencer, North Carolina

Oversaw all areas of planning, zoning, community appearance, geographic information systems, web page maintenance (ci.spencer.nc.us), housing inspections, flood damage prevention, and code enforcement for municipality of 3,300.
Responsible for the enforcement of the Town of Spencer's zoning and municipal ordinances including: land usage, minimum housing, nuisance, and commercial maintenance codes.