One year ago, I accepted the job offer to be the executive director of Green County Development Corporation. This past year has flown by. So many different opportunities and challenges have arisen. Looking back, I would say the theme of my first year on the job was embracing learning.
Entering the professional world as a young adult can be both exciting and challenging. Throughout the year, I have had many opportunities to learn from really great people in a variety of industries and positions. This job has led to many opportunities for professional development as well.
One development opportunity occurred last week. I had the chance to attend the Mid-America Economic Development Council’s Best Practice Conference in Kansas City. Mid- America EDC is a multi-state association dedicated to being the leading resource for education, making connections, and sharing best practices for economic development professionals. The reason I was able to attend the conference was because I was selected as a 2023 recipient of the Bob Ady Scholarship Program. This scholarship program will last throughout 2023. It includes free tuition to two Mid-America EDC conferences, as well as the ability to join a mentorship program with other experienced economic developers in the Midwest.
The conference and the mentorship program have already given me the chance to talk with some of the best economic development professionals in the business. One huge takeaway from these discussions was the fact that economic development is a job that is never fully done. In order for communities to progress and grow, we need to be continuously learning.
This is something that we try to embody at Green County Development Corporation. GCDC was created to serve Green County. Whether working to support childcare initiatives, expand housing opportunities, support entrepreneurs and existing business growth, and attract talent in our county, GCDC is here to connect the dots to funding and the people that can move things forward. No matter the projects we work on, whether successful or not, we want to constantly be learning from both our successes and failures. In doing this, we hope to help our community and build economic growth in any way we can.
Please feel free to learn more about what we do and how we serve our community at greencountydevelopment.com. Also, signup for our newsletter, find us on Facebook and LinkedIn, and contact with us at gcdc@greencountydevelopment.com — we would love to hear from you!
— Olivia Otte is the Executive Director of the Green County Development Corporation (GCDC). She can be reached at olivia.gcdc@tds.net, or by calling 608-328-9452.
