DCEDC seeking applicants for executive director position

May 16, 2018

Daviess County Economic Development Corporation seeks applicants for executive director position

Current director, Ron Arnold, set to retire from full-time position in December

WASHINGTON, IN – Following 15 years of successfully securing numerous advancements for Daviess County, including the recent expansion of the first Japanese joint venture in the county, Ron Arnold, executive director of the Daviess County Economic Development Corporation (and the Daviess County Economic Development Foundation), plans to step down from day-to-day responsibilities by the end of 2018.

The DCEDC executive board is now seeking applicants for the position, which they expect to have filled by the end of October. “Daviess County has experienced strong success in recent years and we are looking for a candidate to sustain and accelerate that established momentum,” said Mike Chestnut, DCEDC board chairman.

“I have very much enjoyed the privilege of being part of a forward-looking team that has dramatically changed the economic outlook of Daviess County,” said Arnold. “However, as Apple Founder and Visionary Steve Jobs once said, ‘If you look closely, most ‘overnight successes’ took a long time.’”

“The reason I say that is that most of the successful economic development projects in Daviess County took four-six years of hard work and sustained vision to come to fruition, although in some cases they may have looked like they just materialized overnight,” Arnold added. “So, as I get closer to real retirement age, the economic development team needs someone who will be around and operating at full speed.

“It takes a lot of energy to create opportunities and to shepherd and lead the projects presently underway and those in the future that will take five to six years or more to materialize,” he said.

DCEDC released the following details about the open position:

Position: Executive Director for the Daviess County Economic Development Corporation and the Economic Development Foundation.

• The successful candidate will have a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree in business, finance, accounting or a related field. MBA and/or professional economic development certification preferred. The applicant will be able to demonstrate a capacity and/or history of successfully working on a broad scale with business professionals in a community setting. The successful applicant will be able to demonstrate strategic understanding of economic development-related revenue streams, commercial real estate principles, public-private partnership considerations, the government regulatory environment, and other income and capital formation issues. The applicant will be able to demonstrate a working knowledge of current and future trends in local, regional and state economic development.
• Responsibilities include but are not limited to: conducting and overseeing the day-to-day operations of both DCEDC and DCEDF, establishing and sustaining positive working relationships with development partners, provide membership communication services and providing strategic leadership, including the development of options for securing and expanding businesses in the area.
• The successful candidate will demonstrate the skills and capacity to be a forward thinker who can take DCEDC and DCEDF to the next level; applicant will be able to demonstrate drive and ability to work with elected officials and community leaders to develop the resources required to carry out the mission of the organization.
• Strong communication skills, including knowledge of digital and traditional marketing, required. Applicant will be able to demonstrate ethical commitment and reputation.

The DCEDC board will entertain the possibility of engaging a firm who can provide these services, provided that said firm can demonstrate superior capacity to perform necessary functions for both DCEDC and DCEDF and will identify a professional as the person directly responsible for the fulfillment of said duties.

Salary and benefits commiserate with experience and qualifications.

Application deadline is July 31, 2018. Interviews with the executive committee of the DCEDC board will be completed by early September with an expected start date ofOctober 1, 2018. Successful candidate will team with existing executive director for transition through the end of the year.

The Daviess County Economic Development Corporation is an equal opportunity employer.

Please submit resume and supporting information in full confidence to:

Executive Director Search

Daviess County Economic Development Corporation

P.O. Box 191

219 East Main Street

Washington, IN  47501

About the Daviess County Economic Development Corporation 

As a private/public partnership for county-wide economic development, the Daviess County Economic Development Corporation (DCEDC) is working to build a foundation for a better tomorrow in the communities within Daviess County, Indiana.  A founding organization of the WestGate @ Crane Technology Park, DCEDC’s mission is to develop a process which improves the standard of living for all citizens by creating, retaining and reinvesting wealth while protecting the environment. For more information, please visit www.dcedc.net.