WE ARE AMERICA’S JOBS TEAM.

America’s future relies on people like you to foster a dynamic economy. It’s a big responsibility, but you are not alone in shouldering the weight. You are part of America’s Jobs Team!

You know—as do we—that the business of creating jobs is hard work, requiring more than just a little bit of elbow grease. You’ve got to have: deep industry knowledge; community and workforce familiarity; an ability to form deep relationships and create unity; perseverance; and the drive to keep growing both your community and within your leadership capabilities.

Over the years, the Consultant Connect team has seen many amazing economic development heroes reach incredible goals, and we know these winning moments happen because of continuous learning, evolving and innovation. Join us each week for in-depth interviews and relevant leadership development topics to help economic developers grow. We firmly believe that when leaders get better, communities thrive!

Listen to the America’s Jobs Team podcast below, or find it on Apple Podcasts.

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Episode 133: Are You Strategic About Using the Right Data to Tell Your Unique Story?
Episode 133: Are You Strategic About Using the Right Data to Tell Your Unique Story? 150 150 America's Jobs Team

“The goal is to turn data into information, and information into insight.” –Carly Fiorina Data can be a really intimidating topic to talk about as economic developers. What types of things should you be tracking? What out-of-the-ordinary items are site consultants looking for? Which numbers should you be keeping a pulse on to help support…

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Episode 132: Are You Building a Reputation of Trust with All Your Community Leaders? | Ryan Combs, Research Triangle Regional Partnership
Episode 132: Are You Building a Reputation of Trust with All Your Community Leaders? | Ryan Combs, Research Triangle Regional Partnership 150 150 America's Jobs Team

“Keep them engaged in the process and not just when you need something. It’s about building a relationship on trust and mutual respect.” –Ryan Combs Whether it’s business leaders, regional elected officials or community partners, building a reputation for trust and reliability is key in getting projects across the finish line. But, as is often…

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Episode 131: How Has Agriculture Been Affected By Trade Tariffs and Diminished Immigration? | Andrew Carty, Indiana State Department of Agriculture
Episode 131: How Has Agriculture Been Affected By Trade Tariffs and Diminished Immigration? | Andrew Carty, Indiana State Department of Agriculture 150 150 America's Jobs Team

“Modern agricultural businesses have and are changing to become more efficient as technologies and marketing needs change and drive more profitability.” –Andrew Carty What are the implications from the unforeseen logistical situations such as the Suez Canal blockage and the Mississippi River shut down? Why does this affect international trade, and how is the agricultural…

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Episode 130: Do You Wish You Could Hear Directly From A Site Consultant? Here It Is! | Kyle Neu, Austin Consulting
Episode 130: Do You Wish You Could Hear Directly From A Site Consultant? Here It Is! | Kyle Neu, Austin Consulting 150 150 America's Jobs Team

“Any information that can help us tell the story of a community better is always something that will help create an advantage for a community.” –Kyle Neu Do you ever just want that exclusive information from a site consultant? Do you go back and forth on what information to share? Carla Sones talks with Kyle…

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Episode 129: Is Your Endurance Built From the Marathon of Economic Development? | Meghan DiGiacomo, Highlands County Economic Development
Episode 129: Is Your Endurance Built From the Marathon of Economic Development? | Meghan DiGiacomo, Highlands County Economic Development 150 150 America's Jobs Team

“Economic development is a very long game” –Meghan DiGiacomo Do you ever feel like economic development can seem reactionary? Do you wish people knew that the industry isn’t a sprint? On today’s episode, Meghan DiGiacomo talks with us about the marathon of economic development. At Highlands County Economic Development, Meghan knows the work that she…

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Episode 128: Do You Allow Your Teams Strengths to Propel Your Organization Forward?
Episode 128: Do You Allow Your Teams Strengths to Propel Your Organization Forward? 150 150 America's Jobs Team

“You have all these strengths but they’re really just sitting there on the table until you start exercising them.” –Carla Sones Do you know what attributes you excel in? Are you aware of your top strengths? This can sometimes feel only self-reflective, but how does this affect our work and our teams? Faye Davis talks…

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Episode 127: How Is Quebec Solving Its Workforce Woes? | Daniel Silverman, Investissement Quebec
Episode 127: How Is Quebec Solving Its Workforce Woes? | Daniel Silverman, Investissement Quebec 150 150 America's Jobs Team

“What I’m seeing is how multinational corporations are considering their international presence. It’s talent, talent, talent, and then the site, community and financials.” –Daniel Silverman We can’t have any conversations about projects and deal flow without running into the topic of workforce. It’s a topic that transcends borders and industries, and is top of mind…

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Episode 126: Is Micromanagement Costing Your Team Creativity, Motivation and Job Satisfaction?
Episode 126: Is Micromanagement Costing Your Team Creativity, Motivation and Job Satisfaction? 150 150 America's Jobs Team

“When you love what you do, it’s sometimes hard to let go of things that, as a leader, you probably need to let go of.” –Carla Sones We can all name a time that we have been micromanaged and you can probably remember how it felt. But is micromanaging more dangerous than we think? With…

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Episode 125: The Ways to Make Your Place a Great Place to Live, Work & Play | Ashley Cagle, Wake County Economic Development
Episode 125: The Ways to Make Your Place a Great Place to Live, Work & Play | Ashley Cagle, Wake County Economic Development 150 150 America's Jobs Team

“You have to have passion. You may not always start with passion for the place, but you have to have passion for the work.” –Ashley Cagle Though many changes in how the world works were already shaping up pre-pandemic, the last year and a half has accelerated the work style of the future. As companies in…

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Episode 124: How Admitting Mistakes Makes You A Better Leader
Episode 124: How Admitting Mistakes Makes You A Better Leader 150 150 America's Jobs Team

“You make mistakes. Mistakes don’t make you.” –Maxwell Maltz Do you ever not move forward on something out of fear of making a mistake? Is the thought of dealing with the aftermath of a mistake enough to avoid the situation all together? How does this unavoidable part of leadership drive so much of what we…

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