U of M exec will lead new business recruiting group
Townsend moves to Memphis Chamber
The Greater Memphis Chamber will hire the top economic development officer at the University of Memphis to lead a new business recruiting initiative.
Ted Townsend, U of M’s chief economic development and government relations officer since early 2018, will head the new partnership between the university and the chamber.
Both organizations announced the appointment and the creation of the partnership on Wednesday aimed at bringing more jobs to the area.
The role will put Townsend in position to lead chamber efforts to attract new industry. The group will be formed through a partnership between the university and the chamber, officials say.
He’ll serve as the new unit’s full-time chief economic development officer and eventually leave the university payroll and become a chamber employee.
Wednesday’s joint statement says: “Townsend will lead an integrated chamber and university team that will strategically recruit businesses within targeted industry sectors by promoting Memphis’ expansive assets including the highly-trained workforce prepared by both the University of Memphis and the broader set of regional education and training partners.”
Before he was hired by U of M, Townsend was deputy commissioner and chief operating officer for Tennessee’s Department of Economic and Community Development. At the university, he was credited with lobbying for U of M in Nashville and leading the opening of the U of M Research Foundation Research Park. Townsend, a U of M graduate, will begin immediately and move to the chamber payroll by 2022, the statement says.