Testimonials
George Gabel, partner, Holland & Knight and International Chair for the Jacksonville, FL Regional Chamber of Commerce
Jay Garner was retained by the City of Jacksonville and the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce to do a study and provide us with a blueprint to develop an international business plan for the City. He conducted multiple interviews and studied our situation. In his report he provided us with a document that was perceptive and forward looking. As International Chair for the Chamber, I recruited a number of business leaders in Jacksonville to help implement the plan proposed by Jay. The result has been amazing. He suggested we form an International Business Coalition headed by the Mayor to set policy for making Jacksonville a global city. He identified super sectors in our economy on which we should focus. As a result of Jay's inspiration, we have now tagged Jacksonville as "America's Logistics Center", we are becoming a global center for Life Sciences and we have the goal of becoming a global center for alternative energy. Perhaps the most important contribution he has made was to suggest ways we could create an atmosphere to attract international companies to invest in our city. A sea change is taking place in Jacksonville's perception of itself and the perception of our city abroad, and we give Jay Garner much of the credit for heading us on the right path to make that happen.
Michael Olivier, former President of the Americas, Future Pipe Industries, Inc.
As Regional President – Americas of Future Pipe Industries, I called on Jay and his staff to conduct a site search for a possible expansion we were analyzing for our North American manufacturing operations. The work of Jay and his team was meticulous with great follow-up on both sides of the project. They were extremely detailed, analytical and objective, yet offered a number of subjective views that only someone like Jay who has been on both sides of the fence would understand. In my experience of working for 30 years as a practitioner and then in the private sector, I really appreciated how he was able to relate to both the economic development professional, and to me, the corporate client.
Mayor Dave Norris, City of West Monroe, LA:
Jay Garner and his team completed a regional economic strategy for our area which is being implemented today. I liked his work so much, I engaged him to do a community visioning plan for our city. The work of he and his team is unsurpassed and well executed. There is none better than Garner Economics.
Duane Long - Longistics (Raleigh, NC) Volunteer Chair of the Research Triangle Regional Partnership International Committee:
The work product that we received from Jay and his team was delivered on time, on budget and was excellent. The report really hit home a number of key issues that we must address in order to be successful in today’s global economy. The detailed and comprehensive analysis has helped our region immensely.
Stephen Nodine - Mobile County Commissioner, AL:
Jay Garner and his team provided us the most comprehensive assessment of our economic development efforts over the last twenty years and then offered us realistic recommendations on how to advance our economic development initiatives. They are the absolute best at what they do!
Rick Weddle – Research Triangle Park Foundation:
(former President and CEO of Greater Phoenix Economic Council)
With the completion of our successful fundraising effort, we realized we needed help in realigning our operational structure. I called on Jay to help us because of his “hands-on” experience and the fact that he sees the big picture on how we can be the most effective and successful in our efforts. There is none better than Jay when it comes to organizational analysis and crystal clear recommendations and solutions.
Ronnie L. Bryant, CEcD, FM, HLM - President and CEO of Charlotte Regional Partnership
Jay Garner and his team provided us the most comprehensive, comparative benchmark analysis ever conducted for an EDO. The work of Garner Economics was simply outstanding and their conclusions and recommendations are now driving our business agenda.
Patrick J. Topping, CEcD - Senior Vice President of Macon Economic Development Commission, Macon, GA
We had Garner Economics conduct a labor analysis for a shared service project looking at communities in Georgia. The information they provided convinced the company that our labor force was available, affordable and had the skills. The work done by the Garner Economics team was outstanding.
Alfred F. Cook, Jr. CEcD, Director of Economic Development City of Opelika, Alabama
Jay is the consummate Economic Development professional. His wide range of experience both as an Economic Development practitioner and as a Site Consultant make Jay and his Firm worthy of consideration for any Economic Development related issue that needs addressing. I highly recommend Jay and his Firm.
Mary Ann Newton - President, West Monroe - West Ouachita Chamber of Commerce, West Monroe, LA
Jay is progressive, ethical and innovative. He combines his Economic and Community Development expertise with the ability to organize, collect and evaluate data - all in an effort to provide the best of product development programming to municipalities and businesses. And he does so with graciousness and a terrific personality. He truly wants to see his clients succeed. Jay's team members compliment his work ethic and vision. They, too, possess a wide range of experience and talent. Garner Economics is a 'go to' organization. HIRE THEM!
See what EDI students are saying about Jay Garner’s course instruction on "Effective International Business Development Strategies".