Taylor Kielty is a Business Recruitment Director for Georgia Power's Economic Development team. Taylor brings a combination of local, regional, and statewide experience to her role, along with a strong background in industrial recruitment and a well-established network of site selection consultants.

Previously serving as the Senior Manager for Business Recruitment at the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC), Taylor's team worked to generate new project leads, identify new land sites, and manage new projects to a successful location outcome for North Carolina. Prior to joining EDPNC, Taylor was the Assistant Director of Industrial Projects with the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD). In this role, she was responsible for co-leading the state’s industrial recruitment team and managing automotive mega projects. She also has experience on GDEcD’s Corporate Solutions and Cyber Security team as well as the Existing Industry and Regional Recruitment team.

Throughout her career, Taylor's work has resulted in the creation of more than 10,000 new jobs and $5B in new investment across the Southeast. She was recognized as a Top 50 Economic Developer in North America in 2021.

Taylor is a graduate of Tennessee Tech where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics. She has been a member of various community organizations, including the Georgia Economic Developers Association, Industrial Asset Management Council, and NAIOP Commercial Real Estate Development Association.

Hank Evans joined Vantage Data Centers in 2024 as a Senior Manager for Economic Development. In this role, Hank leads engagement with state and local economic development organizations across North America for Vantage's active projects, assists in identifying new markets, and provides feedback on potential sites for development. Prior to Vantage, Hank was a Director at the Georgia Department of Economic Development. Initially, he assisted companies with site selection and incentives and then moved to project implementation and corporate development. Hank is from Virginia and graduated from William & Mary with a degree in Economics. He has been in Atlanta ever since and now calls it home.

Justin Strickland serves as director of economic and industrial development at OmniTRAX, Inc., a leading private railroad management company in North America. With a focus on the south and eastern United States, he plays a pivotal role in fostering community growth through new industrial development along OmniTRAX's extensive portfolio of short line railroads and industrial parks.

Previously, Justin served as president of the Albany-Dougherty Economic Development Commission, where his career in economic development began in 2007 as director of special projects. Prior to that, he worked as a marketing executive at Community Capital Bancshares, a multi-state bank holding company.

Justin is recognized by the International Economic Development Council as a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD). He is a graduate of The University of Georgia with a degree in marketing. Throughout his career, he has received numerous accolades including being named one of Southwest Georgia's 40 under 40 and receiving the Marketer of the Year award from The Community Bankers' Association of Georgia. Justin co-founded Locate South Georgia, an alliance dedicated to promoting economic growth in South Georgia. He has completed participation in Leadership Albany, Leadership Georgia, and the Zell Miller Leadership Institute.

Governor Brian Kemp appointed Justin to the Georgia Joint Defense Commission in 2020, as an adviser to the Governor and the General Assembly on defense and military issues, representing Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany. In 2023, Justin was reappointed for another four-year term on the JDC.

Justin resides with his family in his hometown of Albany, Georgia where they are active members of First United Methodist Church in downtown Albany.

Courtland Robinson is a Director at Brasfield & Gorrie, specializing in data center and industrial project development for one of the nation’s largest privately held construction firms.

Over the last decade, Courtland Robinson has supported hundreds of industrial and commercial site selection projects, representing economic development interests through local, state, and Fortune 500 employment.

Prior to joining Brasfield & Gorrie, Courtland provided consulting services for Duke Energy, one of the largest energy holdings companies in the U.S., and before that served as Managing Director for the Virginia Economic Development Partnership where he oversaw the strategy and implementation of business development efforts in both Asia and North America.

Courtland holds a Bachelor of Science in Urban and Regional Planning from Virginia Commonwealth University and a Master of Public Administration from James Madison University.

Bob Kosek is the Division Director of the Global Commerce team at the Georgia Department of Economic Development. Bob joined GDEcD in April of 2021, and assumed his current role in the fall of 2022. Bob started his career in economic development at the Metro Atlanta Chamber in their Project Management and Regional Partnership division. Following the chamber, Bob joined the team at Invest Atlanta, the City of Atlanta’s Development Authority, leading business recruitment activities and assisting with economic equity initiatives.  Bob is a is a native of Cleveland, Ohio and is a proud alumnus of Georgia State University’s Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, sitting on their alumni board. In his free time, Bob is a Big Brother for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta, a member of the Georgia Economic Developers Association, and lives in Atlanta with his wife, daughter, and two rescue dogs.

With over 17 years of experience providing clients and teams with environmental and engineering services, Tela's experience covers client engagement, project and team development/management, natural resource assessment and permitting, environmental investigation and remediation, water resource engineering, as well as design and geotechnical services. As a Certified Floodplain Manager (CFM), she is particularly skilled in water-related studies, FEMA and local compliance and regulations, and flood risk mitigation.

Tela currently supports her Woodard & Curran teams with national environmental due-diligence, water and natural resources, remediation, engineering, design, and client engagement programs for Class 1 rail and other private industrial clients.

Clean water and a safe environment have always been her mission.

David Biderman has been a leader in the solid waste and recycling industry for more than 25 years. David is the President of Biderman Consulting, LLC, a boutique firm focusing on sustainability, safety, and advocacy. He was the Executive Director of the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) from 2015-2023, and helped substantially increase its membership, visibility, and leadership position in the U.S. concerning waste and recycling issues. He served on the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Environmental Technologies Trade Advisory Committee (ETTAC) and represented the U.S. at International Solid Waste Association events. David joined SWANA in April 2015 after 18 years with the National Waste & Recycling Association, where he was General Counsel, Vice President of Government Affairs and Safety Director. He has testified before numerous federal, state, and local agencies and councils, is quoted frequently by national publications, and has spoken about environmental issues, policies, and trends at numerous international environmental conferences, including events in Asia, Latin America, and Europe.

MaryBeth Flournoy (affectionately known by the team as MB) serves as Director of Industrial Development for Norfolk Southern. Since 1894, Norfolk Southern’s Industrial Development team has helped companies, large and small, find the right site to successfully grow their businesses and serve their customers throughout the 22-state service area. MaryBeth leads the Strategic Partnerships & Site Readiness team within Industrial Development with responsibilities for site product development, site promotion, international business development, GIS and Contract Services. She joined Norfolk Southern in February 2023.

MaryBeth began her career with Georgia Power in 2008 as an intern in Tactical Marketing before moving to Community & Economic Development the following year in the Research department. In 2014, she assumed the role of business recruitment manager. In her time at Georgia Power, MaryBeth has supported the recruitment of companies such as Salesforce, Norfolk Southern, Rivian, Stitch Fix, PVH Corp, Coyote Logistics, NewCold and Rivacold in locating operations in Georgia.

MaryBeth is a board member of the French American Chamber of Commerce Southeast and the Alliance Theater Advisory Board in Atlanta. She graduated from Agnes Scott College with an undergraduate degree in International Relations and has an Executive MBA from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

She resides in the “Upper Westside” of Midtown Atlanta (yes, the Upper Westside is a thing!) with her tiny terrier “Wild Wally”. MaryBeth loves exploring Atlanta's art and live music scene. She also enjoys water and snow skiing, sailing, and wine tasting. A self-proclaimed world-wanderer, there's nowhere MB won't travel- her latest big adventure included sailing the Nile River this past Spring and New Years in Sydney.

As Managing Director of Business Development and Transload for CPKC, Eric Goodman is responsible for CPKC’s interactions with our economic and business development partners in the US and Canada.

With 24 years of wide ranging experience in the railroading business, Mr. Goodman brings a breadth of experience to the role that is pivotal to CPKC’s growth and success.

Throughout his career he has held numerous roles from front line supervisory positions in transportation and intermodal to leadership roles in the intermodal business before transitioning to economic development. Eric began his railroad career with BNSF before joining the CPKC family in April of 2023.

Eric is passionate about cheering on the Kansas City Royals baseball team and the KU Jayhawks Men’s basketball team and can often be seen wearing a KC Royals hat at various business functions. He resides in De Soto, KS with his wife Elizabeth.

Brian Shuford is a mergers and acquisitions broker with SignValue. He is a graduate of Florida State University and holds both a Master’s degree in Public Policy and a Master’s of Business Administration from New England College. He currently owns a small OOH consulting firm that focuses on governmental relations, real estate development, permitting, and organic site acquisition in the Southeast. Prior to that, Brian worked for Outfront Media as the Director of Governmental Affairs for the Southeastern United States, where he worked extensively on municipal transit RFPs, asset development, and government relations. He has successfully passed new laws and regulatory changes that have generated millions of dollars in new revenue for OOH companies. He currently resides in Tampa, FL, with his wife and two daughters.

Jared is an Associate Broker at SignValue. He recently graduated from Arizona State University, studying Technological Entrepreneurship & Management. He has developed an extensive knowledge of billboard valuations, leases, brokerage, and the broader billboard industry. He often jests to his friends that he is a “verifiable billboard expert.” During his tenure with SignValue, he has performed work for EY, SDMTS, Metropolitan Partners Group, W.P. Carey, and various state DOT’s, among the many other high-profile clients SignValue serves. Prior to SignValue, Jared performed extensive market research for several international tech startups with TAMID Group. He also worked abroad at an Israeli SaaS startup and learned B2B sales, marketing, and startup finances. Jared now focuses on serving the out-of-home industry and providing as much value as possible to our clients.

Kelly Wells is the Sr. Director of Information Security at Norfolk Southern.  Currently, Kelly has responsibility for the Security Operations Center (SOC), Incident Response, Security Architecture, and Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC).  A seasoned IT professional with over 27 years of technology experience, Kelly has worked in both the Financial and Transportation industries with 17 of those years focused on Cyber Security.   Kelly also has significant experience working closely with government agencies including the TSA, FBI, and Homeland Security. 

John K. Fiorilla was born in Paterson, NJ in 1950 and moved to Burlington County in 1976 and to Cinnaminson in 1988. Mr. Fiorilla has a degree in Government from Seton Hall University in 1971 and Doctor of Jurisprudence from Georgetown University Law Center in 1974.

He began his legal career as an attorney for the Central RR of New Jersey and then Consolidated Rail Corporation. He currently is a partner in the firm of Dyer & Peterson PC and specializes in railroad and transportation law. He serves as the Chair of the Transportation Law Group. His office is in Riverton, N.J.

After graduation from Seton Hall and its Army ROTC program, John served as an officer in the Army Reserve in the Transportation Branch specializing in marine terminal operations. He retired as a Captain from the US Army Reserve 1n 1986 after 15 years on reserve duty.

John has served as aide to the late Hon. Robert A. Roe who represented NJ 8th Congressional District (which included Paterson) while he was in law school in Washington and worked with the Democratic National Committee at the famous Watergate Office Complex in Washington.

John represents a number of Class 1 and short line railroads serving as both general counsel for the short lines and litigation counsel for the short lines and Class 1 carriers.

In 2000 John was successful in an action regarding wire easements and his client the Morristown & Erie Railway named M&E locomotive # 22 in his honor.

Currently John sings in the choir at Sacred Heart Church in Riverton and umpires high school baseball as a member of the South Jersey Umpires Association throughout Burlington County.