Author Archives: Daryl Phillips, CEcD

About Daryl Phillips, CEcD

I am a professional economic developer. I presently work for communities and companies in developing and implementing workforce and economic development solutions as CEO of Phillips Economic Development Solutions (Phi EDS). Prior to September 2017, I was the economic development professional who served a community team of elected officials, business people, community leaders and dedicated stakeholders for economic development in Cheatham County, Tennessee (pop. 39,880) and its four towns. During my five-year tenure, I served the team as Cheatham County grew over 1,700 jobs, turned around population declines at the start of this decade into healthy population growth, increased tourism expenditures 20.3% and local tax revenue from tourism 25.4%, grew sales tax revenue 36%, focused on developing the local workforce and was recognized by SmartAsset as having the 9th highest Incoming Investment Index of all the 95 counties in Tennessee. I am a member of International Economic Development Council, Southern Economic Development Council, Tennessee Economic Development Council and International Council of Shopping Centers. I have earned the designation of Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) from International Economic Development Council (IEDC), the Economic Development Finance Professional (EDFP) certification from National Development Council and hold a Master of Business Administration from Tennessee Technological University.

Tennessee Governor’s Conference on Economic & Community Development

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam and his Tennessee Department of Economic & Community Development will host the 59th Annual Tennessee Governor’s Conference on Economic & Community Development on Thursday and Friday this week, October 18th and 19th. The theme will be … Continue reading

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Tennessee Farmland Legacy Conference

The University of Tennessee Institute for Agriculture will present the 2012 Tennessee Farmland Legacy Conference at Montgomery Bell State Park on November 1st and 2nd. Held every two years, this will be a great opportunity for those involved in agriculture … Continue reading

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Compiling good lawyer jokes

Congratulations to my brother Steve who learned Friday that he passed the Tennessee bar examination. I bet he and all the others who passed (list at www.state.tn.us/lawexaminers/success.html) are enjoying a weekend without studying the law.

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Technology Tools for Economic Developers at IEDC Annual Conference

Join Janet Fritz, Dean Whitaker, Russ Riblett and me for the session “Technology Tools for Economic Developers” at the International Economic Development Council Annual Conference in Houston on October 2nd. It will be educational and maybe even entertaining. A teaser — … Continue reading

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I put a dollar in the change machine and I got it

Starting my second week as Director of Economic Development with the Cheatham County Joint Economic & Community Development Board, I am enjoying working for the community and getting to know new people.  This is a great community and I look … Continue reading

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New address, or changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes

I have been stretching the envelope of my technical expertise doing some major changes to my website. If they offered a Rosetta Stone package for hypertext markup language, I would have purchased it.  Other than some periods of disruptions last night … Continue reading

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The times, they are a changing

I have been busy and have had a hard time getting motivated to take the time to post something new.  As it is early morning and the alarm will be unforgiving in a few hours, my thoughts only thought is … Continue reading

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They really are from the government AND there to help small business

Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation’s Small Business Environmental Assistance Program (SBEAP) provides technical, administrative and regulatory support for small businesses. The SBEAP staff serve as a liaison between the environmental regulatory agencies and small business. The SBEAP does not have … Continue reading

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2012 Tennessee Governor’s Conference on Economic & Community Development

The 2012 Tennessee Governor’s Conference on Economic & Community Development will be held at the Nashville Convention Center on October 18th and 19th. This will be the 59th annual conference and will be titled, Global Reach, Local Impact.  Registration, session … Continue reading

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An app today connects to our customer today?

Okay, I’ve put it off long enough. I am going to get me one of those MySpace pages. What? Technology usage has changed. What else is new? I am certainly using my iPhone a lot and this article, “Mobile Apps Will Drive … Continue reading

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Are you an inventor of a new process or product?

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has an Inventors Assistance Center just for you.  The USPTO Inventors Assistance Center provides patent information and services to the public. They can answer general questions regarding patent examining policy, direct you to appropriate … Continue reading

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Preparation for retail recruitment meetings

George Carlin once said, “I put a dollar in a change machine. Nothing changed.” Well, change certainly happens. We have been updating the one page marketing flyer (called a ‘slick’ due to the gloss paper it is usually printed on) for the Bon … Continue reading

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SBA’s Boots to Business empowers veterans to start and grow their own business

We have many U.S. military veteran owned businesses in Hickman County, Tennessee.  For veterans who may be looking to become entrepreneurs and start and grow their own business, the Small Business Administration has a program called Boots to Business that … Continue reading

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Reasons Tennessee is #TopStateTN for business

Tennessee is a great state to do business. Check out Governor Bill Haslam on YouTube giving reasons that Tennessee is the top state for business and then cast your vote in the CNBC’s America’s Top States for Business 2012 coverage by … Continue reading

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2012 International Economic Development Council Annual Conference

I accepted an invitation this week to speak at the 2012 International Economic Development Council (IEDC) Annual Conference in Houston on October 2nd.  I will be one of the speakers in the session “Technology Tools for Economic Developers”.  Hickman County … Continue reading

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Recommend Rural Tourism Marketing

I read several blogs regularly, but I don’t really don’t take the time to comment and link to them as often as I once did. However, I read a post on RuralTourismMarketing.com that reminds me why I am and maybe … Continue reading

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Happy (postponed) anniversary!

My wife and I celebrated our ninth wedding anniversary last night.  Thursday was our actual anniversary date, but I had to be at the office to let the volunteer fire department leadership group in for their meeting, then be off to … Continue reading

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Centerville awarded grant for major infrastructure improvement

“The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) announced on Tuesday a $1 million Economic Development Administration (EDA) grant to the town of Centerville, Tennessee, to make critical improvements to the town’s wastewater treatment plant to support the health care and … Continue reading

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Interesting research on tax credits and incentives

The Pew Center on the States recently released a report titled Evidence Counts: Evaluating State Tax Incentives for Jobs and Growth.  It looks to be a valuable tool in understanding the economic development playing field among the states and how … Continue reading

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Our area named number one

Kiplinger named the Nashville area number one in its recent article “8 Cities with Surprising Job Growth“. “The capital of country music has a vibrant tech sector fueled by its highly regarded universities, and is becoming a center of data … Continue reading

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UT Center for Industrial Services offers free intellectual property webinar series

Intellectual Property Webinar Series – free, authoritative, monthly 90-min webinars covering all aspects of patenting, IP tactics and strategies Information covered in this series will be particularly helpful for those who are pursuing growth projects that may develop or make use of … Continue reading

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Tennessee story in The Globe and Mail

I will be in Canada in a few days, but the story of how Tennessee sells its as a great business location by creating and maintaining a mutually beneficial relationship with prospective and existing industry has already made it north of … Continue reading

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Double Feature by the Dashboard Light

According to Google, today is the 79th anniversary of the first drive-in movie theater.  The Pink Cadillac Drive-in Theater is still operating in Hickman County, Tennessee at 2506 Highway 100, Centerville, TN.  Why not step into the wayback machine to … Continue reading

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ED EDucation

Want to learn a little about economic development, industrial development boards or tools such as TIF (tax increment financing), PILOT (payment in lieu of tax) agreements or industrial revenue bonds in Tennessee? There is probably more than any elected or … Continue reading

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Connected Tennessee article

“Our View: Connected Tennessee a Valuable Service” article in the Jackson Sun tells of some of the benefits of this program.  Connected Tennessee promotes expanding access, adoption and use of broadband.

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SBA National Small Business Week

For more on the activities of SBA Small Business Week and to learn about how to make your small business more successful, check out the Small Business Adminstriation website.

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Gov. Haslam signs legislation to expand the FastTrack incentive program

Governor Bill Haslam signed this week the legislation passed by the Tennessee General Assembly that will expand the FastTrack incentive program.  The legislation creates the FastTrack economic development program, which would provide grants and loans to local governments, industrial development boards, … Continue reading

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Minnie Pearl, Punk Rock Girl?

It is not every day that my knowledge of grunge or punk rock comes up in conversation now, but it did this morning.  The Dead Milkmen’s ‘hit’, “Punk Rock Girl”, mentions Hickman County’s hometown girl from Grinders Switch, Minnie Pearl. By the … Continue reading

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Arts and Ag Tour

I messed up the link to the Hickman County Arts and Ag Tour Blog in an earlier post, so this correction gives me an excuse to give the day a new plug. Farms and arts studios will be open for … Continue reading

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Let’s make a deal!

Startup America Partnership compiles great deals to help entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses. A resource for helpful business information worth checking out can be found on the Hickman County Business Website.

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