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Economic Development Foundation Looks To The Next Generation For New Leadership

Joey Palacios
/
Texas Public Radio
Jenna Saucedo-Hererra, newly selected President and CEO of the San Antonio EDF, poses for a photo with San Antonio Mayor Ivy Taylor

The San Antonio Economic Development Foundation, tasked with bringing new business to San Antonio, has chosen 29-year-old Jenna Saucedo-Herrera as its new president and CEO.

 

  

 

San Antonio’s Economic Development Foundation is a private non-profit that touts bringing 450 companies and 100,000 jobs to the Alamo City since 1974. Saucedo-Herrera says the mission of the agency is to make San Antonio appealing to the business world. “The vision is to be at the top of the list for all organizations that are looking to relocate to San Antonio or expand here.”

 

It’s new blood like Saucedo-Herrera that San Antonio Mayor Ivy Taylor says is a step in the right direction. “Times have changed and the whole economic development landscape has changed and so I think it’s great to bring in fresh new energy,” Taylor says.

 

Saucedo-Herrera says one of her goals is to help create the workforce that companies desire. “To focus on workforce you need to target the sector that makes sense," she explains. "We’ve got a large millennial population in San Antonio, [but] the problem is that there isn’t a large portion of that population that’s in professional career tracks, which is okay, but we need a healthy balance of everything."

 

She’ll take over as president in the coming weeks. She’s currently Vice President of Public Affairs and Brand Management at CPS Energy.

Joey Palacios can be reached atJoey@TPR.org and on Twitter at @Joeycules