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Enterprise Florida begins search for new leader
Enterprise Florida, the state’s business-recruitment agency, is undertaking a 90-day national search for a new president, a position typically appointed by the governor.
The Enterprise Florida Board of Directors on Wednesday also formally named Marc Adler, the agency’s deputy secretary of commerce, as interim leader.
Adler has been at the helm since Jamal Sowell stepped down as president and CEO in October to prepare for specialized training with the U.S. Navy Reserve.
Adler said he viewed the 90-day appointment as more than a “caretaker” role.
“I know that to keep pace with our governor, and the shared wisdom of this board, we have no time to pause, because time is consistently working against us,” Adler said. “On behalf of the professional staff of Enterprise Florida, I pledge to you that we are heading into the new year with strength and a clear result we want to manufacture in this state. We want to double down on economic diversification and innovation. We want to empower rural Florida. We want to support small- and minority-owned businesses. We want to expand our export opportunities for Florida. We want to tell Florida's story of broad-based economic freedom.”
Sowell was the Port Tampa Bay chief of staff in December 2018 when tapped by DeSantis to run Enterprise Florida.
The Enterprise Florida Executive Committee in a Nov. 12 conference call temporarily gave Adler, the senior staff member at the agency, authority to sign contracts, a duty restricted to the president.
Business Beat - Week of May 10th
